Zhao Jianguo

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Zhao Jianguo (赵建国)
Gender	Male
Age	Early forties at his introduction 23
Affiliation	Lotus Police Station, Deep City 23
Occupation/Role	Deputy chief of Lotus Police Station 23
Father	Zhao Tiezhu 26
Spouse	Shen Jing 27
Son	Zhao Mingyuan 29
First Appearance	Chapter 23, “Twisting the Truth” 23

Background / History

Zhao grew up around Hung Hing through his father, Zhao Tiezhu, a longtime sworn brother of Chen Desheng. Tiezhu and the other founders had worked on Deep City’s docks and construction sites before banding together against local gangs. Zhao and Chen Jingshen were childhood friends from their earliest years 25 26.

The violence surrounding Hung Hing shaped Zhao’s decision to become a police officer. As a child, he watched his mother cry over his father’s repeated absences and fighting. When Tiezhu was brought home covered in blood, she knelt and begged him to stop. Zhao resolved that he would not live the same way 26.

When Zhao married Shen Jing, he was an ordinary officer earning a little over 2,000 yuan a month, while she earned 1,800. They lived in a rented home without summer air-conditioning; Shen later recalls him sitting shirtless and fanning her by hand 27.

By the time of the hotel case, Zhao is a deputy station chief. He worries that classmates who entered policing after him have already become station chiefs or moved to the district bureau. He attributes his slow advancement to not pulling strings, while Jingshen remarks that he does not know how to “play the game” 27.

Despite those career frustrations, his family is financially comfortable because of Tiezhu’s accumulated wealth. Zhao chooses a duplex of over 200 square meters in an upscale residential complex rather than a villa, believing conspicuous housing would attract unnecessary attention to someone in his position 27.

Appearance

• Build: Stocky and not particularly tall 23.
• Face: Square, with thick eyebrows and tightly pressed lips 23.
• Family resemblance: His son, Mingyuan, resembles Zhao in his younger days, particularly in his square face and thick eyebrows 29.

Personality

Zhao initially presents a restrained, difficult-to-read manner. At the hotel, he listens to the conflicting accounts without visibly siding with either party. His quiet authority is enough to silence the room when he tells everyone to stop arguing 23.

His approach to work includes a significant lapse in judgment: he dismisses Chen Yuan and Zhang Xiu’e’s case as a minor fight and delegates it to Liu Ming despite knowing Liu is acquainted with Wang Dahai. He considers ordinary business contacts acceptable as long as they do not cross a line. When he later discovers that Liu ordered detention without properly investigating, Zhao insists on reviewing evidence and personally acts to correct the injustice 25 29.

With people close to him, Zhao is affectionate, humorous, and compassionate. He jokes freely with Lei Zhen, takes pride in his son’s academic results, and remains openly loving toward Shen Jing. Although weary of serving as the intermediary between Jingshen and Desheng, he speaks candidly when he realizes how lonely and elderly Desheng has become 26 27 29.

Abilities & Skills

Investigation and Surveillance Review

Zhao uses surveillance footage to identify people and test disputed accounts 26 29.

• Proposes tracing footage from surrounding intersections to locate Desheng’s unidentified rescuer 26.
• Recognizes Chen Yuan in the rescue video from his profile, build, age, and clothing after meeting him at the hotel 29.
• Orders Liu to review hotel surveillance rather than rely solely on statements and injury reports 29.

Police Leadership

As deputy chief, Zhao directs officers’ handling of the hotel incident and its aftermath 23 29 31.

• Orders the participants to give statements and sends the injured parties to hospital first 23.
• Rejects Liu’s use of detention to improve the station’s performance figures 29.
• Personally goes to the Second Detention Center to secure Chen Yuan and Zhang Xiu’e’s release 29 31.
• Orders thorough questioning of Wang Dahai, Sun Deming, and Li Yan, calling for the harshest penalties 31.

Personal Mediation

Zhao uses his longstanding familiarity with the Chen family to communicate between father and son 25 27.

• Checks Desheng’s condition at Jingshen’s request and conveys their concerns to one another 25 27.
• Challenges Jingshen’s blame over his relationship with Lin Nianwei, pointing out that Lin Zhengye—not Desheng—opposed it 27.
• Describes Desheng’s lonely holidays and annual birthday meals for his absent son, prompting Jingshen to consider returning 27 28.

Relationships

• Zhao Tiezhu — Father and former Hung Hing fighter. His injuries and their effect on Zhao’s mother helped motivate Zhao’s rejection of underworld life 26.
• Shen Jing — Wife and household registration officer at the district police bureau. She reassures Zhao that she values his honesty and their family life over further promotion 27.
• Zhao Mingyuan — Eighteen-year-old son. Zhao is quietly proud of his citywide mock-exam ranking of 38th and shows his care through everyday reminders and school rides 29.
• Chen Jingshen — Childhood friend. Their contact dwindled after Jingshen moved to Sea City, but Zhao remains willing to help him and confront his prolonged estrangement 25 27 28.
• Chen Desheng — His father’s longtime sworn brother, whom Zhao respectfully addresses as “Uncle.” Desheng entrusts him with helping locate his rescuer 25 26.
• Lei Zhen — Familiar associate with whom Zhao exchanges teasing banter. Lei sends him the accident footage and warmly reminds him to drive slowly when he leaves 26.
• Liu Ming — Subordinate entrusted with the hotel case. Zhao later rebukes his inadequate investigation and orders him to act against the actual suspects 25 29.
• Chen Yuan and Zhang Xiu’e — Initially detained after Zhao delegates their case. Zhao subsequently secures their release, apologizes for their ordeal, and drives them home 25 29 31.

Story Role / Major Arcs

The Hotel Case and Wrongful Detention

Zhao arrives at the Shangri-La with two officers after hotel manager Zhou Hai calls the police. Wang Dahai, Sun Deming, and Li Yan coordinate accusations against Zhang Xiu’e and Chen Yuan, while Zhang describes being forcibly taken to the room and threatened with sexual assault. Zhao orders statements but leaves the case to Liu Ming, treating it as a low-priority fight 23 25.

Liu sends Chen and Zhang to detention, citing the injured accusers’ accounts and the station’s poor performance ranking. The following morning, Zhao questions the speed of that decision and demands surveillance review. The footage exposes the coercion and false accusations; Zhao orders the three suspects detained and goes himself to release Chen and Zhang 29.

At the detention-center workshop, Zhao arrives after Chen has defeated a large group of inmates and is stunned by the scene. After their release, he stops the suspects’ pleas to Zhang, directs Liu to question them thoroughly, and offers Chen and Zhang a ride home 30 31.

The Chen Family and the Unidentified Rescuer

Jingshen’s request to check on Desheng draws Zhao away from the hotel case. During the visit, Desheng asks him to help find the young man who saved him from the overturned car. Lei supplies the intersection footage, and Zhao agrees to trace the rescuer 25 26.

That night, Zhao calls Jingshen and urges him to visit his father. Their 47-minute conversation makes Jingshen revisit painful memories and begin reconsidering his long refusal to return to Deep City 27 28.

Zhao subsequently identifies Chen Yuan as the rescuer and confirms the incident during the drive home. His information enables Desheng to invite Chen over; he also tells Desheng about Chen’s detention-center fight, helping draw attention to the young man’s abilities before he is offered bodyguard work 29 31 33 34.

Notable Quotes

“People have different aspirations, I suppose.” 26

“Your father's getting old.” 27

“Just watch it when I tell you to! Enough of the backtalk!” 29