China’s leading agrifood conglomerate New Hope Liuhe has appointed renowned business consultant and media personality Li Tiantian—better known by her online pseudonym “Tuo Buhua”—as an independent director, replacing an academic who is under disciplinary investigation. The boardroom reshuffle comes as the company reports a return to profitability after years of losses. Li, a co-founder of the “Dedao” knowledge platform and long-time advisor to New Hope, brings more than two decades of experience in corporate consulting and digital education.
New Hope Liuhe, one of China’s top agrifood companies, has named business management consultant and financial columnist Li Tiantian, better known as “Tuo Buhua,” as its new independent director. The board appointment, announced on July 15, comes after the company removed independent director Peng Long—also the former executive vice president of Southwestern University of Finance and Economics—who is currently under investigation by disciplinary authorities.
Li Tiantian
Known to Chinese netizens as a “remarkable woman,” Li dropped out of school at 17 and became a general manager of an advertising and consulting firm at 19. She later co-founded the renowned knowledge talk show “Logic Show” with media personality Luo Zhenyu and has served as CEO of its parent company, Beijing Thinking Creation Technology Co., Ltd.
According to New Hope Liuhe’s disclosure, Li, now 46, has over two decades of experience in enterprise management. She previously held leadership roles at two consultancy firms she founded—Renhuite and Zhongruanyan—both of which were deregistered in early 2023. Her current role at Thinking Creation involves delivering digital knowledge services through platforms such as the Dedao App, “Logic Show” WeChat channel, and offline forums like “Time’s Friends” New Year’s lectures and Dedao Business Academy.
Liu Chang
Li’s long-standing relationship with New Hope’s founding family adds a unique personal dimension to this professional transition. In 1997, at just 18 years old, Li was invited by New Hope’s chairman Liu Yonghao to deliver internal training for the group. A year later, Liu even arranged for his daughter Liu Chang—also 18 at the time and then using the alias “Li Tianmei”—to co-manage an advertising venture with Li, aiming to cultivate Liu Chang’s entrepreneurial skills. Liu Chang has served as chairwoman of New Hope Liuhe since 2013.
The latest appointment comes as New Hope Liuhe returns to mid-year profitability for the first time in five years.In a separate earnings forecast also released on July 15, the company reported an estimated net profit of CNY 680–780 million (USD 94.71–108.64 million) for the first half of 2025—marking its first mid-year profitability in five years. This contrasts starkly with a net loss exceeding CNY 1.2 billion (about USD 167.13 million) during the same period last year.
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