Amulet

  He Haifeng followed the teacher into the office, and after they sat down as host and guest, the teacher poured water for He Haifeng and asked: "Haifeng, how have you considered the matter we discussed last time?"

  He Haiyan said: "I have considered it, about going to work at the National Economic System Reform Committee which is being established. I will obey the organization's arrangement. It's just that I am worried my personal ability is limited and I may not be able to take on such an important position."

  The teacher smiled and said, "Ability is slowly cultivated. I have observed that you have a very clear mind, open thinking, and long-term grassroots work experience. You also have a thorough understanding of the reform and opening-up policies. Now, the Reform Commission has not yet been established, and each group is recruiting people, so we need talents like you."

  He Haifeng said, "Teacher, you're overpraising me. To be honest with you, some of my ideas were also exchanged with Comrade Lin Zhenhua, and his thinking is even more open-minded than mine. I feel that although he's just a retired soldier, an ordinary worker, his views on economic trends, international politics, and other issues are in no way inferior to those of us provincial and municipal department heads."

  The teacher smiled and said: "Haifeng, I think you seem to be protecting Lin Zhenhua quite a bit."

  He Haifeng smiled awkwardly and said: "Talents are hard to come by, if he trips up because of this kind of thing, I think it's a loss for the reform cause."

  "Don't you think Lin Zhenhua's reform has gone too far?"

  "He said, 'Teacher, forgive me for being presumptuous, but I think he's just moving too fast.'"

  "Oh?" The teacher smiled slightly, "Haifeng, tell me, what's meant by 'leaving too quickly'?"

  He Haifeng said: "Last time, Professor Li Ning from Peking University came over to give a lecture and introduced us to some views on the shareholding system. I think what he said makes sense. Our country must adhere to public ownership as the mainstay, but appropriately developing some non-public systems is also a beneficial supplement to public ownership. Currently, the private economy in various regions has risen, and some wealthy farmers have a lot of spare money. If we don't allow them to invest in economic life, it's a waste of national construction funds."

  "They can put their money in banks, isn't this also supporting national construction?" The teacher retorted.

  He Haifeng said: "I am working at the grassroots level, I know that although we have been talking about public and private for many years, there are still not many people who can really do this. Some people are negative and lazy when doing things for the public; but when they do something for themselves, they become energetic and vigorous. For such people, we cannot ask for perfection. Let them have their own business and develop together with the state-owned economy, which is also acceptable."

  The teacher nodded: "Haifeng, your thinking has always been so open and in line with the central leaders' way of thinking. I hope that after you go to the Reform Commission, you can still maintain this open spirit as before."

  "So, teacher, about Lin Zhenhua's case, how was it finally settled? Will he get into trouble?"

  The teacher smiled and said: "Lin Zhenhua's matter is no longer a big problem, you don't have to worry."

  He Haifeng saw some clues from his teacher's expression and excitedly asked: "How is it, has a conclusion been reached?"

  The teacher pulled out a document from the drawer and said: "This is a photocopy forwarded from the secretary's office, and the instructions on it are written in Comrade Xiaoping's own handwriting."

  "May I take a look?" He Haifeng asked nervously.

  "Of course," the teacher said, handing over the document to He Haifeng while saying: "Haifeng, after you enter the Physical Education Committee, you will be able to see instructions from central leaders every day. However, you need to understand the relevant discipline, and what you see should not be spread outside if it's not supposed to be, do you understand?"

  "I understand."

  He Haifeng took the file, glanced at it and knew that this was the internal reference they had discussed in class today. What interested him was a line of instructions on the corner of the page, which read:

  "No publicity, no restriction, no excuse for attack."

  Among them, the last "no" was originally written as "not to be attacked", and then the writer added three words "to borrow a reason". The difference of these three words is not ordinary, it means warning some people who are dissatisfied that they cannot use this matter to make things difficult for Lin Zhenhua, and even the option of finding other excuses to make things difficult has been ruled out. With such an instruction, Lin Zhenhua is equivalent to having a cheat code in the game, with a protective charm that makes him immune to attacks and poisons.

  In real history, there was a similar thing, that is, the problem of hiring workers by the foolish melon king Nian Guang. At that time, grassroots officials were not sure whether this practice was in line with policy, so they drafted an "Opinion on Handling Private Employers' Exceeding the Prescribed Number of Employees" to ask for instructions from the central government. When this opinion reached Comrade Xiaoping's hands, he instructed: Let it go for two years and see.

  According to Deng's instructions, the Central Committee put forward the three "nots" principle: not to advocate, not to publicly propagate, and not to hastily suppress. This three "nots" principle was equivalent to directly giving Yang Guang a protective umbrella, allowing him to safely pass through the intense collision of old and new systems in the following years. After several years, many debates finally settled, and the employment issue was no longer a taboo.

  As a veteran of the officialdom who has gone through countless political storms, He Haifeng is all too clear about the significance of such an instruction. He beamed with joy and said: "This is simply great!"

  The teacher also smiled: "We old men all think that Lin Zhenhua is simply lucky. Comrade Xiaoping's instruction is equivalent to giving him a safety helmet, and in the future, even if he makes a hole in the sky, no one will dare to care."

  He Haifeng hastily said, "Teacher, it's not like that. Look, there is still a requirement for non-disclosure, and it's even placed first. It can be seen that the central leadership still holds a reserved opinion on this matter."

  The teacher said, "Yes, it is said that the Secretariat had a fierce debate on this matter. The views concerned are not much different from ours in today's class. In the end, the Secretariat could only submit the report to Comrade Xiaoping. Comrade Xiaoping believed that this was a phenomenon that emerged during the reform and that it was too early to draw conclusions, so it was not suitable for publicity. At the same time, Comrade Xiaoping also pointed out that this direction was not wrong, and that the pace could be taken a step further. Therefore, there was such an instruction."

  "Teacher, can I reveal the content of this instruction to Xiaolin? He is the person involved and it shouldn't violate any principles, right?" He Haifeng asked timidly. "If he remains in the dark, he might not dare to explore boldly, which also doesn't conform to Comrade Xiaoping's intention."

  The teacher said, "This is exactly why I came to find you. The principal gave our teaching and research office a task, asking us to organize an investigation team to go to Jiangnan Province to summarize this case, striving to excavate some details with enlightenment significance from it. In addition, this investigation team also has another task, which is to provide Comrade Lin Zhenhua with some guidance from the policy level, avoiding his exploration going astray. The team leader will be our Vice President Wang, who is relatively old and not very suitable for on-site research. Since you said that you have a very good relationship with Comrade Lin Zhenhua, I am considering having you serve as the deputy team leader of this investigation team, responsible for leading the team to Jiangnan Province. What do you think?"

  He Haifeng said: "The school has given me such a heavy burden, I am very grateful, but I really fear that I may not be up to the task."

  The teacher said, "Don't be afraid. The principal has an instruction for this investigation work, which is 'listen more, look more, and speak less'. Your task is mainly to summarize experience and not interfere with the grassroots comrades' reform and innovation. When necessary, you can give some kind reminders as friends and teachers."

  He Haifeng said: "If so, can we change the name? The term 'investigation team' really makes people feel afraid. How about calling it a 'topic group'?"

  "Research group? Hmm, that's good." The teacher nodded and said, "I'll ask the principal for permission, and we'll go under the name of the Central Party School research group. This way, we can avoid giving people a high-and-mighty feeling."

  "Shall we get in touch with Hejiang Provincial Light Industry Department?"

  "It's necessary to get in touch with them and properly reveal the spirit of the central instructions. I estimate that if Comrade Lin Zhenhua's reforms encounter some resistance, the main resistance will come from his direct leadership department, which is the Jiangnan Provincial Light Industry Hall."

  He Haifeng smiled and said: "Teacher, I feel that you are also very interested in Xiaolin? From what you mean, it's actually letting me go down to support Xiaolin on your behalf."

  The teacher said, "Supporting the waist is not necessary, but for such reformers, we should provide them with the necessary protection. This protection has two aspects: one is to help him avoid making mistakes, and the other is to help him avoid unnecessary interference. Reform is a pioneering undertaking that humanity has never experienced before, it allows for mistakes in reform, but cannot tolerate not reforming due to fear of making mistakes. The significance of Comrade Lin Zhenhua's reform exploration lies precisely here."

  "Understood, teacher. Don't worry, I will definitely convey the care and concern you and the central leadership have for Xiaolin to him, so that he can be in a good mood and boldly move forward!"

  "Hai Feng, we've all grown old. As Chairman Mao said, the world belongs to you as well as us, but ultimately it's yours. Comrades like Lin Zhenhua are like the sun at 8 or 9 in the morning. The undertakings of our revolutionary lives will eventually be handed over to these young people. Go ahead and tell Little Lin not to be afraid, to boldly forge ahead - we old folks won't just help them onto their horses, but also give them a push along the way."