Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

1070 Cadre Arrangements

Zhu Rongji, deputy director of the Secretary's Office of the Finance and Economics Work Committee, spoke.

He has worked in central government ministries for many years and has always been close to central leaders. In the early days, he followed Ma Hong, and later worked with Li Fuchun. In the past two years, he has worked in Chen Yun's office. Therefore, he has been able to get close to many central decisions and has been influenced by Chen Yun, Li Fuchun, and Ma Hong.

He was very familiar with many of the central government's decisions. So after hearing Liang Xiang's words, he immediately remembered the central government's formulation of a free market for agricultural and sideline products.

"Since this situation has already occurred at the grassroots level, the government shouldn't suppress it. This is especially true because many grassroots projects don't require government allocations of resources like steel and cement. This means the implementation of grassroots projects won't affect the national planned economy. Furthermore, the more prosperous grassroots projects become, the more they can mobilize local private currency. This, in turn, can easily stimulate the development of small local industries like cement plants, brick factories, and glass factories."

"I believe this development is actually a continuation of the original free market for agricultural and sideline products. At the time, agricultural and sideline products primarily consisted of vegetables, fruits, and wild vegetables. But the development of rural sideline businesses, or rural industry and commerce, is following the path of a free market for agricultural and sideline products. Giving grassroots organizations a certain degree of freedom is revitalizing the county and township economies and increasing their incomes."

"Rural industrial and commercial tax revenue exceeded rural grain revenue several years ago. This shows that capital accumulation in industry and commerce is much faster than in agriculture. We should encourage the continued development of construction teams in rural cooperatives. Especially for county and township projects, they shouldn't just wait for government allocations, but should actively develop local construction teams."

Zhu Rongji spoke with great enthusiasm.

Yet he has reason to be proud. A Tsinghua University graduate, only 30 years old, he's already been praised by several central government officials. After completing his studies at the Central Party School, he transitioned to local government positions and was able to take on leadership roles independently.

If the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee hadn't introduced new regulations for cadre promotions, requiring grassroots work experience, Zhu Rongji wouldn't have been promoted. He would have continued in central government ministries, climbing the ladder every few years. When his turn came to move to the grassroots, he would have directly led the local provincial party committee and government.

However, after the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee introduced the cadre promotion system, young cadres with bright prospects like Zhu Rongji must go to the grassroots level.

Wei Hongjun asked, "Then do you think that major national and provincial projects should be subject to open bidding?"

“It should be quite difficult at this stage.”

Zhu Rongji answered without a second thought. As deputy director of Chen Yun's office, he compiled reports sent to Chen Yun daily. Therefore, he had a deep understanding of China's macroeconomic situation.

"National and provincial projects affecting the well-being of the people are all covered by the national plan. The main problem with these projects is that the steel and cement needed are allocated by the state based on project availability. Therefore, large-scale projects like these are currently undertaken directly by local governments, requiring the mobilization of numerous departments. No single local construction company has the capacity to complete such a large project, and therefore, there's no basis for open bidding."

Among this group of young and middle-aged cadres, Zhu Rongji was too dazzling, so Wei Hongjun had always been paying attention to his academic progress.

After this period of observation, Wei Hongjun had a deeper understanding of him. He was highly educated, held a high position, and possessed strong overall capabilities. However, he was not without problems; on the contrary, he had many.

He is rather aloof and has a bit of an intellectual temperament. He is also stubborn and unwilling to compromise, and his relationships with his colleagues are not very harmonious.

This is of course due to his personality, but it is also related to the fact that his starting point was too high.

After all, he had just graduated from Tsinghua University and had been spotted by Ma Hong when he went to Northeast China. Later, he was favored by Party and state leaders Li Fuchun and Chen Yun. It was understandable that he felt proud.

But his pride seems excessive. When facing colleagues of his own age, he exudes an air of superiority, whether intentionally or not. This kind of pride must be combated.

Historically, he had no experience in grassroots work. Although he was labeled a "rightist" in 1958, he actually did not work seriously at the grassroots level in the following years.

He later took charge of China's economy, particularly fiscal and tax reforms. While these reforms had their flaws and aftereffects, they achieved remarkable results overall and were a credit to him. The Chinese government's ability to stabilize the economy and weather the Asian financial crisis in the 1990s was inseparable from his fiscal and tax reforms.

However, some reforms in other areas have been criticized, including reforms in finance and some areas of people's livelihood, which have left China with serious sequelae.

"I think it makes sense for the grassroots construction industry to learn from the free market for agricultural and sideline products. The free market for agricultural and sideline products is a free market under the socialist planned economy headed by state supply and marketing cooperatives and state commercial companies."

"The existence of a free market for agricultural and sideline products does not undermine the socialist planned economy or the overall socialist economic system. On the contrary, it acts as a lubricant, making our grassroots economy more dynamic and filling in areas that the planned economy cannot cater to. In other words, the cooperative economy supplements the large collective and public ownership economies."

"The same applies to the construction industry. Major national, provincial, and municipal construction companies must adhere to the state's planned economy and participate in important projects related to national welfare and people's livelihoods. For smaller projects in counties, townships, and rural areas, other construction teams can be allowed to participate. This is also a cooperative economy supplementing the socialist economic system."

Jiangsu Yang (386, hereby replaced by this name) is a technical management cadre in an enterprise. Unlike some younger cadres, Jiangsu Yang joined the Party in Shanghai before the outbreak of the Liberation War. This makes him a Party member and cadre who predates the founding of the People's Republic of China.

FAW sent Jiangsu Yang to study in the Soviet Union, at the Moscow Stalin Automobile Plant. After returning to China, he supported Second Automobile Works, serving as director of the Power Department and then the Power Plant. Within the enterprise, he was a full-fledged county-level cadre.

Because of his outstanding performance, Second Automobile Works was planning to promote him to Deputy Director of Technology, giving him full responsibility for Second Automobile Works' technical issues. Second Automobile Works officials currently believed that Jiangsu Yang would return to Second Automobile Works after completing his training. Unbeknownst to them, Jiangsu Yang was a cadre nominated by Wei Hongjun, and Wei Hongjun would not allow him to return to Second Automobile Works.

As everyone got used to the free market for agricultural and sideline products, and as the free market for agricultural and sideline products made the rural economy more active, the party also gradually began to accept this free market.

Even many people have begun to accept what Wei Hongjun said, that the biggest difference between socialism and capitalism is the difference in ownership of the means of production, rather than the distinction between planned economy and free market.

Eleven years after the founding of the People's Republic of China, many within the Party gradually began to realize that one of the drawbacks of the planned economy was its rigidity. This feeling was particularly pronounced after studying the Soviet economy.

Although China and the Soviet Union had already reached many agreements, it was very difficult to coordinate between different departments and factories.

The planned economy led to a relatively rigid approach to economic adjustment, and it also failed to take into account many situations. For the vast rural areas of counties, townships, and villages, not only the national planned economy, but also many provincial and municipal planned economies failed to take into account them.

In areas that the planned economy cannot reach, the appropriate development of the free market can also invigorate and develop the county, township and rural economy.

Therefore, there is growing support within the Party for the idea that socialism can appropriately utilize the vitality of the free market to supplement the socialist planned economy. The Chairman's political report at the Ninth National Congress explicitly stated that the free market for agricultural and sideline products is a free market within the socialist economic system and a supplement to the socialist planned economy.

So Jiangsu Yang's point is very clear. The construction market can also be based on a planned economy, supplemented by a free market. Major projects that affect the national economy and people's livelihoods should be planned and arranged by the national government, while smaller projects at the grassroots level can be handled by the free market.

For Jiangsu's Yang, this Party School experience was an eye-opener. Previously a distinguished factory technician, he had some ideas about industrial development. However, he had always been at the grassroots level, focusing on factory development and, at best, the development of China's automotive industry. Compared to officials like Zhu Rongji, who had long served in the central government, he was lacking in many areas.

But this time, at the Central Party School, he began a serious and systematic study of Marxist-Leninist theory and the macro-theories of China's current socialist construction. This gave him his first macro-level understanding of the overall development of China's industry, agriculture, and commerce, as well as a more complete understanding of China's political system from top to bottom. This greatly broadened his perspective and perspective.

"In fact, many local construction companies are nominally important provincial and municipal construction companies, but their strength is not that strong."

Yang Gui, a member of the Xinxiang Prefectural Committee and the First Secretary of the Linxian County Committee, spoke up. (At this time, Xinxiang and Anyang had merged.)

Although Yang Gui was only 31 years old, he possessed a long revolutionary background. He joined the revolution in his teens during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, joined the Party at , and became a district chief (roughly equivalent to a township head) at , helping to build the anti-Japanese base area. Most Party officials could not match Yang Gui's experience.

"For example, in Henan, when it comes to major projects related to national economy and people's livelihood, it's the provincial and municipal party committees that mobilize the participation of county, township, and rural cooperatives, not construction companies. Provincial and municipal construction companies only participate in some urban construction at best. When it comes to major projects, they don't actually have enough people, so they can only recruit people on a temporary basis."

"Compared to this kind of temporary recruitment, experienced construction teams are always more useful because they are more professional. Therefore, I also believe that some local projects should allow more grassroots construction teams to participate. This way, these construction teams can earn money for rural cooperatives and also train experienced teams. When some cities are carrying out construction, there is no need to recruit people temporarily, and they can directly transfer these grassroots construction teams."

Yang Gui had a long revolutionary career, but he had always been in Xinxiang and Anyang. Unlike Zhu Rongji, who had always worked in central government departments, and unlike Jiangsu Yang, who studied in Shanghai, went to the Soviet Union, and worked at FAW and Second FAW.

Therefore, his thinking was more focused on local construction. He was familiar with the conditions in Xinxiang and Anyang. The so-called provincial and municipal construction companies, including the provincial construction company, were not as powerful as imagined.

He also considered that Lin County was short of water and very poor, so he led people in Lin County to build reservoirs and roads, and cultivated a strong engineering team.

Yang Gui believes the engineering team he has built in Lin County is no less capable than construction companies in places like Xinxiang and Anyang. If the government were to relax some of the restrictions, Yang Gui believes the Lin County engineering team could easily take on some local construction projects.

Lin County is so poor. If we can go out and make money by taking on projects, it will be a good thing for the development of the entire Lin County.

"I agree with Comrade Yang Gui. Provincial and municipal construction companies may appear powerful in name, but in reality, they have limited staff. When they actually take on large projects, their construction speed is very slow due to insufficient staff."

"This has led to many urban construction projects always failing to complete their plans on time. Counties, towns, and rural areas should develop a free market for the construction industry. Instead of waiting for the state to arrange construction, they should train their own construction teams. In the future, when provinces and cities have some urban construction projects, county-level construction teams can also take on some of the smaller projects within the urban construction. This will not only save time and money but also increase incomes in counties, towns, and rural areas."

Jiao Yulu, head of the dispatching department of Luoyang Mining Machinery Plant, expressed his opinion.

Jiao Yulu, also a member of the Communist Party before the Liberation Army, was later transferred to the Luoyang Mining Machinery Factory. This was a key project under the First Five-Year Plan, and Jiao Yulu served as the general commander of the factory's temporary highway construction project, marking his first involvement in a highway construction project. He later served as workshop director and dispatch section chief at the Luoyang Mining Machinery Factory. During this time, he also studied at Harbin Institute of Technology and furthered his training in the machining workshop of the Dalian Crane Factory.

Jiao Yulu wasn't the stereotypical cadre many people imagine. Instead, he was a talented and skilled technical cadre. However, subsequent publicity focused on his integrity, leadership, and hard work, which effectively obscured his exceptional talent.

What he did in Lankao County was not just hard work; he was truly searching for a way to overcome nature. His transformation plans were scientifically planned based on his detailed investigations.

Jiao Yulu was quite familiar with the situation of local construction companies. As a key Soviet-aided project under the First Five-Year Plan, the Luoyang Mining Machinery Factory held a high position in Luoyang, managing numerous projects.

If the factory can't complete the project on its own, it will invite a construction company to do it. Jiao Yulu has had many interactions with them.

Soon, others joined the discussion. This time, the young and middle-aged cadres came from all walks of life. Not just administrative and educational sectors, but even within the industrial sector alone, there were people from the coal, steel, oil, and power industries. Many had no experience in the local construction industry.

But they are still very active in expressing their ideas.

Wei Hongjun was delighted to hear everyone speak enthusiastically. Regardless of the opinions, even if he disagreed with some, he still encouraged them.

This training for young and middle-aged cadres was considered very successful because they were able to quickly accept new things, draw inferences from them, and come up with ideas based on the conditions of the places where they had worked.

China's socialist construction is a new thing, and it will encounter various new problems during its development.

Being able to quickly accept new things, understand new things, and integrate new things into socialist economic construction is a necessary process for the development of China's socialist economy.

When everyone had finished speaking, Wei Hongjun spoke up, "Comrades, this discussion is very lively, and I'm very happy. I hope that, as we did today, when you encounter something new in your new position, you won't be afraid or resist it, and you won't rush to deny or suppress it simply because it's new. You should first observe and investigate, and then, as we did today, let everyone express their opinions. Then, consider whether this new thing is beneficial or detrimental to socialist construction, and ultimately decide how to deal with it."

Wei Hongjun admired the approaches of Tao Zhu and Chen Tao. Guangdong has many new things, and while we can't accept them all, we can't just dismiss them either.

We still need to observe more and give new things time to develop. Then we can see if they are good. Tao Zhu and Chen Tao did a great job in this regard. Every once in a while, they would summarize the new things that emerged in Guangdong and write a report to the central government.

"Comrades, the problems in the construction industry raised by Comrade Liang Xiang are just a new problem we have encountered in our development. You will encounter more new problems that you have never encountered before. I hope that everyone can maintain their original intention when the time comes."

"No matter where you go, never forget you are a Communist Party member. Always remember the Chairman's words: serve the people. When encountering anything at work, always consider whether it is beneficial to the interests of the people, to socialist construction, and to the national economic development."

Wei Hongjun didn't offer a final assessment of everyone's opinions. The question of a free market in the construction industry requires a decision from the Finance and Economics Working Committee. If Wei Hongjun were to make a conclusion at the Central Party School today, the Finance and Economics Working Committee would be left on the defensive. They would be forced to passively accept Wei Hongjun's opinion.

Given Wei Hongjun's current position within the Party, even the Chairman would not casually deny anything he said publicly, as long as it did not violate serious principles. Therefore, Wei Hongjun was extremely cautious in his public statements.

Of course, just like the free market for agricultural and sideline products, the free market in the construction industry cannot be blocked.

As the county and township rural economies develop, the strength of the county and township rural cooperative economies will grow stronger, and their voices will grow louder. They will constantly demand that the central government change production relations to adapt to the new productive forces.

The current free market is primarily in counties, townships, and rural areas, but the cooperative economies there won't be satisfied with this and will gradually rise. Therefore, Wei Hongjun needs to consider how to adjust the ownership of these cooperative economies while constantly adjusting production relations to accommodate new productive forces.

We should increase the number of large collective ownership and public ownership elements in the cooperative economy of counties, towns and villages. In this way, we can support the continued development of small collective ownership without worries, and at the same time, let large collectives also enjoy the fruits of cooperative economic development in the process, and finally achieve socialist "common prosperity".

After the training for young and middle-aged cadres at the Central Party School, their work arrangements begin, and most return to their original units.

Yang Gui, for example, still had to return to Lin County. However, after ten months of study at the Central Party School, he would undoubtedly need to make some adjustments upon returning to Xinxiang. Wei Hongjun suggested to the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee that Yang Gui be appointed Deputy Secretary of the Xinxiang Municipal Party Committee and Secretary of the Lin County Party Committee.

Yang Gui's rank wouldn't normally qualify him for direct management by the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee. However, because Yang Gui and his group were among the first batch of young and middle-aged cadres enrolled at the Central Party School, they were registered with the Organization Department and given priority training. This gave the Organization Department considerable influence and the ability to recommend officials to the provincial Organization Department.

However, Wei Hongjun wanted to relocate some cadres to other units. Jiangsu Yang was unlikely to return to Second Automobile Works because Wei Hongjun wanted him to have a more comprehensive understanding of China.

Wei Hongjun recommended Jiangsu Yang to Guangxi through the Organization Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, assigning him to Liuzhou. Liuzhou would become a crucial logistical base for the Sino-Soviet cooperation in supporting the Vietnam War of Unification. Numerous industrial and transportation projects would be established in Liuzhou, and technically savvy industrial officials like Jiangsu Yang were in great need of support.

Wei Hongjun wanted Jiangsu Yang to personally participate in the establishment of an industrial city, not just one or two factories. After he gained some experience in Liuzhou, he could then transfer him to Guangxi's agricultural sector, or directly participate in the logistics support for the Vietnam War of Unification. This would be a valuable experience for him.

First, gain experience in a multi-ethnic, economically underdeveloped province like Guangxi, then move on to Guangdong, Shanghai, or the Northeast to see different economic structures. After gaining sufficient local experience, transfer to a central government ministry to broaden your horizons.

As for Zhu Rongji, Wei Hongjun planned to send him to the provincial level for further training. Zhu Rongji had moved from the Ministry of Heavy Industry to the Financial and Economic Work Committee, where he was primarily involved in data analysis and following the leadership's lead. Consequently, he was somewhat of a drifter, focusing primarily on economic policies in provinces like Guangdong, Shanghai, and Northeast China.

China has experienced rapid development in recent years, but many areas remain impoverished. Wei Hongjun planned to have Zhu Rongji visit impoverished counties in Sichuan to experience how difficult it is to develop independently without investment from both the government and local governments.

Then there was Jiao Yulu. Wei Hongjun planned to send him to Zhejiang, specifically to the Jinhua Prefecture. Jiao Yulu was an industrial cadre who had personally participated in the construction of the Luoyang Mining Machinery Plant. He had also studied at Harbin Institute of Technology and the Dalian Crane Plant, making him a cadre with a thorough understanding of industrial construction.

Wei Hongjun sent him to Jinhua to experience its booming rural economy. Henan has experienced rapid economic growth in recent years, with numerous major projects underway, but it lacks the economic vitality of Jinhua. Similarly, Jinhua needs outstanding industrial leaders like Jiao Yulu.

Jinhua is currently in the process of undergoing a major industrial development. Having accumulated considerable capital over the past few years, Jinhua needs to develop its industry if it wants to continue its growth. Furthermore, Jinhua's development has already created a demand for industry.

However, Jinhua's industrial foundation was weak. Although Jinhua experienced rapid development during Li Xuezhi's time, most of its development was in the most basic light industry, previously considered small-scale handicrafts. Further industrial development was lacking in cadres knowledgeable about industrial development. Jiao Yulu was the perfect fit.

After Jiao Yulu has trained in Jinhua, he will be allowed to return to central provinces like Henan. He can apply what he learned in Jinhua to central provinces like Henan.

The first batch of graduates included many young and middle-aged cadres, numbering several hundred. However, the number of cadres Wei Hongjun actually had a hand in assigning was very small.

Although Wei Hongjun is the head of the Central Party School and the first secretary of the Secretariat, it is not easy for him to assign so many cadres casually.

Of course, Wei Hongjun never considered turning the Central Party School into the Whampoa Military Academy, forcing all students to pledge their loyalty. That was something only the warlords of the Republican era could do. What Wei Hongjun wanted was for these cadres to understand his political philosophy and uphold Chinese socialism. That was more important than anything else.

After completing these tasks, Wei Hongjun and General Chen led the Chinese delegation to start the trilateral negotiations between China, the Soviet Union and Vietnam.

1071 Sino-Soviet-Vietnamese Negotiations

"Comrade Le Duan, you are too anxious."

The joint meeting of top Party leaders from China, the Soviet Union, and Vietnam was to determine a number of areas for cooperation. On a grander strategic level, the three parties found it very easy to reach agreement, thanks to the consensus previously reached between Chairman Mao and Khrushchev.

That is, China, the Soviet Union, and Vietnam all supported the Vietnam War of Unification and agreed to use Guangxi and Yunnan in China as the main rear base for the war. Logistics for the Vietnam War of Unification were primarily shipped from Guangxi and Yunnan to Vietnam because, if a war broke out, China would be safer than North Vietnam.

The three parties also agreed to establish a joint Sino-Soviet-Vietnamese logistics headquarters. Vietnam naturally wanted to place the headquarters there, but both China and the Soviet Union opposed it. If war broke out, the United States would inevitably bomb all of Vietnam. Placing the headquarters in Vietnam was unsafe.

After the final tripartite discussion, it was decided that the Joint Logistics Command would be located in Liuzhou, Guangxi. The Soviet Union was not really concerned about this aspect.

The Soviet Union was concerned about whether logistical supplies could be delivered smoothly to Vietnam. It also concerned whether Vietnam could successfully achieve its strategic goal of radicalizing Indochina. Therefore, it simply chose a city suitable for the distribution of supplies. Since China proposed Liuzhou, and the Soviet Union had no objection, Vietnam had no choice but to accept.