Inside the Red Mansion

The notorious gangster Lai Changxing started out as an illiterate farmer but in the tumult of Chinas burgeoning economy he seized the opportunity to remake himself as a bandit king. A newly minted billionaire of outsized personality and even greater appetites he was a living legend who eventually ran afoul of authorities. The journalist Oliver August set out to find the fugitive Lai. On his quest he encountered a highly entertaining series of criminals and oddball entrepreneursand acquired unique insight into the paradoxes of modern China. Part crime caper part travelogue part trenchant cultural analysis Augusts page-turning account captures Chinas giddy vibe and its darker vulnerabilities.