On December 21, 2024, mainland China’s electric car company Jiuyue suddenly dissolved on the spot, leaving employees futilely demanding their rights for days. Some employees wrote lengthy posts condemning CEO Xia Yiping as a “200-pound child who never grows up” and a “diligent but ineffective ruler,” but these topics were quickly censored. Netizens pointed out that these two descriptions easily evoke thoughts of targeting the Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping.
According to various media reports, Jiuyue Cars, supported by Baidu and Geely as part of the “new force in car manufacturing,” abruptly “dissolved” in early December. Over 5,000 employees across the country were instantly abandoned, with unpaid wages, social security, and compensation left unsettled. A source close to Jiuyue Cars’ top management recently revealed that by the summer of 2024, Jiuyue had accumulated losses exceeding billions of yuan. However, many media outlets only reported Jiuyue’s “on-record” loss of 7 billion yuan.
In recent days, Jiuyue employees have taken turns surrounding Xia Yiping in a bid to secure their rights for over a week, but to no avail. Representatives of the employees’ negotiation group have also been forced to dissolve one after another. A female employee recently released a video disclosing the failure of their rights protection efforts, stating, “They have too many means to deal with rights-defending employees.”
On December 18, a Jiuyue employee, using the Douyin account “Jiuyue Sipang,” published a lengthy article titled “Retrospect on the Jiuyue Collapse Event [Incomplete Version],” which quickly went viral online. On December 19, “Jiuyue Employee’s Lengthy Critique of CEO” trended on social media.
The article criticized Jiuyue CEO Xia Yiping for being blindly arrogant, running the company in a dictatorial manner, being stubborn and using a series of market-unfriendly tactics. These included forcing all marketing through third parties under the guise of “anti-corruption,” ultimately leading the company into an abyss.
The article contains a lot of “sensitive” phrases, mocking Xia Yiping as a “perpetual 200-pound child” and a “diligent but ineffective ruler,” accusing him of meddling in everything, doing nothing right, and managing internal affairs in an almost violent manner, stirring resentment among everyone.
Many netizens believe that the article blatantly insults and indirectly criticizes Xi Jinping by heavily censuring Xia Yiping.
On international platforms, netizens are discussing, “This is too brave, calling 200-pound Chong Zhen directly.” “Is Xia Yiping Xi Jinping?” “Are you sure they are commenting on Xia Yiping? Or someone else?”
Multiple mainland Chinese portals previously showcased articles titled “Jiuyue Employee’s Lengthy Critique of Xia Yiping: Never Growing Up 200-Pound Child, Ruler in the Dark,” but they have since been deleted. The original Douyin account that posted the article has also been blocked.
Chinese netizens often give Xi Jinping nicknames such as “Steamed Bun,” “Winnie the Pooh,” and “200 pounds.” An database leak from a domestic website revealed at least 2,000 sensitive terms related to Xi Jinping, and this list continues to grow.
Independent commentator Du Zheng previously wrote in Taiwan’s media “Up Media” that ever since Xi Jinping took office at the end of 2012, he immediately created the crime of “irreverence towards the Central Authorities” within official circles. His name also resembles the Chinese word for “censorship,” suggesting a forewarning. Perhaps he anticipated that one day criticism against him would become a trend, spreading beyond official circles to society, indicating the loss of his authority. The disappearance of the authority of the CCP leader coincides with the dwindling fate of the Communist Party, walking hand-in-hand.
Furthermore, Xi Jinping has frequently been symbolically referred to as a “ruler of a dying nation,” while official controls tighten.
A revised work by the late Chinese Ming dynasty expert Chen Wutong titled “Chongzhen: The Diligent Ruler of a Dying Nation” was fully removed from circulation in October last year. Widely circulated views suggest this book was indirectly addressing Xi Jinping.
The cover ad for the book reads, “The Diligent Ruler of a Dying Nation makes continuous mistakes, the more ‘diligent governance,’ the closer to ruin,” and includes elements of “hanging ropes” in its design. Historical records show that Chongzhen was the last emperor of the Ming dynasty. However, unlike other rulers of dying nations in history, he was considered a “diligent ruler.” Yet, Ming’s final fate was sealed, and there was no turning back. In 1644, Li Zicheng’s army invaded Beijing, and Chongzhen hanged himself on Jing Shan.
Former Chief China Adviser at the U.S. State Department Yu Maochun once stated that the book’s censorship underlines Xi’s “extreme sensitivity or paranoia.”