Zhuang Luo

Biodata

Background

Zhuang Luo rose to prominence through My Stepmom Isn't My Grandma's Biological Daughter, earning the White Hair Floating Newcomer Award. His manager sheltered him from negative comments, leaving him unaccustomed to the direct criticism he later received from Xu Su 2 24.

He and Li Weizhou became romantically involved two years before the opening variety-show events but concealed their relationship while their careers were rising. Despite knowing that the original Xu Su liked Li Weizhou, Zhuang Luo privately encouraged him to confess. He used Xu Su’s pursuit to reassure himself of Li Weizhou’s devotion rather than disclose that they were already together 2 24.

Appearance

• Slightly curled eyelashes: Emphasized when he adopts an aggrieved expression during a confrontation with Xu Su 23.
• Delicate presentation: His all-white outfit and tearful expression are compared to a fragile white flower 23.
• Carefully maintained image: During a watermelon-eating contest, he prioritizes avoiding unflattering footage over eating quickly 31.
• Visible stress habit: He digs his thumbnails into his index fingers while suppressing anger; on one occasion, he draws blood 31 49 51.

Personality

Zhuang Luo cultivates an image of gentleness, innocence, and consideration. He comforts other guests, speaks about mutual understanding, and presents himself as reluctant to hold grudges. His private thoughts frequently contradict this appearance: he treats Xu Su’s hostility as jealousy, resents Huo Yuchen’s favoritism, and looks for ways to turn public sympathy to his advantage 12 21 31 44.

His ambition makes romantic relationships a potential source of protection and career opportunities. After seeing Huo Yuchen support Xu Su, he considers finding a more influential partner. He later tolerates Fang Han’s unwanted public intimacy because he still needs Fang Han’s connections to rebuild his career 31 59.

He consistently deflects responsibility for his schemes. Even after his affair is exposed and his career collapses, he blames Xu Su for ruining him and Li Weizhou for failing to protect him. During their final confrontation, he describes choosing an incapable partner—not deceiving or betraying others—as his mistake 105.

Skills & Tactics

Acting and Public Presentation

Zhuang Luo’s professional breakthrough earns him a newcomer award, while his off-camera conflicts repeatedly involve staged displays of vulnerability 2 7.

• Uses tears, hesitant speech, and wounded expressions to attract sympathy from viewers and protective responses from Li Weizhou and Fang Han 23 35 44.
• Maintains affectionate on-camera exchanges with Li Weizhou despite their private arguments 32.
• Joins Li Weizhou’s public apology to benefit from his image-rehabilitation effort 52.
• Fakes fainting during the dispute over his facial injuries; the deception is exposed when Xu Su pulls down his trousers and he immediately springs up 89 90.

Framing and Reputation Manipulation

Zhuang Luo attempts to make Xu Su appear abusive while presenting himself as forgiving or concerned 46 87 90.

• Slaps his own face during the endorsement dispute to stage an accusation against Xu Su 46 47.
• Hides a recording phone near the shore, intending to use selectively edited footage against Xu Su 87.
• Repeatedly strikes his own face after Xu Su leaves, then tries to attribute the resulting injuries to him 91 92.
• His plans fail when Xu Su notices inconsistencies in his behavior and drone footage reveals the self-inflicted injuries 87 92.

Relationships

• Xu Su — Former friend and principal adversary. Zhuang Luo encouraged the original Xu Su to pursue Li Weizhou while concealing their own relationship. Their televised confrontations culminate in Xu Su exposing both his framing attempts and his affair with Fang Han 2 23 24 92 94.
• Li Weizhou — Long-term boyfriend, later estranged. Li initially protects and comforts him, but their relationship deteriorates after the concealed dating history becomes public. The affair’s exposure destroys what remains of their relationship; Li later threatens him with a knife 5 25 35 94 105.
• Fang Han — Affair partner and prospective source of career support. Zhuang Luo promises to leave Li Weizhou after the show. Fang later confines and abuses him; Zhuang Luo eventually reports him, leading to Fang’s imprisonment on a rape charge 59 104 106.
• Huo Yuchen — An influential man whose attention Zhuang Luo envies and tries unsuccessfully to win. Huo ignores his overtures, supports Xu Su, and helps dismantle his accusations 22 31 33 49 91.
• Lu Jing — Variety-show teammate who openly challenges his behavior. Lu accuses him of barely trying in the watermelon-eating contest and refuses to accept his innocent explanation 31.
• Manager — Initially shields him from negative feedback and protests to Cheng Nan when Xu Su exposes his concealed relationship. By the later fallout, Zhuang Luo has been abandoned by his agency and family 24 105.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Farm Variety Show and the Concealed Relationship

Zhuang Luo joins the farm-show cast alongside Xu Su and Li Weizhou. During the masked introduction, he wears the pig-face mask; Li recognizes him from his stated interest in growing flowers. Li subsequently tries to leave him the thatched hut by choosing a cave, but Lu Jing claims the hut first 4 5.

His exchanges with Xu Su divide the livestream audience. Supporters interpret his wounded reactions as evidence of bullying, while other viewers criticize his apparent innocence and reluctance to take on work. Zhuang Luo initially reassures himself that Xu Su is simply jealous of his relationship with Li Weizhou 9 12 14 23.

The conflict escalates when Xu Su reveals that Zhuang Luo and Li Weizhou have been together for two years, rather than only recently becoming a couple. Xu Su also exposes Zhuang Luo’s private encouragement of his pursuit. Both men deny the account, but Li’s destruction of Xu Su’s phone after hearing about recordings and footage intensifies the scandal and causes filming to be suspended 24 25.

Afterward, Zhuang Luo envies the protection Huo Yuchen gives Xu Su and considers securing a better-connected partner. He tries to impress Huo while harvesting lotus roots, but Huo ignores his attempts to start a conversation 31 32 33.

Endorsement Dispute

Fang Han arranges for Zhuang Luo and Xu Su to share an endorsement shoot. Cheng Nan explains that presenting them as friendly collaborators could make their earlier conflict appear scripted, rehabilitating Zhuang Luo at Xu Su’s expense. Contract penalties make withdrawing costly 45.

When their private argument turns hostile, Zhuang Luo threatens Xu Su and slaps his own face to begin a staged accusation. Fang Han takes his side and demands that Xu Su submit to his authority 46 47.

Huo Yuchen intervenes after learning that Fang Han tried to make Xu Su share the endorsement and surrender the center position. Zhuang Luo attempts to protect Fang by claiming the dispute arose from his own misunderstanding. Huo turns Fang’s earlier demand for ten kowtows against them, requiring Zhuang Luo to kneel and kowtow to Fang instead. Fang pressures him to comply, deepening Zhuang Luo’s resentment toward Xu Su 48 49.

Island Dating Show and Affair Exposure

Zhuang Luo joins Li Weizhou’s attempt to win back viewers through a public acknowledgment of their mistakes. Meanwhile, he is secretly involved with Fang Han and has promised to break up with Li after the show. Although he finds Fang’s increasingly intimate public behavior repulsive, he tolerates it to preserve access to his connections 52 59.

As Li becomes more attentive to Xu Su, Zhuang Luo feels abandoned. He runs to the beach expecting someone to comfort him, then mistakes Xu Su—who has brought him a sleeping bag—for Li and tells him to leave. He later confronts Li over his failure to look for him and his attention to someone else 68 71.

Zhuang Luo subsequently follows Xu Su to the shore and hides a phone to record their confrontation. After he grabs Xu Su and refuses to release him, Xu Su slaps him once. Xu Su then discovers the recording setup and identifies the intended framing attempt 86 87.

After Xu Su leaves, Zhuang Luo repeatedly slaps his own face, producing severe swelling. The following morning, he uses the injuries to solicit sympathy and accuse Xu Su. Huo questions inconsistencies in his account, and drone footage establishes that most of the damage was self-inflicted 88 90 91 92.

Facing further evidence, Zhuang Luo admits to falsely accusing Xu Su and tries to obtain forgiveness before a USB slideshow can be played. Xu Su refuses. The photographs reveal Zhuang Luo’s affair with Fang Han, devastating Li Weizhou and sending the scandal onto the trending rankings 93 94.

Confinement, Knife Threat, and Imprisonment

After the airport confrontation involving Fang Han and Li Weizhou, Fang confines Zhuang Luo in a villa and abuses him. Zhuang Luo eventually locates scissors and threatens Fang in an attempt to force his release, but the attempt initially fails 96 104.

Abandoned by his agency and family, Zhuang Luo later mistakes Li Weizhou’s visit to his apartment for an attempt at reconciliation. Instead, Li confronts him about their ruined relationship. Zhuang Luo blames Xu Su and condemns Li for failing to protect him. The confrontation escalates when Li presses a knife to his neck during a hacked livestream 105.

Viewers intervene rather than leave him to die, and Zhuang Luo survives. He and Li Weizhou are imprisoned for their respective sharp-weapon incidents. Zhuang Luo also reports Fang Han, who is subsequently imprisoned on a rape charge 106.

Trivia

• His interest in growing flowers allows Li Weizhou to identify him during the masked guessing game 5.
• Fans call his pairing with Li Weizhou the Zhuang-Zhou ship 5 10.
• The description of him as a “pig” after the shore incident refers to his severely swollen face, not a literal transformation 87 88.
• A viewer calling himself I’m Very Unhappy tells him about career ruin and a boyfriend falling for a supposedly treacherous friend—a story Zhuang Luo immediately finds uncomfortably familiar 80 81.