Wang Ziwei did not stand on ceremony and arranged for Chen Feng to meet Director Zhou immediately.
Wang Ziwei was very much looking forward to Chen Feng persuading the top brass of China in his capacity as the second-in-command of a county-level city.
“Are you Chen Feng?”
Director Zhou looked at Chen Feng with curiosity.
“Yes, Director Zhou,”
Chen Feng replied neither subserviently nor obsequiously.
“You are much younger than I imagined.”
Director Zhou gazed at Chen Feng with admiration.
Anyone who could be valued by Wang Jianshan, the top leader of China’s capital, was definitely not an ordinary person.
“You flatter me, Director Zhou,”
Chen Feng smiled modestly.
“Chen Feng, Miss Wang mentioned that you want to persuade me to abandon the idea of property tax?”
Director Zhou cut to the chase.
“I do have that thought,”
Chen Feng continued to reply without subservience or obsequiousness.
Things had reached this point, and he had no choice but to push forward.
“Chen Feng, I advise you to abandon this unrealistic idea. To be honest, I was one of the drafters of China’s initial property tax draft. How could I possibly abandon my support for the idea of property tax? In recent years, housing prices in China have been too high, and they must be brought down.”
Director Zhou said earnestly.
“Director Zhou, your concern for the country and its people is truly moving, to be honest. However, the political arena in China doesn’t operate on sentiment; it operates on momentum. Clearly, you are going against the current momentum.”
Chen Feng explained earnestly.
“Quite interesting, continue speaking.”
Director Zhou said with a smile.
In all his years, no young person had ever spoken in a way that made him actively want to listen. Chen Feng was definitely an exception. A few words, yet they were thought-provoking.
“As someone who rose from the grassroots, I, too, inwardly do not wish for housing prices in China to remain at their high levels. However, from a realistic perspective, and in terms of momentum, they must remain high.”
“Continue.”
“To put it plainly, China has not found an industry to replace its real estate sector, so it has no choice but to persevere. Once China’s real estate market collapses, with so many land sales, the political arena in China would lose a significant portion of its fiscal revenue. Many regions would go bankrupt directly. This would be a devastating blow to the economy.”
Chen Feng said with deep emotion.
“Chen Feng, your perspective is quite broad. Since you have such a broad perspective, perhaps you can consider this: Is it truly good for China to sacrifice the interests of the vast majority of the lower class in order to maintain high-speed development, making it impossible for them to afford housing?”
Director Zhou retorted.
“Of course, it’s not good. But, Director Zhou, as a prominent figure in politics, you should know that no matter which country’s political arena, actions are never based on good or bad, but on maximizing interests. In the current situation, maintaining high prices for real estate is the way to maximize interests. If real estate collapses, we may never have the chance to catch up with Europe and America. In reality, this is a helpless situation. The moment China’s top leadership decided to make real estate a pillar industry, it was destined for this无奈 today, which no one can change. When choosing between two evils, one must pick the lesser, so we can only protect the prices!”
Chen Feng explained with a heavy heart.
“Alright, let’s concede that, from the perspective of momentum, China’s real estate cannot collapse. However, are some things things that you can prevent just because you don’t want them to happen? Is America not powerful? Didn’t America’s real estate collapse a few years ago? If even the strongest nation cannot avoid it, why should China be able to? Since it cannot be avoided, why not proactively burst this huge bubble?”
Director Zhou asked with a serious expression.
“Director Zhou, hearing you say that, you seem very pessimistic about China’s real estate.”
Chen Feng asked opportunistically.
“Chen Feng, this is not a question of pessimism. All countries are like this; no country can avoid it. You must have studied philosophy in university, so you should know that laws of nature are unavoidable. Since they are unavoidable, why try to force it? Property tax, in most countries worldwide, is already being implemented and is inevitable.”
Director Zhou continued to speak with a serious expression.
“Director Zhou, haven’t you considered that by doing so, you are infringing upon the interests of powerful groups? They will attack you fiercely.”
Chen Feng asked sternly.
“I am aware, but I am not afraid. The trend of the world is such, what am I afraid of? Ultimately, it is not I who will fail, so I have no fear.”
Director Zhou said righteously.
“Director Zhou, you underestimate China too much.”
Chen Feng shook his head.
“Then tell me, how is China different from other countries?”
Director Zhou asked curiously.
“China has strong central control, therefore, China cannot be judged by the experiences of other countries.”
“Hmm, that makes some sense. Continue speaking.”
Director Zhou looked at Chen Feng with admiration.
As he said before, this young man had something. His words were thought-provoking.
“For example, with real estate, if other countries cannot control it, it will trigger an economic crisis. China can control it.”
“Chen Feng, did I hear you correctly? You are saying that housing prices can be controlled?”
Director Zhou was stunned.
This theory was too earth-shattering.
Real estate was an industry with extremely high marketization. How could it not be controlled by the market but by the government?
“Director Zhou, you are a high-level official in China’s political arena… (content deleted for review, self-imagination required)”
Chen Feng explained earnestly.
“Chen Feng, you are truly daring to speak your mind.”
Director Zhou sighed.
“Director Zhou, to be honest, I don’t usually say these things to just anyone. Even if I did, they wouldn’t understand. But you are different. You are concerned about the country and its people, you have an upright heart, and you possess independent thinking abilities. That is why I am speaking my heart to you. For instance, right now, no matter how you look at it, China’s real estate market will not collapse. Just as China can withstand foreign invasion and avoid national subjugation, it can also manage the relatively minor issue of real estate. For example, I heard from a friend that China’s top leadership already has measures to stabilize the real estate market…”
Chen Feng spoke enigmatically.
“What measures?”
Director Zhou asked impatiently.
“Exchanging space for time.”
Chen Feng replied directly.
“Exchanging space for time? What does that mean?”
“It means a soft landing!”
“A soft landing?”
“Yes, a soft landing. Housing prices in China are already extremely distorted, so high that they cannot go any higher. It’s impossible for them to rise further. However, a fall is also not feasible, at least not a sharp decline. Therefore, a soft landing is necessary. To put it plainly, it means enacting policies to support high housing prices for another ten years, during which time another pillar industry will be sought. Once a new pillar industry is found, China’s real estate market will have truly achieved a soft landing.”
Chen Feng explained in detail.
“Interesting. Then, elaborate on how China’s top leadership intends to implement this soft landing.”
Director Zhou asked with curiosity.