Starting from a casual chat#
While chatting with a friend, we talked about why Chinese people live such difficult lives, always comparing themselves from the moment they are born: who can walk earlier, who knows more characters, who starts school first, who has better grades, and they also have to learn musical instruments like guitar, bass, erhu, and violin. They have to learn everything, otherwise they will fall behind. After finally passing all the tests, they enter a prestigious university, and after graduating, they have to compare jobs and women. Who has a stable job with a high salary, and who has a beautiful woman with a big butt. After competing for cars, houses, money, and lovers, they start a new round of competition. What? Having children! Starting from scratch again, the hardships they have experienced as children, they have to go through it all over again, claiming that it's all for the good of their children, otherwise they will fall behind again. If you don't work hard when you're young, you'll regret it when you're old! Sigh, there's never a time when you don't have to compete.
After my friend finished complaining, he took out a box of cigarettes from his bag, lit one, and exhaled a puff of smoke. He said that in this lifetime, he has already played enough in China, and in the next life, he wants to be born in the United States and be a democratic citizen.
A country where everyone is a politician#
The complaints mentioned above, whether from educated or uneducated people, whether from those who burn incense in the temple or those who sell fruits as peddlers, everyone can talk about it. Even taxi drivers talk about things as if they have experienced them personally. This is China, a country where everyone can become a politician straightforwardly. Ironically, many people have been taught to be quiet and obedient since childhood, believing that being well-behaved is a sign of cultivation. An outstanding person should be humble, know when to advance and when to retreat, speak when necessary, and keep quiet when unnecessary. This is called humility and cultivation. However, in order to achieve this educational goal, parents have used various means, going to extremes, using sarcasm and corporal punishment. In short, there is no one leading by example. It's all about how adults behave, and children imitate them. There are no two ways about it. It's no wonder that it's difficult for people from humble backgrounds to produce outstanding individuals. If people from humble backgrounds can produce outstanding individuals, what resources do they have to cultivate them? Outstanding individuals are not born (or there are very few geniuses). Dragons give birth to dragons, phoenixes give birth to phoenixes, and mice are naturally good at gnawing. Oh China, education is a big problem. The concept is already wrong, and the methodology is even more wrong.
From ancient times to the present, it's a culture of cannibalism#
I remember when I was in college, I took a course on cultural appreciation. The teacher talked about Emperor Zhenzong of the Northern Song Dynasty's poem on urging students to study: "In books, there are beautiful faces like jade, and in books, there are golden houses." Even an emperor of a country praised reading like this, so wouldn't everyone in the world flock to it? However, this is just a technique used by rulers to control. The textbooks you can see have been carefully selected, removing anything against the country, against society, and disrespectful to the emperor. All words that do not meet the needs of imperial rule have been deleted. What remains are quotes from Confucius and poetry from ancient sages. Unless you are naturally talented, how many people can escape the "education" imposed on them? The world is bustling for profit, and everyone is busy for their own interests. They are completely devoted to fame, fortune, high positions, and noble titles. All of this is just a technique used by emperors, and it is willingly accepted by the people.
Saying one thing and thinking another, who can understand the taste?#
The pessimism my friend talked about is spreading more and more widely. Many people talk about loyalty to the emperor and love for the people, but in their hearts, they are excited about the conquest of power and the pleasure it brings. The days of work are getting longer, and disappointment and insights about society are growing. Although I still think in my heart that there must be some place that is good, where freedom and democracy truly exist. However, a conversation with my friend made me doubt. In a time when everyone is in danger and cannot even eat enough, who will abide by moral principles and not plunder, not use the flesh and blood of others to satisfy themselves? If you will die if you don't kill, will you actually kill? Can you bear to kill good people? Can you kill bad people? This dilemma is disappointing. We are all focused on the United States, currently the most powerful country in the world. Are their people living well? Do their citizens believe in the principles of democracy, freedom, and love for all? If their resources were plundered, could they still hold hands and coexist peacefully without harming each other? I have deep doubts about this.
This is the national situation, but why is the national situation like this?#
China has its own national conditions. Many Chinese people do not have medical insurance, many do not have the financial means to receive a good education, and many cannot achieve a comfortable life even if they work twelve hours a day facing the yellow earth. Is all of this due to the people not being diligent enough? In areas with insufficient resources, they are competing with what is already available. In places with low productivity, maintaining harmony is considered "good governance and effective education."
Having a chaotic mindset is very contradictory. On one hand, we enjoy the benefits of society, but our thoughts are not firm enough, making us indecisive and wanting more. Dissatisfaction is a wheel that moves us forward, but we don't know where this wheel will ultimately lead us. I can only imagine that each cell may be in a different stage of life. The United States and China may be in different dimensions. The United States no longer needs to pay for its strength. They have abundant land, water resources, economic resources, and military resources. Their citizens do not need to rely on connections to get a good education, and they do not need to worry about falling back into poverty due to an illness. At least their bottom line is much higher than that of the Chinese people. China is still in a closed environment, unable to break free from its own limitations. If the productive relations change, if there are breakthroughs in technology and energy, China may also change its state of competition for existing resources. At that time, the constraints of the political system may seem insignificant. Under the overall trend, everything will be attracted in the right direction.
Some insights to console oneself#
On a personal level, I feel that this generation in China is becoming more and more miserable. The external vitality has been squeezed out, and it has become a small-scale struggle within one's own family. Even the landlords can't withstand such turmoil. Personal happiness is not the theme of this era; it is the relationship between nations. Therefore, opportunists are waiting and watching, pessimists are in despair, and optimists are dreaming.
Switching tracks and making money to satisfy one's desires may be the path that most Chinese people in this era choose. Young people, I advise you to be kind, make some money, think about women, and think less about politics.