On December 17th, the news of the Ming Dynasty painting “Jiangnan Spring” by Qiu Ying from the collection of the Nanjing Museum entering the auction market brought the museum into the public eye, stirring up a storm of controversy. Recently, a retired staff member came forward with a formal report accusing the former director Xu Huping of large-scale theft, gifting valuable artifacts to government officials at all levels, and smuggling cultural relics. The latest development revealed that after a 10-hour siege of Xu Huping’s villa, the authorities took Xu Huping, his wife, and nanny into custody.
In the evening of December 23rd, the “Asian Weekly” released a 1-minute video on their official Weibo account, titled “Neighbors of the Former Director (referring to Xu Huping, director of the Nanjing Museum) Speak Out.” Prominent Weibo user “Zaxidele‧Heavenly Bead Collection” shared that the video featured recordings of conversations with Xu Huping’s neighbors, detailing the events from the night of the incident to the following day. The recordings confirmed the police’s surround-and-arrest operation at his residence. According to the neighbor, the villa was usually dark, earning it the nickname of a haunted house, but on the night of the incident, lights were on all night, attracting attention from people nearby.
A large number of police officers arrived and surrounded Xu Huping’s villa. The siege continued until the next morning, with two men coming out of the house in the early morning, guarding the entrance with relevant items until around 12:30 pm when they finally left. The neighbor also mentioned the arrival of several cars, including official vehicles, and ultimately Xu Huping, his wife, and nanny were taken away together.
Furthermore, “Zaxidele‧Heavenly Bead Collection” highlighted that on the afternoon of December 23rd, the “Asian Weekly” posted a thought-provoking Weibo with the caption “The End” and a photo of Xu Huping’s villa. The proximity of the villa to the Nanjing Museum, a protected cultural heritage site, sparked speculation among netizens. The photo showing a black sedan parked in front of the villa stirred various guesses, from it being a government vehicle for the case to concerns about Xu Huping’s health. Combined with the revelations from the neighbors, the “The End” referred to in the post clearly indicated the formal commencement of the investigation.
Technology blogger and Weibo user “Zhuangjianjian” relayed the aforementioned video, stating that on the night of the 22nd, relevant personnel arrived at Xu Huping’s villa with several buses and stayed until around 12:30 pm on the 23rd when the couple was taken away.
December 17th, after the exclusive report by “The Paper” titled “Why is the Ming Dynasty painting ‘Jiangnan Spring’ from the Nanjing Museum appearing in the auction market?” the Nanjing Museum became the target of criticism. The report mentioned that in 1959, the descendants of the renowned collector Pon Laichen had donated a significant number of ancient calligraphy and paintings to several state-owned cultural institutions, with some becoming the prized possessions of these institutions. The Nanjing Museum received the most, with 137 items, including the national treasure Ming Dynasty painting “Jiangnan Spring.”
In late June 2025, Pon Laichen’s granddaughter Pon Shuling visited the Nanjing Museum to inspect the 137 items donated in 1959 under a reconciliation agreement, finding only 132 items, with 5 missing. Apart from the Ming Dynasty painting “Jiangnan Spring” appearing in a Beijing auction catalog in May, other missing items included the Northern Song dynasty painting “Double Horse Painting Scroll” by Zhao Guangfu, the Ming dynasty painting “Pine Breeze at Xiao Temple” by Wang Fu, the early Qing dynasty painting “Imitation of Beiyuan Landscape” by Wang Shimin, and the Qing dynasty painting “Ink Landscape” by Tang Yifen.
The starting bid for “Jiangnan Spring” was 88 million yuan. Following Pon Shuling’s report, the auction house removed the item from the auction.
On December 18th, a search by Red Star News found that on June 18, 2014, Shanghai Jiatai Auction House auctioned a painting “Double Horse Picture Scroll” by Zhao Guangfu, with a hammer price of 2.3 million yuan. The painting bore an inscription “Song Zhao Guangfu Double Horse Picture. Seals: Pon Yuanji Seal (White), Laichen’s Blessings (Red),” with Pon Yuanji being Pon Laichen.
On December 21st, retired Nanjing Museum employee Guo Lidian publicly accused Xu Huping of smuggling genuine artworks after making fakes, and gifting them to government officials through a video platform on WeChat.
On December 24th, the “Asian Weekly” revealed on their official Weibo that “Guo Lidian, the whistleblower of the corruption case at the Nanjing Museum, received continuous threatening calls.”