**Chapter 841: World People's Liberation Army (9)**

"What?!"

In the hotel where foreign experts resided in Singapore, and in the offices of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing, surprised voices rang out in German and Russian.

Professor Karl and Molotov both asked the same question: "The World People's Liberation Army?"

Facing Professor Karl, Zhao Tianlin nodded. "That's right. The next force to aid the Soviet Union will be the World People's Liberation Army."

Professor Karl recovered his basic composure. He had asked just as Zhao was preparing to leave: if China supported the USSR, which unit would they send? To his surprise, Zhao had replied, "The World People's Liberation Army."

With his understanding of politics, Karl increasingly felt that China sending the WPLA to aid the Soviets was politically advantageous. As a German, he was convinced the USSR had ambitions to control all of Eastern Europe. He wasn't sure if the He Rui government's constant talk of "liberating the whole world" was true, but what was certain was that all of China's actions to date adhered to that philosophy.

Because China insisted on world liberation, it would never allow the USSR to join the Asian Allied Forces while still maintaining direct control over Eastern Europe. And so far, the USSR had shown a corresponding lack of interest in joining the Asian Alliance, likely unwilling to pledge against establishing its own spheres of influence.

Since both sides had a conflict on this point, China sending the WPLA to aid the Soviets perfectly bypassed the political friction. As long as it wasn't the regular Chinese National Defense Force entering the war, both China and the USSR could theoretically argue that they were not allies.

Formal political statements were serious matters; every word carried national-level weight. Once a responsible nation made such a statement, it had to bear the consequences. Whether people outside political circles believed it was actually unimportant.

As long as China and the USSR were not allied, each could take serious countermeasures against the other's actions. Once they allied, that room for maneuver would vanish.

For instance, within the Allied Powers, no matter how much the US didn't want to declare war on the USSR, because it was in the same camp as Germany, its current attitude was leaning toward a declaration. Of course, the US could continue to refrain, but doing so would give Germany a perfectly reasonable justification to suspect the US of preparing to betray the Allies, leading to various countermeasures.

Zhao said "Goodbye" and headed for the door. Professor Karl recalled his meeting with Li Runshi a few months ago, when Li had said that Western white supremacists would face an army of ten million former colonial subjects. At the time, Karl thought it was mostly a threat; he hadn't expected that in just a few months, what seemed like a threat might truly become reality.

In Beijing, Molotov had considered many things from the perspective of Soviet interests and had concluded that the USSR likely could not refuse this aid. China was a great power; if the WPLA it dispatched proved fragile before the Wehrmacht, it would only have a massive negative impact on China.

Since the WPLA's combat power should be no issue, Molotov could only ask, "When will it begin?"

"If the Soviet government and the Central Committee of the CPSU agree, we will dispatch WPLA units into the Soviet Union as quickly as possible. Naturally, this is entirely contingent upon a formal invitation from the Soviet government," Li Shiguang calmly stated China's position.

"I will contact Moscow," Molotov replied.

Two days later, Molotov received authorization from Moscow and had a formal meeting with He Rui.

It had been nearly a year since Molotov last saw He Rui. He found He Rui's hair had turned entirely gray, and his beard was almost completely white, with only a few black hairs standing out. Although He Rui hadn't been to the front and still appeared very spirited, the physical aging was very apparent. The 52-year-old Chinese leader before Molotov had fully entered his old age.

Though his body was aging, He Rui's mind remained sharp and his conversation even more mature and seasoned. After expressing his indignation over the German invasion and mentioning the long history of Sino-Soviet friendship, He Rui stopped speaking. Molotov knew well that his task now was to express the Central Committee's attitude. He voiced the Soviet Union's friendly stance toward China and praised the value of previous Chinese aid. Finally, Molotov stated that the USSR identified with the WPLA's concept of a just cause and wished to invite the WPLA to the Soviet Union to jointly fight against evil Nazi Germany.

Listening only to their exchange, one would think they were merely having a simple chat. In fact, that was the case; they only spoke for a few minutes. In such high-level talks, He Rui only needed to say "I know, and I agree" regarding major matters. That was the leader's prerogative: making the final decision.

After He Rui said, "I look forward to the WPLA thoroughly defeating Nazi Germany alongside the Red Army," Molotov simply said, "We will surely inform you of the latest victory reports at the earliest opportunity," and took his leave.

This was the style of a great power. The leader of one giant only engaged in long talks with the leader of another to build personal mutual trust. Though Molotov's status within the CPSU was high, for He Rui to give him five minutes was already a very high courtesy.

After seeing Molotov out, He Rui invited Li Runshi in. His talk with Li wouldn't be just minutes; if needed, they could talk for days and nights.

"What do you think of the latest domestic economic data?" He Rui asked as he pushed an open pack of cigarettes toward Li.

Li didn't light up immediately but shared his views on the recent survey data. "Chairman, I have fully grasped the value of market scale. Therefore, I have some views on the current birth data. The decline in the birth rate caused by the industrial way of life may be a problem."

He Rui had already lit a cigarette and said with some helplessness, "It can't be helped. Runshi, like the example I gave before: go to a buffet, and you can understand 'spending ten thousand a day on food, yet saying there's nothing to eat.' In the industrial age, people no longer just exist; they want to *live*. When it involves living, the cost is extremely high. Saving on living costs by reducing the number of children and investing those resources into a few to increase their probability of success in competition is an easily understood and implemented survival strategy."

Hearing He Rui's view, Li Runshi felt a sense of powerlessness. Much of this stemmed from the fact that he was facing He Rui. If it were someone else, Li could have debated. But He Rui was not someone Li could defeat through debate at this stage. Because He Rui was pointing out facts that didn't rely on a specific stance; even if Li won the debate, he couldn't change reality through words.

After a silence, Li asked, "Chairman, is it possible to use propaganda to make the people follow state policy?"

He Rui asked back, "How much benefit are you prepared to offer in your policy? Or are you prepared to implement discriminatory measures against families who have fewer children to concentrate resources on them?"

"Will future development make this situation increasingly serious?" Li asked.

"Of course. As long as the state continues to pursue efficiency and we continue to promote communist ideals—that is, the belief that productivity is the main driver of social development—and as long as we don't implement discriminatory policies against the winners of competition, the people will choose the survival strategy of having fewer children to achieve class mobility.

It's not just families with children that will change; future youth will undergo even more drastic transformations. To gain more opportunities for class mobility, they will choose a survival strategy of not marrying and not having children.

Matching this survival strategy, marriage will become a purely economic relationship. The morality and culture based on agricultural productivity will collapse in the industrial age. Everything praised in that era will be unrecognizable."

"I believe such a choice is unhealthy," Li said with displeasure in his tone.

"I agree," He Rui nodded. "However, I believe that to some extent, it is a responsible choice."

Li found He Rui's attitude highly unsatisfying and his tone grew sharper. "Responsible? The state provides so many resources for education, and these people would even evade their basic social responsibilities?!"

He Rui wasn't agitated by this at all, even managing a bitter laugh. "Heh. I must say, that view has the clear logic of an agricultural production model. Because resources are scarce, those who can continue the lineage must be viewed as resources. If a person cannot provide resources for society, they are seen as having no meaning for existence. I can understand the logic in that view, but I cannot endorse it unconditionally."

Li's brow furrowed as he pulled out and lit a cigarette. After a couple of puffs, he asked, "Chairman, a new way of life cannot be devoid of pain and challenge, of endurance and persistence. Such propaganda is harmful."

He Rui looked at Li with sympathy and nodded. "Yes. But if we promote to the youth that they should be grateful just for being alive, and that pursuing a better life is not a right they should possess... is such propaganda reasonable? Is it appropriate?"

Li saw the sympathy in He Rui's expression and knew it was genuine. Forging a new path was extremely difficult. The discussion they were having had occurred many times in history. It wasn't just the two of them debating such issues.

Encouraging childbirth is the most common policy among human nations; once the birth rate is insufficient, the nation's power suffers a massive loss. While encouraging births, governments also try every means to utilize human resources with maximum efficiency.

So, before He Rui took power, there had been nonsense discussions within the Republic about China's population being too large. Those who considered themselves high and mighty truly thought they were considering the nation's interests, that China had too many people and insufficient resources to support them. Of course, those "lofty" types never mentioned that they were on the side of the exploiters.

He Rui truly stood with the people, so the questions he posed were very sharp: "Can the state provide sufficient resources to raise the people's standard? Can the state propose a new way of life that the people can choose?"

Li took two more puffs, his gaze growing brighter. "The core components of civilization should be survival and development. The realization of survival and development is manifested in production and distribution. In practical application, production and distribution manifest as the unsolvable conflict between efficiency and fairness. Chairman, after all these years, have you still not thought of a solution?"

Hearing Li bring up the view He Rui himself had proposed before 1915, He Rui smiled. Soon, his mood turned somber again. "Comrade Runshi, my time is running out. If I could live another fifty years, I would propose new views based on the economic development of that time. But I won't live that long; these problems must be solved by you all.

Methodologically speaking, everything we do requires fulfilling prerequisites. At this stage, the concept of national governance is constrained by the development of productivity, so from the government's perspective, humanity has not yet escaped the limitation of being viewed as a resource. The state is already the most powerful organization born of human society, yet it still has such great shortcomings. The prerequisites for solving the unsolvable conflict of efficiency and fairness are something I cannot think of at this stage.

There is another problem: once productivity is highly developed, the definition of humanity will become an ethical question. Who has the power to define what a human being is?!"

Such a highly philosophical question placed great pressure on Li. After reflecting for a moment, he asked, "Chairman, do you believe the productivity fifty years from now might solve this problem?"

"I don't know," He Rui shook his head. "My general judgment is that fifty years from now, about half of the Chinese people will have received a fairly complete education. They will be able to understand that the various knowledge systems we use are tools that have been created, neither correct nor incorrect. In such an era, many things can be discussed.

It won't be like now, where if I say something, everyone instinctively feels I must be right. In the future era, the people will understand and analyze the logic and methodology in my views. At that stage, they won't yet have reached the level of freedom—but at least they will have reached the stage of 'consciousness' (zi jue)."

As Li simulated such an era in his mind, the clouds on his face dissipated significantly. Even if only half the population reached the stage of consciousness, that would be a truly remarkable achievement. Li was full of expectation for such a future.

But faced with the brutal reality of the present, Li composed himself and said, "Let's stop discussing birth rates for now. At this stage, I have some new views on why China must never become a financial empire. From the perspective of human survival instinct, a financial empire means greater power. Such power is lethal to the corrosion of social organizations—that is, 'virtue not matching status.'

He Rui nodded immediately. "When virtue doesn't match status, disaster surely follows; when a person doesn't match their wealth, something will surely be lost. At least before entering the stage of consciousness, a financial empire is a very real threat to China. It's like gambling; if a person doesn't recognize the essence that one is destined to lose, they are doomed to fail."

Li continued, "Given the current economic situation, I believe there is still a considerable gap between China's current development stage and the second currency revolution. Avoiding a situation like the Great Depression is a key point for the future economy. And the crackdown on the rentier class must be very serious, so I have reached a conclusion: we must prevent China from consuming most of the world's development dividends!"

"Haha! Comrade Runshi, aren't you afraid of being viewed as a traitor?!" He Rui laughed.

Li gave a bitter smile. "Heh, since this is the truth, it makes no difference whether I am afraid or not."

He Rui didn't pursue the topic, as it wasn't a pleasant one. He shifted the conversation to the topic men all liked: war. "Comrade Runshi, I believe we shouldn't expect the aid we give the Soviets to be returned. This is precisely what you meant by China not consuming most of the world's development dividends."

"I understand," Li expressed his full agreement.

He Rui's smile vanished, and he said seriously, "Based on my understanding of Russian culture, the Soviet Union should possess powerful military capability and powerful production capability. The USSR should become China's resource supplier and enjoy its due dividends from that."

Hearing He Rui begin to arrange the future destiny of their allies, Li listened intently. He felt that in this darker, more machiavellian side of political maneuvering, He Rui's talent was no less than his military genius.

"As for Germany, it must be thoroughly crushed!" He Rui continued. "Germany's significance lies in being an excellent case study. It provides an immediate case for all the crimes of the West. Through the trial of Germany, we can essentially achieve a trial of Europe's institutional and cultural crimes." He Rui continued to display his talent for "black-hearted" politics.

Meanwhile, in Kiev, the fires that had burned for four days finally flickered out for lack of fuel. The blaze, which destroyed nearly half the city, was triggered when Soviet internal security forces (NKVD) blew up several buildings on Khreshchatyk Street that housed some representatives of the occupation administration. Explosions and fires had continued for days, with Kiev residents constantly pouring water on their roofs to avoid the flames. During the war, no one went to put out the fire; it raged for four days and nights.

The German occupiers in Kiev now posted 2,000 notices, requiring local Jews to assemble at the corner of Melnikov and Degtyarevskaya Streets by August 1, 1942, so the Wehrmacht could implement a "relocation plan."

The next day, tens of thousands gathered at the designated spot. They were ordered to walk from Melnikov Street to the outskirts of Kiev, to the Babi Yar ravine guarded by German troops.

As they approached the ravine, all men, women, and children were ordered to strip, fold their clothes neatly, and sort their valuables into categories. Then, they were led into the ravine in groups. The Germans massacred them with machine guns.

The German justification for the slaughter was simple: "The Kiev fires were deliberately set by Jews trying to destroy the city! The Jews must be held responsible!"

As for why the Jews would set the fires, the Germans believed that no atrocity committed by Jews would be surprising.