Zhao Zhixiong

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Zhao Zhixiong (赵志雄)
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Zhao Group / Zhao Family
Occupation/Role	Zhao Group department deputy general manager; live-in son-in-law of the Zhao Family 115
Status	Imprisoned; his critically ill daughter later dies without receiving a timely bone-marrow transplant 117 136
First Appearance	Chapter 106

Background / History

Zhao Zhixiong abandoned Lin Xianglan while she was pregnant with Lin Yuan. He later married into the wealthy Zhao Family and had a daughter with his wife, Zhao Cuimei. When confronted by Lin Yuan, Zhao claims he did not know Xianglan was pregnant until after he had started his new family; Lin Yuan rejects this explanation and treats him as a dead father. 107

He returns after years of absence because his daughter is seriously ill and requires bone marrow from a close relative. Treating the request as a transaction, he initially offers Lin Yuan two million yuan—one million before the donation and one million afterward—then raises the offer to five million. Lin Yuan refuses every offer. 106 107

Conflict with Lin Yuan

Coercion Campaign

After Lin Yuan rejects him, Zhao Zhixiong refuses to apologize to Lin Xianglan as Lin Yuan demands. He and Zhao Cuimei escalate from monetary offers to coercion, intending to force Lin Yuan into donating bone marrow. 108

Zhao uses the Zhao Family’s influence to have Lin Xianglan fired from her cleaning job at Balance Technology and orders people to block her from finding new employment. He also attempts to have Lin Yuan expelled from university through a proposed donation. 109

These tactics fail when Lin Yuan uses his 30% stake in Balance Technology to have his mother reinstated in an easier position at triple her former salary. 110

Business Retaliation

Lin Yuan bans every Zhao Family member from Cloudtop Hotel, publicly humiliating Zhao Zhixiong in front of a major client during an important business dinner. Zhao is stunned to learn that the hotel’s previously anonymous owner is the son he dismissed as poor. 110 111

Lin Yuan subsequently cancels Zhao Group’s planned partnership with International Shopping Network, again revealing himself as its chairman only after Zhao begs to speak with him. 112

When Zhao Group seeks to cooperate on the Sun Bay development project, Lin Yuan rejects its proposal specifically because of Zhao Zhixiong. The failure costs Zhao further standing within the Zhao Group and leads to harsh reprimands from his father-in-law. 114 115

Attempted Investigation and Public Collapse

Seeking leverage, Zhao hires a hacker to investigate Lin Yuan. Unaware that the hacker is Lin Yuan operating under the identity “Shadow,” he clicks a malicious link that grants Lin Yuan access to his phone. 115

Lin Yuan accesses Zhao’s Zhao Group information and private media, then distributes intimate photos and videos of Zhao and Zhao Cuimei to Zhao’s clients, employees, contacts, and company group chats. The scandal devastates Zhao’s reputation and leaves him socially isolated. 116 117

Final Attack and Arrest

Driven by humiliation and desperation over his daughter’s illness, Zhao disguises himself, carries a kitchen knife to Cloudtop Hotel, and attempts to kill Lin Yuan. Lily, Lin Yuan’s robot butler, blocks the attack and defeats Zhao, breaking several of his ribs. Lin Yuan orders the police to be called rather than allowing Lily to kill him. 117

Zhao is arrested and later remains imprisoned. His daughter dies after failing to receive a timely bone-marrow transplant. 117 136

Personality

Zhao Zhixiong is pragmatic, calculating, and highly dependent on wealth and family influence. He initially assumes that money will secure Lin Yuan’s cooperation, then turns to economic pressure and threats when bribery fails. 106 107 109

His concern for his daughter is genuine, but it becomes inseparable from selfishness and entitlement: he views the son he abandoned chiefly as a source of bone marrow. His setbacks progressively erode his composure, culminating in an attempted murder after his public disgrace. 115 117

He is also submissive within the Zhao Family. Zhao Cuimei openly berates him, while Chairman Zhao repeatedly blames him for the group’s losses and strips him of influence. 108 114 115

Relationships

• Lin Yuan — Biological son whom Zhao abandoned; Zhao seeks his bone marrow for his sick daughter, while Lin Yuan rejects him as a father and systematically retaliates against him. 106 107 111 117
• Lin Xianglan — Former partner and Lin Yuan’s mother; Zhao abandoned her while she was pregnant, then targets her employment to pressure Lin Yuan. 107 109
• Zhao Cuimei — Wife and member of the wealthy Zhao Family; she supports coercing Lin Yuan, is publicly disgraced in Zhao’s leaked private media, and later seeks revenge against Lin Yuan. 108 116 136
• Zhao Zhixiong’s daughter — His seriously ill daughter, whose need for a bone-marrow transplant motivates his return to Lin Yuan; she later dies without a timely transplant. 106 136
• Chairman Zhao — Zhao Cuimei’s father and Zhao Zhixiong’s father-in-law; repeatedly reprimands Zhao for damaging Zhao Group’s business interests. 114 115
• Zhao Wu — Zhao Cuimei’s younger brother; later organizes an ambush against Lin Yuan in pursuit of revenge and bone marrow. 118

Notable Quotes

“I am your biological father, Zhao Zhixiong.” 106

“I have a daughter with a serious illness. I need you to donate bone marrow to save her. Afterward, I'll give you two million yuan as compensation!” 106

“Lin Yuan, you ruined my reputation! I want you dead!” 117