Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli Fall — Entire Military Enters Level-One Combat Readiness, Situation May Change at Any Moment

The image shows the representatives of the Chinese military attending the Two Sessions in Beijing. (Video screenshot)

[People News] On January 24, China’s Ministry of National Defense announced that Zhang Youxia, member of the Political Bureau of the CCP Central Committee and vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, and Liu Zhenli, member of the Central Military Commission and chief of the Joint Staff Department of the Central Military Commission, are suspected of serious violations of discipline and law. Upon deliberation by the Party Central Committee, a decision was made to open cases and conduct investigations into Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli.

Although there had been rumors circulating on overseas websites earlier, the CCP’s rapid public announcement of the news, and its explicit statement that the cases involve serious violations of discipline and law, still shocked the outside world.

Why?

First, Zhang Youxia is Xi Jinping’s childhood friend and trusted confidant. The two families are old acquaintances, and their fathers’ generation had long maintained extremely close relations.

Second, Zhang Youxia rendered outstanding service to Xi Jinping’s reelection at the 20th Party Congress. Despite being over 70 years old, Xi made an exception to keep him in the Political Bureau and reappoint him as vice chairman of the Central Military Commission.

Third, Zhang Youxia comes from a military background and participated in the Sino-Vietnamese War when he was young. Within the PLA, which values real combat experience and iron-blooded brotherhood, he has deep roots, extensive networks, and high prestige.

Fourth, when Xi moved against “military tigers” and took down Wei Fenghe, he explicitly stated that investigations would not go further back. Everyone understood this to mean that issues from Zhang Youxia’s period would not be pursued.

Fifth, a large number of senior PLA figures— including CMC vice chairman He Weidong, Director of the Political Work Department Miao Hua, and commanders of the Eastern, Southern, Western, Northern, and Central Theater Commands—have just been taken down, leaving the external impression already thoroughly rotten. The Central Military Commission formed after the 20th Party Congress at the end of 2022 has been almost completely purged. After Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli fell, of the seven CMC members, only Xi Jinping and Zhang Shengmin remained. Xi is the CMC chairman, which in effect means that only Zhang Shengmin is left as a member. The Central Military Commission has been completely paralyzed. This is unprecedented in ancient and modern times, both in China and abroad. Therefore, even if senior military leaders were to be taken down, it would not normally be announced so quickly.

Now, the news has suddenly exploded, yet the CCP has not specified what crimes Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli are accused of. Observers believe that unless the situation were so serious as to make the Xi central leadership feel the CCP regime itself was about to collapse or that Xi’s personal safety was directly threatened, the CCP would not suddenly strike so ruthlessly; otherwise, it would be logically difficult to understand.

In the two days prior, because Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli both failed to attend the opening ceremony of a CCP “special seminar” for provincial- and ministerial-level officials on January 20, and again missed the closing ceremony on January 23, as well as an originally scheduled annual activity at the National Defense University, rumors spread wildly online that something had happened to the two. It was also rumored that Zhong Shaojun and others had been arrested. Independent commentator Cai Shenkun said on self-media on January 23 that the information was “absolutely accurate.” When former deputy chief of the General Staff Kui Fulin, a full general, passed away, the wreath sent by Zhang Youxia was reportedly ordered removed at the last minute. It was also said that members of Zhang Youxia’s family had been detained, and that the CCP’s internal top leadership had already been notified.

Earlier, on January 20, Australian self-media personality Jiang Wangzheng revealed on the X platform that Zhang Youxia had been summoned for questioning, and that his son, his confidential secretary, and Liu Zhenli were all under investigation.

So what exactly did Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli violate in terms of discipline and law?

Since Xi Jinping was rumored during the Third Plenum to have suffered a stroke, overseas sources have continuously circulated claims that Zhang Youxia had allied with Party elders to control the CCP regime, that Xi’s power had been weakened, and even that Zhang was the so-called “man carrying a bow,” a key force of the anti-Xi camp. Put plainly, this claims that within the CCP there was a force dissatisfied with Xi’s “bringing disaster to the country and harming the people,” seeking a coup to overthrow Xi’s CCP. Does such a possibility exist? Xi Jinping is said to strongly believe in ancient prophecies. In Tui Bei Tu it says, “There is a soldier who carries a bow… within the eastern gate lies a hidden golden sword…” Therefore, the arrests of Miao Hua, He Weidong, and commanders originating from the 31st Army, among others, were analyzed by some political observers as actions taken by Zhang Youxia’s forces to weaken Xi’s camp and cut away Xi’s power base.

Of course, since He Weidong’s name contains the character “dong” (east), Xi Jinping may also have disliked him. Even after arresting He Weidong, whose name contains “east,” Xi still needed to counterattack and go after those whose surnames contain the “bow” radical and who wield guns. Now it appears that even if Zhang, Liu, and others did not force Xi to abdicate or launch a military mutiny, a struggle between Xi and Zhang did exist, and it has now ended with Zhang’s defeat.

What is puzzling is that, like the cases of He and Miao, news of Zhang’s fall was first seen in announcements by the Ministry of National Defense, rather than by the military discipline inspection commission, the Central Military Commission, or the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. From this, it can be seen that the investigation into Zhang and Liu is clearly a political issue rather than an economic one.

On the 23rd, former Director of the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency and National Security Advisor General Flynn reposted Cai Shenkun’s post and commented: “Breaking: A coup is happening inside the Chinese Communist Party / within China! The CCP and its military leadership appear to be undergoing massive upheaval. These conditions resemble a coup, and the consequences will directly affect U.S. foreign policy…”

A former CCP official disclosed that Zhang Youxia, together with Liu Zhenli, was preparing to launch a coup, which failed due to someone tipping off the authorities. It was said that Zhang and Liu acted “in response to calls from inside and outside the Party, to save the Communist Party, launching a coup in the name of saving the Party.” Xi learned of it, reportedly through a deputy chief of staff who informed on them. At a critical moment, Xi designed a plan to have Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli arrested.

Fearing that Zhang Youxia’s former subordinates might lead troops into Beijing, Xi ordered units across the country to remain in place, but the situation could change at any moment. Former Inner Mongolia official Du Wen, citing information from within the system, said that various radical actions by Zhang Youxia’s old subordinates could occur at any time. “All units of the entire military have now entered level-one combat readiness. All personnel have returned to their posts, all external mobile phone communications have been cut off, and centralized political study is being conducted.” According to the information, the old General Staff command system has been suspended and replaced by the Central Military Commission directly issuing commands via encrypted telegrams. “With the information now public, this has become an open showdown. There is no room for compromise or political bargaining anymore—it’s a matter of life and death,” Du Wen said.

According to the revelations, it appears that Zhang and Liu are of the same nature as He and Miao: all were secretly opposing Xi, all were preparing to launch a coup, forming a coup group even larger than that of Zhou Yongkang and Bo Xilai.

However, Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post, citing informed sources, reported that Zhang and Liu were purged for “failing to report problems to Party leadership in a timely manner.” Zhang Youxia was accused of corruption and of failing to restrain his confidants, family members, and relatives.

Shen Mingshi, a researcher at Taiwan’s Institute for National Defense and Security Research, told The Epoch Times that since the Third Plenum of the CCP’s 20th Central Committee, internal infighting at the top of the CCP has been intensifying… possibly related to power arrangements ahead of the CCP’s 21st Party Congress.

Xi once held the title of “the sole authority,” but since the Third Plenum, this status was interrupted for a period by “collective leadership.” Now, if he wants to secure reelection at the 21st Party Congress, he must fight to restore that sole authority.

Regardless of the situation, the CCP’s internal state has already become dizzyingly chaotic—a tangled mess, a pot of porridge. What can be certain is that something major has definitely happened inside the CCP. (To be continued)

(First published by People News)
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