Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

The reason why Wei Hongjun supported Liugong was that in addition to accepting Soviet technology and mainly producing loaders, he also wanted them to continue to develop steel plant equipment construction.

Liugong provided technical support for the early blast furnaces, open-hearth furnaces, and primary rolling mills at Liuzhou Steel Plant. Before moving to Liuzhou, Liugong already had extensive technical expertise in machinery manufacturing.

With this technological reserve, Liugong can continue to deepen its development in steel mill equipment. Even if it cannot participate in large-scale national steel mill projects, it can certainly participate in local steel mill projects. Helping to establish local steel mills or participating in their expansion projects can rapidly increase China's steel production.

"The main reason why there are still steel shortages across the country is because my country's industrial development has been too rapid. In particular, in the past two years, national industrial investment has grown by over 30% annually. This, coupled with the rapid development of light industry, has led to an increasing demand for steel. The same is true for the power industry."

"The Fourth Session of the Ninth Central Committee has prepared to adjust the country's industrial development. Industrial investment in 1960 will not be as large as in the previous two years, which will slightly alleviate the shortage of electricity and steel."

The Chairman sighed and said, "This is only treating the symptoms, not the root cause."

The Fourth Session of the Ninth Central Committee adjusted the industrial plan in order to consolidate the current industry and prepare for the next step of larger-scale industrial development.

By then, the problems of electricity and steel shortages will still exist.

"Chairman, during the Second Five-Year Plan, we are overcoming the technical difficulties in independently building power plants and steel mills. By the time of the Third Five-Year Plan, we will be able to independently build many power plants and steel mills. By then, the shortage of electricity and steel will not be as serious as it was before."

Part of the Second Five-Year Plan was to independently build various mines, as well as power plants, steel mills, etc.

The goal is to master the technologies required for independent construction and to integrate the development of supporting factories nationwide. This paves the way for large-scale independent construction during the Third and Fourth Five-Year Plans. Only when most industrial sectors can achieve independent construction can China's industrial development achieve rapid progress.

"I used to think that industrial development simply needed to follow the plan. But after years of practice, I've discovered that industrial planning needs to proceed in parallel, and all aspects must be taken into consideration. If any industry develops faster or slower, it will directly affect the entire plan, requiring adjustments."

The chairman was deeply moved.

During the First Five-Year Plan, China's industrial strength was very weak, so this problem was not particularly obvious. However, during the Second Five-Year Plan, this problem became very obvious.

Different industries develop at different speeds, which results in contradictions. For example, the rapid development of the automobile industry is a good thing, but the development of the automobile industry requires too much steel.

FAW, Second FAW, and other three-wheeled motorcycle factories across China consumed 1959 tons of steel in 60. Furthermore, with the completion of FAW's expansion project and the start of automobile production at the Sino-French joint venture Third FAW, China's automotive industry will need more than one million tons of steel within the next two to three years.

However, the rapid growth of the automobile industry first impacted the steel industry. Insufficient steel allocations would hamper the development of the automobile industry. However, if sufficient allocations were made to the steel industry, other industries would face shortages.

The planned economy was a series of successive developments. If problems arose in any one industrial sector, the entire plan would have to be adjusted like dominoes. This was something the Chairman had not anticipated when he first accepted the Soviet planned economy.

"Following the First and Second Industrial Revolutions, there are now too many different types of industries. When the Third Industrial Revolution fully erupts, the division of labor will create tens or even hundreds of thousands more types of industries. By then, my country will have to establish hundreds of thousands or even millions of factories. If the central government wants to incorporate all of these into the economic plan and set production schedules for them, it will be almost impossible."

Wei Hongjun repeated his old tune. Even with the massive growth of the computer industry and the launch of big data systems in the future, controlling these industries and formulating production plans for them would still be fraught with difficulty. Especially not now.

How can the central government control so many industries and formulate production plans for them?

The chairman nodded.

Dao: "I've been thinking about a question recently. Under the planned economy, many factories lack autonomy. But without autonomy, factories can't exercise their subjective initiative. The same is true for local governments. If the central government has planned everything, then local governments will also lack subjective initiative."

"Once local governments and factories lack subjective initiative, they will lose their vitality and become mere obedient puppets. This is detrimental to socialist construction."

Chairman Mao has always valued the subjective initiative of frontline cadres. Therefore, during the war years, he rarely forced frontline troops to fight.

He always planned a certain strategy. As long as the strategic goals could be achieved, the Chairman would not interfere with how the frontline leaders commanded the troops to fight.

The same is true in peacetime. For socialism to develop, it can't just be a few people at the central level who play their role. The people of all nations must actively utilize their abilities.

"But if we give local governments and factories more autonomy, it will affect the central government's strict planned economy. A strict planned economy and the autonomy of local governments and enterprises are contradictory."

"I used to think about giving local governments and businesses a certain degree of autonomy, allowing them to unleash their initiative and increase their vitality. But the direct impact was that it frequently conflicted with the central government's economic plans, requiring constant adjustments to the economic plans."

"So recently I've been carefully rereading your article, 'Macroeconomic Regulation and the Autonomy of Local Governments and Enterprises,' which has given me a lot of inspiration. If local governments and enterprises increase their autonomy, then our economic plans can't be too strict, with everything stipulated. If we want to establish a strictly planned economy, then local governments and enterprises can't have too much autonomy. You can't have your cake and eat it too much."

"Judging from the progress of my country's socialist economic development in recent years, it's still necessary to give local governments and enterprises a certain degree of autonomy. Only when local governments and enterprises have autonomy and vitality can the market prosper and industrial construction accelerate. Our central government, on the other hand, must do a better job of coordinating the national economy, while focusing on projects that are relevant to the national economy and people's livelihoods, to stabilize our economy."

The Chairman used to advocate referring to Lenin’s “New Economic Policy” to formulate some economic policies in the early stages of socialism.

This economic policy is neither the New Democratic Economic Policy proposed by Comrade Xiuyang, which is also a capitalist economic policy. Nor is it a completely planned economy modeled after the Soviet model. Rather, it is a new type of socialist "New Economic Policy" with a certain degree of free market but with changes in ownership.

However, with the changes in China's economy over the past few years, many of the Chairman's ideas have begun to shift. Primarily, he observed the performance of enterprises of varying ownership structures in the free market, as well as the slow response to central government economic plans. It often took a long time for the central government to react to market problems.

So the Chairman began to reflect on the central government's strict planned economy and the economic model of strictly issuing production tasks.

This time, the Chairman asked Wei Hongjun to write a "political economics textbook" because of Wei Hongjun's article "Macroeconomic Regulation and the Autonomy of Local Governments and Enterprises".

Wei Hongjun provides a detailed account of China's current economic situation, beginning with changes in ownership and analyzing the current state of China's socialist economy. China's current situation differs significantly from that of capitalist countries in Europe and the United States, as well as from the socialist economy of the Soviet Union.

Then, the common goals and contradictions between the central government, local governments, and enterprises of various ownership structures are analyzed. Finally, a detailed account is given of the role that the central government should play, what local governments should do, and what enterprises should do in the development of the socialist economy.

"Electricity and steel are the foundation of industry. Power and steel shortages are a significant blow to industry. We can't just sit back and wait; we must proactively address these issues. My idea is that the central government adjust some industrial plans. If some industrial construction projects don't absolutely need to be undertaken by the central government, they can be given to local governments and factories to handle. The central government should focus on resolving electricity and steel issues."

"When you return to Beijing, convene a special meeting on my behalf regarding electricity and steel. Let's discuss how to address the shortage of electricity and steel."

The Chairman has become accustomed to entrusting some specific matters to Wei Hongjun.

Just like when a severe drought occurred in 1959, the Chairman asked Wei Hongjun to represent the Politburo to handle disaster relief issues.

This time, when electricity and steel were in short supply, the Chairman also asked Wei Hongjun to deal with it.

"Yes."

Originally, Wei Hongjun was the First Secretary of the Secretariat, so his main job in recent years was Party affairs. But in the past two years, the Chairman has begun to give Wei Hongjun more work.

The Chairman entrusted Wei Hongjun to convene meetings to resolve many specific issues.

The chairman hasn't personally convened a meeting to address these specific issues in several years. When he discovers a problem, he usually delegates it to someone else to handle the specific matter, come up with a plan, and then review the plan.

In the past, the Premier performed these specific tasks on behalf of the President. However, the Premier's focus is now increasingly on the CPPCC and foreign affairs. The occasional appearances are often to coordinate relations within the Party and between the central and local governments.

"Take another look at the report submitted by Shanxi."

After discussing electricity and steel issues, the Chairman began to talk about other issues.

Wei Hongjun took the report handed over by the Chairman and found that it was a report on literacy in Shanxi. The content inside was the famous "Wanrong Literacy Experience" in history.

Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, literacy campaigns have been ongoing. The nation is exploring various methods to accelerate this process. However, a major problem with literacy campaigns is that most people easily become illiterate again after the campaigns are over.

In 1958, the National People's Congress passed the "Hanyu Pinyin Scheme" and required its use nationwide. The first step was to use it in schools and also required it to be used in literacy campaigns.

However, some local literacy campaign leaders have their own literacy plans accumulated over the years, so not all local literacy cadres are willing to accept the "Hanyu Pinyin Plan."

Not only did local literacy officials refuse to use the "Hanyu Pinyin System," but even many school teachers refused to use it. Everyone was used to the old teaching model. If the "Hanyu Pinyin System" were used, teachers would have to learn it themselves and change their existing teaching methods.

This is often the case with many projects. After reviewing the situation, everyone agreed that the "Hanyu Pinyin Scheme" was a very effective solution for national literacy, including for children's literacy. It could even have a positive impact on future computer development.

But the reality wasn't that easy. People weren't so easily sold on the "Hanyu Pinyin" system. Even though the central government had approved it, the literary and educational communities, including local officials, weren't so easily sold on it. Let alone putting it into practice.

Shanxi Province attached great importance to this initiative, conducting a pilot program in Wanrong County, with very encouraging results in 1959. In May 1960, Shanxi Province conducted a large-scale survey on literacy work in Wanrong County, finding that over 5% of residents had achieved literacy and were able to read most of the Chairman's articles.

This result delighted the Shanxi provincial leadership. They summarized the specific measures and reported them to the Chairman. Shanxi was also preparing to implement the "Hanyu Pinyin Scheme" province-wide.

"Chairman, this is a very encouraging report. In the past, our literacy work always lacked a little momentum. This report from Shanxi fills that gap."

Wei Hongjun certainly supports the "Hanyu Pinyin Scheme," as it is not only necessary for literacy work, but also for the promotion of Mandarin.

"Do you also think the 'Hanyu Pinyin System' is suitable for literacy?"

"Yes."

Wei Hongjun nodded and said, "In the past, literacy required a teacher to teach every word. But the best thing about the 'Hanyu Pinyin System' is that anyone who knows Hanyu Pinyin can learn to recognize characters on their own."

"That's why I came to you."

The Chairman lit a cigarette as usual and said, "Just your opinion is not enough; it needs to be universally accepted. The 'Hanyu Pinyin Scheme' has been around for almost two years, but not only has it been widely criticized in the academic community, but even the education community hasn't fully embraced it. Many schools don't use Hanyu Pinyin. We need drastic measures on this matter; it's going to take who knows how long until everyone gradually understands and accepts it."

"Our country's education cannot wait that long. With the rapid development of the national industry, we need educated technicians and literate workers. Illiterate workers cannot become qualified workers in the development of modern industry."

Accepting new things is easy to say but it is the most difficult thing.

Many people, based on their past experiences, find new things unreliable and inherently reject them. This is a common flaw in human society.

The same is true of the "Hanyu Pinyin Scheme." Although it has been approved by the central government and publicly released, it is still rejected by the cultural and educational circles.

"What do you mean, Chairman?"

"After you return to Beijing, convene a national conference with Comrade Guo, Comrade Deng He, and Comrade Yang Xiufeng to fully promote the 'Hanyu Pinyin Scheme'. Don't worry about the opposition of some people. The beauty of language lies in its ability to communicate without barriers, and the beauty of writing lies in its ability to be used by the majority, not in the monopoly of knowledge by a few. If a national working conference can be held, all provinces must fully promote it."

"Yes."

1089

After talking with the Chairman, he continued to travel south to inspect Guangdong and Fujian regions.

Wei Hongjun concluded his trip and returned to Beijing, where he immediately convened a special meeting on electricity and steel.

All the leaders of departments related to industry and agriculture gathered together. They also began to get used to Wei Hongjun calling everyone to meetings.

Of course, now when Wei Hongjun calls everyone to a meeting, it is in the name of the chairman.

"my country is now capable of independently designing and building transmission lines. In 1953, my country designed and constructed its first 110 kV transmission line, the Beijing-Guanzhou Line, to transmit electricity from the Guanting Hydropower Station."

"In 1954, my country's first 220 kV line, the Songdongli Line, was put into operation to transmit hydropower from the Fengman Power Plant to southern Liaoning. Since then, my country has independently built large-scale, inter-provincial, long-distance 220 kV lines. Currently, my country has formed a power grid centered on several key regions."

"We have also achieved very good results in thermal and hydropower generation. In thermal power generation, my country can now independently produce 2.5-kilowatt steam turbine generator sets. We have successively installed a domestically produced 6000-kilowatt steam turbine generator set, three 2.5-kilowatt steam turbine generator sets, and one 1.2-kilowatt steam turbine generator set at the Huainan Tianjia'an Power Plant. It is currently operating well, and the Huainan Power Plant has become the most important power generation center in East China."

"In terms of hydropower generation, in addition to the Fengman and Sanmenxia hydropower stations, which were built with Soviet aid, my country has independently built hydropower stations such as the Shizitan in Sichuan, the Gutianxi Level 1 in Fujian, the Shangyou River in Jiangxi, the Liuxi River in Guangdong, the Guanting in Hebei, the Ulapo in Xinjiang, and the Duodi in Tibet. At the same time, large hydropower stations such as the Xin'an River and the Yili River Level 3 are also under construction."

"Today, my country's power industry has more than 6.1 production workers and over 12600 engineering and technical personnel. The power industry's infrastructure construction team has 14 people, including over 16000 engineering and technical personnel. my country's power industry has a relatively complete design and manufacturing capability."

Minister of Water Resources and Electric Power Lin Dafeng introduced the current situation of China's power industry.

The development of China's electric power industry mainly relied on the First Five-Year Plan and the Second Five-Year Plan, and it accepted a large amount of electric power industry technology from the Soviet Union.

Another reason is that China has integrated the scattered technical capabilities of the power industry across the country and focused on planning its development. After more than a decade of development, China's power industry has already established a certain foundation.

Although our technological capabilities are far behind those of industrialized countries, we can produce most of the power industry independently.

"Comrade Lin Dafeng means that my country can completely independently design and build its own thermal power plants and hydropower plants, including power transmission and transformation."

"Yes."

Lin Dafeng nodded and said, "Although the technological strength of our country's power industry is still in its early stages, it is already very comprehensive. We can independently design and build thermal power plants and hydropower plants."

"So, facing the current power shortage in our country, what countermeasures does the Ministry of Water Resources and Electric Power have?"

"The Ministry of Water Resources and Electric Power believes there are three approaches. The first is to focus on building large-scale thermal power plants in key coal-rich areas, such as the Tianjia'an Power Plant in Huainan. Alternatively, they can expand existing thermal power plants to ensure they can generate a stable annual output of around 20 billion kilowatt-hours."

"Furthermore, such large-scale power plants can import large-capacity generator sets. The Ministry of Water Resources and Electric Power has previously negotiated with Poland to import 12-kilowatt generator sets from Poland. Equipping such large-scale power plants with such large-capacity generator sets can rapidly increase annual power generation by hundreds of millions of kilowatt-hours."

"Large-scale thermal power plants are primarily used to ensure electricity supply to my country's industrial cities. They are best placed to generate electricity between several industrial cities."

While China can independently produce thermal power generating units, their capacity is still relatively low. Developed countries have generating units with capacities in the 100-kilowatt range, but the highest capacity China has independently designed is only 2.5 kilowatts.

"The second path is for each province to use its own coal resources to build a number of domestically produced small and medium-sized power plants. my country's steam turbine generator technology of around 1 kilowatts is already very mature and can be mass-produced."

"As long as local governments have sufficient funds and coal resources, they can build power plants. These small and medium-sized power plants have a short construction period because my country can produce the equipment independently. They can quickly fill the power shortages in small and medium-sized cities."

"The third path is to continue promoting small hydropower projects in counties, towns, and rural areas. Small hydropower projects require little investment, don't tie up state funds, and consume less steel. More importantly, they're quick to build; some small hydropower projects can be completed in just a few months. This can quickly address power shortages in counties, towns, and rural areas."

Large hydropower projects are much more difficult to implement than thermal power plants because they involve the interests of various provinces and require coordination between higher and lower levels.

Therefore, Lin Dafeng’s suggestion, in addition to vigorously developing small hydropower projects, is mainly to develop thermal power plants.