South of the River, Center of the Nation
2007/5/7 12:41:16
Anyang
Chán Zhōng Shuō Chán
Taihang — ridge upon layered ridge
The Huan River — surging, surging, its mighty flow
A thousand ages of splendor lie in the dust
Today they only draw ten thousand tourists
South of the Yellow River, center of the nation — of the eight great ancient capitals, Henan claims four. Its historical giants are too many to count: from the Yellow Emperor, Great Yu, Laozi, and Zhuangzi to Xuanzang and the two Cheng brothers; from Jiang Ziya, Fan Li, Shang Yang, Han Fei, and Li Si to Yue Fei; and then Jia Yi, Du Fu, Han Yu, Wu Daozi, Zhang Heng, and Zhang Zhongjing. Even Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were from Henan. Is this piece of land not a bit uncanny? Clearly, without Henan, Chinese history would be completely rewritten.
Even more clearly, this is the Henan of history. Today, Henan has only its history. As for whether it has a present — that remains a question that shouldn't need asking. In fact, Henan's backwardness was also an inevitability of timing and fortune. At least since the Southern Song, Henan has been in comprehensive decline — this aligns with the timeline of Chinese civilization's decay. In a certain sense, Henan's decline is a grand microcosm of China's decline.
Without Henan's rise, China's rise is also empty talk. It's like trading stocks — the 1996 bull market was a bank-stock bull. For ten years until 2006, no matter what else went up, bank stocks just wouldn't rally. If bank stocks can't rally, how can it be called a bull market? So in 2006, the ten-year cycle came around, bank stocks finally rallied, and only then was the bull market confirmed. Henan's decline, counting from the fall of Northern Song, has been nearly 900 years. A great cycle — it should be turning around.
Of course, this ID has no special fondness for Henan. I was just wandering around there during the May Day holiday, hence this stream of idle chatter. It's like 2006 when this ID had a fling with certain bank stocks — but a fling is always a fling. This ID likes one-night-stands, not eternal devotion.
Setting aside the sentimental drivel, let me say something practical. This ID discovered that "small-town low prices" is totally misleading. Take my trip to Anyang — I hired a local driver. This ID never trusts statistical data; I only listen to actual local prices. At least locally, clothing, tobacco, alcohol, electronics, and such were more expensive than in Beijing. The driver said they go to Zhengzhou for any major purchases. Low wages in small towns, yet squeezed by so-called big capital from big cities — this surely isn't unique to Anyang or Henan.
The new rural model that this ID has designed and is actually building has a fundamental principle: breaking this geographic hierarchy's stranglehold on economic development. Big cities and small towns should each show their strengths, each display their abilities — only then can we have overall economic stability and sustainability. This topic is getting far afield, so I'll leave it here.
Chán Zhōng Shuō Chán 2007/5/7 12:44:18
Everyone, tomorrow it's back to stocks. Got a lot of things to take care of. Signing off.
See you.