On November 1st, the sky remained trapped in a uniform, murky gloom. Even though the weather forecast had announced a clear day, the sun was nowhere to be seen at high noon.

Since the appearance of smog in China, its duration had rapidly increased. From the initial half-day to two or three days, this particular bout of smog had already lasted three and a half days, setting a new record.

Li Runshi gazed at the darkness outside the car window, sighing inwardly at the sheer power of industrialization. He had heard of London, the "City of Fog," and had seen reports of similar incessant smog in the steel centers of the American Great Lakes. Although Li Runshi knew that China had to industrialize, he hadn't expected that China's path would not be particularly unique; it seemed that not a single bit of the expected pollution would be spared.

The car headed straight for No. 7 Renmin Road, the official residence of the State President. Li Runshi hadn't been here for fifty-six days. Although He Rui had resumed work, with the arrival of the smoggy days, the low-grade fever that had seemingly been resolved earlier began to flare up again. Although the doctors could generally determine that there was inflammation in He Rui's body, they were unable to pinpoint the exact location of the lesion. The persistent low-grade fever was constantly draining He Rui's physical strength and energy, forcing him to reduce his working hours. Naturally, this portion of the workload had to be taken up by Li Runshi.

Li Runshi's status as the successor had basically been finalized. The reason it was called "basic" was that in China's new system, there was no such political position as an "heir." Even if the leadership had accepted Li Runshi's status, all of his authority resided within his specific posts in the Party, government, and military. If anything were to suddenly happen to Li Runshi, someone else would naturally step in. This represented a massive leap forward in the political system.

As the car drove into the residence, Li Runshi glanced at the cotton ball held by medical tape on the back of his hand and casually pulled it off. He had just finished a comprehensive physical examination and immediately plunged back into work. He was now the General Secretary of the Chinese Civilization Party, a member of the Standing Committee of the Politburo, Vice Chairman of the Military Commission, Vice President of the State, and President of the Party School. His daily routine was extremely hectic.

Under the smoggy sky, the interior of the residence remained brightly lit even during the day. Entering He Rui's study, he saw He Rui reviewing documents. Whether it was the effect of the lighting or not, Li Runshi felt that He Rui, sitting at his desk, seemed to lack a sense of presence.

He Rui had a relatively fair complexion and deep facial contours. Because he rarely went out, his cheeks had taken on a porcelain-white hue, and his lips were a pale pink. Combined with the composure emanating from within, he looked quite handsome.

Even though He Rui's appearance didn't look sickly, Li Runshi felt a strong sense of unease. He would have preferred He Rui to be like he had been for the past thirty years—tanned dark with coarse skin. For that was the look of health.

Seeing Li Runshi enter, He Rui pressed his hands against the armrests of his chair to stand up. As Li Runshi stepped forward to urge him to stay seated, He Rui smiled and, leaning on the table with his left hand, took a few steps forward. With this movement, his blood began to circulate, and some of his physical mobility returned.

"Come, let's take a walk outside," He Rui said, heading toward the door.

A pang of sorrow hit Li Runshi's heart. He Rui, who had once held up the heavens with a single hand and manipulated human society across the entire globe, had now reached a point where he could not naturally support his own weight with his legs. Birth, old age, sickness, and death were truly unyielding!

The flowers in the garden had all withered. Although the leaves hadn't turned yellow yet, subtle color changes were visible at the edges and stems. After walking for a while, He Rui entered the greenhouse, where flowers were in bloom, emitting a delicate fragrance. He Rui sat down on a chair and asked, "What problems have you encountered?"

Along the way, Li Runshi's mind had been filled with the various opinions raised by comrades from the Politburo and the Ministry of Finance, and he was still somewhat disorganized. Hearing He Rui's question, Li Runshi sat in the chair opposite him and took a moment to organize his thoughts before asking: "The Ministry of Finance currently believes that real estate should be made into a 'reservoir' for the economy. Once this is done, it will be equivalent to granting real estate a vast amount of financial attributes. I wonder what the Chairman's view on this is?"

He Rui did not answer immediately. He could well imagine what kind of debate the views of the Politburo and the Ministry of Finance would trigger. Using the development of real estate to solve the problem of the massive amount of currency currently flooding Chinese society was a method He Rui had proposed to Premier Wu Youping. It seemed Wu Youping had kept his mouth shut and had not revealed that it was actually He Rui who had suggested it. If Wu Youping had stated clearly from the start, "This is Chairman He's view," there wouldn't have been so much debate.

He Rui began to communicate with Li Runshi. "My view hasn't changed at all. The foundation that supports a modern industrial society is the lifestyle of an industrial society. In an agrarian society, selling one's house is considered the act of a prodigal son. This is a view resulting from a long-term economic situation. So, Comrade Runshi, do you think it is reasonable for a person to own several houses?"

Li Runshi couldn't help but frown. China's current cities possessed quite advanced infrastructure. There were wide roads, factories, commercial buildings, schools, hospitals, parks, fitness centers, and parking lots in every city. In particular, the comprehensive large-scale shopping malls—integrating cinemas, restaurants, game rooms, shops, department stores, and supermarkets—had made urban life extremely convenient.

In coordination with the ever-expanding scale of the surface cities, every city was heavily engaged in the construction of drainage pipes, natural gas pipelines, and heating pipes for the northern regions.

In large cities, to address the traffic issues caused by the massive number of cars, elevated bridges and underground railways were also being planned. In major cities like Zhengzhou, Beiping, Tianjin, and Shanghai, trials for these extremely costly infrastructure projects had already begun to accumulate experience.

In such a China, a person owning several properties shouldn't be a problem. However, Li Runshi felt that this meant a trend of wealth concentration was forming in China. Thus, Li Runshi replied, "What I am most concerned about is whether China's economy will slide toward a capitalist model."

"The reason capitalism is an evil path is that the goal of capital operation is capital appreciation. Therefore, capital will try every possible means to shift the cost onto other classes. With you here, I am not worried that this will become a future trend for China. The current problem is that with China's development, the Chinese people will inevitably possess more and more wealth. So, Comrade Runshi, do you intend to adopt a policy of channeling or blocking?" After He Rui finished speaking, he looked quietly at Li Runshi.

For top-tier politicians, these questions were actually quite cruel. The more sensitive a politician was, the more they would feel various levels of unease or even panic within the gap between their ideals and reality. The reason He Rui didn't panic was that he had seen this stage before. Every day, pessimistic views would emerge, lamenting the decline of social morals and claiming that each generation was worse than the last—as if China were on the brink of ruin!

However, throughout this process, the younger generation's level of understanding of communism would advance by leaps and bounds, and they would become increasingly adept at using the methodology of class struggle to analyze what was happening in society.

Precisely because he had witnessed this, He Rui looked forward to Li Runshi being able to convey the correct way of thinking to the masses in this era of extremely active thought and rapidly rising levels of cognition, helping the masses sharpen their eyes and continue moving forward.

With such expectations, He Rui looked at Li Runshi, trying to read something from the expression of this highly anticipated politician.

However, Li Runshi's expression didn't change much. After a while, he asked, "Chairman, class contradictions will intensify along with the struggle over the ownership of wealth. When everyone is drawn into this struggle, social problems will also become unprecedentedly acute. Real estate is exactly like this; it is destined to trigger all sorts of issues."

Hearing Li Runshi speak this way, He Rui couldn't help but smile. "Heh... *cough, cough*..."

The coughing lasted for a while. He Rui found that his body could no longer handle emotions of joy, anger, or sorrow; he could only calm his emotions and lower his heart rate. Once the coughing stopped, He Rui sighed, "Comrade Runshi, I'll say it again. You are too kind; you cannot bear to see the people suffer. I am no benevolent sort. In my view, when the people rapidly gain immense benefits thanks to the social system and the dividends of a global war victory, most of them will be unable to realize that all their gains are actually backed by even more support. Ordinary people instinctively believe that whatever they receive is due to their own efforts. If others have something they don't, they assume it's the work of villains.

"I have always believed that at such a time, one must tear away the veil to reveal the true face of the world and do one's best to teach the people the methodology of seeing the essence of the world—rather than making them feel happy or comfortable. As for the feelings of pain involved, I believe they are unavoidable.

"I wonder what your take is on this matter."

Li Runshi did not like watching tragedies, especially this kind of large-scale tragedy that could already be foreseen. He was well-read and had seen many literary works by European authors regarding the development of European capitalist industrialization. Human nature ebbs and flows, struggling in the whirlpools caused by intense social change. Since China's industrialization had led to massive physical and climatic pollution, it was unlikely that psychological impact and alienation could be avoided either. This was undoubtedly a source of tragedy.

Seeing that Li Runshi remained silent, He Rui wanted to speak but couldn't help coughing again. But this time, He Rui suppressed the cough and said seriously: "Comrade Runshi, problems encountered in development can only be solved through further development. I can understand your worries for the future, but it is impossible for humans to imagine something they have never seen. Only by seeing and experiencing it can they generate cognition regarding such a change.

"In my view, the development of real estate will allow a massive amount of liquid currency to enter the real estate market. At the same time, through large-scale mortgage loans, it can create a vast amount of debt. Currency backed by debt becomes highly controllable, and this currency will inevitably enter the production sector to produce a large quantity of commodities. On the basis of enhancing China's production capacity, it will create employment, taxes, and cash flow—thereby providing resources for the war we are currently waging.

"Although the battles in Africa are being fought by the World People's Liberation Army, what determines the victory or defeat of the war might very well be the unprecedented infrastructure construction currently taking place in China. The more skyscrapers China builds, the more supplies there will be for the war. Because the China of today has already mastered a powerful borrowing capacity and provides resources to the war through specialized loans.

"This operation is also likely to produce a result you might not like: through an astronomical amount of mortgages, it will firmly bind a population numbered in the hundreds of millions to construction and the war. If the people want to live a life where their property is recognized and protected by the state, they must fully support the war."

Having described the present and a certain period of the future to this point, He Rui couldn't help but cough. This time the coughing was violent; He Rui's porcelain-white cheeks turned slightly crimson, but against his still-pale forehead, this color—which should have looked vibrant—instead gave off an eerie, unsettling feeling.

Li Runshi did not like the reality He Rui described, and he was even more worried about He Rui's health. He quickly said, "Chairman, let's stop here for today. I will support this plan."

After taking his leave from He Rui, Li Runshi rushed back to his office. He once again picked up the report from the State Council and began to read. This time, Li Runshi was no longer overly influenced by his personal emotions and could finally consider it according to the report's logic.

At this stage, the world war had formed three fronts. The first was naturally the North American front, where Chinese troops were engaging the Anglo-American Allied forces on the front lines. The second was the African front; as the front line pushed all the way north, it would eventually face off against Europe across the Mediterranean.

The third front was relatively hidden; it surrounded the Soviet-controlled areas. China had no intention of attacking the Soviet Union as of yet, and from the current situation, the Soviet Union had no plans for a military confrontation with China either. In a sense, this front was a guarantee to eventually force the Soviet Union to launch an offensive to the west.

The so-called "White World" had already been surrounded by these three fronts. All possibilities within the war had vanished; the final campaign had already begun. The progress from here on could be called the beginning of the end, or perhaps the end of the beginning.

If Li Runshi agreed to the real estate plan, even if He Rui were to pass away, the current trajectory could not be changed. Given the bureaucracy's aversion to surprises, the State Council must have seen the future possibilities when they drafted such a plan and decided to extinguish any possibility other than a final decisive battle.

It wasn't to say that China could end the war simply by doing infrastructure construction. Just as He Rui had said: once the definite future direction was struck, the 700 million Chinese people, in order to prevent their future assets from going up in smoke, would have to be firmly bound to the strategy of the final decisive battle.

The assets China possessed up to now were simply not enough to match the currency issued. Roughly speaking, one yuan's worth of assets corresponded to 1.5 yuan of currency. Only by winning the war and winning the future could the trillions of yuan be linked to the productivity and consumption represented by mines, farms, factories, railways, and ports all over the world. The torrent formed by this currency would provide a steady stream of profits for China, repaying debts for the Chinese people and increasing their purchasing power.

Li Runshi already understood this, but at this very moment, he could almost touch the pulse of this great change. Although there was no sound in the office, Li Runshi seemed to hear this grand pulsation from the void. This pulsation was like a torrent, like a mountain roar or a tsunami. All the roaring of guns and cannons in the world at this moment, as well as the shouts, cries of pain, groans, and prayers issued by the mutually slaughtering armies, were merely component parts of this grand pulsation.

For a moment, Li Runshi felt restless. He simply stood up and walked to the office window, pushed it open, and lit a cigarette.

Outside the window remained the Hades-like darkness. The streetlights had already been lit, but they couldn't dispel the mist that felt like an obscure and uncertain future. The vehicles and pedestrians passing in the distance were all shadowy and indistinct; their details could not be made out.

After finishing his cigarette, Li Runshi closed the window, sat back at his desk, and signed the document. Although he was still conflicted in his heart, Li Runshi decided to keep going. If everything before him was the result of He Rui's efforts over the past thirty years, then dispelling the mist and bringing back the sunlight was Li Runshi's responsibility.

On November 3rd, the smog that had persisted for nearly a week was finally blown away by strong winds from the north. The strong winds caused the temperature to drop rapidly, finally stopping on November 5th. Then, a southeasterly wind blew in. On November 6th, the sky turned dark again. But this darkness was not that uniform smog; it was a layer of clouds with seemingly infinite depth. On November 7th, it rained.

The rain pattered against the glass windows with a rhythmic *shua-shua* sound, and the discussion on the real estate plan was also completed. The central discussion established programmatic regulations. In these regulations, the state opened up the sale of urban commercial housing in three stages. In the first stage, employees of central enterprises, retired military personnel, and government personnel could all obtain eligibility for mortgage loans to buy houses. At the same time, the state established a public fund in addition to pensions and universal medical insurance. Anyone who contributed to the public fund could use their contribution certificate to apply for preferential mortgage loans from banks.

The second and third stages involved expanding the eligibility for purchasing commercial housing, which would be implemented after the war ended. The core of the entire real estate plan was to utilize the urbanization and industrialization promoted by the war to rapidly push China into the era of urbanization.

Seeing the plan pass, although the comrades in the economic departments were all exhausted, they were all relieved. Some department heads couldn't even help but smile—the urban construction department, for instance.

To do a good job in infrastructure construction, one could only rely on smashing money into it—and astronomical sums at that. No country could achieve the collection of such astronomical sums of capital through tax revenue alone; they couldn't even do it by running the printing presses until they sparked. But this real estate plan could achieve it. Because those who would bear this debt were hundreds of millions of Chinese people; the power of an industrial nation was vividly reflected in such policies. Only hundreds of millions of Chinese people could bear dozens of trillions of yuan in debt and repay it all.

The content of the deal between the He Rui government and the people was not money, but a promise of a wealthy future to hundreds of millions of Chinese people.

On November 8th, with the arrival of even stronger northern winds, the rain stopped. The long-lost azure sky reappeared before the people. Even if the sun in the sky didn't provide much warmth, the people looked up at the sky with joy and excitement.

When the sunlight pierced through the glass window and cast bright shadows onto the report Li Runshi was reading intently, he only then noticed that the sunlight had returned. This feeling of both strangeness and anticipation caused Li Runshi to put down the report on the latest battle situation in Africa and stand up to walk to the window.

Bathing in the sunlight at this moment, Li Runshi suddenly remembered a sentence: "Why are humans not afraid of the night? Because everyone knows that tomorrow, the sun will rise as usual."