More U.S. troops for Taiwan — as many as 200

Here’s what else you need to know about China today:

A horrifying murder in Hong Kong transfixed both Hong Kong residents and people around the world. The killing of Abby Choi (蔡天鳳 Cài Tiānfèng), a young mother of four and social media fashionista, has again highlighted the government’s policy shortfalls towards domestic abuse. Scroll down for a summary or click through for the whole thing.

The U.S. will more than quadruple the number of its troops in Taiwan, from roughly 30 troops last year to between 100 and 200 troops in the coming months. The U.S. also sent today a surveillance plane through the Taiwan Strait, which China has criticized for having “deliberately disrupted and undermined” peace and stability in the region.

China again dismissed the lab leak theory on the origins of COVID after a U.S. report said the U.S. Department of Energy had concluded with “low confidence” that a Chinese laboratory leak was the most likely cause of the pandemic.

The latest missing chairman in China has resurfaced. China Renaissance said in an exchange filing that its founder, Bāo Fán 包凡, is cooperating with Chinese authorities on an investigation into Cóng Lín 丛林, the company’s former president. Bao was reported to have disappeared 10 days ago.

Hotpot restaurant chain Haidilao pulled in 34.6 billion yuan ($4.97 billion) in revenue last year, and made a net profit of 1.3 billion yuan ($186.85 million), according to its forecast. This was a remarkable turnaround: Haidilao reported net losses of 4.16 billion yuan ($598.08 million) in 2021 and 267 million yuan ($38.2 million) in the first half of 2022. Click through for details in today’s business briefs from the Chinese press.