On Wednesday, a 20-year-old COVID-19 patient issued an apology letter on social media and debunked rumors about her spreading the virus by going to several bars.

(Screenshot of the apology letter)

“I want to apologize to residents in Chengdu for causing you inconvenience and disrupting your normal life,” the patient, surnamed Zhao, said in the post. “After I tested positive for the virus, I immediately reported my footprint to health authorities for contact tracing.”

Zhao is the granddaughter of a coroanvirus patient Chengdu, Southwest China’s Sichuan Province reported on Monday. The city has confirmed five cases this week and entered “wartime mode” to prevent the spread of the virus.

While Zhao is now in insolation, the leak of her personal information on Tuesday has led to abusive remarks and disinformation online, and even harassment calls.

In the apology letter, she clarified that her visits to bars is part of her marketing job and she had no idea that her grandmother was infected back then.

“I don’t understand why there are so many people attacking me. I just caught the virus by accident and I am a victim, too,” she said.

“I hope everyone can follow COVID-19 protocols and beat the pandemic as soon as possible,” she said. “And I hope people can understand me.”

(Compiled by Xie Fuyu)