Chapter 1748 Three Reasons I Think

Xiao Peng rinsed a piece of mutton and ate it. "Hotpot still needs mutton... Where were we just now? Oh, I just said so much because I wanted to say that intellectuals are all romantic. And being too romantic can lead to being out of touch with reality. If you go to our country and look at those TV dramas, they are basically out of touch with life - there are countless plots about working people wearing luxury brands and living in mansions. This is because the life seen by those screenwriters and others is different from the life seen by ordinary people. It's basically 'why not eat meat?' - oh, as you say in Europe, it's 'why not eat cake?' Their view of ordinary life is different from the real life of ordinary people. And as I said earlier, everyone's perception of the world is different, and one person's point of view is not necessarily correct."

"Take, for example, the renowned Haruki Murakami, who is vehemently opposed to institutions and state power. In his own words, 'I don't approve of any war, nor do I support any nation. We are all independent individuals, transcending nationality, race, and religion, but we are all eggs trapped within the iron wall of the 'national system.'" His anti-war stance is indeed admirable, but this statement also reveals his limitations: the 'iron wall' he refers to is the contribution of the nation to avoiding war and promoting peaceful development. He fails to consider that since the establishment of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, the world has remained free of world war, even during the ferocious Cold War, which never escalated into a 'hot war.' Constant claims of 'opposing dictatorship and power' are, in the final analysis, mere childish ideals. Imagine what a country without a leader would be like."

"Of course, most people who read online novels do so to relax and not have to think. If they want to learn something, how many people would read online novels? But then again, how many people can write online novels that can enrich people's knowledge? However, this also leads to many plots in novels that are speechless. Outsiders watch the excitement while experts become nitpickers, so don't take online novels too seriously. You see those time-travel novels that oppose imperial power? That's only because they themselves are not emperors. Don't complain about your power. Your country's current steady development is indeed closely related to the power of the emperor."

Kashin nodded and turned to Desarev, "Hey, what's wrong with the police here? They let people run away like this?"

Desarev said angrily, "It would be fine if you didn't mention this, but the moment you did, I got furious. Over 70 police officers came to nothing! The police here are useless!"

Kasim laughed heartily after hearing this: "Be content, you're much better than the American police! You should teach the New York police a lesson!"

After hearing what he said, the three of them laughed together.

A while ago, a situation occurred among the New York City police: due to increasing protests against the police, the police decided to strike—to stop enforcing the law for low-level crimes. Presumably, the police did this to prove their worth. Later statistics showed that when the police were off the streets, the crime rate in New York City dropped significantly.

At this time, a cheerful song came from the speakers. Desaryev asked curiously, "Mr. Xiao, what song is this? It's quite nice. What language is this?"

Kasin answered the question: "This song is in Serbian. It's called 'If Serbia were as powerful as Bactria.' It was a huge hit for a while. Last year, my boss and I could hear it in every nightclub in Europe."

After hearing this, Desaryev sighed, "Daxia is truly developing now. When I was a child, Daxia represented backwardness in our eyes, but what about now? Sigh... Mr. Xiao, how did your country achieve this?"

Xiao Peng scratched his head. "I can't really say anything about this, because our country is developing so fast. In 1990, our per capita GDP was only a few hundred dollars, but now? The per capita income in our major cities has surpassed that of developed countries. Every time I return, I feel like I'm in a foreign country—our country is developing so fast!"

"Then why so fast?" Desarev asked.

Xiao Peng thought for a moment and said, "I personally believe there are three reasons. The first is our country's high degree of centralization. A wise ruler guides progress and serves the interests of the majority. Again, a country doesn't need too many voices to develop. If everyone voices their opinions, then the country will only be filled with bickering."

DeSalvatore nodded.

Xiao Peng continued, "The second point is to stick to our own path and not listen to anyone else's nonsense. Just as the great leader said: Let those reactionaries, both inside and outside, tremble before us. Let them criticize us for this and that. The people's unyielding efforts will surely steadily achieve their goals. So far, although we have made mistakes in our development, we will correct them and always maintain the correct general direction. Then the country's development will not go wrong."

DeSalvev asked in confusion, "What is your general direction?"

Xiao Peng said: "For the benefit of the people."

"What about the third reason?" It was Kasim who asked this question.

Xiao Peng replied, "Education. We Daxia people value education. Those public intellectuals who constantly complain about our country's education model being a rote learning system that fails to cultivate talent deserve a slap in the face: Are all the talented people in our country born from nowhere? Daxia today has the highest per capita education in our entire history. This is also the reason for our country's rapid development. And this isn't the limit of our country's development. As this group of young people grow up, our country will only become stronger!"

"One person can never have an accurate understanding of every event requiring professional knowledge. Our country used to have a centralized information dissemination model, but now? Everyone can access information point-to-point. Times have changed. Information used to be concentrated on a few large platforms, which released information. Behind these platforms stood capital, which decided whose opinions were recommended and championed. To attract traffic, capital launched a large number of public intellectuals for a concentrated attack. This led to jokes like listening to a musician discuss the international situation, a news anchor on people's livelihoods, and a writer on medicine. In reality, they were just promoting 'democracy and freedom' every day, similar to the period before the collapse of the Soviet Union. Back then, education levels were naturally lower than they are today, so they were naturally quite popular. However, since people have become more educated and more open-minded, these people have become like rats crossing the street, condemned by everyone. This is the role of education. In my opinion, this is the reason for our country's development and strength."