Lin Liyi, the grandson of former Wukan village Party chief, Lin Zulian, drew attention online on Aug 5 by posting on Wechat that he was about to commit suicide, attracting much media speculation that it might be the result of his grandfather's imprisonment.

Lin came out on Weibo the following day to say that his former posts had been in response to a quarrel with his girlfriend, and that he was trying to get a reaction out of her by saying that he was going to swallow some pills and commit suicide.

The 21-year-old rejected much of the media's speculation that the incident was the result of the imprisonment of his grandfather. He said in his post on Weibo, that it was nothing to do with his grandfather, and advised the media to not "cook up hype" surrounding the political situation.

Lin's grandfather, Lin Zulian, was arrested in June accused of corruption and has since admitted to the charges.

Wukan village in Guangdong first came to international attention in 2011 when locals began protesting about what they claimed to be illegal land grabs.

On Aug 6, Lin comes out on Weibo to say that his former posts had been in response to a quarrel with his girlfriend, and that he was trying to get a reaction out of her by saying that he was going to swallow some pills and commit suicide. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]