Xi Jinping Faces a 'Soft Mutiny' While Visiting North Korea! Li Qiang Uses Constitutional Oath to Secretly Lay Ground for Anti-Xi Move; Wang Huning Takes Li Ganjie to Xinjiang to Seek an Exit Strategy; Pentagon Blacklist Delivers a Precise Blow, Wiping Out 'New Quality Productive Forces'! [Jiang Feng Vision 20260610 Episode 406]

During Xi Jinping's visit to North Korea, the top leadership in Beijing and Washington were secretly laying out plans. Premier of the State Council Li Qiang used the constitutional oath to subtly signal "seeking truth from facts" as a form of soft resistance; CPPCC Chairman Wang Huning, accompanied by United Front Work Department Minister Li Ganjie, traveled to Xinjiang to connect with former Youth League faction heavyweight Chen Xiaojiang to seek an alternative path; meanwhile, the U.S. Pentagon released a blacklist of 1260H military enterprises just as Xi Jinping returned to Beijing, precisely wiping out China's "new quality productive forces."

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Hello friends, this is Jiang Feng Vision. On June 8, I chatted with you all in Jiang Feng Moment about a piece of history: when the top leader of the CCP visits North Korea, it often becomes a political Rashomon. It looks like a glorious state visit, but as it unfolds, it turns into the final walk of their political career. Back in the day, Hua Guofeng and Zhao Ziyang went to Pyongyang, and no sooner had they left than their backyards caught fire; upon returning, they had lost their power. That place, Pyongyang, seems to carry an unspeakable political curse for the masters of Zhongnanhai. So, what happened during the few days the man at the top was in Pyongyang—from June 8 to his return on June 9, in those short dozens of hours? On the surface, under the blazing sun, he accepted Kim Jong Un's "tribute from all nations" style of flattery at Kim Il-sung Square, listening to the honor guard goose-stepping and shouting "long live," fully indulging in the thrill of being the "Big Brother." But in Beijing, what was truly fatal was not the red carpet in Pyongyang. During the two days he turned his back on Zhongnanhai, the caretaker government in Beijing and his arch-rival in Washington seemed to have synchronized their watches under the table, playing three cards simultaneously. Today, let's dig deep into what exactly were the three hidden landmines placed on the boss's desk on June 9, the day his special plane landed in Beijing.

Let's first talk about the first time bomb, which is buried inside the State Council. On the surface, it looks dignified and proper, but beneath the surface, undercurrents are surging. On June 9, the exact same day that the Big Boss took a special plane back to Beijing from Pyongyang, a high-level ceremony was held in Beijing where 37 heads of 37 departments appointed by the State Council took a constitutional oath in accordance with the law. The ceremony was hosted by State Councilor and State Council Secretary-General Wu Zhenglong, with State Council Premier Li Qiang personally witnessing the oath. Those in the know understand the inner workings, while laymen just watch the spectacle. Many friends might think this is just a routine formality, with officials simply going through the motions upon taking office. If you think that way, you are underestimating the traditional Chinese Communist Party (CCP) bureaucratic art of putting on a full show while speaking with a hidden agenda. In the CCP political context, talking about the constitution has always been a technical skill, and sometimes a political prop. People might still remember that famous scene at the National People's Congress press conference in 2023, when Qin Gang, the newly appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs who was still riding high, deliberately picked up a red copy of the Constitution of the People's Republic of China from the table and read from the preamble right in front of the world's media, using constitutional provisions to threaten Taiwan. In earlier years, Li Zhaoxing also liked to flip through the constitution in his hands when he was the spokesperson for the congress. To this gang, the constitution is usually just a notebook gathering dust in a corner, but when they need to put on a public show of force, they take it out and wave it like a red little book. But today's constitutional oath presided over by Li Qiang has a completely different nature. Although these 37 newly appointed high-ranking officials were chanting oaths to the constitution, within the strict hierarchical rules of the CCP, they were actually making a political pledge of allegiance to Li Qiang, the person witnessing the oath on stage. More crucially, after the oath was completed, Li Qiang delivered a speech. If we open the official transcript published by Xinhua News Agency on June 9 and examine the contents of Li Qiang's lecture word by word, you will find an abnormal phenomenon. As the current premier, at a time when the Big Boss was visiting abroad and domestic praise and atmosphere-building were urgently needed, Li Qiang's speech completely omitted those clichés most beloved by the person in Zhongnanhai—there was no mention of the great struggle, no talk about the East rising and the West declining, and no new quality productive forces.

So what words did Li Qiang use to repeatedly drill these 37 department heads who hold real power? The transcript clearly shows that Li Qiang demanded they adhere to seeking truth from facts, conduct in-depth investigations and research, establish and practice a correct view of political performance, speak the truth, do practical things, seek actual results, base themselves on the specific conditions of their own departments and fields, proceed from reality, and act according to objective laws. Hearing these few terms, anyone familiar with CCP history and factional discourse will likely feel a jolt in their heart. In the CCP's secret political dictionary, seeking truth from facts and acting according to objective laws have never been empty slogans; they were the core political amulets of the technocrats during the Hu-Wen and Li Keqiang eras, and the secret passwords they used to resist reckless commands. Li Qiang taking advantage of the Big Boss's absence to talk extensively about seeking truth from facts right in front of 37 real-power figures of the State Council carries an almost undisguised subtext. The person up top is messing things up right now, plunging the economy into a terrible mess—that is called not seeking truth from facts. Since you all took an oath before me today, your future actions must be based on the specific conditions of your own fields; do not follow the people up top into madness. In essence, this is a political alignment and soft resistance by the pragmatic bureaucrats of the State Council under the high-pressure rule of the extreme left. This inevitably reminds people of the history we mentioned at the beginning: on May 4, 1978, Hua Guofeng took a special train in grand style to visit North Korea, staying for a full week. Right at the juncture when he left Pyongyang on May 10 and returned to Beijing on May 11, Deng Xiaoping made his move at home. On May 10, Deng Xiaoping instructed the internal publication of the Central Party School to publish "Practice Is the Sole Criterion for Testing Truth." On May 11, the moment Hua Guofeng arrived in Beijing, the People's Daily published this article openly. Deng Xiaoping used the words "practice is the sole criterion for testing truth" to directly turn Hua Guofeng's "Two Whatevers" into a historical joke, while smoothly undermining the roots of Hua Guofeng's power. The rhymes of history are always so similar; when the special plane landed at Beijing Capital International Airport on June 9, the person in Zhongnanhai was likely still immersed in the red carpets and cheers of Pyongyang, unaware that the State Council housekeeper left behind in Beijing had already quietly led the heads of more than thirty departments in chanting that incantation of seeking truth from facts used to overthrow Hua Guofeng back then.

If the State Council side was engaging in soft resistance, then the old foxes in the party affairs system had already begun to "repair the plank road openly while secretly crossing Chencang." This leads to the second mine on the boss's desk: Wang Huning's mysterious trip to Xinjiang. According to official reports, from June 5 to June 9, Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Chairman Wang Huning conducted research in Xinjiang. Let's first ponder this timeline: the Emperor set off for Pyongyang on June 8. According to CCP rules, when the top leader goes abroad for a major state visit, the Standing Committee members remaining in Beijing are required to be on high mental alert, ready at any moment to cooperate with the propaganda machine in singing a duet. This is an extremely important period for political posturing. But what about Wang Huning? He sneaked out of Beijing ahead of time on June 5, heading all the way to the great Northwest, and didn't finish his itinerary until the boss returned to the country on June 9. As the absolute grand steward of the CCP's ideology, Wang Huning perfectly avoided the sensitive period around this visit when Zhongnanhai was most prone to trouble. What is this trick called? In official circles, it's called a perfect political side-step. He neither had to stay in Beijing and shout "Long live!" alongside the Emperor's clique, nor did he have to endorse that farcical meeting in Pyongyang. But if you think Wang Huning went to Xinjiang just to seek peace and quiet, you are underestimating this three-dynasty imperial tutor. Let's look at the oddities of this trip of his: the official stated reason was to research Xinjiang's modernization construction during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, as well as economic and development planning. Logically, it would make sense to bring the Director of the National Development and Reform Commission or a Vice Premier in charge of the economy. But who did Wang Huning bring? The Xinhua News Agency report stated clearly: Li Ganjie joined the research. Who is Li Ganjie? A member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee and Secretary of the Secretariat of the Central Committee, with an even more fatal title: Head of the United Front Work Department of the Central Committee. A CPPCC Chairman, bringing along a senior official in charge of the united front, winning people over, and handling personnel united front affairs, going to Xinjiang to research economic planning—this is completely hanging a sheep's head and selling dog meat; this is a thorough political bottom-testing and personnel networking operation.

Let's look at where he went and who he met. Who is the Party Secretary currently holding down the fort in Xinjiang? None other than Chen Xiaojiang. When Wang Huning ran off to Xinjiang this time, his itinerary penetrated deep into Hami, Hotan, and the 13th and 14th Divisions of the Corps. As the top dog, Chen Xiaojiang inevitably accompanied and coordinated the whole process. Those who understand the internal veins and factional branches of the CCP system can see through it at a glance: Chen Xiaojiang's resume is very special. He is a genuine graduate of Wuhan University of Water Resources and Electric Power, climbing all the way up through the water conservancy system. And everyone knows that the CCP's water conservancy system was the most solid power base of the Hu Jintao era back then. Chen Xiaojiang carries a strong League faction and moderate faction color. What's even crazier is that before being parachuted into Xinjiang as the top leader, he also served as the executive deputy minister in charge of daily operations at the Central United Front Work Department. Once this piece of the puzzle is put in place, the picture becomes very clear. Wang Huning, a scholar from Fudan University who walked all the way into Zhongnanhai, spanning two general secretaries, Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao, is known as a three-dynasty tumbler. What does he rely on? Absolutely not any theoretical contributions, but a political sense of smell as sensitive as a dog's. Every time the center of power shakes and the old captain is about to capsize, he can always smell danger at the first instance and find the next life raft ahead of time. Looking at the current situation, the domestic economy is already a mud puddle that can't be propped up, the real estate sector has exploded, local government debt has collapsed, and the grievances inside and outside the system have reached a critical point. Internationally, the boss ran to Pyongyang to huddle with his little dictatorial brother, completely offending the Western world, and the opposition is gathering strength in the dark. Against this backdrop, Wang Huning took current United Front Work Department Head Li Ganjie and ran all the way to the northwestern frontier to find Chen Xiaojiang—a person of real power left over from the Hu Jintao era and also the former executive deputy head of the United Front Work Department who is currently Xinjiang Party Secretary. How is this any research or planning? This is clearly the new and old United Front Work Department heads taking the opportunity of going to the grassroots in Hami and Hotan to hold a secret meeting, to engage in intra-party alliance, and to engage in a genuine intra-party united front! He is paving a retreat for himself, winking at and building good relations with moderate and powerful figures in the localities ahead of the arrival of the post-Xi era. Just in case the sky really changes in Zhongnanhai one day, Wang Huning can still continue to play the role of the tumbler relying on the web he wove today.

Domestically, the State Council has cast a dark spell, and the old state advisor is seeking an escape route. Abroad, the leader's trip to Pyongyang has directly invited a heavy punch from Washington. This is the third landmine placed on the desk on June 9th, a lethal blow from the Pentagon. Just as the man in Zhongnanhai stood in a square in Pyongyang, listening to the North Korean honor guard cheering for the comrade's good health, the U.S. Department of Defense across the ocean quietly released a highly destructive list: the newly revised 1260H list of Chinese military companies. Let's take a look at who is on this list. This time, the Pentagon added over a dozen leading Chinese enterprises in one go, including Alibaba, Baidu, BYD, DJI, Unitree Robotics (which makes humanoid robots), and the pharmaceutical manufacturing giant WuXi AppTec. Furthermore, the Americans specifically added back the two national chip champions, YMTC and CXMT, which had been briefly removed from the list in February of this year. Looking at this list, you will find that the Americans' strike is truly precise and vicious. What has Xi been boasting about domestically every day for the past two years? He boasts about the 'new quality productive forces' that can save the Chinese economy. Alibaba and Baidu represent China's artificial intelligence, BYD represents new energy electric vehicles, YMTC represents indigenous chips, and WuXi AppTec represents biomedicine. These are all the 'flesh and blood' he praises at every meeting, and they are also the last few trump cards the CCP is using to attempt to overtake on a curve and confront the West. And what happened? The Pentagon's 1260H list has wiped out these representatives of 'new quality productive forces' in one fell swoop. Being included on this list means that these companies will face extreme restrictions on their business in the United States. Not only will they be unable to obtain any contracts from the U.S. Department of Defense, but more fatally, this is a red label stuck on their foreheads. U.S. investment institutions, government agencies at all levels, and even ordinary business partners will steer clear upon seeing this list. This is equivalent to cutting off the capital chains and trust chains of these companies in the international market.

However, the most brilliant part of this incident is not the content of the list, but the timing gap of its release. According to U.S. media, this list was actually prepared in February of this year and was even briefly posted on the website for a few minutes. But why was it hastily withdrawn at that time? Because Washington was waiting. They were waiting for the summit between Trump and the Beijing leadership held in Beijing in May. The Americans left room for maneuver at the time, hiding the knife behind their backs to give them face, sitting down to talk about trade and technological competition, and seeing if they were willing to make some concessions on the bottom line. As a result, the summit ended, and the Americans found that the attitude on the other side remained as stubborn as ever, full of bureaucratic jargon, with no substantive concessions at all, clearly just stalling for time. That's not all. Less than a month after the summit ended, the man in Zhongnanhai went to Pyongyang with great fanfare to huddle for warmth and act like brothers with the North Korean regime, which is under comprehensive international sanctions. For Washington, this was the last straw. Since you are determined to hang out with thugs, why should I save you any face? Therefore, the Pentagon seized the moment when the leader was busy with an ideological alliance in Pyongyang and his special plane was just preparing to return, and slammed this list, which was four months late, down hard. The subtext behind this, translated into plain language, is: 'You go ahead and pretend to be the big brother of socialism in Pyongyang. You hold your military parade there, and I will cut off your proud technological arteries in Washington.' This is not called sanctions; this is called killing the heart. It left no room for sentiment and directly tore the face he was desperately trying to maintain on the international stage to shreds. We often say that totalitarian regimes always look impregnable and arrogant, but their collapse often does not happen during a frontal assault, but at the very second when the dictator turns around, closes his eyes, and enjoys the cheers of 'long live.' When he thinks he has everything under control, his backyard is actually already preparing for his funeral. Alright, that's all for today.

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