In 1978, Wang Zhen visited the UK, and after learning that the salary of elevator workers was 8 times that of himself, he sighed: "Britain is doing well". What is the story behind this statement? At that time, Wang Zhen was a founding general and vice premier of the State Council, and his living treatment was naturally unmatched. But in that era, an ordinary British elevator worker had an income several times higher than Wang Zhen! This was an unimaginable sight in China at that time. Could it be that the British people are really living a life of "great material abundance and the basic elimination of the three major differences" as Wang Zhen said?
1. The British Princes met in a foreign land
In 1978, China had just opened a new era of reform and opening up. At this historic turning point, Wang Zhen, then Vice Premier of the State Council, led a delegation to England, which was undoubtedly a rare friendly visit to Western countries that were still in the Cold War camp at that time.
For a long time, Wang Zhen had many prejudices about the Western world. In his cognition, Britain and other capitalist countries have a huge disparity between the rich and the poor, class contradictions are sharp, and ordinary working people are living in dire straits. However, as soon as he entered the borders of England, the long-held stereotypes were completely overturned.
The Victorian Old Town is old and dilapidated, but modern urban development is in full swing. High-rise buildings are lined up, traffic is busy, and it is a prosperous scene. What surprised Wang Zhen even more was that the living conditions of ordinary British people were far beyond imagination.
Wang Zhen first heard that 70% of ordinary people in Britain own private homes and family cars, and they can travel abroad every year. This was undoubtedly a luxury that was unattainable in China at that time. In order to verify it in person, Wang Zhen made it clear that he asked to visit the family of an unemployed worker.
Accompanied by the Chinese ambassador to the UK, Ke Hua, Wang Zhen went to the home of an unemployed worker. However, the sight that caught his eye made Wang Zhen a little dizzy. The unemployed worker lives in a small two-story building of more than 100 square meters, which is elegantly decorated and furnished. The living room is furnished with a sofa and TV, and even silverware. Behind the house is a small garden of about 50 square meters, no matter which angle you look at, it is not "in dire straits".
Ambassador Ke Hua told Wang Zhen that even if the unemployed worker loses his job, he can enjoy free medical care, his children can receive compulsory education, and he does not have to pay taxes, so he can live without worry. Wang Zhen secretly sighed that the living standard of the British people is even better than that of himself, the Chinese vice premier!
2. The Maharaja of England interrogated
After visiting the families of unemployed workers, Wang Zhen was deeply impressed by the standard of living of ordinary people in Britain. Ambassador Kehua even revealed to him a surprising detail: a cleaner earns about £100 a week, while an average elevator worker earns £150 a week.
The exchange rate at that time was 15.91 yuan per 1 pound. In other words, the weekly income of a British cleaner is equivalent to 591 yuan, and the monthly income is more than 2,300 yuan; The weekly income of elevator workers is as high as 886 yuan, and the monthly income is nearly 4,000 yuan.
As vice premier of the State Council, Wang Zhen's level at that time was the fifth level, and according to the standard, the monthly salary was only about 400 yuan, and the weekly salary was only more than 100 yuan. In other words, the weekly income of a cleaner in the UK is more than 6 times that of Wang Zhen; The weekly salary of an ordinary elevator worker is more than 8 times that of Wang Zhen!
If you compare the income of ordinary workers with the per capita income of the two countries, the gap is even more striking. According to incomplete statistics, in 1978, the difference between the per capita national income of China and Britain was as high as 42 times. In other words, the income level of ordinary people in Britain was 42 times higher than that of ordinary people in China.
Faced with such a huge income gap, Wang Zhen couldn't help but have deep questions. As a founding general and a high-ranking party and government, his status is naturally transcendent. But even so, the living conditions are far behind the lowest ordinary workers in the UK, does this reflect the unfairness of Chinese society at that time?
For a long time, China has implemented a highly centralized planned economic system, with limited resources highly concentrated on heavy industry construction. Despite the tremendous sacrifices made by generations, the standard of living of the people has been hovering at the subsistence line and has not seen any major improvement.
In Western countries such as the United Kingdom, even if there is an economic crisis, the basic livelihood of the vast majority of people will not be affected. It is no wonder that after Wang Zhen saw the actual life of the British people, he had a heartfelt admiration for the Western social system.
There is no doubt that the trip to the UK gave Wang Zhen the first close contact with the modern civilization of the developed countries in the West, which triggered a great ideological impact and reflection. This reflection not only addresses the huge gap in the living standards of the people of Britain and China, but also questions the rationality of China's long-standing social development path.
3. Seeking knowledge is thirsty for visiting the rich and the poor
During his trip to the UK, Wang Zhen maintained a thirst for knowledge. He not only inspected the living conditions of ordinary workers' families in Britain, but also arranged special visits to the families of the unemployed.
Accompanied by the Chinese ambassador to the UK, Ke Hua, Wang Zhen went to the home of an unemployed worker. Although the worker has lost his job, the conditions of the small building he lives in are far beyond Wang Zhen's expectations. The two-story building of more than 100 square meters is elegantly decorated and furnished, and the living room is equipped with sofas and TVs that were rare in China at that time, which can be called luxurious.
Ambassador Ke Hua explained to Wang Zhen that even if he loses his job, the worker will not be troubled by life. This is because the British government will provide assistance to the unemployed, exempt them from tax obligations, free medical care, and free compulsory education for their children.
In China at that time, the lives of ordinary workers were undoubtedly far inferior to those of their British counterparts. Even those who are employed have very limited income levels. And once you lose your source of work, without the support of friends and family, your life will be in trouble. Wang Zhen couldn't help but praise the UK's social security system.
Ambassador Ke Hua even revealed to Wang Zhen a staggering figure: a British cleaner earned about 100 pounds a week, while an ordinary elevator worker could earn 150 pounds a week. At the exchange rate at the time, the former's monthly income was equivalent to more than 2,300 yuan, and the latter's was nearly 4,000 yuan.
As a member of China's top leadership, Wang Zhen's own monthly salary is only about 400 yuan. Therefore, the weekly salary of a cleaner at the lowest level in the UK is already more than 6 times that of Wang Zhen; And an ordinary elevator worker, the weekly salary is as high as 8 times that of Wang Zhen!
In the face of such a huge income gap, Wang Zhen was not only shocked, but also spoke highly of and admired the justice of British society. He said: "I think Britain is doing a good job, with great material abundance, the three major differences have been basically eliminated, social justice and social welfare are also valued, and if the Communist Party is in power, Britain is our ideal communist society." ＂
Fourth, the great emancipation of the mind starts anew
After visiting the UK, Wang Zhen's thoughts were greatly impacted and inspired. The founding father witnessed the modern civilization of the developed countries of the West, and at the same time had a profound reflection on China's development path.
After returning to China, Wang Zhen did not hesitate to become a staunch supporter and promoter of reform and opening up. He realized that the fundamental way out for the Chinese people to live a prosperous life like ordinary British workers lies in vigorously developing social productive forces and promoting modernization.
In 1979, Wang Zhen gave a passionate speech at the Central Work Conference, vigorously supporting Comrade Deng Xiaoping's policy of reform and opening up, and emphatically putting forward the important proposition of using foreign capital to promote national defense modernization.
He pointed out that although China has mastered some technology for designing and manufacturing sophisticated weapons, there is still a big gap between China and the world's advanced level in many fields. Therefore, it is necessary to make full use of foreign advanced science, technology, and management experience, and adopt all favorable forms and methods to accelerate the pace of national defense modernization.
At the same time, Wang Zhen also put forward the idea of using foreign funds. He said that since foreign capital can take advantage of China's preferential policies to set up factories in the mainland, why doesn't China take advantage of its own preferential conditions to build factories abroad? In this way, advanced equipment and technology will be obtained, and new vitality will be injected into the modernization of national defense.
This proposition was later implemented. For example, AVIC has established joint ventures in the United States and Canada to acquire key technologies such as engines.
In addition to national defense modernization, Wang Zhen also vigorously supported the introduction of advanced civilian science and technology and management concepts. In 1983, when he was working in Guangdong, he listened to the introduction of the experience of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone in the use of foreign capital and foreign brains, and spoke highly of this matter.
With his advanced foresight, Wang Zhen not only became a practitioner of reform and opening up, but also encouraged and supported bold experiments and innovations across the country. It was the wise leadership of him and other proletarian revolutionaries of the older generation that promoted the all-round development of China's modernization cause.
Fifth, the revitalization of the coastal set sail
As a staunch supporter of reform and opening up, Wang Zhen has played an important role in promoting this great cause. He not only advocated the use of foreign capital to promote national defense modernization, but also vigorously supported the construction of special economic zones in coastal areas as a testing ground for reform and opening up.
At the beginning of 1979, the Guangdong Provincial Party Committee submitted to the central government a report on the establishment of "export processing zones" in coastal cities in the Pearl River Delta. After obtaining the principled consent of the CPC Central Committee, Guangdong immediately began to consider a specific plan for the establishment of special economic zones in Shenzhen and other places.
At the same time, Wang Zhen, as vice premier of the State Council, also attaches great importance to and supports this new thing. In November 1983, when he made a special trip to Guangdong to inspect, he specially arranged an on-the-spot visit to the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone. After listening to the relevant report, Wang Zhen spoke highly of it.
He said: The experience of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone in building proves that as long as the policies are appropriate, the measures are strong enough, and the leadership is strong and effective, we will certainly be able to build a small fishing village into a bridgehead and a test zone for opening up to the outside world. The tremendous achievements made by the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone deserve careful study and popularization throughout the country.
It is precisely because of the foresight and sagacity of Wang Zhen and other proletarian revolutionaries of the older generation that the construction of special economic zones can be gradually rolled out in the coastal areas of Guangdong. By the end of 1984, the four special economic zones of Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Shantou and Xiamen had been preliminarily completed, forming the frontier and new highland of reform and opening up.
While continuing to support the development of the SEZs, Wang Zhen also vigorously called for expanding the pace of opening up. In February 1984, at the National People's Congress, he solemnly proposed the establishment of economic opening zones in other coastal cities to form a strategic situation of in-depth opening up.
Half a year later, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council officially decided to set up economic open zones in 14 cities, including the Yangtze River Delta and the Bohai Rim Bay. By 1988, Hainan was approved to establish a province and a special economic zone, and the entire Tong'an, Siming and other counties and cities under the jurisdiction of Xiamen City in Fujian Province implemented the special economic zone policy.
For a period of time, the older generation of proletarian revolutionaries represented by Wang Zhen upheld the concept of advancing with the times and the spirit of openness and inclusiveness, and vigorously supported the promotion of reform and opening up throughout the country, thus effectively promoting China's rejuvenation and becoming rich and strong.