Hero in Adversity

Lan Jianguo, known as Brother Lan, came to be called "Hero" as an adult. Born into a working-class family, his father was a tailor and his mother a factory worker.

Influenced from childhood by both his father's cowardly nature and his mother's background in an old military-officer family, he developed a personality that was both insecure and proud. He resolved from an early age to grow up into a hero with formidable martial arts skills, a generous heart, and a readiness to help those in need. He trained hard and befriended a group of fellow disciples, whom he swore brotherhood with.

After enlisting, he was reported for his grandfather's background and sent home by the army. He later went to work in an oil field, where he was repeatedly reprimanded and detained for fighting, until he was framed and sent to prison.

With help from others, he was released early and returned to his hometown. With the help of a childhood friend, and after being tempered by one upheaval after another, he eventually made something of himself.