Bai Hongbo

Biodata

Background

Bai Hongbo represents the Bai Family’s sanitation business after the heads of the Su, Bai, Liu, and Kong families are detained on charges of smuggling military industrial supplies. His family initially seeks to have his father classified as an accessory to secure a lighter sentence, rather than confront Changqing Company directly 4.

Although he spends freely on friends and entertainment, Bai is not an exceptionally wealthy heir. He later admits that he dislikes their current work but cannot abandon it: his father is aging, and the household depends on him 26 38.

Appearance

• Heavy build: Weighs at least two hundred pounds; his weight tears through the awning used during the escape from Changqing Company’s office 6 36.
• Exaggerated gait: Walks with a conspicuous, splay-footed swagger 8.
• Head bandage: Wears a white bandage after being beaten at Changqing Company’s freight yard 8.

Personality

Bai considers himself a cultured man, but his attempts at dignity frequently give way to profanity, boasting, and crude flirting. He enjoys presenting himself as a businessman and a fearless ally, even when he is frightened. After Lu Feng rejects his attempt at reconciliation, Bai tells his relatives that he made the call to declare a counterattack instead 6 7 34.

His vanity makes him susceptible to flattery. At the Su Family banquet, Su Tianyu recasts Bai’s unsuccessful escape from Lu Feng as a heroic rescue. Unwilling to undermine that flattering account, Bai embraces it, drinks heavily, and pledges full support for the alliance 9.

Beneath his bluster, Bai can be generous and considerate. He gives an injured foreman’s family his remaining cash, stays to comfort them, and does not pressure them to continue protesting. Su Tianyu describes him as genuinely approachable despite his apparently crafty, selfish behavior 12 26.

His courage is inconsistent rather than entirely absent. He initially seeks shelter during the Fortune House fight, then joins the battle after his younger brother rallies him. Later, faced with a dangerous operation near the docks, he openly chooses to stay behind despite the threat to his family’s business stake 22 49.

Abilities & Skills

Socializing and Conversation

Bai can strike up a conversation with almost anyone without appearing embarrassed, even when the other person is unreceptive 35.

• Discusses cosmetics with Linda while waiting for his business meeting 34.
• Keeps parties lively through games, jokes, and enthusiastic hosting 26 27.
• Talks so incessantly during hospitalization that Su Tianyu changes rooms after three days 24.

Personal Connections

His broad social circle provides practical contacts, though it does not give him enough influence to resolve the sanitation dispute alone 4 35.

• Receives information from a city Management Council contact about officials dissatisfied with Changqing Company 19.
• Claims to have numerous friends at the docks when considering the sea-freight business 33.
• Finds a suitable service center for An Qiqi’s imported car 35.

Business Operations

Bai brings his family’s capital and chamber-of-commerce backing into Yu Mingyuan’s venture. These resources make the Bai Family useful for distribution and sales 33 34.

• Represents the Bai Family in negotiations and company matters 4 30 34.
• Helps launch the boats for the first offshore cargo pickup 36.
• Later shares responsibility with Kong Zhenghui for distributing landed cargo through their sales channels 44.
• Seeks Su Tianyu’s advice on temporary-worker contract templates rather than drafting them independently 30.

Improvised Fighting

Bai fights with available objects when cornered, but is readily overwhelmed by stronger opponents 6 22 36.

• Uses a metal-shaft electric mop during the freight-yard brawl 6.
• Wields a chair at Fortune House, helping his younger brother occupy attackers while Su Tianyu fights Lu Feng 22 23.
• Is knocked down by a single kick from Wei Xiangzuo 36.

Equipment & Items

• Flip phone — Carries it as a symbol of businesslike status; its dead battery leaves him unaware of his father’s release 7 8 27.
• Large off-road vehicle — Drives it home to ask his father’s permission to join the cargo venture 33.

Relationships

• Su Tianyu — Close friend and business ally. Their relationship begins with resentment over being dragged into a fight, develops through regular visits and contract advice, and leads to Su securing Bai’s place in Yu Mingyuan’s venture 8 9 30 34.
• Su Tiannan — Fellow company representative. Bai agrees to support his leadership during the sanitation crisis and later endorses closer cooperation between their families 4 27.
• Old Man Bai — Father and family elder. His detention motivates Bai’s early efforts; after release, he approves the cargo venture once he learns Su Zhengcai is participating 7 30 33.
• Bai’s younger brother — Protects Bai at Fortune House, pulls him up after he is slashed, and inspires him to fight back 22.
• Kong Zhenghui — Sanitation and cargo-business partner. Kong later warns that refusing to help defend the venture will cost the Bai Family its place in it 12 34 44 49.
• Lu Feng — Feared adversary. Bai unsuccessfully seeks reconciliation after their first clash and later questions him about the stolen sea shipment 7 46.
• Su Miaomiao — Longstanding acquaintance and romantic interest. She finds his pretentious behavior irritating and does not reciprocate his interest 8 26 38.
• Wu Shixiong / Big Bear — Friend and fellow worker. Bai joins his celebratory breakfast and later accompanies Su Tianyu in an unsuccessful attempt to visit him in police custody 38 42.
• Yu Mingyuan — Business partner who admits the Bai Family into his venture through Su Tianyu’s recommendation 34.
• Doll — Young woman Bai flirts with while arranging An Qiqi’s car repairs. He claims to have studied directing and offers help finding an internship; she finds his sentimental text amusing 35.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Resistance to Changqing Company

At Fuhai Teahouse, Bai accepts Su Tiannan’s argument that surrendering their work zones will not protect the four families. He agrees to back Su’s leadership, although his support remains conditional on a negotiated settlement 4 5.

Su Tianyu’s attack on Lu Feng forces Bai into the confrontation. Bai first tries to explain himself to Changqing’s men, then fights after being struck with a stool. Su Tianyu helps him reach the window, but Bai falls through the awning and injures his tailbone. He subsequently flees Lu Feng’s pursuit 5 6.

After Lu Feng threatens both him and his father over the phone, Bai commits publicly to collective resistance. The four companies shut down, leaving more than sixty-five percent of Zhannan’s sanitation workers off duty. At the ensuing banquet, the Su Family’s praise wins his renewed pledge of support—though he remembers little of it the next morning 7 8 9.

When Bai Family foreman Li Gang is badly injured, Bai promises company coverage for medical bills, lost wages, pension, and compensation. He gives the family a little over three thousand from his own wallet, explicitly separate from the company’s obligations, and excuses them from further protests 12.

Fortune House and Recovery

Bai helps identify an opportunity to approach officials opposed to Changqing Company’s monopoly and accompanies the others as they seek political support 19 20.

During the Fortune House assault, he tries to enter the bathroom where Liu the Second has taken shelter. Liu refuses to open the door, and Bai is slashed across the back. His younger brother rescues and rallies him; the two then engage several attackers, reducing the pressure on Su Tianyu 22 23.

The Bai Family receives one hundred thousand of Changqing Company’s six hundred thousand compensation payment. The allocation reflects its smaller contribution compared with the Su Family’s police connections and the Kong Family’s media work 24.

After more than twenty days of recovery, Bai hosts an outing aboard Treasure Music One. His closing toast urges the families to maintain their alliance, after which the Bai, Su, and Kong families begin visiting more frequently. Bai stays out that night and misses his father’s return from detention because his phone has run out of battery 25 26 27.

Entry into the Cargo Venture

Su Tianyu approaches Bai about joining Yu Mingyuan’s goods business. Bai obtains his father’s approval, and Su persuades Yu that the Bai Family’s chamber-of-commerce connections justify including them 33 34.

To thank Su, Bai pays for An Qiqi’s car repairs and helps locate the garage. He treats the money as a gift rather than a loan 34 35.

Bai participates in the first offshore pickup, but the returning crew is intercepted by Wei Xiangzuo’s Dock Gang. He underestimates the small group confronting them and is immediately knocked down. Tang Baiqing negotiates their release, allowing the shipment to continue 36 37.

Once the operation becomes routine, Bai no longer needs to attend every pickup. Su Tianyu manages collection at sea, while Bai and Kong Zhenghui take over distribution after the goods reach shore 44.

Shipment Hijacking

Following the seizure of a shipment and five crew members, Bai accompanies Li Tao to question Lu Feng at Qiu Mountain Temple. Though visibly afraid of Lu, he repeatedly asks whether Changqing Company took the cargo. He returns convinced that Lu and Changqing were not responsible 45 46.

As Su Tianyu prepares a dangerous response near the docks, Bai declines to participate and offers to wait for news. Kong Zhenghui warns that the Bai Family cannot retain a share in the sea operation if it refuses to help protect the business. The provided account ends before Bai answers that ultimatum 49.

Notable Quotes

“Money doesn't mean shit. You can't bring it into this world, and you can't take it with you when you die.” 34

“My dad's getting old, and there's a whole household waiting to be fed... Ah, once a man grows up, his life isn't his own anymore.” 38