General He Weidong is one of two vice-chairmen of China's Central Military Commission (CMC) and number three in the military hierarchy. He is also a member of the Politburo.
He had not been seen in public since early March 2025, including being absent from events attended by Xi Jinping and other CMC members in April 2025 and from China's September 3rd 2025 military parade. More than 20 senior officers have disappeared or been dismissed since Xi began a third term as party leader in 2022, including three of the seven members of the CMC. If He's purge is confirmed, he would be the highest-ranking uniformed member of the CMC to be dismissed since 1967.
The early bird who catches the worm works for someone who comes in late and owns the worm farm.