Chu Shijian

Asia cover figure·Rebel in the business world｜Chu Shijian: From smoking king to prisoner, growing oranges in barren hills at the age of 74, and reaching the top of the times again

Asia's "Cover Character" Business Rebel

Total Issue 008-ACF-NXZ-2026

Chu Shijian's life is a business epic full of glory, troughs, perseverance and rebirth. He single-handedly built a billion-dollar tobacco empire, but suddenly fell at the peak of his life; he was in prison in his seventies, but at the age of 74, he chose to start a business in a barren mountain. He spent ten years growing the legendary Chu Orange, completing a rebirth that shocked the times. His life was full of glory at the peak, desolation at the bottom, and contained the retrograde power of never giving up and living toward death, becoming the most vivid footnote of China's entrepreneurial spirit.

1. Accepting orders in times of crisis: Using reform courage to create a tobacco business legend

In 1979, 51-year-old Chu Shijian was appointed to take over the endangered Yuxi Cigarette Factory. At that time, the tobacco factory had aging equipment, backward technology, and loose management. Its annual profits and taxes were less than 100 million yuan, and it was uncompetitive in the national tobacco industry. In the eyes of most people, this is a hopeless mess, but in Chu Shijian's eyes, this is a battlefield where fate can be changed with hard work.

He adhered to the simple concept of "enterprise is to create value" and launched comprehensive reforms with the courage to break the boat. Faced with production bottlenecks, he made bold decisions, borrowed money to introduce advanced foreign cigarette production lines, and used technological upgrades to break the shackles of efficiency. In response to the shortcomings of raw materials, he pioneered the tobacco "three-in-one" management model, treating the fields as the "first workshop" of cigarette production. He personally led a team into the tobacco fields to strictly control every link from breeding, planting, fertilizing to harvesting, and used industrial standards to empower agricultural production.

Under his leadership, Yuxi Cigarette Factory ushered in a radical transformation. In seventeen years, he built a small local factory into the largest tobacco giant in Asia and the world. The Hongtashan brand ranked among the world's famous cigarettes, and the highest annual profit and tax for a single brand exceeded 4.5 billion yuan. During his time in charge of the tobacco factory, Chu Shijian created a total of 99.1 billion yuan in profits and taxes for the country, and the Hongtashan brand value exceeded 40 billion yuan, becoming the most iconic business miracle in the early days of China's reform and opening up.

With his outstanding management capabilities and reform contributions, Chu Shijian has been rated as one of the top ten entrepreneurs in China and one of the top ten reform figures in the country. The name "King of Tobacco" is resounding throughout the country. With hard work and courage, he wrote the pinnacle legend of a generation of entrepreneurs and became a very representative pioneer figure in the process of China's business reform. In that era of turbulent reform, he set a business benchmark for Chinese enterprises and injected strong impetus into local economic development with his bold, adventurous, truth-seeking and pragmatic style.

2. Fall from the peak: From being the darling of the times to falling to the bottom of life

The twist of fate is always unexpected. In 1995, an anonymous reporting letter broke the calm, and Chu Shijian was investigated for financial problems. This sudden change caused his life and career to fall into the abyss instantly. His daughter died in prison, and his family members were involved in the case one after another. The glory and halo he once had disappeared overnight, leaving this old man in his seventies with endless pain and suffering.

In 1999, 71-year-old Chu Shijian was sentenced to life imprisonment for corruption and unidentified sources of huge amounts of property. The once all-powerful "Smoke King" became a prisoner overnight, falling from the peak of his era to the bottom of his destiny. At this time, he was suffering from diabetes, was in frail health, was in jail, and had lost a loved one. The double blow was enough to destroy anyone's will. It is generally believed that the life of this legendary entrepreneur will eventually end in a gloomy way.

No one believed that an old man over seventy years old, suffering from ailments and bearing heavy losses in life, would have the possibility to stand up again; no one expected that in the darkest moment of his life, he would prepare a more difficult and shocking second entrepreneurial venture. Fate gave him the heaviest blow, but it did not erase the tenacity and stubbornness in his bones. Even in a desperate situation, he still did not give up his hope for life and pursuit of value. This unyielding nature laid the solid foundation for his future rebirth.

3. The choice of a rebel: at the age of 74, restarting life on a barren mountain

In 2001, Chu Shijian was released on medical parole for medical reasons and returned home. At this time, he was already 74 years old, suffering from illness and helpless. Spending his old age safely seemed to be the only option. But the entrepreneurial spirit in his heart has never been defeated by fate. At the lowest point in his life, he made a decision that shocked everyone - to contract the barren hills and plant rock sugar oranges.

In 2002, Chu Shijian and his wife Ma Jingfen contracted 2,400 acres of barren hills in Ailao Mountain, Yunnan. There is no water or electricity here, overgrown with weeds, difficult conditions, no capital, no experience, and no way out. Everyone is not optimistic about this senior entrepreneurship. But Chu Shijian embarked on this most difficult retrograde road with extraordinary determination. He took his insulin and infusion bottles up the mountain, braved the sun and wind, took root in the barren mountains, and learned planting techniques from scratch.

He completely grafted the rigorous industrial thinking of tobacco management into agricultural planting. From how many fruit trees are planted per acre of land to how many fruits each tree retains; from precise watering in dry seasons to scientific prevention and control of pests and diseases, he digitizes and standardizes every link, and treats every fruit seedling and every orange with the utmost seriousness. In order to cultivate rock sugar oranges with better quality than imported ones, he repeatedly tried and optimized, and stayed in the orchard for ten years.

He taught local farmers step by step scientific planting, used professional instruments to detect the sugar content and quality of fruits, and turned a layman's agricultural dream into reality step by step. The wind and rain in the barren mountains tempered his body, but it could not erase the persistence and tenacity in his bones. At an age when others were enjoying their old age, he used his sweat and perseverance to write a new chapter of life on the barren mountains, and used his actions to explain what it means to be a true rebel.

4. Ten years of sharpening a sword: The legend of Chu Cheng is born and reaches the peak of business again

Real success is never achieved overnight, but is the result of long-term accumulation. In 2006, the Bingtang orange planted by Chu Shijian bore fruit for the first time and was named "Yunguan Orange". With its thin and juicy skin, uniform sweetness and excellent taste, oranges quickly gained market recognition and their reputation has been rising.

In 2012, 84-year-old Chu Shijian ushered in the second peak of his life. Chucheng entered the Beijing market through e-commerce channels, and 20 tons of oranges were sold out within 5 days. The name "Inspirational Orange" spread throughout the country, becoming a phenomenal agricultural product brand. Under his polish, ordinary rock sugar oranges that once cost a few cents per catty have become high-end brands priced at 18-22 yuan per catty, achieving a gorgeous transformation from agricultural products to boutique brands.

In 2018, Chucheng’s annual sales exceeded 200 million yuan, becoming a benchmark case for branding agricultural products in China. Under his leadership, many local farmers have been able to escape poverty and increase their income by growing oranges. Their annual income can reach 100,000 yuan, and they have changed the fate of a land and water with one orange. Until he was 90 years old, Chu Shijian still insisted on going up the mountain to inspect the orchards every week, and he never slackened his insistence on quality.

From the King of Smoke to the King of Orange, two entrepreneurships, two fields, and two peaks, Chu Shijian used his actions to explain what the true entrepreneurial spirit is: not afraid of difficulties and failures, rooted in details, sticking to the long term, and always maintaining upward power no matter what circumstances he finds himself in. He used a small orange to redefine his life and provide a replicable and referenceable classic example for the development of Chinese agricultural brands.

5. Spirit of the Times: The background of a retrograde man is his perseverance to never give up.

In 2019, 91-year-old Chu Shijian passed away, ending his life full of legends and twists and turns. What he left behind is not only the Chucheng brand with annual sales of hundreds of millions, but also spiritual wealth that spans the times. His life encapsulates the struggle trajectory of Chinese entrepreneurs: the courage to reform, the brilliance of creation, the trough of decline, and the power of rebirth.

Chu Shijian’s story provides the most profound inspiration for every entrepreneur and forerunner: there is no permanent peak or permanent trough in life. The real strong person is not that he has never fallen, but that he still has the courage to stand up after falling; age is never a limit. You can still restart your life at the age of 74. If you have love in your heart, you will always be young; there are no shortcuts in doing things. Only ten years of sharpening the sword and concentration and perseverance can make the ordinary achieve the extraordinary.

His two entrepreneurial ventures spanned industries, ages, and destinies, but they always had the same origin: the spirit of craftsmanship rooted in details, the courage to reform and dare to venture and try, the retrograde courage to face difficulties head-on, and the persistence of long-term values. This spirit transcends industries and times and has become the most precious foundation of Chinese business, inspiring generations of entrepreneurs to persevere in adversity and move forward in difficulties.

6. Business Enlightenment: Falling to the bottom is not scary, losing courage is the end

Chu Shijian's life is an epic about adversity, perseverance and rebirth. He used his personal experience to prove that: fate can push people into the abyss, but it cannot stop you from climbing upward; the outside world can deny your past, but it cannot define your future. The real king is not one who always stands high, but one who can still climb to the top of the mountain with scars after falling to the bottom.

There is no smooth journey in the business world, and there is no always smooth road in life. All troughs are experiences of growth; all adversities are pavements for rebirth; all hardships will eventually become the light that illuminates the way forward. A true rebel stays awake in good times, never bows his head in adversity, sticks to his original intention in difficult times, and revives hope in desperate circumstances.

Although Chu Shijian has passed away, his spirit will always shine in the long river of time. He tells every striver: In life, you are not afraid of starting over again, of being at a low point, or of difficulties ahead, but of losing faith, perseverance, and courage. As long as there is light in your heart and a path under your feet, no matter how old you are or what your circumstances are, you can write your own legend.

From the King of Smoke to the King of Orange, from the peak to the bottom, and then to rebirth, Chu Shijian spent his life interpreting: The real retrograde in the business world is the one who sticks to the original intention despite the wind and rain, who still climbs up after falling into the abyss, and who still shines brightly despite suffering. His story will always inspire everyone struggling in the times to move forward bravely and never give up.

[Abstract of public account]

After half a lifetime of glory, he fell overnight; at the age of seventy, he rose from the barren hills. Chu Shijian's life tells the story of the ups and downs and stubbornness of Chinese entrepreneurs.

Data source

In 1979, Chu Shijian took over the Yuxi Cigarette Factory. At that time, the annual tax profit was less than 100 million yuan: "Chu Shijian: An Entrepreneur Who Influences Entrepreneurs", Hongta Group's official corporate development history

Chu Shijian has been in charge of Yuxi Cigarette Factory for 17 years, and has generated a total of 99.1 billion yuan in profits and taxes, and the Hongtashan brand value has exceeded 40 billion yuan: Yuxi Cigarette Factory 1979-1996 operating financial report, Forbes China's authoritative statistics on brand value

In 1990, Chu Shijian was rated as one of the top ten entrepreneurs in China, and in 1994, he was elected as one of the top ten reform figures in the country: People's Daily Online's selection report of the year, "Economic Daily" business figures column

In 1999, 71-year-old Chu Shijian was sentenced to life imprisonment: Yunnan Provincial Higher People's Court published the verdict of that year and Xinhua News Agency's rule of law news report

In 2002, 74-year-old Chu Shijian contracted to grow oranges on 2,400 acres of barren hills in Ailao Mountain: the official historical archives of Chu Cheng Manor and in-depth reports on Chu Shijian’s character in The Paper

In 2012, all 20 tons of Chu Orange were sold out in five days after entering Beijing, and 84-year-old Chu Shijian won the title of "Orange King": "China News Network" financial report of that year, early sales data announcement of Chu's Fruit Industry

The terminal price of Chucheng is 18-22 yuan/jin, and the sales volume in 2018 reached 200 million yuan: Chu's Fruit Industry Annual Business Report, "Yicai Business" special report on agricultural product branding

Chu Shijian passed away at the age of 91 in 2019, and Chu Cheng drove local farmers to earn an annual income of 100,000: Yuxi local government's rural revitalization work report, "People's Daily" commemorative report on Chu Shijian's character

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