Zheng was a member of the 19th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party[1] and a delegate to the 13th National People's Congress.

[3][2] Zheng was promoted to major political posts after Party General Secretary Xi Jinping came to power in 2012.

[3][5][6] In 2016, Zheng was transferred back to Beijing to serve as Deputy Director of the International Liaison Department of the Chinese Communist Party.

The Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office in Beijing issued a statement saying that he had suffered from depression, with the implication that he had committed suicide.

[5][3] Bruce Lui Ping-kuen, convener of Hong Kong's Independent Commentators Association, claimed that in order to avoid speculation that might disturb Party General Secretary Xi Jinping's visit for the opening of the bridge, Beijing had been too quick to conclude that Zheng had died while suffering from depression, a conclusion they announced even before the completion of the investigation by the Macao police.