Xi shows up amid rumours of illness.

China's leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping created his first public appearance today after a fortnight of a much-talked-about absence, putting to rest at the moment rumours about the Vice President's illness.

In a carefully choreographed transfer, Xi, 59 attended the most innocent function to mark the National Science Popularisation Day at the Beijing-based China Agricultural School amid glare of print and television media which maintained some sort of steadied silence when rumours of Xi's illness dominated world days news.

Xi has been officially expected as successor to President Hu Jintao and expected to take over early next yr.

A section of the foreign media was tipped off about his visit as he seemed at the university.

While state-run Xinhua media agency, which flashed the news of his appearance released pictures of him appearing on the university, official CCTV showed a long footage of him interacting along with staff and students at it is most watched 7 PM media. Dressed in casual black coat, Xi, who was officially stated to own suffered a back injury although swimming, walked around with simplicity but looked weak as he or she delivered an impromptu speech calling for strengthening public food and health knowledge toward food safety issues.

Few foreign reporters who were allowed kept well away.

Xi was not seen in public areas since September 1. Speculation about his illness received ground after he failed maintain with the scheduled meetings along with visiting dignitaries like US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt a few.