On February 21, Jiang Chaoliang, who had served as the Communist Party Secretary of Hubei Province for 5 years and 8 days, was suddenly removed from his position, once again confirming that officials in positions of power are not safe even while sitting in the leisurely seats of the National People’s Congress. Now people are curious about why Jiang Chaoliang got into trouble and who else might be involved in this case. It is known that Jiang Chaoliang had a close relationship with the founder of Evergrande Group, Xu Jiayin, during his time in Hubei, and at least it also implicated the current Minister of the Chinese Communist Party’s Ministry of State Security, Chen Yixin.
In the Communist Party’s officialdom, the quickest response likely came from the members of the Hubei Provincial Party Committee, who, upon receiving the notice from the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection about Jiang Chaoliang’s investigation, immediately held meetings day and night to express their firm support for the Party Central Committee’s decision and the decision of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission.
Such a proactive response might be to protect the interests of certain individuals.
Regarding the allegations against Jiang Chaoliang, domestic media have pointed out his dismissal following the outbreak of the Wuhan pandemic. However, they did not dare say that Jiang, as the head of the Hubei Provincial Party Committee at the time, conspired with Beijing to cover up the serious conditions of human-to-human transmission of the virus, and Jiang was just one of the local officials who took the blame under international pressure to hold Beijing accountable.
An article by the mainland media Caixin published on February 25, titled “Why Did Jiang Chaoliang, Who Once Had a Smooth Path, Fall Into Trouble?” also mentioned a case involving Jiang Chaoliang during his tenure as the Hubei Provincial Party Secretary, involving a fraudulent gold scheme amounting to billions of yuan with over ten trust and insurance institutions in Wuhan. However, the report noted that there was no direct link between the gold scheme and Jiang Chaoliang, suggesting that it might be related to the former Deputy Governor of Hubei Province, Cao Guangjing.
On February 23, the mainland self-media platform “Not Correct” published an article titled “Jiang Chaoliang, Xu Jiayin, and the Connection Between Politics and Business,” focusing on the close relationship between Jiang Chaoliang and Xu Jiayin, the founder of Evergrande who had already been arrested.
The article mentioned that on June 6, 2017, Jiang Chaoliang met with Xu Jiayin and his delegation in Wuhan to discuss deepening cooperation. This was a harmonious meeting, which would recur over the following years until both men fell from grace.
At this meeting in 2017, Evergrande Group was committed to actively participating in and supporting the economic and social development of Hubei Province. Jiang and Xu praised each other and spoke highly of one another during their discussions. The following year, similar meetings continued, with Xu Jiayin even returning to his alma mater, Wuhan University of Technology, to attend its 120th-anniversary celebrations, publicly announcing a donation of 100 million yuan.
Since Jiang Chaoliang took office in Hubei in 2016, he interacted with Xu Jiayin annually: discussing cultural and tourism investment in 2017, urging to expand their projects in 2018, and focusing on new energy vehicles in 2019. Each time they met, Xu promised to “increase investment,” while Jiang used phrases like “sharing opportunities” as sweet talk. The connection between Jiang Chaoliang and Xu Jiayin seemed like a perfect “political-business CP” combination, but it eventually turned sour.
Among these projects was the Evergrande Technology Tourism City in Wuhan, the group’s first project in Hubei, which was purchased in 2017 for billions of yuan but remained half-built with no takers, earning the title of “the largest unfinished project in central China.” Likewise, the Evergrande Times New City in Wuhan required homeowners to pay large down payments, with no clear timeline for completion. Homeowners faced issues such as delayed handovers.
The article detailed a citizen’s complaint: “When we bought the property, we thought we had the backing of a high-ranking official, but in the end, we bought into a ‘political-business failure’ (a worse-than-failed project)!” Furthermore, the article raised questions about whether there was rent-seeking between Xu Jiayin and Jiang Chaoliang, though there was no evidence available. The blind pursuit of investment and the granting of special privileges to investors in such cases should indeed raise concerns.
The writer suddenly realized that besides Jiang Chaoliang, the then Party Secretary of Hubei Province, there was also Chen Yixin, who was the Party Secretary of Wuhan at the time, and it seemed that both had connections to these failed projects in Wuhan, which Chen Yixin had overseen.
Chen Yixin, who served as the Deputy Party Secretary of Hubei Province and the Party Secretary of Wuhan from January 2, 2017, to March 20, 2018, despite his brief tenure in Wuhan, established a close relationship with Xu Jiayin.
Soon after Chen Yixin arrived in Wuhan in January 2017, he initiated the planning and construction of the Changjiang New City and immediately engaged with Xu Jiayin. On June 5, 2017, the day before Jiang Chaoliang met Xu Jiayin, Chen Yixin also held a meeting with him in Wuhan, where they discussed deepening cooperation and expanding investments. On July 30, 2017, the Wuhan Changjiang New City Working Committee and the Management Committee were established.
According to the “Changjiang Daily,” on March 16, 2018, before Chen Yixin left Wuhan, he specifically invited Xu Jiayin for a discussion in Wuhan and then invited Evergrande to participate in the planning and construction of the Wuhan Hengda Modern Agricultural Base project in cooperation with the Economic Development Zone Management Committee. Wuhan’s Jiangxia District also signed an agreement with Evergrande Tourism Group to co-develop the Evergrande Tourism Science and Technology City in Jiangxia District.
In October 2018, Evergrande Group and Changjiang New City signed a memorandum of strategic cooperation to invest 60 billion yuan in establishing the Evergrande-Changjiang New City Culture, Tourism, Health, and Technology Industry Fund. The introduction of the Wuhan Changjiang New City Construction Investment Group showed that it represented the cooperation between the Wuhan Municipal Government and Evergrande Group in developing the Anju project. These were the “achievements” Chen Yixin made during his time in Wuhan.
Several years have passed, and the Changjiang New Area, once hailed as the “future star” of Wuhan, remains relatively quiet. Initially positioned as a national-level new area, it is still designated as a provincial-level area and has fallen short of expectations compared to the Xiong’an New Area and Pudong New Area, with many criticisms from the public.
In nearly 30 years of building his business empire, Xu Jiayin undoubtedly had powerful backers, not just one or two individuals, but a significant group. After Evergrande’s founder Xu Jiayin was arrested in September 2023, people eagerly awaited to see who else would be implicated.
Former Minister of Justice Tang Yijun, former Party Secretary of Guizhou Province Sun Zhigang, and former Party Secretary of Hubei Province Jiang Chaoliang, all closely associated with Xu Jiayin, have been ousted.
Sun Zhigang and Xu Jiayin, both from Henan Province, were also alumni of Wuhan University of Technology (formerly Wuhan Iron and Steel Institute). Sun was even Xu’s teacher. An explosive report in the “Evergrande News” published on September 12, 2017, titled “Chairman Xu Jiayin Attends the 2017 Guiyang Fair, Meets with Sun Zhigang, Secretary of the Guizhou Provincial Committee on Behalf of the Governor Chen Yiqin,” highlighted Xu Jiayin’s grandeur in meeting with the party secretary, earning him the moniker “Xu Emperor.”
Tang Yijun was the first high-ranking official implicated in the Xu Jiayin case. On June 15, 2019, the Shenyang Municipal Government and Evergrande Group signed a strategic cooperation agreement in Shenyang. Tang Yijun, the Vice Party Secretary of the Province and the Governor, met with Xu Jiayin, and they jointly attended the signing ceremony. Between February and April of the same year, Tang Yijun and Xu Jiayin had already visited each other’s respective regions – Shenyang and Shenzhen.
For Xu Jiayin to have achieved such a massive scale in his business, he certainly employed various means, primarily money and influence. For instance, the Evergrande National Song and Dance Ensemble housed a group of beautiful women, leading many to question what these women did when there were no performances.
Prominent overseas commentator Gao Xin once wrote in an article: “It is intriguing why Tang Yijun made a special trip to Shenzhen. It is without a doubt that appreciating the ‘arts’ of the Evergrande dance troupe was an essential part of the visit.”
Chen Yixin, another member from the Zhejiang faction, quickly established a bond with Xu Jiayin based on political achievements. Xu Jiayin would not miss the opportunity to cement his relationship with this political prospect. In his future career path, Chen Yixin would inevitably have to maintain this “friendship” with Xu Jiayin.
Currently, Chen Yixin is a prominent figure by Xi Jinping’s side, wielding great power in the political arena, which might keep him safe for now. However, both Xi’s faction and other factions have expressed concerns about his malfeasance, practically giving others a handle to potentially oust him in future power struggles.
(Translated and Rewritten from the original Chinese article)