Lu Fang owns an estate on Hollow Island (陷空島), where he and his younger sworn brothers Han Zhang, Xu Qing, Jiang Ping, and Bai Yutang — collectively known as the "Five Rats" — are based.

Hollow Island is located in the middle of the Song River (松江, possibly today's Suzhou Creek in Shanghai), where his men catch fish.

Once, when a boat's halyard broke, Lu Fang quickly climbed up the mast and knotted the loose ends together, earning himself the nickname "Sky Rat".

Hollow Island is separated from the neighboring Jasmine Village (茉花村) by Reed Catkins Cove (蘆花蕩), which form the boundary of their respective fishing areas.

Lu Fang first appears in the novel when he arrives in Jasmine Village to apologize over a recent scuffle caused by his new recruit named Deng Biao (鄧彪), who has crossed the border and made a scene, injuring a fisherman and stealing several fishing nets.

The thugs are working for a lustful bully named Yan Qi (嚴奇), who, noticing Lu Fang's genteel demeanor and non-local accent, thinks he can be easily intimidated.