Sharpening the Blade Against the Red Wall: From Hong Kong to Handong

The following morning, at 9:20.

The outdoor corridor of Conference Room No. 1 in the Hantong Provincial Party Committee Building.

A tense, almost frozen atmosphere hung in the air. The Provincial Party Committee Secretary-General, accompanied by two staff members, meticulously checked every last detail of the meeting room—the angle of the teacups, the position of the documents, the curvature of the curtains. At the end of the corridor, guards in dark blue uniforms and duty armbands stood ramrod straight, their sharp eyes scanning the empty corridor.

At 9:25, the side door of the conference room opened.

Provincial Party Secretary Sha Ruijin was the first to emerge. He was wearing a dark blue suit and a dark red tie, his hair meticulously combed, and his face maintained its usual composure. However, the dark circles under his eyes and his slightly slow gait betrayed the heaviness and exhaustion in his heart. He knew that today's meeting would determine his political fate, and perhaps even more.

Following him were the remaining twelve members of the Standing Committee of the Handong Provincial Committee, filing out in order of their ranking. Gao Yuliang remained as refined and composed as ever, his steps steady, his gaze behind his gold-rimmed glasses calm and unwavering, as if the upcoming meeting were merely a routine affair. Li Dakang, dressed in a crisp gray jacket, wore the seriousness of a professional, his eyes fixed straight ahead, deliberately avoiding any interaction with anyone. Tian Guofu, pale-faced, trailed at the back of the group, his eyes darting nervously, beads of sweat glistening on his forehead. The other Standing Committee members displayed a variety of expressions—some solemn, some uneasy, some feigning composure—but none spoke; only the rhythmic, monotonous sound of their leather shoes on the polished marble floor rang out.

The thirteen members of the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee stood in two rows on either side of the red carpet at the entrance of the conference room, facing the elevator. This was a high-level and formal welcoming gesture.

At 9:28, the indicator light on the elevator door lit up, and then it slid open silently.

Zhou Jin appeared at the elevator entrance. Today, he was dressed in a formal dark suit, white shirt, and dark blue tie. Behind him followed Chen Ming, the deputy leader of the inspection team, and Qin Gang, another team member who was responsible for recording. The three walked steadily with serious expressions.

Sha Ruijin immediately stepped forward, forcing a standard, enthusiastic smile, and extended both hands: "Team Leader Zhou! Welcome, welcome! All members of the Standing Committee of the Handong Provincial Party Committee welcome the Central Inspection Team to guide our work!"

Zhou Jin reached out and shook his hand, the grip firm but not too tight, with a formulaic smile on her face: "Comrade Ruijin, fellow Standing Committee members, hello everyone, I'm sorry to disturb your work."

"Not at all, not at all. The inspection team represents the Central Committee and is here to guide and help us identify problems and improve our work. We sincerely welcome them and will fully cooperate!" Sha Ruijin's voice was loud and clear, and his posture was very humble. He then turned to the side and briefly introduced the Standing Committee members behind him, "This is Comrade Yuliang, Comrade Dakang, Comrade Guofu..." He spoke quickly and stopped short of mentioning them.

Zhou Jin shook hands briefly with Gao Yuliang, Li Dakang, and others in turn. When their eyes met, no one could discern much emotion from their expressions; it was merely a polite exchange of pleasantries.

"The meeting room is ready, Team Leader Zhou, please!" Sha Ruijin stepped aside to lead the way.

The group entered the conference room. The oval, deep red conference table gleamed, with the head seat and one side reserved for the inspection team, and the other side for the thirteen standing committee members. The nameplates were already neatly arranged.

Sha Ruijin led Zhou Jin to the reserved seat next to the head of the table, then sat down himself and gestured for the other Standing Committee members to take their seats. Zhou Jin, Chen Ming, and Qin Gang sat down on the side of the inspection team.

The meeting room was unusually quiet, with only the rustling of clothes and the slight creaking of chairs.

Sha Ruijin cleared his throat, trying to make his voice sound steady and strong: "Alright, comrades, let's begin the meeting." He turned to Zhou Jin, smiling again, "First of all, on behalf of the Hantong Provincial Party Committee and all the cadres and masses of the province, I extend our warmest welcome and most resolute support to Team Leader Zhou and the Central Inspection Team for their arrival in Hantong! The inspection work is a comprehensive examination and powerful supervision of our Provincial Party Committee's work. We sincerely accept the inspection, actively accept supervision, and will fully cooperate with the inspection team's work, truthfully reflect the situation, and provide all necessary assistance!"

His opening remarks were standard and fluent, and his posture was impeccable.

Zhou Jin nodded slightly, then took over the conversation, her voice calm but clear: "Thank you, Comrade Ruijin, and thank you to the Handong Provincial Party Committee for your welcome and support. The Central Committee sent our inspection team down here to discover problems, create deterrence, and promote reform and development, in accordance with the requirements of comprehensively and strictly governing the Party. We hope that our work will receive the sincere cooperation of the Provincial Party Committee and all comrades. We will also strictly abide by the inspection discipline, be pragmatic, and carry out our work in accordance with regulations and discipline."

After a brief but necessary procedural exchange, the meeting room fell silent again, awaiting the start of the main topic.

Zhou Jin didn't let the silence last long. He glanced at Chen Ming, then turned to Sha Ruijin and the other Standing Committee members present, his tone becoming formal: "Well then, let's begin now. According to the inspection procedures, first, I would like to ask Comrade Chen Ming, the deputy head of our inspection team, to brief all members of the Standing Committee of the Handong Provincial Party Committee on the preliminary investigation findings regarding the suspected serious violations of discipline and law by Yi Xuexi, the former Standing Committee member and Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission of the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee."

The moment these words were spoken, the air in the conference room instantly became extremely tense! All eyes turned to Chen Ming.

Sha Ruijin's smile froze instantly, and his fingers unconsciously curled slightly. Gao Yuliang pushed up his glasses, leaned forward slightly, and adopted a listening expression. Li Dakang remained expressionless, but his hand under the table clenched gently. Tian Guofu lowered his head, almost unable to look Chen Ming in the eye.

Chen Ming, his face solemn, opened the folder in front of him and began his report in a calm yet icy tone:

"According to the preliminary investigation by the Central Inspection Team (formerly the Special Investigation Team), Yi Xuexi, former member of the Standing Committee of the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee and Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission, committed the following serious violations of discipline and law during his tenure as Secretary of the Party Working Committee and Director of the Management Committee of the Lüzhou Economic Development Zone, and in related previous positions—"

His voice wasn't loud, but it resonated like thunder in the silent conference room:

"First, he abused his power to seek huge profits for his relatives' business activities. When Yi Xuexi was serving in Jinshan County, he illegally manipulated the process, contracting 3,000 mu of high-quality poverty alleviation tea plantations to a company actually controlled by his wife, Mao Ya, at a rent far below market price and for an excessively long period, causing significant losses to national poverty alleviation assets. It is preliminarily estimated that his family illegally profited more than 20 million yuan."

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"Hiss—" Someone on the other side of the conference table let out a suppressed gasp. The Standing Committee members' expressions changed drastically. A glint flashed in Gao Yuliang's eyes, but he quickly concealed it. Li Dakang's brows furrowed almost imperceptibly. Sha Ruijin's face had already turned somewhat pale.

"Secondly, he condoned and acquiesced to his spouse using his position and influence to engage in power-for-money transactions, which is extremely egregious," Chen Ming continued, his tone becoming even harsher. "His wife, Mao Ya, opened the 'Ya Yun Tea House' in Luzhou City. Using this as a front, she displayed unpublished planning drawings—which are work secrets or even state secrets—in the shop for a long time. By disclosing planning information and land use adjustment trends to specific developers and entrepreneurs, she accepted huge bribes under the guise of 'exorbitant tea payments.' Dozens of related transfer records have been verified, involving a huge sum of money."

Inside the meeting room, some people began wiping the cold sweat from their foreheads. Tian Guofu's body trembled slightly. Several Standing Committee members who had initially held reservations about Yi Xuexi's promotion revealed a look of realization and indignation, as if to say, "Just as I thought."

"Third, in the demolition project of the Luzhou Crescent Lake Food City, he neglected his duties and abused his power, causing serious environmental pollution and loss of state-owned assets." Chen Ming's voice was filled with anger. "Yi Xuexi promoted the demolition in the name of environmental protection, but deliberately delayed the removal of construction waste for up to six months afterward, causing a large amount of garbage to slide into the lake, resulting in secondary pollution ten times worse than before the demolition! His real purpose was to use this as a pretext to fraudulently claim a huge amount of 'special funds for environmental remediation'. At the same time, in the demolition compensation process, he colluded with related companies to inflate costs and embezzle more than 6.8 million yuan of national compensation funds, which were then transferred to his wife's affiliated company."

"Outrageous!" "Utterly lawless!" Several suppressed shouts of anger finally broke out. The Standing Committee members, especially the veterans who had been in charge of economic and environmental work, were filled with shock and anger. They may have heard about the pollution of Crescent Lake, but they never expected that there was such a dirty scheme behind it!

"Fourth, he failed to properly supervise and educate his spouse and children, resulting in a corrupt family style and extremely negative impact." Chen Ming paused, his tone becoming even more somber. "His son, Yi Yang, currently works at a foreign investment bank. Preliminary investigations have revealed a highly suspicious overlap between several fund projects involving the development of western China and infrastructure investment, and his father Yi Xuexi's domestic authority and access to undisclosed policy information. Furthermore, Yi Yang owns property in London, England, with an unexplained source worth two million pounds. Yi Xuexi has neither fulfilled his disciplinary responsibilities nor truthfully reported this to the organization, raising serious suspicions that he abused his power to seek improper benefits for his children abroad."

This detail brought the atmosphere in the meeting room to a freezing point. The son worked at a foreign investment bank, projects overlapped with his father's authority, and he owned vast amounts of overseas real estate… This went beyond ordinary economic corruption, taking on a more dangerous hue. Everyone's hearts were in their throats.

Chen Ming closed the folder and gave a final summary: "In conclusion, Yi Xuexi's actions seriously violated the Party's political discipline, organizational discipline, integrity discipline, work discipline, and lifestyle discipline. They constitute serious job-related violations and involve multiple charges including bribery, abuse of power, dereliction of duty, and illegally profiting relatives and friends. Furthermore, he did not restrain himself after the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, making his actions extremely serious in nature and with extremely negative impact! Currently, Yi Xuexi and his wife Mao Ya have been placed under detention in accordance with the law, and the relevant personnel and funds involved are under further investigation. That concludes the report."