Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

The Chinese Communist Party leaders who participated in the negotiations were very excited.

Thanks to the reports from Wei Hongjun and Mao Zemin, the Central Committee had already made a very comprehensive assessment before Khrushchev arrived in China. As a result, negotiations went smoothly on all fronts. Khrushchev was not one to quibble over minor issues.

Of course, given Khrushchev's sincerity, China couldn't just sit there and do nothing. There's no such thing as a free lunch.

Major Chinese newspapers were full of praise for Khrushchev. When the two sides issued a joint statement, the Premier, on behalf of the Central Committee, expressed gratitude to Khrushchev. He highly praised Khrushchev's contributions to the Soviet Revolution and said that Khrushchev was another leader emerging in the world communist movement.

At the same time, it was stated that this high-level meeting between the two sides has consolidated the friendship between China and the Soviet Union and the great unity of the socialist camp.

Chairman Mao published an article in the People's Daily titled "Long Live the Friendship between the Chinese and Soviet Peoples," praising Khrushchev for his pioneering and historic contribution to the friendship between the Chinese and Soviet peoples as the leader of the socialist Soviet Union. This cooperation will provide a new model for the socialist camp and strengthen its unity.

It even stated that the world communist movement would develop further under the leadership of Comrade Khrushchev.

The Chairman’s words are very important.

Since the founding of the People's Republic of China and the victory in the Korean War, Chairman Mao's reputation in the world communist movement has been at its peak. The translation of "Selected Works of Mao Zedong" published by the Central Committee has been circulated in astonishing numbers in countries around the world.

Eastern European countries are also enthusiastic about "Selected Works of Mao Zedong".

The Chairman is arguably one of the leaders of the world communist movement, second only to Comrade Stalin. His current low profile and emphasis on Khrushchev is a recognition of Khrushchev's position within the socialist camp. This support is crucial not only for Khrushchev's consolidation of his position in the Soviet Union but also for the leadership of world communism.

China's support and the Chairman's support made Khrushchev realize that his trip was a success.

Later, accompanied by the Premier, he visited various Chinese cities to see their development. Khrushchev's private plane shuttled across the country, and Khrushchev's armored car also followed the plane around.

Khrushchev stayed in China for about twenty days during this visit.

Finally, Khrushchev was very satisfied. Before returning, he waved his hand and gave about 200 cars and agricultural machinery participating in the exhibition to China for free.

China and the Soviet Union officially entered a honeymoon period.

925 Raising Money

The honeymoon period between China and the Soviet Union has ended.

This was not just a honeymoon period between the top leaders of the Chinese and Soviet parties, but a comprehensive honeymoon period for both countries. The negotiations between Chairman Mao and Khrushchev only addressed the more important aspects of Sino-Soviet cooperation and reached a consensus on the general direction.

However, in addition to the seven areas of cooperation discussed by Chairman Mao and Khrushchev, China and the Soviet Union also reached a large number of cooperation agreements between various departments of the two countries.

First, there was the cooperation between the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Trade and the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Trade. The Soviet Ministry of Foreign Trade was increasingly satisfied with its Chinese counterpart. China was able to provide many goods that were in short supply in the Soviet market, and at reasonable prices. The Soviet Ministry of Foreign Trade, after taking these goods from China and reselling them to the Soviet market, could resell them for a daily profit. And this profit wasn't just financial.

Because the Soviet Union lacked various daily necessities, many powerful departments and industrial sectors also lacked things. For example, some military industrial departments had great power and strength, but their technicians and workers also lacked many things.

It's like furniture.

These troops were strong, so they recovered quickly after the end of World War II.

They were able to start building new houses for their technicians and workers to improve their living conditions. But after the new houses were built and they moved in, they were still short of furniture.

However, the furniture shortage wasn't limited to just one or two factories; it was widespread throughout the Soviet Union. Because the Soviet Union had a limited number of furniture factories and insufficient workers to expand, even these powerful and influential military industrial units were unable to meet the furniture needs.

To resolve these issues, these powerful departments had no choice but to turn to the Ministry of Foreign Trade. However, the Ministry had previously struggled to resolve their problems. While the Ministry could import some goods from Western countries, the prices were high, and the government had certain restrictions on imports from the West. You couldn't just import whatever you wanted.

If the Ministry of Foreign Trade was allowed to import goods from Western countries, all kinds of luxury goods would flood the entire Soviet elite.

Therefore, the government will not let the Ministry of Foreign Trade imports run wild. Secret imports of luxury goods are fine, but large-scale imports are a recipe for disaster.

But after cooperating with China, these problems are much easier to solve. Even though Chinese furniture factories are backward and many of their workers are still illiterate farmers, they are still able to provide you with the furniture you want.

There are a lot of furniture factories of all sizes in the entire Manzhouli area.

As soon as the Soviet Union's orders came in, even the most complex, difficult, and, of course, most profitable ones, were completed by the large furniture factories controlled by the government. As for the small and simple furniture, the surrounding cooperatives were all vying to do it.

Isn't it just a carpenter?

Each cooperative gathered all young men over the age of fifteen or sixteen for training. If you couldn't learn, you'd be beaten to death. Therefore, China would satisfy any furniture the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Trade desired, no matter what.

With a relatively sufficient supply of goods, the Ministry of Foreign Trade became much more arrogant. Those departments that once held real power were now polite to the Ministry of Foreign Trade because it controlled a large number of daily necessities.

The leaders of the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Trade were very fond of this kind of thing. It was just a favor.

As you move up in the future, you will be able to get the support of these people.

Therefore, the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Trade is increasingly interested in doing business with China. If China was previously eager to do business with the Soviet Union, now it is the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Trade that is eager to do business with China.

China does processing on imported materials.

We use Soviet raw materials and manufacture products for the Soviet Union. Initially, these were small batches. But now, with the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Trade taking this matter seriously, orders are pouring in. The Ministry also helps connect with Soviet industrialists to improve the machinery and equipment of these Chinese factories. Currently, orders for furniture alone total over three million units annually. Small furniture, such as chairs and tables, are the majority of these.

But even if it's small furniture, it's not a small amount.

In addition to furniture, many items such as clothing, towels, socks, gloves, and hats were also manufactured in China. Currently, several counties around Manchuria were engaged in processing trade for the Soviet Union, and cooperative factories were everywhere.

Furthermore, China's Ministry of Foreign Trade also guaranteed to the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Trade that China would supply coffee beans to the Soviet Union starting in 1956. This was another positive development for the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Trade. The Soviet market was currently facing a severe shortage of coffee beans, so much so that many workers only drank a small amount of the beans they bought.

Not only in the Soviet Union, many people in Eastern European countries also drink coffee.

But there was not enough coffee beans.

If China could provide coffee beans, it would be a good thing for the entire socialist camp. Of course, the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Trade was concerned about how much money it could make from this business.

In addition to cooperation in foreign trade, educational cooperation also continued to deepen. China and the Soviet Union reached an agreement to send 6000 Chinese students to the Soviet Union annually over the next five years. These students were not all there to learn technical skills; some also served as production managers to learn industrial production.

Both China and the Soviet Union have entered a true honeymoon period, from the highest levels to the grassroots.

After Khrushchev left China contentedly, a large number of Soviet experts and equipment began to enter the country. While Khrushchev brought so many good things, China was also under pressure. After all, so many factories had to be built.

So the Central Committee immediately convened an enlarged meeting of the Political Bureau.

To discuss next steps.

In addition to members and alternate members of the Political Bureau, secretaries of the Secretariat, vice premiers of the State Council and directors of various offices of the State Council also attended the meeting.

"Comrades, we have been in the People's Republic of China for five and a half years now. Our achievements are the main ones, but we also have many lessons to learn. I am the Chairman of the Central Committee, and the responsibility for any problems that arise lies primarily with me."

"Let's talk about 1951, when rural sideline businesses nearly collapsed. This was because of problems with our unified purchase and marketing system. The result was a rigid, overly strict implementation. Everything was under their control, and the central government's regulations were rigid, leaving no room for rural areas to slack off. As a result, my country's pig production plummeted in 1951, falling by over 1952 cubic heads. Although adjustments were made, pig production recovered to around 8000 cubic heads in , but it still fell short of its original number. This is a lesson we must heed. We can't be too rigid in enforcing central policies like unified purchase and marketing; we must understand the importance of tiered management. We absolutely must avoid rushing our work. For a country as large as this, embarking on the socialist path, many tasks are unprecedented. The more these challenges present themselves, the more we must maintain humility, a spirit of learning, and perseverance."

Regarding the issue of unified purchase and sale, Chen Yun, Mao Zemin and Bo Shuchun made some adjustments in 1952.

Wei Hongjun also made numerous policy adjustments regarding pig farming, bringing national pig production to 1952 million in 8000. This was still far from the target. In 1953, Wei Hongjun further adjusted rural policies.

We are preparing to increase the number of live pigs in the country to more than 100 million.

Only in this way can we stabilize domestic pork prices and meet export needs.

"Also, trade between us and Eastern European countries has increased significantly recently. I see some of our trade officials becoming complacent and arrogant. This is wrong."

Mao Zemin immediately said, "Trade performance has been relatively good in recent years, and some cadres have indeed become a little complacent. This is a mistake on our part. When we return, we will definitely engage in criticism and self-criticism."

"Ah."

Chairman Mao did not give Mao Zemin any face just because he was his brother. He still criticized what was due.

The Chairman continued, "Our trade officials and diplomatic officials should not become complacent simply because they have achieved a little. Such arrogance is misguided. We are a great nation, and our Party is a large one. But this shouldn't lead us to look down on smaller nations or smaller parties. We must always maintain an attitude of learning from the people of our fraternal countries. Diplomatic and trade officials, including those traveling abroad for various reasons, must all maintain a humble and cautious attitude of learning."

"Comrades, we must remember that although our industry has made some progress, we are still a backward agricultural country. We have no right to look down on others, nor any reason to be proud and complacent. Only by maintaining a humble and cautious attitude of learning can we maintain our friendship with foreign countries and continue our trade with them in the long term."

"We'll use 15 years or more to complete socialist industrialization and socialist transformation. By then, we'll be strong and prosperous, but we must remain humble and keep a spirit of learning. Only in this way can we avoid falling behind the world like we did at the end of the Qing Dynasty."

The Chairman convened this meeting in order to use Mao Zemin as a pretext.

In reality, it was because the Chairman noticed that many central leaders were becoming somewhat complacent. In recent years, China's industrial and agricultural sectors had been developing steadily, and a global victory had been won. China's global standing had risen rapidly. Even the Soviet Union was eager to cooperate with China. Consequently, many cadres had become complacent.

This time there is another great cooperation with the Soviet Union.

Many officials believed that China was about to become an industrialized nation, and sometimes they spoke without restraint in public.

That's why the chairman held a meeting to pour cold water on everyone.

Let everyone understand that China is still a backward agricultural country.

The Chairman then continued, "In 1949, on behalf of the Central Committee, I went to the Soviet Union to celebrate Comrade Stalin's birthday. At that time, I had a brief conversation with Comrade Wei Hongjun, Wang Jiaxiang, and Xiang Zhi. Comrade Wei Hongjun also wrote a report. However, due to work being too busy later, I didn't report it to the entire Party, nor was it stipulated in the Party resolution. But I think it's time to discuss it now, and the Heavenly Family should listen and express their opinions."

"First, I suggest that Party members and cadres not celebrate birthdays. Celebrating birthdays won't help people live longer. The main thing is to do their work well. If Party members and cadres want to celebrate their birthdays, they should just have a meal with their family behind closed doors, or if that doesn't work, invite one or two close friends. They absolutely shouldn't hold lavish celebrations, especially those of their superiors and subordinates. This kind of extravagant and wasteful birthday celebrations is not a good practice. "

The Chairman was reminded of this because his sixtieth birthday was approaching. Central and local leaders, numerous organizations, and even some foreign political parties had sent telegrams urging him to celebrate his birthday. The Chairman's prestige was at its peak, so everyone supported celebrating his birthday, inviting the nation to join in the celebration. However, after attending Stalin's seventieth birthday, the Chairman had become deeply disgusted with such extravagant celebrations.

So I'd like to take advantage of this opportunity to express my thoughts.

"Yes. We're not officials of a feudal dynasty who have to celebrate three festivals and two birthdays. Besides, our country is still very poor. If the central leaders celebrate their birthdays with lavish fanfare, then this phoenix spirit will quickly spread throughout the country. Then everyone will have to celebrate their birthdays, and that won't work."

The commander-in-chief spoke.

The Commander-in-Chief is currently responsible for Party discipline, and given his seniority and age, he's well-suited to making this statement. After all, the Chairman was speaking in reference to the Emperor's birthday celebration. And since the Chairman convened a Politburo meeting, he must have made some preparations.

The Chairman couldn't just reject all the requests for his birthday. So he had to ban them from the source.

The Politburo meeting reached a conclusion that all central leaders were prohibited from celebrating their birthdays, so no one would continue to ask the Chairman to celebrate his birthday in the future.

"I support that."

Dong Biwu nodded and said, "Birthday celebrations should be canceled. Right now, people across the country are struggling to find adequate food and clothing, so we should still be frugal. It's not easy for us to control whether people still celebrate their birthdays, but Party members should set an example."

After the Commander-in-Chief and Dong Biwu finished speaking, no one could say anything. Now the Chairman should take the lead in not celebrating his birthday.

If the Chairman didn't celebrate his birthday, who else would dare to say they wanted to? Wei Hongjun was even less so.

Wei Hongjun is only a few years old, it’s too early for him to celebrate his birthday.

Seeing everyone's support, the Chairman said, "Second, don't give gifts, at least not among Party comrades. I know many Party comrades have close personal relationships, stemming from years of shared revolutionary experience. But we must still eradicate this practice. The exchange of gifts between Party members may seem innocuous, but it can ultimately lead to some very unhealthy practices."

"It's hard to judge whether the exchange of gifts between party comrades is genuine 'exchange of gifts' or involves other issues. Not exchanging gifts between party comrades is something that should be encouraged."

Marshal Nie agreed with the Chairman's words.

Marshal Nie was previously in charge of the Political and Legal Committee and is still in charge of this work.

So I strongly support what the Chairman said.

Many things are simply indistinguishable. During the "Three Antis Movement," there were countless instances of such ambiguous behavior. If they were arrested, there was no evidence to suggest they were a problem. But if they weren't arrested, the amount of these "gifts and favors" involved was substantial.

"The relationship between homosexuals should be pure and can be maintained without this kind of 'reciprocity'. If it is insisted that this kind of 'reciprocity' is the only way to maintain a relationship, then it is not a pure relationship between homosexuals. I support banning the custom of exchanging gifts between homosexuals."

Comrade Xiuyang also supports this.

Therefore, we also oppose the excessive exchange of gifts between comrades within the Party.

Others also support it.

In fact, even though everyone is sitting here in glory, many people are actually short of money.

It's all about the sheer number of social engagements. Especially for people like the President, the Prime Minister, and Comrade Xiuyang, entertaining guests alone takes up a good portion of their monthly salary. That's on top of rent, utilities, and cigarettes, leaving virtually nothing behind.

Just like Comrade Lin Boqu.

Even though his salary was high, he still had debts every month. On the other hand, Wei Hongjun didn't have that much expenses.

Coming from a rural background, he didn't know any pro-democracy figures. Wei Hongjun wasn't in charge of anything like the United Front Work Department, so he didn't need to associate with them. Those pro-democracy figures were all wealthy, and spending money with them would skyrocket. He had no relatives, including Wei Hongjun's wife's family, so he had no relatives or friends to entertain.