Speaking of Bao Er Ye, insiders in the circle have a love-hate relationship with this name. From a small butcher to a major figure in the crypto world, his story is quite inspiring. But if you delve into his rise to fame, you'll find it filled with controversy.

Guo Hongcai hails from Pingyao, Shanxi, and initially was in the beef business. In 2013, he and his wife, Jin Yangyang, went to Beijing to learn about e-commerce channels. They ended up attending a Bitcoin sharing session at "Garage Coffee" hosted by Li Xiaolai. His wife was immediately moved and bought several hundred thousand RMB worth of Bitcoin at around 500 yuan per coin. Guo Hongcai initially thought his wife had been duped by a pyramid scheme, but he was later "brainwashed" too and decided to go all-in on Bitcoin, bidding farewell to the beef business.

At the end of 2013, he started a web show called "Bao Er Ye Hands-On Guide to Bitcoin," and the nickname "Bao Er Ye" was born. In 2014, he built what was then the world's largest Bitcoin mining farm in Inner Mongolia, with a daily electricity cost of 500k RMB, capable of producing 100 Bitcoins per day. Mining was still a highly profitable business at that time.

What truly made Bao Er Ye famous was his era of "preaching and teaching." Starting in 2015, he toured the country in a stretched limousine, promoting Bitcoin everywhere. He never hid his flashy, nouveau riche style, even openly saying it was all for "showing off," because "if you lack confidence, you have to use a car to boost your image." His remarks were sharp and crude, but this "loser culture" earned him countless fans in the circle.

The turning point that really shot him to fame was the 2016 Davos Forum. He showed up wearing baggy shorts and slippers, and security wouldn't let him in. Later, the project team coordinated to let him in, and he saw a hall full of suited financial professionals. The skeptical voices questioning Bitcoin at the event angered him. He responded with half-formed English, loudly criticizing those people, claiming "the value of Bitcoin is equal to the future GDP of all countries." After the video circulated, Bao Er Ye became a household name.

During the ICO frenzy of 2017, Bao Er Ye reached his most insane moment. Any project wanting to enter the Chinese market had to find a crypto celebrity to endorse it, and Bao Er Ye became the most sought-after endorser. In three months, he endorsed over 30 projects, with a combined market cap exceeding 400 million. He even openly said he didn't invest but only endorsed, taking a 1% fee and not even researching the projects. At this point, a curse formed in the circle: any project endorsed by Bao Er Ye was considered a good project.

But the good times didn't last long. After half a year of bear market, investors realized this logic was flawed. Projects endorsed by Bao Er Ye either failed to deliver, went to zero, or stagnated. Take Achain, for example: it launched at 1.5 yuan, shot up to 4.4 yuan the next day, then dropped 52% the day after. This rollercoaster made people question Bao Er Ye's judgment.

He even endorsed the YuLian project, claiming it would rise 250 times, but on its first day, YuLian surged and then crashed, ultimately being bought back at cost, leaving investors heavily exploited. It wasn't until September 4, 2017, when seven ministries issued regulations on ICOs, that Bao Er Ye stopped endorsing projects.

But he didn't go quiet. In the first half of 2018, he started hyping FCoin's FT, from $1 all the way up to its peak, then plummeted 95%. Even crazier, he forked Bitcoin himself, creating "Bitcoin God." This coin once surged to 5,500 RMB but then crashed to 90 RMB, a decline of over 98%. If you invested 100k at the peak, now you'd only have about 1,600.

At the end of 2017, Bao Er Ye posted a video from the airport, saying he had flown 290k kilometers that year—more than 98.8% of people worldwide. Then he boarded a flight to Zhuhai, showed his last appearance in Macau, and went to the U.S.. Rumors started circulating in the circle: "They caught Li Xiaolai and Guo Hongcai."

In the U.S., Bao Er Ye began flaunting his wealth. In March 2018, he bought a mansion in Silicon Valley covering hundreds of acres, with a sign reading "Leek Vegetable Farm," even planting some leeks in the corner. He bought two Rolls-Royces: one costing 60 Bitcoins, a limited edition in the U.S., which took three months to deliver; the other costing 25 Bitcoins, which he gifted to his wife.

When asked why he didn't return to China, Bao Er Ye said he had invested in too many projects and, due to strict government crackdowns, was afraid to come back. But insiders knew he had simply made enough money to run away.

From a grassroots beef seller to a crypto tycoon, Bao Er Ye truly seized the opportunity of the Bitcoin blockchain boom. Some say he's free-spirited and unrestrained; others say he's just a reckless speculator who specializes in harvesting "leeks." But regardless, he staged a classic underdog comeback, transforming from a small businessman into a formidable figure in the crypto circle. However, the controversies and the investors he has exploited along the way will probably never forget Bao Er Ye's name.