A scandal involving a high-profile celebrity and two surrogate children has rocked Chinese social media, setting off heated debate over whether there should be an outright ban of surrogacy in China.

At the centre of the controversy is popular actress Zheng Shuang, who has been accused by her former partner, producer Zhang Heng, of abandoning their two children born to US-based surrogate mothers after the couple’s relationship ended before the children were born.