The close aide of the Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping, Minister of Public Security Wang Xiaohong, made a rare appearance on April 15, 2026, after disappearing for four weeks. At the same time, the Central Inspection Team began a two-and-a-half-month inspection of the Party Committee of the Ministry of Public Security.
The head of the inspection team, Shi Kehui, was formerly the chief steward of Wang Qishan, the former Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. In 2025, Shi Kehui led inspection teams to Sichuan and Guizhou provinces, resulting in the downfall of four vice-provincial level officials, including Ye Hanbing, a key member of the Xi Jinping faction, and Tang Dezhi, former chief steward of Chen Min’er, a close associate of Xi.
According to reports from the Chinese Communist Party’s official media Xinhua News Agency, on the morning of April 15, 2026, Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping held talks with the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam and State President Su Lin, who was visiting China for state affairs. Central Politburo Standing Committee member Cai Qi, Politburo member Wang Yi, Yin Li, State Councilor Wang Xiaohong also attended the event.
This marked the first public appearance of Wang Xiaohong, the Vice Minister of Public Security, Central Secretariat of the Communist Party, State Councilor, and Minister of Public Security, after being in seclusion for 28 days.
Wang Xiaohong attended the first ministerial-level meeting of the “3+3” strategic dialogue mechanism on diplomacy, national defense, and public security between China and Vietnam in Hanoi from March 15 to 17, 2026. Subsequently, from March 18 to April 14, 2026, there were no reports of public activities, and he remained out of the public eye for four weeks.
On April 15, 2026, the official Xinhua News Agency of the Chinese Communist Party released a report titled “Chen Wenqing Meets with Member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Minister of Public Security Liang Sanguang,” stating that Chen Wenqing, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Secretary of the Central Commission for Political and Legal Affairs, met with Liang Sanguang, Minister of Public Security of Vietnam on April 14 in Beijing. The report made no mention of Minister of Public Security Wang Xiaohong.
There were doubts in the public about what should have been a high-level meeting within the public security system. Although Wang Xiaohong is not a member of the Political Bureau, as the Secretary of the Central Secretariat, State Councilor, Minister of Public Security, and Deputy Secretary of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China, he should have been the primary counterpart for Liang Sanguang. However, he was completely absent from the meeting, leading to speculation about the reasons behind his absence.
Wang Xiaohong is a trusted ally of the Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping from Fujian. During his absence, various online rumors circulated about Wang Xiaohong being ill or being investigated.
Following Wang Xiaohong’s appearance, commentator Cai Shenkun posted on April 15, 2026, stating, “Wang Xiaohong has been in hiding since returning from Vietnam last month. There have been rumors abroad that he met with trouble and got caught, but I think it’s not very reliable. From what I’ve gathered, people are saying that Wang Xiaohong has health issues, not political problems.”
Cai Shenkun also expressed that Cai Qi and Wang Xiaohong are the most trusted lieutenants of Xi Jinping. If they were to really encounter trouble and get caught, it would indicate a significant shift in the power dynamics within the party.
Commentator Jiang Wangzheng, who has been revealing the movements of the senior officials of the Communist Party, posted on April 15, 2026, stating, “Wang Xiaohong is fine, he just has throat cancer and is not in good health.” “Wang Xiaohong has throat cancer, he just doesn’t want to relinquish power (money). Wang Xiaohong is the most knowledgeable among all Communist Party cadres about digital currencies; he deals with a large amount of Bitcoin and USDT, from which he can extract profits of 12% to 15%. That’s the real reason why Wang Xiaohong is reluctant to delegate authority.”
Earlier, Jiang Wangzheng had revealed on April 9, 2026, that the Secretary of the Hunan Provincial Party Committee, Shen Xiaoming, would take over from Wang Xiaohong as Minister of Public Security.
On the same day that Wang Xiaohong made a public appearance, on the evening of April 15, 2026, at 6:30 Beijing time, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection announced that the twelfth inspection team of the CPC Central Committee had recently held a mobilization meeting for the work of inspecting the Party Committee of the Ministry of Public Security. Shi Kehui, head of the twelfth inspection team, delivered a mobilization speech and made requirements for the inspection work. Wang Xiaohong, Secretary of the Central Secretariat of the Communist Party of China and Minister of Public Security, chaired the meeting and spoke.
According to reports, the Central Inspection Team will work in the Ministry of Public Security for about two and a half months; the deadline for accepting letters and calls related to the inspection is June 23, 2026; the main focus will be on feedback regarding the leadership team of the Party Committee of the Ministry of Public Security and its members, as well as the main responsible persons of the next-level Party organizations.
It is worth noting that the head of the twelfth inspection team, Shi Kehui, is a former associate of Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping and former Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, Wang Qishan, as well as a former associate of the Director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, Xia Baolong.
Shi Kehui, born in July 1961 in Pujiang County, Jinhua City, Zhejiang Province, has had a long career in Zhejiang. During Xi Jinping’s tenure as Secretary of the Zhejiang Provincial Committee from 2002 to 2007, Shi Kehui served as Deputy Director of the Documentation and Telecommunications Office, Deputy Director of Comprehensive Office 2, and Director of the Documentation and Telecommunications Office of the Provincial Committee Office. At the time, Xia Baolong was the Deputy Secretary of the Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee and Xi Jinping’s “deputy.”
In January 2012, Xia Baolong was promoted to Governor of Zhejiang Province and later became the Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee in December of the same year. At that time, Shi Kehui was the Deputy Director of the Provincial Committee Office and the Deputy Secretary-General of the Provincial Committee (at the level of Department Director).
In 2014, Shi Kehui was transferred to Deputy Secretary-General of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and concurrently Director of the Office, serving as the “chief steward” of the then Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, Wang Qishan. Prior to Mr. Wang’s resignation as Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, in May 2017, Shi Kehui was transferred to Deputy Secretary of the Guangdong Provincial Party Committee and Secretary of the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection. In January 2021, Shi Kehui was reassigned as the head of the Discipline Inspection and Supervision Team of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervision Commission stationed at the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of the State Council.
A year ago, from mid-April to the end of June 2025, Shi Kehui led the twelfth inspection team to Sichuan Province. During the inspection period, on April 25, 2025, Song Chaohua, former Deputy Director of the Standing Committee of the Sichuan Provincial People’s Congress, was investigated; and on May 21, 2025, Ye Hanbing, Deputy Governor of Sichuan Province and Director of the Provincial Public Security Department, was investigated during his tenure. Ye Hanbing had worked in the Zhejiang public security system for a long time and was a key member of the Xi family army, with connections to Zhao Yide, Gong Zheng, and other senior members of the Xi family army.
From mid-July to the end of September 2025, Shi Kehui led the twelfth inspection team to Guizhou Province. During the inspection period, on July 24, 2025, Wu Shenghua, member of the Standing Committee of the Guizhou Provincial Party Committee and Secretary of the Bijie City Committee, was investigated; and on August 29, 2025, Tang Dezhi, a member of the Party Committee of the Guizhou Provincial Committee and Vice Chairman of the Provincial Political Consultative Conference, was investigated during his tenure. Both Wu Shenghua and Tang Dezhi were local officials in Guizhou. During the tenure of Xi’s close associates Li Zhanshu, Zhao Kezhi, Chen Min’er, and others in governing Guizhou, they were promoted.