Jiang Chaoliang’s Ties to Xu Jiayin Expose Top CCP Intelligence Official

March 16, 2018: Then-Wuhan Party Secretary Chen Yixin (Now Minister of State Security) Briefs Xu Jiayin on Yangtze New City Plan (online screenshot)

[People News] On February 21, Jiang Chaoliang, who had stepped down as CCP Secretary of Hubei Province five years and eight days ago, was suddenly removed from his position. His downfall once again confirms that even after high-ranking officials move to the idle seats of the National People's Congress, their political safety remains uncertain. Now, the key question is: Why did Jiang Chaoliang fall, and who else is implicated in this case? Currently, it is known that while in Hubei, Jiang maintained close ties with Evergrande’s founder, Xu Jiayin. At the same time, his case has also drawn connections to Chen Yixin, the current Minister of State Security.

Jiang Chaoliang's Downfall and His Relationship with Xu Jiayin Revealed

In the current landscape of the Chinese Communist Party, the Hubei Provincial Committee has responded the fastest. Upon receiving the notification from the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection regarding Jiang Chaoliang's investigation, they immediately convened an emergency meeting to express their support to the central government: "The Hubei Provincial Committee firmly backs the decisions of the Party Central Committee and the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission."

This overly enthusiastic response likely aims to protect the positions of certain individuals.

As for the issues surrounding Jiang Chaoliang, domestic media have noted that he was dismissed following the outbreak of the Wuhan epidemic. However, they refrained from mentioning that Jiang, as the head of the Hubei Provincial Committee, colluded with Beijing's central authorities to hide the serious situation of human-to-human transmission of the virus, with Jiang merely acting as one of the local officials taking the blame under international pressure on behalf of the central government in Beijing.

On February 25, the mainland media outlet Caixin published an article titled "Why Did Jiang Chaoliang, Who Once Had a Smooth Sailing Career, Encounter Setbacks?" This article also highlighted that during Jiang's tenure as Hubei Provincial Secretary, a case involving over ten trust and insurance institutions, known as the Wuhan Jinhuang Fake Gold Case, emerged. However, the report indicated that there seemed to be no direct link between Jiang Chaoliang and the fake gold case, which may be associated with the former Vice Governor of Hubei, Cao Guangjing.

On February 23, the mainland self-media outlet "Incorrect" released an article titled "Jiang Chaoliang, Xu Jiayin, and the Political and Business Connection," which focused on the relationship between Jiang Chaoliang and the already detained Evergrande founder Xu Jiayin.

The article mentioned that on June 6, 2017, Jiang Chaoliang met with Xu Jiayin and his delegation in Wuhan to discuss deepening cooperation. It was a cordial meeting, and such meetings would continue to occur over the following years until both men ultimately faced their respective downfalls.

In the 2017 meeting, Evergrande Group's role was to "actively participate in and support the economic and social development of Hubei." During their speeches, Jiang Chaoliang and Xu Jiayin exchanged compliments and praised each other. The following year, similar meetings continued, and Xu Jiayin took the opportunity to return to his alma mater, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, to attend the 120th anniversary celebration, publicly announcing a donation of 100 million yuan.

The article notes that since Jiang Chaoliang assumed leadership in Hubei in 2016, he has interacted with Xu Jiayin annually: discussing cultural tourism investments in 2017, urging expansion in 2018, and focusing on new energy vehicles in 2019. Each time they met, Xu promised to "increase investment," while Secretary Jiang referred to "shared opportunities" as a sweetener. The relationship between Jiang Chaoliang and Xu Jiayin resembled a "political-business partnership," but ultimately soured.

Among these projects, the Evergrande Science and Technology Tourism City in Wuhan is Evergrande's first venture in Hubei, acquired in 2017 with an investment of several billion yuan. Halfway through construction, it was left without a buyer and has been labeled the "largest unfinished project in Central China." Similarly, the Evergrande Era New City, also in Wuhan, required homeowners to make down payments of several hundred thousand yuan, with loans that seem to last "until the end of time." The project opened in 2019, but homeowners faced issues such as delays in property delivery.

The article mentions that some citizens expressed their frustration: "When I bought it, I thought there was a secretary backing it, but in the end, I ended up with a 'political-business appendix' (a project worse than an unfinished one)!" The article also raises the question of whether there was any rent-seeking behavior between Xu Jiayin and Jiang Chaoliang. Currently, there is no evidence to support this. However, the trend of blindly attracting investments and granting privileges to investors is indeed a cause for concern.

Xu Jiayin's connections go beyond Jiang Chaoliang and also involve Chen Yixin.

The author has recently realized that the secretary mentioned by citizens, besides the then Hubei Provincial Party Secretary Jiang Chaoliang, also includes the then Wuhan Party Secretary Chen Yixin. Notably, all of Evergrande's unfinished projects are located in Wuhan, which Chen Yixin has previously overseen.

Chen Yixin served as the Deputy Secretary of the Hubei Provincial Party Committee and the Secretary of the Wuhan Municipal Party Committee from January 2, 2017, to March 20, 2018. Despite his brief tenure of just over a year in Wuhan, he quickly established a close relationship with Xu Jiayin.

Upon his arrival in Wuhan in January 2017, Chen Yixin initiated the planning and construction of the Yangtze River New City and promptly reached out to Xu Jiayin.

On June 5, 2017, the day before Jiang Chaoliang's meeting with Xu Jiayin, Chen Yixin met with Xu Jiayin in Wuhan. State media reported that both parties discussed further deepening cooperation and expanding investment. On July 30, 2017, the Wuhan Yangtze River New City Work Committee and the Yangtze River New City Management Committee announced their establishment.

According to the Changjiang Daily, on March 16, 2018, before leaving Wuhan, Chen Yixin specifically invited Xu Jiayin to Wuhan for a discussion and urged Evergrande to participate in the planning and construction of the Yangtze River New City. On that day, the management committee of the Wuhan Economic Development Zone signed an agreement with Evergrande Modern Agricultural Development Group to collaborate on the development and construction of the Wuhan Hannan Evergrande Modern Agricultural Base project. Additionally, the Jiangxia District of Wuhan signed an agreement with Evergrande Tourism Group to jointly develop the Evergrande Tourism Technology City in Jiangxia District.

In October 2018, Evergrande Group signed a strategic cooperation memorandum with Changjiang New City, planning to invest 60 billion yuan to establish the Evergrande-Changjiang New City Cultural Tourism Health Technology Industry Fund. According to the introduction of the Wuhan Changjiang New City Construction Investment Group, it represents the Wuhan municipal government in collaborating with Evergrande Group to develop affordable housing projects. These initiatives are considered 'achievements' laid out by Chen Yixin during his time in Wuhan.

Years have passed, and the so-called 'future star' of Wuhan, Changjiang New Area, has not made significant progress. Initially designated as a national-level new area, it remains at the provincial level. The original slogan aimed to benchmark against Xiong'an New Area and Pudong New Area, but it has not met expectations, leading to numerous negative reviews from the public.

The arrest of Xu Jiayin has caused anxiety among various elites, and Chen Yixin is now vulnerable to those who hold leverage over him.

Over nearly 30 years, Xu Jiayin has built a substantial business, and his support network is certainly not comprised of ordinary individuals, nor just one or two people, but rather a large group. Following the arrest of Evergrande founder Xu Jiayin in September 2023, it is widely understood who his elite backers are, with everyone waiting to see who will be sacrificed.

Former Minister of Justice Tang Yijun, former Secretary of the Guizhou Provincial Committee Sun Zhigang, and former Secretary of the Hubei Provincial Committee Jiang Chaoliang, all closely associated with Xu Jiayin, have also been implicated.

Notably, Sun Zhigang and Xu Jiayin are both from Henan and are alumni of Wuhan University of Science and Technology (formerly Wuhan Iron and Steel Institute), with Sun having been Xu's teacher. A sensational news article published in the September 12, 2017 issue of 'Evergrande News' reported: 'Chairman Xu Jiayin attends the 2017 Guizhou Fair and meets with Guizhou Provincial Secretary Sun Zhigang and Acting Governor Chen Yiqin.' Xu Jiayin was dubbed 'Emperor Xu' due to his 'meeting' with the provincial secretary.

The first high-ranking official to be implicated in the Xu Jiayin case is likely Tang Yijun. On June 15, 2019, the Shenyang municipal government signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Evergrande Group in Shenyang. At that time, Tang Yijun, who served as the Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Governor, met with Xu Jiayin and jointly attended the signing ceremony. Earlier that year, in February and April, Tang Yijun and Xu Jiayin had already visited each other's 'bases' in Shenyang and Shenzhen.

Evergrande's significant growth can be attributed to Xu Jiayin's various tactics, primarily involving money and favors. For example, the Evergrande National Song and Dance Troupe employs a number of attractive women, raising questions about what they do when not performing.

Overseas commentator Gao Xin noted in an article: 'Why did Tang Yijun make a special trip to Shenzhen? This is intriguing. Accepting the 'performance' of the Evergrande Song and Dance Troupe is certainly a key part of the visit.'

Chen Yixin, also part of the Zhejiang faction, has forged a connection with Xu Jiayin in Wuhan over the course of more than a year, under the pretext of political achievements. Xu Jiayin is unlikely to overlook this 'potential asset' in the political arena, and Chen Yixin will likely continue to maintain a 'friendship' with Xu Jiayin in his future career.

Currently, Chen Yixin is a favored figure close to Xi Jinping and holds significant power in national security, allowing him to operate with relative freedom in official circles, which may protect him for the time being. However, the Xi faction and other groups have expressed concerns about his reckless actions, meaning that Chen Yixin now has vulnerabilities that others can exploit. As internal power struggles intensify in the future, Chen Yixin could face the risk of downfall at any moment. 

(Dajiyuan)