The former Deputy Secretary of the Liaoning Provincial Government Xu Daqing was investigated on April 13, 2026. Prior to that, on January 18, 2026, his former superior, the former Secretary of the Liaoning Provincial Government Zhou Liyuan, was also investigated. Both of them were former subordinates of Li Xi, a member of the Political Bureau and the Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission of the Communist Party of China (CPC) during his tenure in Liaoning.
On April 13, 2026, the National Supervisory Commission of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection disclosed that Xu Daqing, the former Party Secretary and Chairman of Liaoning Transportation Construction Investment Group Co., Ltd., was under investigation for “serious violations of discipline and law.”
Public records show that Xu Daqing was born in September 1964. He held various government positions in Liaoning from September 1995 to December 2010. From December 2010 to June 2012, he served as the Deputy Secretary of the Jinzhou Municipal Committee in Liaoning. From June 2012 to November 2015, he was the Deputy Secretary of the Liaoning Provincial Government. Starting from November 2015, he served as the Chairman and Party Secretary of Liaoning Transportation Construction Investment Group. He also held positions in other organizations before resigning in 2025.
During Xu Daqing’s tenure as the Deputy Secretary of the Liaoning Provincial Government from June 2012 to November 2015, he worked under three different provincial governors: Chen Zhenggao (December 2007 to April 2014), Li Xi (April 2014 to May 2015), and Chen Qiufa (May 2015 to October 2017).
After Li Xi was appointed as the Secretary of the Liaoning Provincial Party Committee, Xu Daqing was promoted to the position of Chairman and Party Secretary of the Liaoning Transportation Construction Investment Group in November 2015. This company, a state-owned capital investment corporation in Liaoning, was responsible for integrating resources such as highways and railways in the province. Xu Daqing was the inaugural Chairman and Party Secretary of the group.
Xu Daqing had worked with Zhou Liyuan, the former Secretary of the Liaoning Provincial Government who was investigated three months prior, for three and a half years. Zhou Liyuan, aged 71, was investigated after eight years of retirement on January 18, 2026.
Zhou Liyuan served as the Deputy Director of the Liaoning Provincial Government Office and the Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Government since December 2000. During Chen Zhenggao’s term as the governor of Liaoning, Zhou Liyuan was promoted to the Secretary of the Provincial Government and the Director of the Provincial Government Office in March 2013. After Li Xi took over as the governor in April 2014, Zhou Liyuan continued to hold the position of Secretary of the Provincial Government and Director of the Provincial Government Office, working as Li Xi’s chief aide for a year.
Li Xi became the Secretary of the Liaoning Provincial Party Committee in May 2015 and later took on the additional role of the Chairman of the Liaoning Provincial People’s Congress Standing Committee. Zhou Liyuan stepped down from his position as the Secretary of the Provincial Government in January 2016 and assumed the role of Chairman of the Legal Affairs Committee of the Liaoning Provincial People’s Congress.
During the 19th National Congress of the CPC in October 2017, Li Xi was promoted to a member of the Political Bureau and succeeded Hu Chunhua as the Secretary of the Guangdong Provincial Party Committee. In the 20th National Congress of the CPC in October 2022, Li Xi was further promoted to a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau, succeeding Zhao Leji as the Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.
During Li Xi’s tenure as the Secretary of the Guangdong Provincial Party Committee, Ma Xingrui served as the Governor of the province, and the two worked together for four years. Both Li Xi and Ma Xingrui were high-ranking officials who were continuously promoted and trusted by the CPC leader Xi Jinping after he assumed office.
Ma Xingrui, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC, was officially removed from office on April 3, 2026.
After Ma Xingrui was relieved of his position as the Secretary of the Xinjiang Provincial Party Committee on July 1, 2025, rumors emerged about his involvement in misconduct. On November 28, 2025, both Li Xi and Ma Xingrui were absent from a collective study session of the Political Bureau of the CPC, prompting external attention and speculation.
Jiang Wangzheng, a commentator known for revealing the internal dynamics of the CPC, disclosed on December 7, 2025, that Liu Jingguo, the first Deputy Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, was specifically handling the Ma Xingrui case. The case also implicated Li Xi and his family, along with 51 other high-ranking officials. Jiang Wangzheng further stated that the Ma Xingrui case had reached a level that directly involved Xi Jinping’s ruling.
Another commentator, Cai Shenkun, mentioned during an interview with NTD Television that the Ma Xingrui case could potentially implicate more individuals, including senior figures like Hu Chunhua and Li Xi. He suggested that the one leading the Ma Xingrui case might not be Li Xi himself, but Liu Jingguo, a member of the Central Secretariat, Deputy Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, and the Director of the National Supervisory Commission. If Liu Jingguo indeed had control over the case, even senior officials could be directly reported to Xi Jinping.