Xin Fu

"earth"

- Nobody cheats Xin Fu.

Xin Fu was the promoter as well as the host of the underground Earthbending tournament Earth Rumble VI. He was once an Earthbending wrestler himself. But unlike most of the other wrestlers, he was very business savvy, always looking for another way to make money. He and Master Yu were later given the task of recovering Toph by Lao Bei Fong, Toph's father, and Xin Fu thus became a bounty hunter.

History


Xin Fu seemed on the outside a nice enough person, but when prompted with the possibility that he had been cheated, his more underhanded side became clear. He kidnapped Aang and Toph when The Boulder suggested that Toph purposely lost the match to Aang, and then split the money with him afterward. Though Xin Fu had proven to be a powerful Earthbender, as he lasted longest against Toph, he was still defeated by her. He and Master Yu were then recruited by Toph's father who believed Aang had kidnapped Toph to retrieve her by "any means necessary." He managed to catch Aang as well, and fully intended to sell him to the Fire Nation for a large monetary reward. Although a proficient and powerful Earthbender as he was once an active competitor of the Rumble, he since became a stubborn and greedy Earthbender who will do anything for money.



After tracking their prey to the Misty Palms Oasis, it is clear that Xin Fu considered the bounty on Toph as paid dead-or-alive, but was quickly corrected by Master Yu, stating "No she's not, I'm certain he wants his daughter alive..." They temporarily changed their targets when they spotted the fugitives Zuko and Iroh entering a bar. Master Yu insisted on patience to wait for the right moment, but Xin Fu's impulsiveness got the better of him and he moved to capture them. A White Lotus member turned the whole bar against them. Xin Fu and Master Yu beat all the men in the bar, but in the confusion the fugitives slipped away. They searched the whole town but with no success, then changed their target back to Toph.

In Ba Sing Se, they finally managed to catch her by luring her into a trap with a forged letter from her mother. Though Master Yu was the strategic mind of the duo, Xin Fu demonstrated more common sense when Toph tried to trick the two into letting her out of the box. After she discovered Metalbending, Toph turned the tables, trapping Xin Fu (along with Master Yu) in the very metal box in which he had imprisoned her. It is unknown if he was stuck in there forever with Master Yu.

Trivia

 * Although partly obscured, his name in Toph's ransom letter was written as 辛富 (xīn fù) which translated as 'Bitter rich'.
 * The name Xin Fu may also be a pun on sinful.