Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

"Yes."

The Chairman then asked Wei Hongjun: "What is the situation in Guangxi?"

"Chairman, Liuzhou's development is better than we imagined."

Wei Hongjun gave the Chairman a detailed introduction to his inspection tour of Liuzhou.

The Chairman listened, occasionally asking questions. Finally, he said, "We must build and learn at the same time. This is what we must do. Not only our local cadres, but even our central cadres must slowly explore the path of socialist construction. We must never stop learning. The cadres in Liuzhou are thinking far ahead."

"Guangxi and Yunnan can't just rely on the Soviet Union for support. We have to take it seriously ourselves. If Vietnam really starts a war, Guangxi and Yunnan will be under great pressure."

Wei Hongjun replied: "Comrade Su Zhenhua and Comrade Xie Fuzhi both served in the military. They understood the situation in Guangxi and Yunnan after the outbreak of the war. Therefore, they have been making preparations in this regard."

"Well, it's always wise to be prepared."

The Chairman is very concerned about the affairs of the Indochina Peninsula.

Khrushchev was optimistic about Indochina, and so was Chairman Mao. It was indeed a good place for the socialist camp and the imperialist camp to compete.

"By the way, I asked you to come to Nanchang to ask you a few things. I've been reading the Soviet 'Political Economics Textbook' lately. Have you read it?"

The "political economy textbook" that the Chairman mentioned was published in the Soviet Union in 1954. Later, China translated it and published it publicly by the People's Publishing House.

Many universities also use this book as a textbook.

During the Great Leap Forward in 1959 and 1960, Chairman Mao strongly recommended three books, demanding that the entire Party study and discuss them. One was Comrade Stalin's "Problems of Soviet Socialist Economy," and the other was "Marx, Engels, Lenin, and Stalin on Communist Society," published by the People's Publishing House in 1958. This book contains excerpts from Marx, Engels, Lenin, and Stalin's statements on communist society.

The third book was the "Political Economics Textbook" published by the Soviet Union. This book was very popular in the party at that time.

The Chairman personally read and discussed the text with other comrades, and the Party committees at the Central and local levels organized reading groups. Everyone read a section together and then started a discussion.

"I usually take time to read this book and have basically finished it. However, I just read it in a hurry and have not read it carefully."

Wei Hongjun has also read this book, as it is currently considered the most authoritative "political economics" textbook in the socialist camp.

It’s just that Wei Hongjun was busy with work, so he just read it roughly.

"This book is quite good. It's a political economics textbook based on the Soviet Union's 40 years of socialist construction. But I think there are still many problems."

The Chairman handed the "Political Economics Textbook" he was reading to Wei Hongjun.

When the Chairman had time to think about things, he was always thinking about the development of socialism and political economy.

The Chairman read this book whenever he had free time, and he continued to study it during his field trips. He therefore wrote many of his own thoughts on the book. Wei Hongjun flipped through the front page, and it was filled with the Chairman's handwriting.

“I think the book has five major flaws.”

When Wei Hongjun heard that the Chairman was going to talk about some flaws in the Soviet "political economy textbook", he immediately took out a notebook to take notes.

"First, this book looks like it was written by several people, each contributing their own work. There's a lack of unity and focus. The same ideas are repeated over and over again, often contradicting each other and fighting against each other. There's no complete scientific system. The best way to write a scientific book is for one person to be the main author, with several assistants. Only in the way that Marx wrote 'Capital' and Lenin wrote 'Imperialism' can a complete, rigorous, and systematic scientific work be achieved."

"Secondly, in many aspects of this book, laws, principles, and definitions are established, and then the book begins to expound on what it wants to say, as if to prove those laws and principles. This is wrong. True science should start with analysis, analyze contradictions, and derive the laws and principles of political economy from them, not the other way around."

"Third, the law of the preferential growth of the means of production is a common law of expanded reproduction in all societies. Based on this law, the Soviet Union focused solely on heavy industry, and textbooks primarily discussed heavy industry. Although light industry and agriculture were also discussed, they were presented only as appendages to heavy industry. However, our country's experience in socialist construction over this period of time shows that this is incorrect. While prioritizing the development of heavy industry, industry and agriculture must be developed simultaneously, and agriculture cannot be left behind."

"Fourth, the textbooks have problems with socialist democracy and the rights of the people. We cannot understand the issue of people's rights as meaning that the state is managed by only a certain group of people, and that the people enjoy the rights to work, education, social insurance, and so on under the management of these people."

"In a socialist country, workers should have the right to manage the state, the military, various enterprises, and culture and education. In fact, this is the greatest and most fundamental right of workers under the socialist system. If workers do not have the right to the superstructure, then their rights to work, rest, education, and so on cannot be guaranteed."

"The fifth aspect is that during the transition from socialism to the advanced stage of communism, the state will disappear. However, if we only talk about the disappearance of the state, without considering international connections and international conditions, without international conditions, the states of the socialist camp will disappear, but the imperialist state apparatus will remain. This is extremely dangerous, and it will be impossible to successfully enter the advanced stage of communism. Communist society and socialist society are different, and it is impossible to expect one country or one country to be the first to enter communism."

Wei Hongjun quickly and briefly recorded what the Chairman said.

After the Chairman finished speaking, he said, "This Soviet 'political economics textbook' can be studied within the Party, but it cannot be studied indiscriminately. This applies not only to the Party but also to universities. It can be studied, but it must be studied critically. However, this is not a solution."

"So my suggestion is that the Secretariat should take the lead, absorb the advantages of the Soviet 'political economics textbook', and compile our own 'political economics textbook' based on our country's experience in socialist construction in recent years."

China and the Soviet Union were in a honeymoon period, with increasing political, economic, and military cooperation. However, despite this visible cooperation, the theoretical differences between the two parties were growing. In other words, Chairman Mao and Khrushchev's views on socialist theory were becoming increasingly divergent.

Because the mainstream of Sino-Soviet relations is still cooperation, it is not easy for the Chairman to engage in Sino-Soviet debates with the Soviet Union as he did in the past.

However, the Chairman strongly opposed many of the Soviet Union's socialist theories and reform systems for socialist construction. Therefore, the Chairman believed that the Communist Party of China should have its own theoretical ideas.

During the war years, Li Desheng's thought guided the Chinese revolution to victory, so everyone accepted it. However, when it came to building a socialist country, everyone learned more from the Soviet Union's experience and theories.

For example, in the field of political economy, many economic experts and cadres within the Communist Party of China studied Soviet political economy textbooks. However, the Chairman believed that after the Ninth National Congress formally confirmed the "theory of socialist stages," China's socialist development must have its own theory.

Whether it is political theory or economic theory.

"Chairman, Comrade Chen Boda is in charge of this matter. What do you think?"

Chen Boda, director of the Central Policy Research Office and an alternate member of the Secretariat, possessed a high level of theoretical knowledge and was a cadre highly valued by the Chairman. Wei Hongjun believed that if the Secretariat took the lead, then the Central Policy Research Office would be in charge.

After all, in the past, many theoretical issues of the central government were handled by the Policy Research Office.

The Chairman shook his head and said, "Comrade Chen Boda has a high level of theoretical knowledge and has studied Marxism-Leninism in depth. However, political economy is not a simple theoretical issue; it requires a lot of political and economic practice. This is also a problem that many theoretical research cadres in our party lack."

"I think you should take the lead and organize some cadres from the Propaganda Department, the Political Research Office, and the Ministry of Education. You can also mobilize cadres from other departments to write our own 'political economics textbook.' Let the party and our universities have their own 'political economics' to study."

"Yes."

Since the Chairman asked Wei Hongjun to take the lead, Wei Hongjun did not refuse. Wei Hongjun was responsible for party affairs, and theoretical issues were also part of his responsibilities.

After Wei Hongjun answered, he quickly said, "Chairman, do you have any guidance on the 'political economics textbook' we are going to compile?"

"I have some ideas of my own that you can refer to. Stalin said that production relations include three aspects: ownership, the relationship between people in labor production, and the distribution of products. Since it is 'political economy', it is definitely inseparable from these three aspects."

"Although the Soviet comrades have discussed a great deal about these aspects, they have only touched upon the details briefly. Regarding changes in ownership, the contradictions brought about by these changes, the contradictions within public ownership, the contradictions between large and small collective ownership, the contradictions within these enterprises, and the contradictions between the state and these enterprises, they have all been summarized with the general term 'mutual assistance and cooperation among comrades.' I think this is wrong."

"So we need to write in more detail. For example, your articles on 'Macroeconomic Regulation and Local Government, Enterprise Autonomy' and 'The Relationship between Population and Industry' are both very suitable for inclusion in a 'Political Economics Textbook.'"

"I know you're busy with work. But this textbook, which the entire Party and our young students will have to study, is extremely important. You must take it seriously."

"Yes. I'll keep an eye on it once it officially starts."

There are quite a few central Party leaders with impressive theoretical knowledge. This includes Comrade Xiuyang, a member of the Political Bureau Standing Committee, who possesses a high level of theoretical proficiency. Previously, many theoretical issues within the Party were handled by Comrade Xiuyang.

However, when it came to industrial and agricultural development after the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Chairman considered Wei Hongjun the best. Furthermore, Wei Hongjun was able to summarize the problems arising from industrial and agricultural development and compile them into theoretical articles. Furthermore, since Wei Hongjun's "Theory of Socialist Stages" was adopted at the Ninth National Congress, his position in Party theory had become difficult to challenge. Therefore, the Chairman entrusted this task to Wei Hongjun.

"Besides this matter, I have something else to tell you. Lately, I've read a lot of reports and newspapers that have a very negative tendency."

Wei Hongjun immediately became serious and began to think about the publicity field. It seemed that there had been no problems in the publicity field recently. Wei Hongjun knew the importance of publicity work and took it very seriously.

"I've noticed that there's less and less talk of Marxism-Leninism within the party, and the same is true in propaganda. Marxism-Leninism is becoming less and less common, and all we see is Li Desheng Thought. This trend is very bad."

"Also, recently, when local governments submitted reports to the central government, they began with 'Chairman' and then the Party Central Committee. This is very unseemly. I am only a member of the Party Central Committee, not above it."

"We must understand that we are all students of Marx and Lenin. Marxism-Leninism came first, and Li Desheng Thought came later. Li Desheng Thought is the successor of Marxism-Leninism and is inseparable from Marxism-Leninism. However, many reports and propaganda nowadays do not mention Marxism-Leninism, but only Li Desheng Thought. This creates an artificial separation between Marxism-Leninism and Li Desheng Thought."

"Comrade Red Army, this is no small matter. Your Secretariat must take it seriously."

Wei Hongjun nodded and said, "Chairman, there have indeed been problems in this area recently. They don't use Li Desheng's thought as a guide for their work, and they vulgarize it. They even say that winning at football is due to the application of Li Desheng's thought. When some regions see better industrial and agricultural data, they say it's due to the development of Li Desheng's thought."

"That's right. This vulgarization of Li Desheng's thought, instead of truly learning and applying it, is like worshipping a bodhisattva in the past, treating me like a bodhisattva."

The Chairman himself laughed.

Then he said, "The Secretariat should take this matter seriously. You'd better hold a few internal Party meetings and call together the provincial Party secretaries to discuss this matter and curb this trend. Also, the Propaganda Department's manuscripts should pay attention to this point and talk more about Marxism-Leninism and less about Li Desheng's thought."

"Yes."

Wei Hongjun nodded.

In fact, there is no way to stop this trend. The history of the CCP before liberation was that the Chairman saved the party and the revolution, which led to the day when the revolution was successful.

After liberation, China's politics, economy, and military all flourished. Everyone could see the changes taking place across the country.

The Chairman's reputation is truly at its peak. It's not just the nagging praise at home; the same is true abroad. Otherwise, Khrushchev wouldn't have given China so much aid just to gain the Chairman's support.

Since the Chairman himself has discovered it, Wei Hongjun certainly knows how to suppress the situation.

"During my inspection trip outside Beijing this time, I found that the disaster relief work was done very well. The people in the disaster-stricken areas were not at all depressed and continued to enthusiastically participate in national construction. This work was done very well."

The Chairman was very satisfied with the disaster relief work led by Wei Hongjun.

The drought in 1960 was even worse than in 1959, but the Chairman did not show any signs of frustration during his inspection tour in the south.

On the contrary, the people in the disaster-stricken areas were very motivated and participated in transportation and water conservancy projects. This clearly shows that the disaster relief work was going well.

"But there are still many problems. I recently met with leaders from many provinces, and they all said the biggest problems right now are electricity and steel shortages."

1088 Trust

Wei Hongjun read the reports from various provinces handed to him by the Chairman. Several provinces in the central and southern regions jointly reported that in 1959, they were short of 37 billion kWh of electricity, and the national total was short of nearly 100 billion kWh. Many factories had to use limited power due to power shortages. Including the residential power supply in many cities, which was often cut off. Because of the need to ensure industrial power supply,

Then there are the vast rural areas of counties and towns. With the development of the rural economy, there is also a demand for electricity in these areas.

Industrial development in counties, towns and rural areas requires electricity, and so does agricultural development.

Electricity was one of the most important elements of the Second Industrial Revolution. Not only today, but even in the 21st century, it remains the most important metric for measuring a country's industrial development. Digitalization, artificial intelligence, and the Internet of Things, the so-called Fourth Industrial Revolution, are all inseparable from electricity.

The severe power shortage across the country is indeed a big problem.

But this also shows how fast China's industrial growth is. Otherwise, the nationwide power shortage would not be so serious.

In 1958, the national power shortage was not so obvious. The current severe power shortage is mainly due to the large number of industrial projects launched in 1958 and 1959.

Wei Hongjun is particularly familiar with the problem of steel shortages. It can be said that China has been short of steel since its founding. Many major projects in the early days of the People's Republic of China relied on imported steel from the Soviet Union.

After that, the central government held countless meetings to address the steel shortage.

However, the rapid growth of industrial investment in 1958 and 1959 led to a surge in demand for steel, which led to an increasingly severe shortage of steel in the market.

To seize the steel, the provinces resorted to all sorts of tactics. Some directly took the central government's lead, intervening when the central government allocated steel, hoping to get more steel allocated to them.

In the 1980s, the most powerful "smugglers" were all "official traders." Because the market was short of steel, they set their sights on the steel market within the system. At the time, many people could make a fortune by obtaining approval to sell steel from within the system.

The current situation is similar. Steel is in serious short supply, forcing the central government to prioritize supply for key projects. Local governments, desperate to secure steel, are scrambling to secure a share of the planned steel.

Some provinces that were unable to obtain steel directly complained to the Chairman.

After reading these "complaint letters" to the Chairman, Wei Hongjun said: "Chairman, in 1959, my country's electricity generation and steel production increased very rapidly. Take steel production, for example. After the joint efforts of the central and local governments, steel production increased by more than 200 million tons, and crude steel production reached 1500 million tons. And judging by this year's situation, steel production will increase even more, roughly by more than 400 million tons."

Following the Ninth National Congress’s political report, in which the central government decentralized part of the industry and supported the development of local industries, local industrial investment surged.

Later, due to the national steel shortage, the central government fully supported the development of the local steel industry. Li Fuchun also personally adjusted the development of the local steel industry on behalf of the central government, and the growth rate of steel production continued to be very rapid.

In particular, some provinces are using 200- or 300-cubic-meter blast furnaces to build steel mills. While these aren't the small blast furnaces of a dozen or even dozens of cubic meters, they're not very large either. Many provinces are still able to meet these demands on their own.

Local steel mills are certainly not as powerful as the large and medium-sized steel mills that the central government has prioritized. However, compared to the central government, local steel mills can be developed more flexibly.

These small steel mills require little investment, have low technical content, and have a short construction period. They can quickly make up for the current shortage of steel in the market.

During these three years, the number of local steel mills nationwide exceeded 40. This was due to the central government's strict prohibition on local steel mills from building small blast furnaces with a capacity of less than 100 cubic meters. Otherwise, the number of steel mills nationwide would be dozens of times higher. Historically, thousands of small blast furnace steel mills were built, producing six to seven million tons of steel. Of course, much of the steel produced by these small blast furnaces was technically substandard.

However, even with the addition of more than 40 small steel mills, their contribution to steel production is still very significant. These small steel mills take a short time to build, some only need about half a year, and even the longest one takes only a year.

Most local steel mills were able to produce steel normally in 1960. Therefore, steel production in 1960 may have increased by more than 400 million tons, most of which would have been contributed by these local steel mills.