Viewing the New Thought of the New Era from a Historical Perspective

In the report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC, Xi Jinping pointed out: we have established Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, achieving a new leap in adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times. There has been much reflection on this in academia and much discussion in theoretical circles. These reflections and discussions are all important, but the author believes that what is even more crucial is to first

On November 17, 2012, while presiding over the first group study session of the 18th Central Political Bureau, Xi Jinping said: "Socialism with Chinese characteristics was inaugurated in the new period of reform and opening up, and it was also built on the foundation of our Party's long-term struggle." On January 5, 2013, at the "Seminar for Newly Elected Central Committee Members and Alternate Members on Studying the Spirit of the 18th National Congress," Xi Jinping further stated: "Upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics is a great piece of writing. Comrade Deng Xiaoping set its basic ideas and basic principles for it. The Party's third generation of central collective leadership with Comrade Jiang Zemin at its core, and the Party Central Committee with Comrade Hu Jintao as General Secretary, each wrote brilliant chapters in this great piece of writing. Now, the task of our generation of Communists is to continue writing this great piece of writing." This is in fact an expression of historicism, indicating that in the history of the CPC, there exists a relationship of upholding and developing, inheriting and innovating, concerning "socialism with Chinese characteristics." It also provides a line of thought for understanding and grasping the new thought of the New Era, which is to view it within the history of the CPC.

I. Initiating the Socialist Cause in China

Xi Jinping said: "The Party's first generation of central collective leadership with Comrade Mao Zedong at its core provided valuable experience, theoretical preparation, and material foundation for inaugurating socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new period." Academia has already conducted in-depth research on this. What now needs to be emphasized is: since the founding of the People's Republic of China, what contributions did the first generation of Chinese Communists, with Mao Zedong as their main representative, make to socialism with Chinese characteristics in the New Era? In fact, that generation of Communists left behind many treasures and made great contributions. If we focus solely on the perspective of socialism, two points are crucial.

The first point is a speech Mao Zedong delivered in April 1956 at the Supreme State Conference. After being written down, this speech became "On the Ten Major Relationships." Mao's discussion of this issue had its specific background. Because the year 1956, when this speech was made, was very special for both China and the world. It was special for China because China was about to complete the socialist transformation and establish a brand-new socialist system. It was special for the world because in February of that year, the Communist Party of the Soviet Union convened its 20th National Congress, at which Khrushchev delivered a report that history books call the "Secret Report on De-Stalinization." Khrushchev listed a basketful of Stalin's shortcomings and criticized Stalin. One must understand that Stalin was Lenin's successor and the leader of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Now that he was knocked down and criticized, how were the Communist Parties of other countries supposed to think? Stalin was not only the leader of the CPSU but also an important figure in the history of the international communist movement. Therefore, the entire socialist camp was thrown into an uproar, not knowing what to do.

It was precisely against this backdrop that an event occurred in Europe, which history calls the "Polish and Hungarian Incidents." Workers in Poland and Hungary launched strikes. One must understand that Poland and Hungary were socialist countries at the time, countries where the working class held state power, yet the workers were striking. In a certain sense, this was ironic. Of course, the "Polish and Hungarian Incidents" were quickly suppressed, but their impact was far-reaching. Both the 20th Congress of the CPSU and the Polish and Hungarian Incidents forced Mao Zedong to

The theme of Mao Zedong’s speech was to mobilize all positive factors to build socialism. In Mao’s view, ten major relationships had to be properly handled: first, the relationship between heavy industry on the one hand and light industry and agriculture on the other; second, the relationship between coastal industry and inland industry; third, the relationship between economic construction and national defense construction; fourth, the relationship between the state, production units, and individual producers; fifth, the relationship between the central authorities and local authorities; sixth, the relationship between the Han nationality and minority nationalities; seventh, the relationship between the Party and non-Party elements; eighth, the relationship between revolution and counterrevolution; ninth, the relationship between right and wrong; tenth, the relationship between China and foreign countries. Mao Zedong’s main purpose in raising the issue of the ten major relationships was to take the Soviet experience as a warning, sum up China’s own experience, and find a path for socialist construction suited to China’s conditions.

In governing the country, the influence of Mao Zedong’s line of thinking was far-reaching. After reform and opening up, Jiang Zemin also delivered a report. The title of this report was “Correctly Handling Certain Major Relationships in the Course of Socialist Modernization.” These major relationships mainly included: first, the relationship between reform, development, and stability; second, the relationship between speed and efficiency; third, the relationship between economic construction and population, resources, and the environment; fourth, the relationship among the primary, secondary, and tertiary industries; fifth, the relationship between the eastern region and the central and western regions; sixth, the relationship between market mechanisms and macroeconomic regulation; seventh, the relationship between the public-ownership economy and other economic components; eighth, the relationship between the state, enterprises, and individuals in income distribution; ninth, the relationship between expanding opening up and maintaining self-reliance; tenth, the relationship between the central authorities and local authorities; eleventh, the relationship between national defense construction and economic construction; twelfth, the relationship between material civilization and cultural-ethical progress. Mao Zedong spoke of ten major relationships; Jiang Zemin spoke of twelve major relationships. The number increased from ten to twelve, but the line of thinking for considering and solving problems did not change; it inherited Mao Zedong’s approach.

Later, Hu Jintao put forward the Scientific Outlook on Development, whose first priority was development, whose core was people-centeredness, whose basic requirement was comprehensive, balanced, and sustainable development, but whose fundamental method was overall consideration and coordination. The Third Plenary Session of the 16th Central Committee of the CPC proposed “five overall considerations,” namely, overall consideration of urban and rural development, overall consideration of regional development, overall consideration of economic and social development, overall consideration of harmonious development between man and nature, and overall consideration of domestic development and opening up to the outside world. The report to the 17th National Congress of the CPC added another “five overall considerations” on the basis of these five, namely, overall consideration of the central authorities and local authorities, overall consideration of individual interests and collective interests, overall consideration of partial interests and overall interests, overall consideration of immediate interests and long-term interests, and overall consideration of the domestic and international situations. Its core was still to properly handle the relationships among all aspects.

Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC in 2012, the Party Central Committee with Xi Jinping at its core has

In 1939, Stalin stated at the 18th Congress of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) that the Soviet people were completely unified politically and morally, and that this unity had replaced the contradiction between the productive forces and the relations of production as the powerful driving force of Soviet social development. Mao Zedong disagreed with this view. He believed that socialist society was also a society full of contradictions, but that within socialist society there were two types of contradictions. The first type was contradictions between the enemy and ourselves, which were antagonistic contradictions. The Communist Party of China had experience in dealing with these, namely through the method of class struggle to resolve them. The second type was contradictions among the people, which were non-antagonistic contradictions. In Mao Zedong’s view at the time, this contradiction was precisely the contradiction between the people’s ever-growing material and cultural needs and backward social production. Among these two types of contradictions, the most important was naturally contradictions among the people. Therefore, Mao Zedong proposed that correctly handling contradictions among the people should be made the theme of the country’s political life. However, Mao Zedong’s understanding of this issue fluctuated, and he later confused the positions of the two contradictions. It should be said that the Communist Party of China took a very tortuous path on this issue. That can be discussed separately. What is being discussed now is the influence of Mao Zedong’s line of thinking on the New Era. In fact, as early as the report to the 19th National Congress of the CPC, Xi Jinping pointed out: “As socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a New Era, the principal contradiction facing Chinese society has evolved into the contradiction between unbalanced and inadequate development and the people’s ever-growing needs for a better life.” [1]1 The “Resolution” refers to the “Resolution on Certain Historical Questions of the Party since the Founding of the People’s Republic of China,” adopted at the Sixth Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee in 1981, which assessed Mao Zedong’s role and the Cultural Revolution.

Some might say that this differs from Mao Zedong’s understanding and changes his view. That is not the crux of the matter. The crux lies in the fact that Xi Jinping

II. Finding the Basis for Inheritance and Development

After China entered socialist society in 1956, following twenty years of practical exploration, although it took a detour, it also accumulated much experience. After reform and opening up, how the Communist Party of China, on the basis of inheriting from its predecessors, could break through outdated conventions and embark on a new journey of China’s socialist development was an important subject the CPC had to contemplate.

On this point, as early as the beginning of reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping clearly stated: “After the Third Plenary Session, we restored those correct things of Comrade Mao Zedong.” “Now we are still doing what Comrade Mao Zedong had proposed but not yet accomplished, correcting what he opposed wrongly, and doing well what he did not do well. For a considerable period ahead, we will still be doing this. Of course, we have also developed, and we must continue to develop.” [1]1 The “Resolution” refers to the “Resolution on Certain Historical Questions of the Party since the Founding of the People’s Republic of China,” adopted at the Sixth Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee in 1981, which assessed Mao Zedong’s role and the Cultural Revolution. This statement provides us with a way of understanding the issue: the CPC views development on the basis of inheritance, and discusses development on the basis of inheritance.

The previous text mentioned that China in 1956 was very complex; in fact, China in the 1980s was not simple either. After Mao Zedong’s death, two voices emerged in China. The first voice was called the “Two Whatevers.” [2]2 Hu Qiaomu (1912–1992) was a senior Chinese Communist Party theorist and official who played a key role in drafting Party documents. It originated from the February 7, 1977, editorial “Study the Documents Well and Grasp the Key Link” in the two newspapers and one journal, [3]3 Chen Yun (1905–1995) was a senior Chinese Communist Party leader and economist who was influential in economic policy and Party history. specifically expressed as: “We firmly uphold whatever policy decisions Chairman Mao made, and we unswervingly follow whatever instructions Chairman Mao gave.” The other voice was called “de-Maoization,” that is, negating Mao

In response to these questions, Deng Xiaoping gave a clear answer. This can be seen simply by looking at his conversation with Italian journalist Oriana Fallaci in August 1980. Deng Xiaoping said: We must make an objective assessment of Chairman Mao’s lifetime achievements and errors. We will affirm that Chairman Mao’s merits are primary and his errors secondary. We must seek truth from facts in speaking of Chairman Mao’s errors in his later years.

The drafting of the *Resolution* [1]1 The “Resolution” refers to the “Resolution on Certain Historical Questions of the Party since the Founding of the People’s Republic of China,” adopted at the Sixth Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee in 1981, which assessed Mao Zedong’s role and the Cultural Revolution. was carried out under the leadership of the Politburo and the Secretariat of the Central Committee, with Deng Xiaoping and Hu Yaobang presiding. The drafting group was headed by Hu Qiaomu. Deng Xiaoping attached great importance to the *Resolution*. During the drafting process, from March 1980 to June 1981, he expressed his views on the drafting and revision of the *Resolution* on many occasions; nine of these talks alone are included in Volume 2 of the *Selected Works of Deng Xiaoping*. Yet even so, the drafting work did not proceed smoothly. This is clear enough from the records of Deng Xiaoping’s conversations with members of the drafting group during this period. For example, on June 27, 1980, Deng Xiaoping stated explicitly: “I have read the draft resolution. It won’t do. It must be done over. From the very beginning we said that we must establish Comrade Mao Zedong’s historical role and uphold and develop Mao Zedong Thought. The present draft does not adequately reflect the original conception”; “The whole document is too dull; it does not read like a resolution. It seems that revisions will be extensive. The emphasis should be on what Mao Zedong Thought is and what Comrade Mao Zedong’s correct ideas were.”

Deng Xiaoping believed: “The appraisal of Comrade Mao Zedong and the exposition of Mao Zedong Thought are not merely matters concerning Comrade Mao Zedong personally; they are inseparable from the entire history of our Party and our state. This overall situation must be recognized. This is what we have repeatedly stressed from the very beginning of the drafting work. The part of the draft resolution that expounds Mao Zedong Thought cannot be omitted. This is not just a theoretical issue; it is especially a political issue, a very major political issue both domestically and internationally. If this part is not written or is poorly written, it would be better not to produce the entire resolution at all.” But this was precisely where the difficulty lay. For the “exposition of Mao Zedong Thought,” the drafting group adopted a method of “separating first, then combining”—that is, first distinguishing Mao Zedong Thought from Mao Zedong’s errors in his later years, emphasizing that “Comrade Mao Zedong’s ‘Left’ erroneous theses that launched the ‘Cultural Revolution’” clearly deviated from “the track of Mao Zedong Thought,” and then discussing “Comrade Mao Zedong’s historical role and Mao Zedong Thought,” explaining that “Mao Zedong Thought is the precious spiritual asset of our Party and will guide our actions for a long time to come.”

However, regarding “the appraisal of Comrade Mao Zedong,” the drafting group found it very difficult to open up their thinking. This was because the period from the founding of the People’s Republic of China to Mao Zedong’s death totaled 27 years. The first seven years were easy to handle

This is an overall assessment of the work of the Party and the state under Mao Zedong’s leadership. At the time, it was said that Mao’s achievements were primary and his errors secondary. How should this “Resolution” be written? Hu Qiaomu’s train of thought was temporarily blocked. Later, Chen Yun put forward a view, saying that the People’s Republic of China did not fall from the sky, so he suggested: “Add a special section to discuss the Party’s history before liberation, writing about the Party’s sixty years. Once the sixty years are written, Comrade Mao Zedong’s achievements and contributions will be summarized more comprehensively, and establishing Comrade Mao Zedong’s historical status, as well as upholding and developing Mao Zedong Thought, will have a comprehensive basis.” The drafting group for the “Resolution” followed this advice, and the problem was solved at once. This is the first passage we now see in the “Resolution,” titled “A Review of the 28 Years of History before the Founding of the People’s Republic of China.” This is a historicist method of evaluating historical figures and events from the perspective of the whole of history rather than a fragment of history.

In June 1981, the “Resolution” was adopted at the Sixth Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Party, which can be said to have “ended the past.” The following year, in September 1982, the Chinese Communist Party convened its Twelfth National Congress, which can be said to have “opened up the future.” The opening address of the Twelfth National Congress was delivered by Deng Xiaoping. This opening address was very short, but its significance was far-reaching. Deng Xiaoping said: “Our modernization drive must proceed from China’s actual conditions. Whether in revolution or construction, we must pay attention to learning from and drawing on the experience of foreign countries. However, mechanically copying the experience and models of other countries has never been successful. We have had many lessons in this regard. Integrating the universal truth of Marxism with the concrete realities of our country, taking our own path, and building socialism with Chinese characteristics—this is the basic conclusion we have drawn from summing up our long historical experience.” This is the origin of the proposition of “socialism with Chinese characteristics.” Therefore, it can be fully said that “socialism with Chinese characteristics” is a unity of inheritance and development, and what it signifies is a new path that carries forward the cause and forges ahead into the future.

III. Exploring a New Path with Chinese Characteristics

The “Resolution” adopted at the Sixth Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee affirmed Mao Zedong’s historical status and Mao Zedong Thought, evaluated the merits and demerits of the 32 years since the founding of the People’s Republic of China in a matter-of-fact manner, and thoroughly negated the “Cultural Revolution” and the theory of “continuing the revolution under the dictatorship of the proletariat.” In the history of the Chinese Communist Party, this is called completing the rectification of guiding ideology. From then on, the Chinese Communist Party could advance with a light pack, and this made possible the convening of the Twelfth National Congress. As mentioned above, in the opening address of the Twelfth National Congress, Deng Xiaoping put forward an important proposition—“taking our own path and building socialism with Chinese characteristics.” This is what Xi Jinping meant when he said that in “this great essay,” Deng Xiaoping established its “basic line of thinking” and “basic principles.” Without this opening address, we cannot tell the story of the New Era well.

Since the Eighteenth National Congress, Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized: “Socialism with Chinese characteristics is the theme of all the Party’s theories and practices since reform and opening up, and it is the fundamental achievement the Party and the people have made through untold hardships and at enormous cost.”⑤ *Xi Jinping: The Governance of China*, Vol. 3, p. 13. In the report to the Twentieth National Congress, he further made “upholding the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics” one of the five principles the Chinese Communist Party must adhere to in the New Era. Xi Jinping also clearly pointed out: “We must adhere to taking economic construction as the central task, adhere to the Four Cardinal Principles, adhere to reform and opening up, adhere to independence and self-reliance, adhere to the unchanging path and unchanging will, neither taking the old path of closed-door rigidity nor the evil path of changing the flag, adhere to placing the development of the country and the nation on the basis of our own strength, and firmly grasp the destiny of China’s development and progress in our own hands.”⑥ Xi Jinping: *Hold High the Great Banner of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Strive in Unity to Build a Modern Socialist Country in All Respects*, p. 27.

The so-called “not taking the old path of closed-door rigidity” means not taking the path China followed before the implementation of reform and opening up. This “old path” does not refer to “old” in the temporal sense, but to “closed-door rigidity” in the sense of its form. Especially after 1989, some people advocated turning back, stubbornly and dogmatically believing that reform and opening up meant introducing capitalism and that the main danger of peaceful evolution came from the economic sphere. If this were followed, it would inevitably change the Party’s line, principles, and policies since the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee. Its direct consequence would be the breeding and spread of “Left” things under the new circumstances, creating serious obstacles and constraints for reform and opening up. At the same time, with the deepening of reform and opening up, some social problems became increasingly prominent, such as the widening gap between rich and poor and the decline in social moral standards. Some people’s attitudes toward reform and opening up changed, one-sidedly attributing the causes of these problems to reform and opening up, losing confidence in the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and therefore also proposing a return to the old path before reform and opening up.

In response to this proposition, Deng Xiaoping firmly stated: “Reform and opening up cannot be abandoned. If we stick to old conventions and do things exactly according to the old frameworks, without any experiments or attempts—including some setbacks and failed attempts—we will certainly fail to achieve our strategic goals. We must genuinely carry out reform and opening up; we cannot close the door and do it.” He even believed: “The policy of opening to the outside world will only become more open. The path will not become narrower, only wider. We have suffered too much from taking a narrow path. If we turn back, where would we return to? Only to a state of backwardness and poverty.”

The so-called “not taking the evil road of changing the banner” does not mean denying other paths, but is mainly directed at “changing the banner” that shakes one’s own path. For China, it refers to abandoning socialism and taking the capitalist road. This has two main concrete manifestations: one is taking the capitalist liberalization road; the other is taking the democratic socialist road. In response to this proposition, Deng Xiaoping clearly stated: “What is liberalization? It is essentially an attempt to guide China’s current policies toward the capitalist road. The representatives of this trend of thought want to lead us in the capitalist direction. Therefore, I have explained many times that the four modernizations we are pursuing have a name: socialist four modernizations.” “If we go in for capitalism, the four modernizations will certainly not be achieved. China must solve the problem of poverty for one billion people and the problem of development for one billion people. If we go in for capitalism, a few people may become rich, but a large number of people will remain in poverty for a long time, and China will face the problem of revolution breaking out.”

Of course, when discussing this period of history now, we cannot be too general; we need to grasp its key points. This key point is the predicament of China’s development at that time and the personal characteristics of Deng Xiaoping, the chief architect. The former is well known and will not be repeated here. Let me focus here on Deng Xiaoping’s personal characteristics. It must be remembered that when Deng Xiaoping led reform and opening up in 1978, he was already 74 years old. This age had a special meaning for him and for China. In Deng Xiaoping’s own words, there was no more time to waste. Therefore, in Deng Xiaoping’s directives on reform and opening up and the modernization drive, phrases such as “cannot be delayed,” “must not be delayed,” “should not be delayed,” and “delay is not a solution” appeared very frequently, reflecting his urgent mood of seizing the day and losing no time. He often said: “Without a bit of the spirit of daring, without a bit of the spirit of ‘taking risks,’ without a certain drive and energy, you cannot blaze a good path, you cannot blaze a new path, and you cannot accomplish a new undertaking.” Thus, when deciding to establish special economic zones, he did not hesitate to use a military term: “Cut a bloody path out.” This expression was very solemn and stirring, embodying the true colors of a revolutionary and a soldier, and carrying a heavy historical weight.

But reform and opening up and modernization were, after all, a tortuous, complex, and very difficult process; they were not supported and endorsed by the entire populace from the very beginning. If it had been that easy, the Communist Party of China would have succeeded long ago. On this, Deng Xiaoping said: “There were different opinions on reform and opening up from the very start; this is normal. … Not engaging in debate is one of my inventions. Not debating is to gain time to get things done. Once you start debating, things become complicated, and all the time is wasted in debate, and nothing gets done.” [10]10 “The great dream, the great struggle, the great project, and the great cause” (伟大梦想、伟大斗争、伟大工程、伟大事业) is a standard four-part formulation in official CPC discourse. The “great dream” is the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation; the “great struggle” refers to the struggle against various risks and challenges; the “great project” is the Party-building project; and the “great cause” is the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics. He also said: “Our policy is to allow people to watch. Allowing them to watch is much better than coercion. We implement the line, principles, and policies of the Third Plenary Session without resorting to coercion or campaigns. Those willing to work can work, and they can do as much as they want; in this way, they will gradually catch up.” This shows that China’s reform was “gradualist,” completely different from Russia’s “shock therapy.” This Chinese approach and this line of thinking helped to unify the intensity of reform, the speed of development, and the degree of social tolerance. The great achievements of China’s reform and opening up and modernization have fully proven this point.

The characteristic of this “gradualist” reform is to proceed from the shallow to the deep, from the easy to the difficult. This naturally also reflects the personal style of the chief architect. Therefore, only by understanding Deng Xiaoping can one understand China’s reform and opening up, and only then can one understand the subsequent Jiang Zemin, Hu Jintao, and Xi Jinping. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized: “Comprehensively deepening

In the report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC, Xi Jinping also listed "upholding and carrying forward the spirit of struggle" as one of the five principles that the Communist Party of China must adhere to in the New Era. Xi Jinping emphasized the need to "strengthen the resolve, confidence, and backbone of the entire Party and the people of all ethnic groups in the country, not to believe in evil, not to fear ghosts, not to be afraid of pressure, to advance in the face of difficulties, to press forward despite hardships, to coordinate development and security, to fully overcome various difficulties and challenges on the path forward, and to rely on tenacious struggle to open up new horizons for the cause." Without understanding Deng Xiaoping, it is difficult to grasp the necessity of Xi

In addition, Deng Xiaoping’s leadership style has also had a profound impact on the Communist Party of China. Deng Xiaoping said that his method was to “grasp the heads and grasp the guidelines.” [10]10 “The great dream, the great struggle, the great project, and the great cause” (伟大梦想、伟大斗争、伟大工程、伟大事业) is a standard four-part formulation in official CPC discourse. The “great dream” is the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation; the “great struggle” refers to the struggle against various risks and challenges; the “great project” is the Party-building project; and the “great cause” is the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics. “Grasping the heads” means grasping the leaders and those in charge; once this is done, matters become easier to handle, as those above set an example for those below. “Grasping the guidelines” means grasping the line and policies, grasping the major principles and the general direction. This leadership wisdom has also been inherited by the CPC. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, the first thing Xi

After Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zemin became the supreme leader of the Party and the state. By this period, China and the world had already undergone great changes. The oft-repeated saying of the past, “Only socialism can save China,” had to be turned around in this period to read, “Only China can save socialism.” Because at that time the Soviet Union had collapsed, the Eastern European revolutions had occurred, and the international communist movement was at a low ebb — would China also undergo peaceful evolution? [10]10 “The great dream, the great struggle, the great project, and the great cause” (伟大梦想、伟大斗争、伟大工程、伟大事业) is a standard four-part formulation in official CPC discourse. The “great dream” is the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation; the “great struggle” refers to the struggle against various risks and challenges; the “great project” is the Party-building project; and the “great cause” is the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics. At this juncture, the Party Central Committee with Jiang Zemin at its core was needed to stem the tide, defend socialism with Chinese characteristics, and successfully carry it into the 21st century. This was the first task Jiang Zemin had to accomplish. The second matter Jiang Zemin encountered was the wholesale generational turnover in the Party’s cadre ranks. The generation that had joined the revolution before the founding of the People’s Republic of China had basically all withdrawn from the historical stage. Therefore, the Party members and cadres of the 1980s and 1990s, including the 21st century, were basically all those who had grown up after the founding of the People’s Republic. Whether they could defend the regime and prevent peaceful evolution was a very important question.

In light of this, during an inspection tour of Gaozhou, Guangzhou in 2000, Jiang Zemin first put forward the important thought of the “Three Represents.” [11]11 “The New Era” (新时代) refers to the period beginning with the 18th National Congress of the CPC in 2012, when Xi Jinping became General Secretary of the Party Central Committee. He proposed that summing up the history of the Communist Party of China could yield an important conclusion: the reason the Communist Party of China has won the people’s support is that the Party, in every historical period of revolution, construction, and reform, has always represented the development demands of China’s advanced productive forces, the forward direction of China’s advanced culture, and the fundamental interests of the broadest majority of the Chinese people, and has formulated correct lines, principles, and policies to strive unremittingly for the fundamental interests of the state and the people. Clearly, if a Party can always represent the advanced productive forces, always represent the advanced culture, and always represent the fundamental interests of the broadest majority of the people, it is impossible for that Party to lose its ruling position. Therefore, Jiang Zemin said that the “Three Represents” are “the foundation for building the Party, the cornerstone for exercising state power, and the source of its strength.”

After the 16th National Congress of the CPC in 2002, Hu Jintao became the supreme leader of the Party and the state. During this period, the domestic and international environment also underwent great changes. Hu Jintao proposed building a socialist harmonious society; from then on, the goal of China’s modernization developed from a “three-sphere integration” (prosperity, democracy, and cultural-ethical progress) into a “four-sphere integration” (prosperity, democracy, cultural-ethical progress, and harmony). The reason this issue was raised was that China’s development had entered a new stage. This stage required the Party, while emphasizing efficiency, to pay greater attention to fairness, in order to prevent the problem of widening wealth disparity. However, some might ask: why does this problem still arise in a socialist country? Objectively speaking, this too is determined by the historical characteristics of China’s reform and opening up. In fact, as early as the beginning of reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping clearly stated, “We must allow some regions and some people to get rich first.” Therefore, at this stage, a certain degree of wealth disparity was entirely possible. But Deng Xiaoping had another sentence that followed: “Those who get rich first must drive those who get rich later, ultimately moving toward common prosperity.” He also said: “Common prosperity — we have talked about it from the very start of reform, and one day it will become the central issue. Socialism does not mean a few people get rich while the majority are poor; that is not what it is like. The greatest superiority of socialism is common prosperity; this is something that embodies the essence of socialism.”

So, when would this problem be tackled in a concentrated way? Deng Xiaoping also had his own plan. He said: “It can be imagined that when we reach the level of a moderately prosperous society at the end of this century, we should prominently raise and solve this problem. At that time, developed regions should continue to develop and strongly support underdeveloped regions by paying more taxes and transferring technology. Underdeveloped regions are mostly areas rich in resources, with great development potential. In short, for the whole country, we will certainly be able to gradually and smoothly solve the problem of the wealth gap between the coastal areas and the interior.” Deng Xiaoping’s vision, the “central issue” he raised, from a temporal perspective, was to be handed over to Hu Jintao to accomplish

Of course, during this period, the most important problem

Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, Xi Jinping has taken up the baton of history. On the journey toward the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, he has exercised overall leadership over the great dream, the great struggle, the great project, and the great cause [10]10 “The great dream, the great struggle, the great project, and the great cause” (伟大梦想、伟大斗争、伟大工程、伟大事业) is a standard four-part formulation in official CPC discourse. The “great dream” is the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation; the “great struggle” refers to the struggle against various risks and challenges; the “great project” is the Party-building project; and the “great cause” is the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics.. Focusing on reform, development, and stability; domestic affairs, foreign affairs, and national defense; and Party governance, state governance, and military governance, he has adopted a series of strategic measures, advanced a series of transformative practices, achieved a series of breakthrough advances, and obtained a series of landmark results. He has withstood risks, challenges, and tests from the political, economic, ideological, and natural spheres, and propelled the cause of the Party and the state to historic achievements and historic transformations. The great transformations of the first decade of the New Era [11]11 “The New Era” (新时代) refers to the period beginning with the 18th National Congress of the CPC in 2012, when Xi Jinping became General Secretary of the Party Central Committee. are of milestone significance in the history of the Party, the history of the People’s Republic of China, the history of reform and opening up, the history of socialist development, and the history of the development of the Chinese nation.

First, Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era was established. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, the Chinese Communists, with Xi Jinping as their chief representative, have been bold in theoretical exploration and innovation. With a completely new perspective, they have deepened their understanding of the laws governing the exercise of power by the Communist Party, the laws governing the building of socialism, and the laws governing the development of human society, achieving major theoretical innovations. These are concentratedly embodied in Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. While further answering the basic questions of what socialism is and how to build it, what kind of Party to build and how to build it, and what kind of development to achieve and how to achieve it, this theory creatively answers the questions of what socialism with Chinese characteristics for a New Era is and how to build it. It has formed a theoretical system that is rich in content, complete in structure, and rigorous in logic, providing the fundamental guidance for realizing new goals of struggle from a higher historical starting point.

Second, the second answer to the question of how to escape the historical cycle of rise and fall was found [12]12 “The historical cycle of rise and fall” (治乱兴衰历史周期率) refers to a classic question posed to Mao Zedong by the democratic figure Huang Yanpei in 1945: how can a political party or regime avoid the pattern of rising, flourishing, declining, and falling that has characterized Chinese dynastic history? Mao’s first answer was that the people’s supervision of the government would break this cycle. Xi. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, through unremitting efforts, the Party has found “self-revolution” as the second answer to escaping the historical cycle of rise and fall. The Party’s capacity for self-purification, self-improvement, self-renovation, and self-enhancement has been significantly strengthened. The lax and soft state of Party management and governance has been fundamentally reversed, ensuring that the Party never changes its nature, never changes its color, and never changes its flavor. This is especially important for a century-old Party. Because the longer the road traveled, the more experience accumulates, and the heavier the burdens become, the more the Party needs a spirit of “self-revolution.” As the third “historical resolution” [13]13 Quotations from the report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC (2022). The "second centenary goal" refers to building China into a modern socialist country by the middle of the 21st century, following the first centenary goal of building a moderately prosperous society by 2021. clearly states: “The secret to the Party’s vitality after a century of vicissitudes lies precisely in its constant adherence to truth and correction of errors. The Party’s greatness does not consist in never making mistakes, but in never concealing its illnesses and avoiding treatment, in actively engaging in criticism and self-criticism, and in daring to face problems head-on and bravely carry out self-revolution.”

Third, it has opened a new journey of comprehensively building a modern socialist country. The 20th National Congress of the CPC pointed out: From now on, the central task of the Communist Party of China is to unite and lead the people of all ethnic groups across the country to comprehensively build a modern socialist country, achieve the second centenary goal, and comprehensively advance the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-path modernization. The overall strategic arrangement for comprehensively building a modern socialist country is to proceed in two steps: basically realize socialist modernization from 2020 to 2035; and build China into a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful from 2035 to the middle of this century. This is a great and arduous undertaking. Although there will be difficulties and obstacles on the road ahead, the Communist Party of China is full of confidence in this. This is because since entering the New Era, the Communist Party of China has not only "solved many long-standing problems that it wanted to solve but could not," but also "accomplished many major tasks that it wanted to accomplish but could not in the past." Therefore, it is "closer to, more confident in, and more capable of achieving the goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation than at any time in history." [13]13 Quotations from the report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC (2022). The "second centenary goal" refers to building China into a modern socialist country by the middle of the 21st century, following the first centenary goal of building a moderately prosperous society by 2021.

Building socialism in China is indeed an entirely new undertaking without precedent. In his time, Mao Zedong said: "Regarding socialist construction, from the perspective of our entire Party, our knowledge is far from sufficient. We should, over a period of time to come, accumulate experience, study diligently, and gradually deepen our understanding of it in practice, clarifying its laws. We must put in hard work and earnestly investigate and study it." [14]14 Quotation from Mao Zedong's remarks on socialist construction, likely from the early 1960s. Now Xi Jinping says: "Reform and opening up and socialist modernization have been advanced in depth, writing a new chapter in the two miracles of rapid economic development and long-term social stability. Our country's development has acquired a more solid material foundation and more complete institutional guarantees, and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered an irreversible historical process." [15]15 Quotation from Xi Jinping's report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC (2022). This of course also contains a relationship of persistence and development, inheritance and innovation, which is the same principle that the new thoughts in the New Era from a historical perspective seek to explain.

(Author's biography: Zhou Lianghu, Professor and Doctoral Supervisor at the School of Marxism, Peking University, recipient of the Ministry of Education's Changjiang Scholars Young Scholar Award Program)

Online editor: Tongxin