I'm back in 1990

Chapter 269: The Selfish Gene

Since Jiang Bixing graduated and left, Huang Xiaochuan has taken over hosting the Economic Salon. Although it's called a salon, it's really just a place for a group of young people who dream of changing the world to talk about their ideals. What's more, Huang Xiaochuan also provides various snacks and drinks, as well as tea and instant coffee.

When the mood strikes, Huang Xiaochuan will have several cases of beer brought over for a good drink together.

As the saying goes, "Drunk, one dances with half a scroll of books in the library; sitting in a well, one talks about the vastness of the sky."

The students who come here are discussing the current economic development of the country. They gather together and speak their minds, discussing the advantages and disadvantages of current affairs, and expressing their own opinions based on their own ideas. Of course, there are conservatives and radicals among them, each holding their own opinions, and sometimes they even argue fiercely.

Today's topic is "economic crisis".

Chen Kezi from Shanghai Dan University believes that economic crises can occur in any society, but Zhang Dayuan, who is in the same school as Chen Kezi, disagrees with this view. He believes that such a phenomenon would not occur in socialist countries.

Both sides had their own supporters, and the debate became quite heated.

Huang Xiaochuan sat beside the coal stove, holding a teacup, silent as an old monk in meditation, occasionally sipping his hot tea.

Zhang Dayuan disagreed with Chen Kezi's view, arguing that my country's administrative efficiency was far superior to that of other countries, and that effective administrative measures could resolve Chen Kezi's so-called economic crisis. Neither side convinced the other, and their argument nearly brought the roof off.

At this moment, someone thought of Huang Xiaochuan, who was dozing off next to the coal stove. This guy was quite knowledgeable, so why not let him judge who made the right point?

"Alright, big shot, stop pretending to be asleep. Why don't you move over and say a few words?"

The impatient Zhang Dayuan immediately pulled Huang Xiaochuan up.

This is a classic case of collateral damage caused by a fire at the city gate; Huang Xiaochuan looked extremely unwilling.

"What am I supposed to say? You were all talking so smoothly, weren't you?"

"Don't pretend, you big shot. You heard what Old Chen and Old Zhang were saying, so why don't you share your opinion?"

Everyone present tried their best to dissuade him.

After pondering for a long time, Huang Xiaochuan decided to go for it and say what he had kept buried in his heart for a long time.

He coughed lightly twice to clear his throat.

"I personally believe that economic crises can occur in any society, whether it is a feudal society, a capitalist society, or a socialist society. In particular, with the development of science and technology and the liberation of productive forces, this phenomenon will occur frequently and periodically."

At this point, someone raised an objection: "Did feudal societies also experience economic crises?"

Huang Xiaochuan looked at him and continued.

"The root cause of the Great Depression appears on the surface to be private ownership, and feudal society was purely based on private ownership. The reason why people's understanding and discussion of the economic crisis in feudal society is not as extensive or profound as that in capitalist society is that private ownership in feudal society was even more 'private' than in capitalist society. In feudal society, 'all land under heaven belongs to the king; all people within the borders are subjects of the king.' Not only were the means of production privately owned, but even the state itself was privately owned—it was a family-run empire. Therefore, most of us analyze the rise and fall of feudal society primarily from a political perspective, neglecting economic factors."

Why did the Ming Dynasty fall? Prefer urban novels? Click to enter your exclusive book library! On the surface, it seems that the change of dynasties was due to the corruption of the regime, but that's not the case. The fundamental reason was that the country experienced an economic crisis because the country could not collect taxes from the gentry group that controlled 90% of the country's wealth. You're asking the vested interests to collect their own taxes, isn't that a joke?

Therefore, the operating costs of the entire country can only be distributed among ordinary people who control only 1/10 of the wealth. As a result, the number of poor people increases, while the efficiency of the country's operation decreases. When it reaches an intolerable critical point, the poor will rise up in rebellion, the corrupt regime will collapse, and the benefits of dynastic change will be redistributed.

Upon careful consideration, everyone realized that this was indeed the case! The wealthy were indeed wealthy; their viewpoint was spot-on.

"Then let's take a look at what a capitalist economic crisis is all about?"

"Since we humans entered the industrial society, production efficiency has increased significantly, but consumption capacity has lagged behind. There is nothing that cannot be manufactured, only that cannot be sold. This is because after business owners get rich first, they are unlikely to give back to ordinary people, even if they have already earned enough. This is determined by the selfish gene in human nature. Their behavior is no different from that of the gentry in feudal society."

"Old Zhang said that this phenomenon can be circumvented using rules and regulations, but I cannot agree with that. Because any rule created by humans can be broken. To put it jokingly, rules are meant to be broken, and clauses are meant to be torn up."

Finally, Huang Xiaochuan said something that was half-joking and half-serious.

"Unless technology advances to the point where it can remove the selfish genes in our bodies, the economic crisis might be eliminated. However, I think it is highly unlikely that such a technology will be developed because the existence of selfish genes in humans will prevent this technology from becoming a reality."

Huang Xiaochuan's words thoroughly cleansed the minds of everyone present, making them all fall into deep thought. Zhang Dayuan racked his brains trying to find theories to refute Huang Xiaochuan's fallacy, but he couldn't find any.

Having finished speaking, Huang Xiaochuan also planned to leave. He needed to hurry home, where his wife and warm bed were waiting for him. He didn't want to stay up all night with these silly boys.

Before leaving, he didn't forget to give me a word of advice.

"Those on duty today, don't forget to turn off the lights and seal the furnace door."

The words had barely left his mouth when he stepped out the door.

Unexpectedly, there was a person standing outside the door, and Huang Xiaochuan almost bumped into the person.

Upon closer inspection, oh? When did this old man get back? Why didn't he say anything beforehand?

"Grandpa, when did you get back? Why didn't you call me? I could have come to pick you up!"

"Someone from the school will pick you up, so you don't need to worry about these things. I heard all the points you made earlier. Organize them and write a paper for me."

"Huh?" Huang Xiaochuan's face immediately fell.

Huang Xiaochuan then scolded, "Come inside and listen in this freezing weather! It's so cold outside!"

"It's okay, the winter coat you sent me is very warm. Besides, you won't continue talking once I go inside, so I might as well listen to the whole story from outside."

"Then I'll take you home!"

"Alright! Accompany this old man for a walk. It's been so long since I've seen you. This is a good opportunity to test your knowledge!"

Upon hearing this, Huang Xiaochuan quickly devised a delaying tactic: "You should get some rest tonight, and tomorrow I'll practically walk into your trap and offer myself up for the test, okay?"