The judgment that the world of 1932 has been torn into distinct economic zones by the economic policies of the Great Powers is not difficult for students in the Party School's advanced class to grasp. After all, one of the primary missions of the world's few truly powerful armies is to protect their economic frontiers from infringement.

"If one wished to shatter this economic status quo, would war be the result?" He Rui asked.

Some students were reluctant to admit it, but eventually, like the others, they had to acknowledge the reality. Even so, one student asked, as if seeking a concession, "Teacher, could the judgment that the vast majority of human activity is economic activity be misleading to the common people?"

He Rui found the students quite endearing, though this was hardly surprising. Humans easily absolutize concepts, subsequently sanctifying them. The Soviet Union, for instance, had successfully theologized Marxism and Lenin's experiences.

He Rui could only explain: "Comrades, the Civilization Party views Marxism as a form of political economy, which is to say, the essence of the Civilization Party is that of an academic organization. What is the greatest function of an academic organization? Is it to establish a theological seminary and formulate doctrines that allow no opposition? Or is it to analyze and research a field of study, and then put it into practice?"

Many of the students were stunned. Although they knew He Rui had said the Civilization Party should be a "team of educators" and a "team of propagandists," this was the first time they truly felt that the role of these teams was so all-encompassing.

Some students were alarmed, and one immediately asked, "Chairman, this will trigger chaos!"

He Rui did not fear chaos; the chaos of 1932 was hardly "true chaos" to someone who had experienced 2030. He Rui addressed the points the students struggled to articulate: "Comrades, we must not fear 'the game' (博弈). The game implies maximizing struggle within the bounds permitted by the system. Without this game, there is no way to extend education to the entire society. If we only know how to use force to enforce policy, the government will shoulder many responsibilities it should not bear. Many people, upon reaching a cliff's edge, know they must not jump. The government need only erect a warning sign on the path to the cliff: 'This road leads to a cliff; approach and you may fall. XX people have died falling this year.' For many, the matter ends there.

"The people know the risk of the cliff and how those who fell died. The government's work ends there! At most, build some railings at the edge so sightseers don't accidentally slip.

"If, to prevent falls, we forbid people from climbing the cliff at all, or worse, prevent them from knowing *how* falling happens, what will the people think? They will think the government is monopolizing the right to climb cliffs, and those with ill intent will claim the government is profiting by monopolizing the road! This is the result of insufficient strategic interaction."

Someone immediately objected, "Teacher, this does not apply to all fields, such as drug enforcement!"

"The reason drug enforcement has received the support of the vast majority of people in China today is that China has undergone a 'full game' in this area. Many have witnessed the damage addicts inflict on society, families, and the nation. Thus, our enforcement receives near-unconditional support. However, this experience is derived from tragic negative outcomes, not a complete strategic interaction. Because humans cannot endure long-term suffering, a demand for pain relief arises. This is the primary source of drug use. So, while our propaganda regarding the dangers of drugs is sufficient, has the popularization of knowledge regarding human needs themselves reached the mark? Can we, through propaganda, enable the people to know themselves? Is this not a test that social progress must pass?"

The Advanced Class curriculum was this cold; He Rui did not mind driving questions to their most essential and sharpest levels. Human cognition moves from spontaneous to self-conscious; one must self-consciously recognize and transform oneself to possess greater inner strength. And such learning is invariably painful.

Watching the varying expressions of his comrades, He Rui spoke in as steady a tone as possible: "Only by letting the people realize that the vast majority of actions in human society are economic activities will they move in the direction of correctly solving problems. I accept that you comrades are clear on this: on the path to a higher level, we will inevitably face all manner of misunderstandings and cognitive errors. And the responsibility of our People's Party is to provide education and explanation to the people; this is one aspect of 'Serving the People.' As an academic organization and a ruling party, since we establish political power and formulate policy based on our understanding of the world, we must shoulder these obligations."

By this point in the discussion, no student wished to ask further questions. In the subsequent coursework, He Rui observed that the students' internal thoughts were reflected in their varying expressions. He Rui felt this was as it should be; the class itself was not difficult. The true difficulty lay in understanding the world and how to respond to the problems that would follow.

In the coming years, China would need to go all out to develop its economy, achieving the capacity for large-scale—even ultra-large-scale—domestic production. To possess such capacity, one could not rely on a command-style model. Instead, one had to analyze and explain the problems triggered by ultra-large-scale production and allow all parties to enter the game, thereby elevating China's overall progress.

He Rui had witnessed with his own eyes how the two so-called superpowers, the US and the USSR, declined and collapsed. Thus, he knew well that even pushing for social progress with all one's might does not guarantee true progress. But he knew even better that without doing so, society would inevitably fall into a self-righteous stagnation, losing its driving force. In a society without drive, idealists would rapidly degenerate and be marginalized. Such a country would quickly become a "giant infant" nation—infants, no matter how massive, are all the same. They possess neither the will nor the ability to face reality. The Soviet Union was so; the United States was so.

Class over, He Rui attended a Central Committee meeting as scheduled. Unlike last year, from Wu Youping down to the Ministry of Industry, no one refused to mention the issue of synthetic ammonia. When Minister of Industry Zhuang Jiaxiong answered regarding this year's agricultural production arrangements, although he tried to suppress his pride, a smile still broke through.

However, Zhuang Jiaxiong was a minister after all, and knew such smugness was inappropriate. Yet the joy in his heart was uncontainable. After a moment's thought, Zhuang looked at He Rui. "Chairman, the facts of these past few years prove that your development strategy of grasping agriculture first was entirely correct. I admire it greatly. The Ministry of Industry can produce over 3.1 million tons of synthetic ammonia this year, which is four times the total output of the rest of the world. The Ministry has finally completed its task!"

Initially hearing this, Wu Youping was stunned. But he quickly understood his old classmate's reasoning. Of the 20 billion franc interest-free loan from Sino-French economic cooperation, China had primarily introduced two projects: synthetic ammonia and internal combustion engines. These were capital-intensive industries, and the problems encountered during development had caused the State Council endless agony until last year. But now that synthetic ammonia output had finally crossed the baseline of national need, the situation was entirely different.

Feeling his old classmate's sense of relief, Wu Youping felt both happy and poignant. Before he could formulate a response, he heard He Rui speak: "Comrade Zhuang Jiaxiong, how does the Ministry of Industry view the current domestic competition in the synthetic ammonia industry?"

"Currently, 35% of synthetic ammonia enterprises are private. The Ministry of Industry only needs to conduct a safety inspection of private enterprises once a year, and experts from state-owned enterprises (SOEs) can determine the direction of technological iteration in the private sector." At this point, Zhuang Jiaxiong smiled slightly. "That is, of course, if the private enterprises have the capability to pursue technological iteration."

This confidence infected the other committee leaders, for they shared the feeling. Originally, many ministries felt that the entry of private capital into production created competitors and trouble for SOEs, or "Central Enterprises." But after a few years of development, the ministry leaders, who fully grasped their own development progress, began to realize that private enterprises were merely a supplement. So what if they held 35% of capacity? The Central Enterprises hadn't been idling these years; they had cultivated their own technical and worker teams. Compared to the Central Enterprises, these private firms were merely "little brothers" trailing behind.

Wu Youping understood He Rui's philosophy and knew that the current thinking of the ministry leaders did not align with it. Sure enough, He Rui continued, "Since current private enterprises are also beginning technical iteration, has Minister Zhuang helped them apply for patents?"

Zhuang Jiaxiong's smile instantly vanished. As a Central Committee member, he certainly knew the development policies He Rui had proposed. Theoretically, patents gave all enterprises a fair chance to profit from R&D. But from a departmental interest perspective, without patents, stronger enterprises could naturally extract more benefits from small and medium ones.

Seeing Zhuang Jiaxiong's reaction, He Rui pressed, "I haven't heard your answer yet!"

Although Zhuang Jiaxiong could have tried to bluff, He Rui was not a feudal emperor; if a comparison were forced, he was a founding monarch. His understanding of state operations far exceeded that of his ministers. So Zhuang answered, "We haven't done enough!"

He Rui immediately turned to the Minister of Science and Technology, He Zudao. "Minister He, the Ministry of Industry can say their work is insufficient. But patent application falls under the Ministry of Science and Technology, does it not? How does the Ministry evaluate its own work?"

Hearing this question, He Zudao felt cold sweat on his back. The Ministry of Science and Technology indeed hadn't *prevented* private enterprises from registering patents, but regarding work... not only was there no encouragement, they had merely sent a document or two to private firms in a very bureaucratic manner. As to whether the private firms read them, the Ministry didn't care.

But to reach the level of Minister, He Zudao was no ordinary person. He immediately replied, "The Ministry of Science and Technology will strengthen its work in this area!"

"Oh? How will you strengthen it?" He Rui asked with a faint smile.

He Zudao's heart tightened, and a plan formed rapidly in his mind. "Strengthen propaganda, strengthen guidance."

Speaking these words, He Zudao knew he was likely to be criticized, as others who spoke this way had been before. So he quickly adjusted the content of his answer. "We must make the Patent Office like the Science Museum or the Planetarium—let the masses know such a unit exists. We will organize students, teachers, and citizens to visit. And we will have dedicated personnel to provide publicity and guidance."

Having outlined a general direction, He Zudao looked at He Rui. Seeing He Rui remain silent, clearly waiting for him to finish, He Zudao hurriedly concluded, "Previous propaganda was insufficient, guidance was lacking. Upon return, we will analyze this, starting from general public awareness and selecting specific fields in urgent need of solutions. We will approach this from both popularization and professional angles. Furthermore, we will absolutely eliminate bureaucracy and personally lead visits. From the security guards at the gate to completing procedural formalities, we will teach it all. Where process links are missing, we will add them. Where they exist, we will adjust them based on the service targets. That is my current view. Please instruct, Chairman."

The gathered ministers felt a twinge of admiration for He Zudao. The guy was a technical expert after all, and relatively grounded. At least he could see his department's problems, and the ideas he came up with in desperation were actually actionable. Those who got roasted by He Rui in meetings were usually the ones who couldn't even produce an actionable direction.

Sure enough, He Rui next asked, "About how long will it take?"

"Professional fields with patent needs are basically in cities or industrial zones. In these areas, we can complete it within the next three months. This includes at least one to three months to first establish the patent offices. Even if we just set up the framework, the patent office can quickly enter preliminary operations. However, the patent office has requirements for information transmission speed; we request manpower support from the telecommunications and archives departments to complete the construction of local patent offices as soon as possible. As for inviting enterprises to visit the patent office, sending documents to enterprises every quarter, and requiring responses—that can be completed within three months."

He Rui didn't want to nitpick, but there was a flaw in He Zudao's thinking. He Rui added, "A platform for technical cooperation between schools, research institutions, SOEs, and private enterprises must be built. Patent R&D promotes productivity, and patent popularization also benefits development."

Hearing He Rui mention this, He Zudao asked about something he was concerned about. "What about foreign capital? Foreign capital is currently very keen on applying for patents!"

"A powerful nation must have a powerful patent system. Although patent barriers create significant resistance, for a major power like China, they also serve as signposts indicating the direction. Furthermore, Germany and the United States were both considered nations of copycats. Naturally, the shorter this process, the better."

Hearing He Rui provide an answer to such a specific question, He Zudao felt he had blundered. This should have been a topic for internal discussion within the Ministry of Science and Technology. That He Rui was speaking on it now proved that He Zudao was unqualified as Minister.

Cold and hot sweat broke out simultaneously. He Zudao looked pleadingly at Premier Wu Youping, but Wu avoided his gaze, looking elsewhere with a bland expression. Looking at the other ministry leaders, no one made eye contact. He Zudao felt his heart plummet straight down; he had a rough judgment of his future—he likely only had this one term left.

However, no one would say these things publicly. In the working meeting, based on previous experience, the Central Committee conducted a preliminary discussion on the 300 million pounds and 1 billion US dollars in interest-free loans they were likely to secure. If they got this money, how should it be used?

He Rui gave his view: "Do not use it on military production; that is meaningless. Use it primarily to introduce systems for mass production. Use it for basic research. Take agriculture as an example: we should introduce foreign experts in soil analysis, crop sunlight duration, and growth cycles, as well as research teams. Thereby, we bring out our own research system and consolidate the foundation. As for those so-called 'instant results,' there is no rush."

"But if we don't introduce military technology, will we be too late in the future?" Wu Youping asked.

He Rui shook his head. "If we can build shipyards with an annual capacity of one million tons within the next five years, it means we can produce one million tons of ships annually. If we have two million tons of capacity, with the largest docks capable of producing 100,000-ton vessels, our shipbuilding capability will crown the globe. At that time, as long as we have enough large-scale equipment, and sufficient teams of technicians, designers, and workers, we can build whatever ships we want, and as large a fleet as we desire. Britain has painstakingly accumulated a fleet of millions of tons over so many years, and they are all old ships. In the future, we will possess a new fleet exceeding the tonnage of the entire British Navy in just one or two years—we could crush the British fleet by sheer numbers alone. For now, the State Council should just focus all its energy on solving the problem of 'existence'—whether we have the capacity or not."

Wu Youping knew this was as much as He Rui would say, and that the State Council absolutely could not dictate to the Military Commission. Doing so could be construed as the Premier trying to seize control of the army, and Wu Youping had no desire to equate himself with rebellion. So he simply nodded and dropped the subject.

But He Rui returned to the issue of patents. "The current fragmentation of the world economy has effectively created barriers to the flow of capital and technology. Why was history previously a carnival for medium-sized powers? Because the industrial supply chains of the world were relatively short; a medium power with a population of a few tens of millions could assemble a complete industrial chain. The Great War in Europe proved that a nation of that size could organize an army of millions, nearing ten million, through a modern militarized system, arming them with equipment produced by a full industrial chain. We can fully utilize these technical barriers to develop ourselves, because the future world will inevitably be an order dominated by Great Powers. Nations without the capacity for ultra-large-scale production will never be Great Powers. They will only be dominated by the order set by the Great Powers!"