Also known as Master Zhou or Zhou the Skinflint (Zhou Bapi). He is a wealthy and cruel landlord in the nearby town, notorious for his stinginess and viciousness. He has dozens of underlings and even employs martial artists. He has a particular hobby of coveting married women, and none of the women he takes into his mansion ever leave alive. He lends two taels of silver to Lu Yao at exorbitant interest (requiring nearly double in seven days), with the condition that she become his concubine if the debt is not repaid on time. He secretly orders Shi Yong to kill Wang Xuan so that he can take Lu Yao. Zhou Laifu is the primary external threat to Wang Xuan’s family.
