*We're not really into scandalmongering on the blog here, unless there is some kind
of high-tech, computer-crime or media social-engineering angle.
*But Good Lord, that is quite a story this woman has. She's like a scheming concubine
at the heart of the Ming Dynasty.
"Portrait of a femme fatale who brought down China's elite
By Clifford Coonan In Beijing
Saturday, 19 February 2011
"Li Wei's story of seducing businessmen is detailed in 'Caijing' magazine
"A respected magazine has provided the most detailed picture yet of the complex life of a billionaire businesswoman responsible for the downfall of some China's most powerful figures in a sex-and-corruption saga that has gripped the nation.
"Li Wei slept with up to 15 top business and party figures before turning on some of them in a series of corruption cases to save herself from a long prison sentence, according to Caijing business magazine. Her contacts book contained some of the most powerful men in the land, as she used her beauty to break into the secretive bastion of powerful men that tightly control China, according to the magazine.
"Ms Li was jailed on tax fraud charges in 2006 but was released early this year and now lives in Hong Kong. The magazine alleges that she was released early because her diary (((okay, maybe it's a leaked, digital diary))) contains fresh allegations of "immoral relationships" with "high-ranking officials", which is code for officials at the most senior levels in the land.
"Ms Li reportedly created a vast network of protection and favour in the provinces in Yunnan, Guangdong, Beijing and Qingdao to build a multibillion-pound business empire in return for sexual favours. As her corrupt protectors went to jail, she turned herself in and was given a lenient jail term.
"You cannot invest all your resources and opportunities into one person, you have to construct a huge relationship net, like an umbrella," Ms Li was quoted as saying by Chinese media. Her empire at its peak consisted of more than 20 companies in Beijing, Qingdao, Shenzhen, Hong Kong and overseas, in industries including tobacco, real estate and advertising. She owned 183 petrol stations in Beijing. (((Maybe you're laughing at the petrol station, but you ought to check out the awesome political career of Ukraine's "Orange Gas Princess." )))
"A great friend of Wang Yi, vice-chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, her shares and bonds did very well. Her assets were at one point worth about £1bn. (((I don't believe I've ever heard of a demimondaine who had a billion-pound fortune. They might own a lustful billionaire, maybe, but not their own billion pounds in shares and bonds.)))
"Born in Vietnam in 1963 of mixed French-Vietnamese parentage, (((what an interesting background))) she moved at the age of seven with her father to Yunnan province in search of a better life. She sold tobacco as a youngster, but her ability to manipulate the arcane system of building connections, combined with her considerable allure, transformed her into a formidable power broker.
Zheng Shaodong, the former chief investigations officer at the Ministry of Public Security in Guangdong province, got her a residence permit. After earning legitimate resident status, she married a top official at the local tobacco bureau.
"Through her husband, Ms Li managed to gain access to former Yunnan governor Li Jiating, who became her lover...."
