On August 16, 1937, Li Runshi's work finally bore fruit. Although he had been responsible for anti-corruption, through this assignment, Li Runshi formed a perspective on future work, which he tentatively termed "opposing bourgeois right."

August 20 marked the National Economic Work Conference. After the conference concluded, Premier Wu Youping, accompanied by Vice Premier Li Runshi, presented a report to He Rui. Arriving at He Rui's office, they found Generals Xu Chengfeng and Cheng Ruofan already present. Since they were already seated beside He Rui, Wu Youping had no intention of asking them to leave to avoid suspicion. Both were Central Committee members of the Civilized Party and were entitled to read the internal version of the National Economic Work Conference report. Moreover, the summary report of the conference was to be published in the newspapers, accessible to the entire nation. As for how many among the general public could understand it, that depended on their individual level of knowledge in this field.

The content of the report contained no whimsical ideas; it was all grounded in reality. Raising the level of economic development, rectifying market order, and anti-corruption. To elevate the economic level, the focus was on strengthening the four-year education system for adults to cultivate a larger workforce capable of joining industrial production.

As a Secretary of the Central Secretariat, Li Runshi served as the secretary for this economic conference. The secretary's job was to write the summary report of the conference. Only those at the center of power knew how important this seemingly clerical role truly was. Once Li Runshi's report was approved by the conference committee, every department would have to act according to the guidelines and regulations set forth in it. Even if Wu Youping were to act as the secretary for this conference, he might not have managed it easily. For Li Runshi, it was indeed a challenge.

Reporting to He Rui was necessary because, as the leader of the Party and the government, He Rui needed to check whether the content of the report conflicted with national strategy. If there were conflicts, where did they lie? Could they be accepted within a certain timeframe?

While presenting the report, Li Runshi briefly observed the observers, Xu Chengfeng and Cheng Ruofan. Xu Chengfeng appeared composed, though he didn't seem particularly interested. Cheng Ruofan, on the other hand, listened intently, occasionally furrowing his brow and other times relaxing it. This reaction aligned with the rumors: although Cheng Ruofan would not violate the system or interfere with government work, as a member of the Communist faction, he was quite passionate about world revolution. He would often ask He Rui for advice on political and economic issues in the capacity of a student. It was said that He Rui regarded Cheng Ruofan as a student and had long been tutoring him in these fields that were not strictly critical for a soldier.

After the report was finished, He Rui, who had been listening quietly, finally spoke. "In the training for small enterprises, it would be best to add some content on business lifecycles and bankruptcy experiences to help add some depth for them."

Li Runshi replied, "This was discussed at the meeting. Most comrades felt that this might send a bad signal to small enterprises and easily lead to misunderstandings. Providing this kind of educational training to those selected high-quality enterprises should be sufficient."

Li Runshi had been a teacher, and he felt that since they were doing training, there was no need to segregate it. Especially for content that dealt with basic laws, there was no harm in letting all enterprises learn it. Although Li Runshi thought this way, most comrades disagreed, and when explaining to He Rui now, he did not mention his own view at all.

He Rui fell silent again. Li Runshi felt that He Rui probably knew what had happened. The comrades in the economic departments weren't afraid of the slight increase in workload from the training; they simply didn't want to see the trouble that this work might bring. Similar training had been conducted in previous work, and when the situations warned about in the training actually appeared, many private newspapers published "grievance" articles one after another, accusing the government of speaking but not explaining thoroughly. Enterprises only realized what the government had meant after they ran into problems and went bankrupt.

Tabloid newspapers were even more prone to inciting emotions, insisting on steering the issue toward intensifying conflicts. According to those trashy reports, the government was like a fortune teller, deliberately misleading enterprises and then standing by with arms folded, watching the ship sink when enterprises faced bankruptcy. To incite emotion, timid newspapers hinted at collusion between officials and merchants, while bolder newspapers named names, alleging that certain enterprises were involved in such collusion.

Li Runshi was very dissatisfied with this, but precisely because of this, he discovered that inciting "profiteers to fight profiteers" seemed to be a good method for solving short-term problems. When facing bankruptcy, many desperate merchants would disregard so-called rules and try to drag down enterprises they disliked. although many of these tips were based on hearsay, the proportion of actionable intelligence was indeed significantly higher than in general investigations. As long as the cadres responsible for the investigation did not engage in personal vendettas, this was an avenue that could be utilized.

While he was thinking, he heard He Rui say, "The level of education popularity in the country has reached a point where the comprehension of economics is sufficient to withstand this knowledge. Future competition will be even more cruel. I think this content should be added."

Hearing this, Wu Youping immediately replied, "Good."

Sensing He Rui's strong position, Li Runshi felt a twinge of envy. Things decided by the leader could be implemented. To ordinary people, this might seem like a matter of course, but in reality, it was not. Leaders had to be very cautious when making decisions precisely because their decisions were hard to truly implement. Work that was easy to implement didn't need personal instructions from the leader; people at the grassroots level would have done it already. Anything that required a competent leader to personally order inevitably faced various obstacles during execution. No capable leader would believe that simply giving an order would solve the problem.

It was like the joke about how to get a pig to climb a tree.

Option 1: Give the pig a beautiful vision that it can reach by jumping, tell it that it is an agile monkey and can climb the tree. This is called "vision" or "painting a pie."

Option 2: Tell it that if it doesn't work hard to climb up, there will be no food, or a pig-slaughtering banquet will be set. This is called "assessment" or "KPIs."

Option 3: Build a ladder for the pig and pull it up the tree. This is called "win-win" or "management."

Option 4: Cut the tree down and naturally let the pig lie on the tree for a photo opportunity. This is called "execution."

Usually, the central government chooses the first option, the province chooses the second, the counties and cities choose the third, and the grassroots choose the fourth.

Li Runshi knew very well that as long as the level of leadership at various levels was insufficient, this joke was not a joke, but reality.

At this moment, He Rui said, "Let's put the government work report aside for now. Let's talk about something relaxing."

Hearing the word "relaxing," Li Runshi suddenly remembered a report he had read recently. It wasn't just China that was troubled by the problem of insufficient government management levels; the whole world was in the same boat. Recently, *Shen Pao* wrote a report on the global spread of this joke, which was very interesting.

This Chinese joke had spread across European and American newspapers in less than half a year. After using this joke to curse their own governments for bringing calamity to the country and the people, the European and American newspapers praised the Chinese official who invented this joke as extremely wise for being able to summarize such a universal reality.

The reactions of newspapers in various countries to interesting matters were similar. Some European and American newspapers took the opportunity to elaborate further, proposing the Soviet solution. Any Soviet official who failed to complete tasks assigned by the Central Committee of the CPSU or local governments would, at best, be sent to a gulag for reform, or at worst, be shot directly in public. The CPSU Central Committee also adopted a "survival of the fittest" system: leaders who ranked last in assessments would be hanged by the Soviet Cheka from utility poles in front of the factories or government buildings where they worked, their bodies displayed to the public.

Given the stereotypical impression of Russia in Europe, many European readers believed this to be true and sent letters to their local newspapers expressing their appreciation. After publishing some reader letters, British newspapers declared that the method of hanging people from lampposts after a simple trial was undoubtedly transmitted from France, an "old revolutionary base area" in Europe, to the Soviet Union, where it was carried forward. They hoped France could explain this.

Upholding the consistent passion and humor of the French, France declared with an attitude of regarding shame as glory that France had now fully popularized the guillotine. Watching beheadings by guillotine had become a form of national entertainment in France, lacking the necessary deterrent effect. Therefore, it was necessary for France to re-import this glorious tradition from a century ago back from the Soviet Union to deter French corrupt officials and unqualified politicians.

More populist French newspapers even developed new jokes: "If all current French officials and politicians were hanged on charges of corruption, there would indeed be some who were wrongly accused. But if you hang every other one, there will inevitably be some who slip through the net."

This populist, humorous response met with great approval in the United States, so much so that a US newspaper quoted this statement: "Of the 24 hours in a day for American politicians, 8 hours are spent sleeping with mistresses, 8 hours eating, drinking, and playing, and of the remaining 8 hours, at least 7 and a half are spent considering how to embezzle public funds, colluding with evil capitalists, and discussing how to squeeze workers. In the remaining half hour, these politicians go to Congress to pass their evil proposals by vote. Therefore, it is necessary to implement the plan of hanging every other one in the United States first. Only in this way can those greedy politicians and capitalists be deterred and made to know that the people's anger has reached a breaking point!"

The next day, this American newspaper was sealed for certain reasons, and the FBI rushed into the home of the person in charge of the newspaper and took them away...

Some smarter newspapers developed other jokes. "Someone shouted in the square that Senator XX is a corrupt criminal. This person was taken away by the police who arrived immediately and was quickly sentenced to 13 years in prison. This person refused to accept the verdict and loudly questioned the judge, 'Even for the crime of insult, the maximum sentence is only one year. Why was I sentenced to 13 years?'

The judge glanced at the man contemptuously and replied: 'The crime of insult is indeed only one year, but the crime of leaking state secrets is sentenced to 12 years.'"

Participating in state administration is a very vexing and heavy job. Li Runshi would read jokes in his spare time to relieve his mood. Suddenly remembering such a humorous report, he couldn't help but smile.

Seeing Li Runshi smile, He Rui asked in a relaxed tone, "Premier Li, US Secretary of State Hull made a proposal to withdraw foreign intervention forces, including the International Brigades, and called for peace in Spain. Did you see it?"

Li Runshi replied easily, "I saw it."

"How do you feel about it?" He Rui continued to ask.

Facing the gazes of the other three, Li Runshi continued to reply casually, "The US government wants to create a geopolitical situation unfavorable to France. Hull's statement is to achieve this goal."

Xu Chengfeng was somewhat surprised. "Has the United States decided to prepare for war so early?"

Cheng Ruofan laughed. "Imperialism has always been like this." After speaking, Cheng Ruofan glanced at He Rui and saw that He Rui wore that look indicating he was about to give a lecture again. Cheng Ruofan simply asked proactively, "What is the Chairman's view?"

He Rui indeed offered guidance. "Ruofan, you need to have more penetrating insight. In last year's Olympics, how did our men's soccer team perform?"

Cheng Ruofan didn't follow men's soccer and was stunned. To save time, Wu Youping answered proactively, "They didn't win a single match and were eliminated in the group stage." Because Wu Youping knew what He Rui wanted to criticize, and adding his twenty-plus years of friendship with Cheng Ruofan, he added, "After losing the first match to Britain 0-4, British newspapers praised the Chinese men's soccer team for having skill and a vigorous offensive spirit. They didn't mention the score. The German Sports Minister shook hands with the Chinese soccer team after the match and presented gifts."

Hearing the details, Cheng Ruofan replied, "Germany was showing goodwill to China. This proves China's international status."

He Rui didn't answer this but asked again, "Which country was the Olympic soccer champion?"

"Italy. Their soccer level is extremely high, worthy of being world champions." Wu Youping had quite an interest in soccer and, knowing Cheng Ruofan definitely couldn't answer, answered for him.

He Rui asked Cheng Ruofan, "Do you believe that under certain conditions, the King of Italy and Prime Minister Mussolini would publicly declare that they like Chinese soccer very much and would find ways to collect news about Chinese soccer whenever they have time?"

Cheng Ruofan gave an awkward laugh. "They might say so against their conscience."

"You need penetrating insight, Ruofan. If Italy could determine that by saying this, we in China would unilaterally purchase 100 million pounds of goods from Italy annually for ten consecutive years... I guarantee you, the King of Italy and Mussolini would definitely say those words with the most sincere attitude. And in these ten years, the King of Italy and Mussolini would be able to recite the scores of the Chinese soccer league every week as if enumerating their family treasures."

Cheng Ruofan paused for a moment and sighed. "I understand. They wouldn't be doing it for soccer, but for that money. For... that money, they really would say such words very sincerely."

"You're not wrong, but your insight is insufficient. You can say that the King of Italy and Mussolini are doing it for money, or you can say it's for their status. But can we consider that by doing so, they are being loyal to their country, loyal to their duties and responsibilities?"

Li Runshi looked at Cheng Ruofan's furrowed brows and immediately felt that He Rui's assessment might be correct; Cheng Ruofan's insight did have some issues. But a moment later, Cheng Ruofan replied seriously, "Indeed, I brought my personal emotions into it, so I subjectively thought that these people did what they wanted to do."

Li Runshi's evaluation of Cheng Ruofan instantly rose a level. Cheng Ruofan was not muddled.

"I ask you to have greater penetrating insight because only by piercing through these emotional layers can you see the more profound content and have an understanding of our opponents that is closer to the facts. Roosevelt's decision proves that he is doing his utmost to serve the United States. So what if he is the US President? Roosevelt alone cannot start a war. But Roosevelt has not stopped planning for America's future just because he is currently powerless to start a war; he is pushing for the US to participate in the war within the scope of his ability. We can dislike Roosevelt, we can hate Roosevelt, we can be hostile to Roosevelt's policies. But we must admit that this person has ability and is struggling very hard for America's interests, and we must give respect to such ability and struggle."

Cheng Ruofan felt a bit disappointed upon hearing this. "This is indeed my problem. I have tried hard to overcome it, but I'm still lacking a bit."

Li Runshi's evaluation of Cheng Ruofan rose another level. Cheng Ruofan's view just now had no problems at the tactical level; it simply lacked penetration at the strategic level. Being able to frankly admit this proved that Cheng Ruofan's breadth of mind was fine. As long as a leader like He Rui was leading the way, Cheng Ruofan would quickly get into the groove. He was already an outstanding talent. Li Runshi also discovered that Cheng Ruofan was neither alarmed nor angry when facing criticism, proving that he had considerable capacity for self-reflection and didn't make excuses for his shortcomings. The highly trusting relationship He Rui, Wu Youping, and Xu Chengfeng had with Cheng Ruofan was likely due to these excellent qualities.

He Rui didn't dwell on this matter but continued, "If the United States wins, the world order their management layer wants to construct will certainly not be the colonialist order of Britain and France; it will be much better. However, the war the United States wants to launch inevitably cannot escape the essence of an imperialist war. Moreover, whether the world order we in China expect to construct is an imperialist order is also hard to say. Just as Roosevelt cannot start a war on his own, neither can we."

Li Runshi listened earnestly, analyzing in his heart. He Rui frankly admitted that he could not start a war. This was a very rational judgment, and Li Runshi appreciated it greatly. He saw He Rui turn his head and ask, "Premier Li, how much of the framework for opposing bourgeois right have you completed?"

This question stunned Li Runshi. He suspected He Rui was monitoring him. Li Runshi was a man who fought no battle unprepared. He hadn't proposed the framework for opposing bourgeois right simply because he hadn't finished preparing, not because he didn't dare to propose it. While he was hesitating, Wu Youping smoothed things over. "Premier Li, do you not oppose bourgeois right?"

Li Runshi felt relieved immediately. Given China's current status, he hadn't been quite sure if He Rui was just a very brilliant bourgeois. At this moment, Li Runshi felt he had found a true comrade. Getting through the "New Democracy stage" as quickly as possible and supporting bourgeois right might look similar in appearance, but they were worlds apart in reality.

Since he was facing comrades, Li Runshi replied, "I haven't finished preparing. The more I learn, the less I know. The depth and breadth of the framework I've prepared are insufficient."

Hearing Li Runshi state his position, He Rui continued, "We are also engaging in state investment to drive the economy, so naturally, we cannot transcend economic laws. We analyze the United States, and the United States is surely analyzing us. Based on my judgment of the United States, they should be able to determine that we will face a very bad economic situation by 1939. The most direct means to solve the economic predicament is to expand markets. Given the current level of understanding of the Chinese people, the solution the people can think of should be the so-called 'good imperialism' method. Whether it is good imperialism or bad imperialism, it still cannot escape the imperialist mold.

"With that imperialist value system, they know very well that with China's current strength, we may not be able to achieve success, but we are certainly more than capable of ruining things. So they will try every means to pull us into their camp. The United States in the eyes of imperialist countries is the same. It is possible for China to obtain huge returns at a very small cost. Under such circumstances, the Chinese people's willingness to participate in the war would be relatively high. Therefore, from now on, we must oppose bourgeois right domestically."

Li Runshi had already completed the content on opposing bourgeois right; what he hadn't completed was what should be introduced *after* opposing it. Just as Li Runshi had said, the more he witnessed the complexity of the economy and understood the "modern lifestyle," the more confusion it brought.

Hearing He Rui speak like this, Li Runshi simply asked, "Replace it with what?"

He Rui had decided long ago and answered immediately, "At this stage, we will use socialist asset valuation to replace it. The capitalist system has developed to the point where it has begun to enter the stage of scientific management. After entering this stage, capitalist countries have all produced bourgeois asset valuation systems. With a bourgeois valuation system—this is what I consider bourgeois right. You can view bourgeois right as a coordinate system. With this coordinate system, lifestyles and production methods can be precisely positioned and operated. From the perspective of productivity development, this is a great progress. We must admit that in the past ten-plus years, we have indeed adopted this valuation system in many fields."

No one made a sound. The conference room fell into silence until the *cha-cha* sounds of a lighter broke it. Li Runshi took a puff, feeling very relaxed. Many things he had been forced to guess at were now completely clear. Many of China's policies since 1925 had given Li Runshi a paradoxical feeling. To say these policies were advanced—they were indeed advanced. But he always felt that if followed to the end, they would betray socialist ideals. So He Rui's seemingly very sophisticated manipulations had forced Li Runshi to suspect that He Rui was a brilliant leader standing on the bourgeois side.

Now Li Runshi was no longer worried. While He Rui was desperately promoting the development of productivity, he was also doing his utmost to curb the bourgeoisie from seizing power and to prevent the bourgeoisie from becoming the dominant class in China. And the Chinese bourgeoisie hadn't produced any talents; the current level of the Chinese bourgeoisie was such that they couldn't even understand bourgeois right—they were completely good-for-nothing. What Li Runshi worried about was China falling into the hands of imperialism, feudalism, and bureaucratic capitalism again, ruining all revolutionary achievements in one go. If a socialist valuation system could really be built, with a brand-new coordinate system, the people would be able to more clearly understand who their enemies were.

When facing interests, the eyes of the people were sharp. When the people mastered advanced knowledge, ability, and productivity, it would be impossible for imperialism, feudalism, and bureaucratic capitalism to rule them. Even if deceived for a short time, the people's anger would soon grind those reactionaries to dust.

Only when the people had power would the Party and the government not truly go to the opposite side of the people. After all, even if those who made up the Party and government thought they were extraordinary, they were essentially also people. When facing interests, the eyes of the people were sharp.

He Rui broke the silence. "If we launch an imperialist war, we can easily get quite a lot of support. Even if many people question it—sacrificing millions of young people just to fatten the bourgeoisie is wrong—comrades can understand such a situation.

"However, launching a socialist liberation war will be met with more questioning. The people will think that millions of young Chinese dying is just a sacrifice for unrelated foreigners. What are we after? Even if we assume the Chinese people can understand the internal economic principles, I'm afraid there will be more people opposing a socialist liberation war than those opposing an imperialist war.

"From the immediate reaction of the human body, everyone will feel it's a loss."

Li Runshi agreed with this view in his heart and looked forward to He Rui explaining the internal logic. But unexpectedly, He Rui distributed cigarettes to everyone and asked the secretary to make tea. He Rui looked like he was relaxing himself, but also like he was preparing for what to say next. Li Runshi hurriedly organized his own train of thought.

Previously, He Rui didn't talk about the details of the socialist liberation war to maintain secrecy. Exposing strategic intentions too early was very dangerous, and since the level of comrades within the Party was limited, entrusting it to the wrong people would only lead to failure. Li Runshi looked forward to shouldering heavy responsibilities in this socialist war, so he carefully combed through the ideas he could determine so far.

The United States had a thick foundation. As long as Roosevelt continued to implement government deficit economics, they could definitely last until 1941. China's foundation wasn't thick, but it had large room for development. Coupled with an absolutely strong leader like He Rui, lasting until 1941 should not be a problem.

He Rui's decisions over these years, whether military or political-economic, were full of proactive aggressiveness. Li Runshi himself also insisted on active offense rather than passive beating. Therefore, the best policy for China was definitely not to drag it out and wait for changes, but to prepare actively and launch an attack as soon as preparations were complete. Then China's war aims, war means, and the design for the future world must surpass that of imperialism. If China could not surpass the height of imperialism at the strategic level, it would have to settle for the second best and choose a "good imperialist expansion policy."

After sorting out his thoughts, Li Runshi reflected on his own stance. To this moment, Li Runshi still believed that imperialism had no future.

With this stance and mood, Li Runshi picked up his teacup and took a sip, ready to wait for He Rui to return and recount the policy and execution ideas for the future socialist war. But He Rui did not return to his seat, which suddenly gave rise to some uneasiness in Li Runshi. If He Rui was merely a brilliant anti-imperialist, in the end, he would only destroy other imperialist countries and make China the sole imperialist hegemon. Facing such a He Rui, would Li Runshi feel disappointed?