Shuangling: Braving the Rapids

Upon hearing this, Aimin looked embarrassed, while Professor Meng laughed heartily and said, "Young man, you're quite honest! Getting back to the point, do you still think that a rural election system can solve all the problems?"

After going around in circles, Yue Chuan finally got to the heart of the problem—any system should be adapted to local conditions; simply copying others will not solve practical problems.

"I understand! Every system has flaws, and we must explore our own path!" Yue Chuan clapped his hands suddenly.

"A promising young man!" Professor Meng nodded, then concluded, "Democratic elections are just one means. If we can't even solve the problems of a small village, how can we talk about governing the country?"

What was originally an outdoor activity of mountain climbing and sampling has turned into a heated debate about the truth.

At this point, Aimin joined the discussion, adding, "Xiao Chuan'er, your upbringing influences your cognitive dimensions. Perhaps if you go to university, study Marxist political economy, and understand the process of national industrialization, you will naturally understand the advantages and disadvantages of various systems."

Previously, Aimin's communication with his nephew was limited to reading and studying. Brain-teasing Olympiad problems were their favorite topics of conversation. He didn't want to discuss current affairs and politics with Yuechuan, feeling that it would distract him. But now, his nephew has developed a mental block, and if it's not addressed promptly, it might cause serious problems. If that's the case, it's better to resolve it now.

"The electoral system originated in the ancient Greek city-states. A city-state had a population of at least a thousand and at most a few hundred thousand. Frankly speaking, this was smaller than the population of any prefecture or county in China during the Qin and Han dynasties. This system had its advantages at a specific time, but to think that it could manage a country as populous and vast as China based solely on it was really presumptuous."

"We are called China, but we carry on five thousand years of Chinese civilization. Such a large and diverse nation has vast differences between its east, west, north, and south, numerous ethnic groups, and thousands upon thousands of dialects spoken in each province. Given this complexity, we cannot place all our hopes on universal suffrage and party alternation. If we did, the integrated advantages we inherited from the Qin Dynasty could vanish instantly, and we might even fall into the chaos of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods. I have a hypothesis: if we follow the path of Western countries, we will become the next Soviet Union!"

Since 1991, Aimin and Professor Meng's correspondence consistently touched upon the topic of the collapse of the Soviet Union. Both men shared a deep connection to the Soviet Union, and witnessing the fall of such a superpower naturally left them deeply saddened. Aimin's distillation of this warning, shared with his nephew at this moment, proved timely.

Professor Meng had just traveled to ten Eastern European countries, gaining a deeper understanding of Western democratic systems and the collapse of the Soviet Union. If he hadn't witnessed firsthand the plight of ordinary people after the Soviet Union's collapse, he wouldn't be discussing systemic issues with a high school student. These are matters of principle, fundamental issues. If we don't learn from the collapse of the Soviet Union, individuals may take the wrong path, and the nation is highly likely to suffer the same fate.

It wasn't until many years later that Yue Chuan understood the good intentions behind their words. At this moment, however, he was still not completely convinced. His doubts and confusions remained vivid. Coming from a poor background, he came to study in a bustling county town, encountered some unfair things, and experienced the gap between people. This caused him to feel a sense of loss and his thoughts began to become conflicted. This was something that could not be eliminated by a lecture.

In just a few minutes, Yue Chuan had several rounds of brainstorming. He racked his brains but still couldn't figure out how his country could catch up with and surpass Britain and the United States, or when he could live a relatively materially rich and happy life like the children in the city.

In this awkward moment, the troubled teenager started speaking recklessly again, his face showing displeasure: "Look at Europe, it's all small countries, and most of their people are quite wealthy. Why do we have to be united?"

Upon hearing this, Aimin frowned, while Professor Meng laughed heartily: "Aimin, look at you! Isn't Xiaochuan exactly the same as you were back then? Asking the same questions word for word!"

Now, Aimin had found the answer. He stared into his nephew's eyes and said, word by word, "I had the same question before. Many people tried to dispel my doubts with rational analysis, but later, I was convinced by a foreigner named Max Weber. Would you like to hear his opinion?"

Seeing Yue Chuan nod, Ai Min continued, "Max Weber graduated from the University of Göttingen and was a famous 19th-century sociologist and historian. He pointed out that China had reasons for needing unification, and these reasons were related to two influential rivers."

"The Yangtze River and the Yellow River?" Yue Chuan was a top student after all, and his IQ was definitely online.

"Yes!" Aimin nodded, his eyes showing admiration. "The Yangtze and Yellow Rivers are the mother rivers of Chinese civilization and the ecological foundation of Chinese culture. These two great rivers flow into many provinces. If any province wanted to use the Yellow River and the Yangtze River to harm a province upstream or downstream, it would be an easy thing to do."

"It's important to note that harm isn't just about poisoning; things like blocking or diverting the river also count. Max Weber concluded that if we want to manage the Yellow River and the Yangtze River, all provinces must be unified under a single government with a high degree of authority. Only in this way can we effectively manage these two rivers to the greatest extent possible."

Aimin's expression was very rigorous and logical, and Professor Meng, who was listening nearby, nodded in approval. Yue Chuan, however, frowned even more deeply, clearly indicating that he could not fully digest and absorb Aimin's views with his current knowledge.

Seeing his nephew frowning and remaining silent, Aimin casually picked up a twig from the ground and wrote a large character in regular script on the ground—"治" (zhì), which is the same character used in the story of Yu the Great controlling the floods.

"Max Weber had never been to China and did not understand Chinese. However, he consulted many missionaries who had been to China and learned from them that the Chinese character for 'rule' (治) and the character for 'control' (治) in 'water management' (治水) are the same character. Max Weber was very excited at the time, feeling that his views were getting closer to the truth."

"Why does China need unification? Because without a unified government, it's impossible to effectively manage the two great rivers. He found cultural and even political ecological reasons from a geographical ecology perspective, and this reason convinced me."

Yue Chuan stared blankly at the Chinese character written by Ai Min, examining it again and again, as if he had never learned the character before.

Whether he truly grasped something, perhaps only Yue Chuan himself knew. But one thing was clear to everyone present—the boy stopped arguing, stopped asking questions, and remained silent for a long time, focusing intently on digesting the knowledge.

After a long silence, Professor Meng broke the silence and smiled knowingly at the two younger men: "I suddenly have a question I'd like to ask. Have you ever thought about what the countryside will be like in the future? I mean, after moving from the industrial age to the information age, will villages undergo a qualitative change?"

Yue Chuan was still preoccupied with the previous question and naturally couldn't imagine it. Ai Min, however, calmly replied, "If we truly advance from industrial civilization to a higher level of civilization, the villagers won't have to struggle for material things. Everyone can farm peacefully, sleeping until they naturally wake up every day... Watering, fertilizing, planting, and harvesting will all be done by automated machines. The grains will be clean and fresh, there will be fresh fruits and vegetables to eat, every family will raise chickens, ducks, cattle, and sheep, and you can see chrysanthemums covering the mountains and fields as soon as you step outside. How wonderful that would be, like a paradise on earth..."

Aimin was surprised by how much he said in one breath. Professor Meng smiled and stared at his apprentice, saying, "The kind of life described as 'Picking chrysanthemums by the eastern fence, gazing leisurely at the southern mountains' must be beautiful. I'm afraid I won't live to see that day, but you and Xiaochuan might still have a chance..."

In a daze, Yue Chuan overheard their conversation. The boy also longed for that kind of life, but he didn't participate in the discussion; he just stared blankly at the village at the foot of the mountain…