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But crackdowns inevitably ensue. "When there's instability at the top, [China's] leaders worry that social groups will feel the freedom to act more boldly," says David Zweig, a political-science professor at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. True to form, the dragnet widened in the days after the Bo and Chen affairs. Dozens of people connected to Bo have disappeared, presumably into official custody. Those who helped Chen's escape, including He, were hustled away too. As China prepares to welcome its new leaders to the helm, the coming days will doubtless see further repression--and perhaps more scandalous details of high-level skulduggery.
The original version of the story reversed words in Kenneth Lieberthal's description of the Chinese Communist Party.