According to the Wall Street Journal, China ousted former foreign minister Qin Gang from his position after finding that he had an affair and fathered a kid while serving as US ambassador. The tabloid stated on Tuesday that top authorities were informed in August that a Communist Party investigation into Qin turned up “lifestyle issues,” and it didn’t specify what those issues were. In the jargon of Chinese officialdom, that word typically refers to some sort of sexual misconduct.

Two persons claimed that the relationship resulted in the birth of a child in the US. With Qin’s aid, the investigation is currently concentrating on whether or whether the affair compromised national security. China’s main economic and geopolitical opponent, the US, and China are engaged in an ideological conflict, which has caused Beijing to step up its national security efforts to protect the country from external threats.

China removed Qin from his ministerial position in July, just seven months after he began working there, making his time in that position the shortest ever. Qin was fired without explanation, and his predecessor Wang Yi was granted the position back.

The incident sparked concerns about President Xi Jinping’s judgment and the stability of the administration overseeing the second-largest economy in the world. These worries are being revived by Defence Minister Li Shangfu’s present unexplained absence, which comes amid media accusations that he is being investigated for corruption.

According to individuals who spoke to the WSJ, prominent members of the ruling Communist Party are currently being investigated for their interactions with foreigners. They also said that China’s military’s top brass was also being investigated.

Few Chinese government officials have progressed through the diplomatic levels as quickly as Qin. His big break came in 2015 when the foreign ministry gave him control over protocol. During that six-year period, he coordinated state visits to China for prominent dignitaries.

Qin most certainly acquired access to Xi in that capacity. During a meeting with the then-US President Donald Trump in Beijing in 2017, he was seen standing behind the Chinese leader.

While still mostly unknown outside of diplomatic circles or the Beijing press corps, Qin was dispatched to Washington in 2021. He freely attended a baseball game and rode in a Tesla Inc. with Elon Musk, displaying a talent for public relations and assimilating American culture.

Additionally, he expressed moderation on controversial subjects, saying that if Beijing had been aware of Russia’s ambitions to invade Ukraine, it would have attempted to do so, and downplaying the likelihood of a conflict with Taiwan.