Chinese Tycoons: Who Still Wants to Flee?

The rumor of Ren Zhengfei's entire family disappearing and fleeing the country has been widely spread overseas, originating from a suspected internal Huawei dialogue screenshot. It stated that Director Liang had been unable to contact Director Ren for two days and was worried something had happened, so he contacted Meng Wanzhou. Strangely, dozens of family members, including his wife Su Wei and younger daughter Yao Anna, were unreachable. Upon checking surveillance, it was discovered that at 1 AM, a convoy of nanny vans quietly left Ren Zhengfei's residence and sped towards the Lujiazui area of Shenzhen's Dapeng Peninsula. There were also claims that the armed police had surrounded Huawei's headquarters, and that Ren Zhengfei's family fled because military secrets were leaked, with the Chinese military believing they were using Chinese chips and computing power when in fact they were using American ones.

This is all bullshit, blowing smoke. Ren Zhengfei's family fleeing, I think it's a rumor, because the next day Yao Anna made a public appearance in Beijing. But people say that Lin Biao didn't take his daughter Lin Doudou when he fled back then, which makes sense. Later, a reply, whether true or false, appeared online attributed to Yao Anna, saying that a single phone call could get the entire family of the rumor-monger killed, by any means necessary. People then said that this tone really sounds like a princess, and this is what makes history interesting. Against the backdrop of economic decline, political severity, and widespread anxiety, the truth doesn't matter; what matters is that people are desperate for change, desperate for... Damn it, something big happened at Tiananmen!

Something big also happened at Zhongnanhai. The truth doesn't matter; what matters is that people yearn for change. Look, on September 15th, the first day the State Council's new exit and entry regulations took effect, everyone was watching to see who was stopped, if their phones were checked, how long customs took, and how many seats were empty on flights. A while ago, Anta's former CEO Xu Yang fled. He posted a notice of departure from a safe location on the high seas, causing a stir and shaking people's hearts. The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) also issued a stern refutation, claiming that Western media selectively quoted parts of the regulations about dissuading and restricting exit, leading to serious misinterpretations. But netizens nowadays are not easily fooled.

They are saying that when the authorities deny something, it's confirmed. It's like explaining during the pandemic, protesting too much. Misinterpretation means they got it right. In fact, it's not the common people who are most anxious about closing the borders; they have nothing to lose and can become county-level officials if pushed. The truly anxious ones are the entrepreneurs, whose entire fortunes are at stake. Therefore, whether Ren Zhengfei's family fled or not, it brings up a real topic: Which of China's tycoons still want to run? To be or not to be, that is the question. To run or not to run, that is the question. Let's analyze it.

First, let's review the wealthy individuals who have already fled. The first type, which I classify as the "white glove escape" type, includes figures like Lai Changxing and Guo Wengui, who had intricate ties to power. In the 1990s, Lai Changxing evaded taxes through smuggling to the tune of 30 billion yuan, equivalent to Fujian province's entire annual fiscal revenue. And this is just the official figure; the actual amount far exceeded it. The Director of Fujian's Public Security Department, the head of customs, and provincial and municipal party secretaries were all implicated, with Jia Qinglin and Jin Shang rumored to be involved as well.

Guo Wengui is well-known to everyone, so I won't elaborate here. Then there's Jia Yueting, who famously said, "Oh, I'll be back next week!" The originator of the "next week" meme, his investor was Ling Hancheng, brother of Ling Jihua. Ling Hancheng initially invested 20,000 RMB to become the chairman of Beijing Huijin Lifang, investing 20 million in LeTV. Three years later, the return rate was as high as 1685%, cashing out 227 million. Even a printing press wouldn't print that fast, would it? It would be smoking hot. Later, Ling's son was involved in a "three-person marriage," which is quite a complex maneuver! The difficulty of this "three-person marriage F3" surpasses even F1.

Ultimately, Ling Jihua's downfall led to Jia Yueting's escape. As you know, China's anti-corruption efforts are like a boxing match; as long as the fight continues, it's highly probable that more "white gloves" will flee. So, who do you think are the future wealthy fugitives? Is it Yu Yong, the mining magnate controlling 350 billion yuan from Luoyang Wood Industry, whose funding sources are still rumored to be linked to the Delong system? Or is it Wang Wenyin, the "King of Copper" who has established over 40 industrial parks nationwide and is now facing 13.4 billion in execution, with numerous parks left unfinished? Let's wait and see. The second type of escapee, I call them the "early planner" type.

Representative figures include the founders of Haidilao, Zhang Yong and his wife Shu Ping, who have long since acquired Singaporean citizenship and transferred their assets. The listed entity is registered in the Cayman Islands, with a Singaporean company in between, remotely controlling the hot pot restaurants in mainland China. This means that every piece of tripe or goose intestine you order in China can ultimately be traced back to the Cayman Islands. The advantage of this early planning lies in timing; before government regulation tightened, it was considered business planning; after it tightened, it became asset transfer. However.

Don't think that early planning guarantees safety. As long as the business is still in mainland China, you can be squeezed at any time. A few days ago, Shu Ping suddenly sold 259 million worth of Haidilao shares, cashing out 2.75 billion Hong Kong dollars, reportedly to pay taxes. This is because new Chinese regulations require tax residents to pay personal income tax on offshore trusts. Even if you acquire foreign citizenship, you can still be deemed a Chinese tax resident. Another representative figure who transferred core businesses out of mainland China is Chen Tianqiao and Duan Yongping. Chen Tianqiao, the boss of Shanda, who became China's richest man at 31, sold Shanda for hundreds of billions and moved to the United States, buying a forest larger than the entire country of Singapore.

Ah, because he suffers from panic disorder, he also invested in brain science, hoping to achieve immortality. You see, the wealthy play for eternal life. As for Duan Yongping, who built up and strengthened the brands like Subor, BBK, OPPO, and vivo, he distributed his shares and took 130 billion out of the country to enjoy himself. But, I must say "but" again, even if you transfer your business out, if you frequently travel back and forth to China, they might not be able to seize your assets, but they can seize you. Look at Xiao Jianhua, living in a Hong Kong Four Seasons hotel with 24-hour bodyguards; he was bagged and taken back to the mainland. So-called early planning, and any other planning, is no match for the Politburo.

There is another type of wealthy individual in China who understands that the so-called truth is that money cannot be held onto, and freedom means that people cannot be held onto either. Therefore, both their money and their persons have left, with no intention of returning. The representative figure of this type of wealthy individual is Pan Shiyi. As early as 2005, Pan Shiyi unconditionally transferred his shares to Zhang Xin, who then placed a combined 94.78% of the shares into an irrevocable trust in the Cayman Islands, and has been successively selling off domestic assets.

In 2020, Ren Zhiqiang was sentenced to 18 years for writing an article criticizing the Emperor for being naked. Pan Shiyi smelled the most dangerous scent in the air, tightened his grip, and quickly negotiated with Blackstone to sell his core properties. However, the relevant authorities thwarted this acquisition. In 2022, Pan Shiyi and Zhang Xin fled to the United States, bought five plots of land in New York, and have never returned to China since.

Some say Pan Shiyi married a good wife. In fact, Pan Shiyi has had a keen sense of smell since childhood. You see, eight days before the college entrance examination, he was hit by a truck and broke his shoulder blade. He suddenly had a premonition that he definitely wouldn't do well. Before the results were out, he ran to the neighboring county and, using the name Shi Yi, applied to a petroleum school. His former name was Shi Yi (石怡), with 'Shi' meaning 'appropriate' and 'Yi' meaning 'to turn danger into safety.' To have a double insurance for his life, Pan Shiyi used the alias Shi Yi (石屹), with 'Shi' meaning 'stone' and 'Yi' meaning 'peak,' to apply to the petroleum school and was accepted. You see, he knew from a young age that one must always prepare a fallback plan B.

After graduation, he was assigned to an oil unit in Langfang. One day, he suddenly felt that the 'iron rice bowl' (a secure job) was not for him and ran off to Shenzhen. At that time, a border pass was still required to go to Shenzhen, but Pan Shiyi didn't have one. What to do? He spent 50 yuan and asked someone to take him under the barbed wire fence, where there was a dog hole. He crawled through and arrived in Shenzhen.

He worked for a while, and then one day felt something was wrong again. He ran off again, went to Hainan, first working in a brick factory, then becoming its director. Later, Hainan fell into an economic depression. He met Feng Lun and others, and immediately transitioned into real estate. However, in 1992, he suddenly wanted to check the data from the planning bureau. He bought five pounds of oranges and a pack of cigarettes, used a backdoor approach, and asked to see the data. They let him see it. Pan Shiyi locked himself in that small room and, as he looked, his hair stood on end. He felt the sky was about to collapse because he found that Hainan was building an average housing area of over 50 square meters per person, while Beijing had only 7 square meters during the same period.

He felt a bubble was coming and, without hesitation, ran off again to Beijing. A few months later, Hainan's real estate market also collapsed. You see, Pan Shiyi went from taking exams under a pseudonym, to quitting his 'iron rice bowl,' to running off and crawling through a dog hole, then running off from Shenzhen to Hainan, and then running off from Hainan to Beijing. Pan Shiyi's life was full of running away.

Cao Dewang once satirized Pan Shiyi and his wife, calling them 'crafty devils!' He said, 'Cao Dewang, your elder brother is the deputy governor of Fujian Province, you have an official background, so of course you can appear grand and magnanimous. Pan Shiyi is a poor child. His mother was paralyzed in bed from a young age, his two younger sisters were given away because they couldn't be supported, and when there was no food, he picked up rotten vegetables and ground bran to eat. He only had one pair of pants. Pan Shiyi was afraid to wash them for fear of wearing them out, so he wore the same pair for 730 days.' So, it's said that a child from a poor background faces danger at any moment and has a natural alertness to run away at any time.

However, can the Chinese government let him go? No! Therefore, recently there have been rumors that Pan Shiyi has been ordered to repay as much as 7 billion yuan in taxes. Pan Shiyi still has assets in China, over 20 billion yuan. With his personality, he certainly wouldn't dare to flip the table with the Party immediately. So, Pan Shiyi is now between life and death; he is like Schrödinger's cat. Chinese mainland tycoons all have a侥幸心理 (wishful thinking). Some have gone abroad, leaving their businesses at home; some have moved their money out but frequently return. Even someone as sharp-sensed as Pan Shiyi hasn't completely moved all his assets out. Running is not about physical strength; it's about intelligence.

And who is the textbook example of an early escape? Li Ka-shing! He once said that it would be too late to run when you hear the gunshot. As early as 1989, he discussed with Margaret Thatcher his desire to become a British citizen. While he had the best relationship with the CCP high command, Deng Xiaoping, and Jiang Zemin, during the same period, his entire family quietly obtained Canadian citizenship. While Xu Jiayin was buying and buying, he insisted on selling and selling. He has turned 'running' into the highest life philosophy. He doesn't need to wait for the starting gun; he is his own starting gun.

So, which other tycoons wanted to run but couldn't? For example, does Yu Minhong want to run? When the tutoring industry was suppressed, New Oriental's market value evaporated by more than 90%. Yu Minhong, who was almost ruined, was disheartened. He could have liquidated and left, but he donated 80,000 desks to rural schools, refunded tuition fees, paid rent, and spent nearly 20 billion yuan on employee compensation.

Then he and the teachers started live-streaming sales, creating Oriental Select. But later, Dong Yuhui left, and the internet was filled with cyberbullying, causing performance to plummet. I once asked Yu Minhong, 'Why didn't you leave?' He said he still had 80,000 employees. One is bound by circumstances in the jianghu (the world of business and power); unless circumstances change drastically, it will be difficult for this old man to leave. Will the once ambitious Liu Qiangdong leave? In 2019, he resigned from his position as a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). Observant people noticed that the CPPCC charter states that those who violate social morality or engage in behavior inconsistent with their status as a member should be ordered to resign.

Regardless of whether the Minnesota case was a honey trap or not, Liu Qiangdong would weigh who the masterminds behind the scenes were. His actions to cash out have never stopped. He now only holds 12.7% of JD.com's shares. In 2022 alone, he cashed out 6.6 billion yuan and also stepped down as CEO of JD Group. At the same time, a top luxury mansion on the island of Sardinia, worth 80 million euros, was purchased in full by a buyer, who is reportedly the head of a JD-related entity. It is widely speculated that the real owner is Liu Qiangdong.

In the past few years, Liu Qiangdong has been summoned for

He had made it clear long ago that if he ever lost control of JD.com, he would completely withdraw and take the money and leave. But would Wang Shi run? Twelve years ago, Wang Shi had told a reporter with absolute certainty: "I am a beneficiary of reform and opening up. What kind of person would I be if I ran?" His father was a subordinate of the old Red Army general Wang Zhen, and his former father-in-law was the Deputy Secretary of the Guangdong Provincial Party Committee, Director of the Public Security Department, and Secretary of the Disciplinary Committee. He made his first pot of gold through connections.

In 1989, Wang Shi led a team to participate in a protest in Shenzhen in solidarity with the June Fourth incident in Beijing. According to reports, he was even detained for a year. However, to everyone's surprise, he first admitted to the American magazines Time and The Washington Post that leading the protest was a mistake. Later, he even told a reporter from The New York Times that he had no recollection of the experience and insisted through a spokesperson that he had never participated in the June Fourth protests.

What? He can even deny participating in June Fourth? Was he time-traveling back then? Wang Shi has always been so insincere. In 2003, he sent his daughter to study in the United States, and his wife also went to the US for an extended period to accompany her, even though they were not yet divorced. But while Wang Shi claimed he was a beneficiary of reform and opening up and would not immigrate, he sent his family to the US. Was he responsible for working in China while his family was responsible for living in the US? You wouldn't be any different from your family, would you? In 2005, Wang Shi, who had attended the UN Climate Change Conference for 16 consecutive years, was surprisingly absent. Qin Feng, the Vice President of Hong Kong Phoenix TV, posted a four-character Weibo: "Wang Shi arrested."

Of course, Wang Shi immediately refuted the rumors! He frequently appeared in high-profile domestic High Rocks competitions, showing off his muscles to prove he was doing well. But honestly, I understand Wang Shi very well. He yearns for freedom, and as a second-generation official, he knows that this machine spares no one, not even former President Liu Shaoqi. Do you think you'll be spared just because you've retired? But, Chinese entrepreneurs have a侥幸心理 (a mentality of relying on luck). Even if they run, they want to do it with some dignity. They can't just stuff their partners into the trunk and sneak out of the country like Sun Yuchen, can they? Pack up, roll up, and run.

So, will Wang Jianlin run? He once wielded great power, spending $3.5 billion to acquire the American film studio Legendary Entertainment and buying up assets all over the world. But when asked by reporters, he admitted that Xi Jinping's sister, Qi Qiaoqiao, had invested in Wanda. He explained that Qi Qiaoqiao had transferred all her shares at a low price before the IPO, praising the Qi family for sacrificing huge profits and not making big money. This proves General Secretary Xi's style of governing the country strictly and his family even more strictly. This is a case of being too clever for one's own good! His intention was to defend the royal family, but he inadvertently confirmed Qi Qiaoqiao's illegal business dealings. And the New York Times reporter, David Barboza, had already pointed out based on business registration materials that Qi Qiaoqiao had long ago transferred her shares to an old employee named Xu Zaisheng. Once Wang Jianlin made this statement, it was irreversible. The royal family abandoned him, loans became impossible to obtain, the planned IPO through a gambling agreement fell through, his capital chain broke, and his buying spree turned into a selling spree. From "I invest wherever I want" to "responding to the national call, Wanda will primarily invest domestically," it only took two years.

For Wang Jianlin, once China's richest man, it wasn't a question of whether to run or not; he was investing assets worldwide. The world belonged to Wanda. Now, it's not a question of whether he runs, but whether he can avoid being listed as a defaulter and be able to take planes and high-speed trains. His words were once as tough as iron, but now his legs are as weak as jelly. However, Wang Sicong is still traveling abroad. If Wang Jianlin sends his own son abroad, how much confidence does he have in this land?

And Wang Xing, who provides spiritual sustenance to rebels on Fanzei.net, and Wang Xing, who provides food to the people through Meituan, are the same person. However, in 2021, when the State Administration for Market Regulation launched an investigation into Meituan's "choose one of two" practice, Wang Xing posted a poem by Zhang Jie on Fanzei.net, "The Burning of Books," which contained the lines: "The ashes are not yet cold, Shandong is in chaos; Liu Xiang originally did not read." This was widely interpreted by netizens as a veiled criticism of Xi Jinping's lack of education. A single poem stirred up a thousand waves! Meituan's stock price plummeted again.

To this day, Meituan's stock price has evaporated by more than 80% from its peak of 2.8 trillion yuan. Wang Xing once said that 2019 was the worst year of the past decade, but it would be the best year of the next decade. His words have become a prophecy. Therefore, based on my understanding of Wang Xing, who appears literary but is a rebel at heart, he will inevitably leave.

As for Jack Ma, he ran and then returned because he couldn't run at all. His roots are deeply embedded in China's political arena. So, whenever naive people call Jack Ma a private entrepreneur, those in the know just smile. Look, on January 29, 2001, two people visited the small house in Lakeside Garden: one was Zhang Dejiang, Secretary of the Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee, and the other was Wang Guoping, Secretary of the Hangzhou Municipal Party Committee. Zhang Dejiang asked Jack Ma, "How big do you hope your company will become?" Jack Ma replied, "500 million to 5 billion US dollars." Oh, Municipal Party Secretary Wang Guoping quickly smoothed things over, saying, "Ah, Little Ma meant 500 million to 5 billion RMB." Jack Ma corrected him, "No, I meant US dollars."

Zhang Dejiang was a recognized figure from Jiangxi, who later rose to become a member of the Politburo Standing Committee and Chairman of the National People's Congress. Even when he was just a provincial party secretary, why did he specifically visit a company with only about eight employees? A total of a dozen people. If you still think this is a coincidence, then Alipay was launched in 2003 but only obtained its license in 2011. This means Alipay managed money for the entire nation for seven years without a license.

Oh! And when it obtained the license, it was number zero-zero-one among that batch of 27 licenses. That year, the national third-party payment transaction volume was over 1.13 trillion yuan! Alipay alone accounted for nearly 50%, which is over 500 billion yuan. Do you think this is the influence a normal graduate should have? How could he have such great influence? September 2012.

Alibaba Group completed the largest private financing in Chinese history, worth $7.8 billion. The New York Times pointed out that this included Jiang Zemin's grandson, Jiang Zhicheng, Liu Yunshan's son, Liu Lefei (or Liu Yuefei, I don't know them and am unsure how to pronounce their names here), and Wen Jiabao's son, Wen Yunsong, among others, the descendants of over twenty members of the Central Politburo Standing Committee.

Facing public questioning about his political background, Jack Ma strongly declared that Alibaba's only background was the market; it never had and never will need any external background imposed upon it. This truly echoes the sentiment of Li Peng's daughter, Li Xiaolin, who said, "Capital beyond one's abilities is equal to zero." Later, Jiang Zhicheng, Jiang Zemin's grandson's Boyu Capital, invested in Anta twice through Beijing Jingguan, becoming one of the top ten shareholders. Oh, and on Anta's shareholder list is also Beijing Zhaode Investment Group.

The actual controller is named Li Chengpeng, who is the son-in-law of former Politburo Standing Committee member Jia Qinglin. The Wall Street Journal quoted over a dozen Chinese officials and advisors saying, "The Anta IPO prospectus is backed by a circle of powerful figures, and this alliance of political families is itself a challenge to Xi Jinping's power." Do you understand? At that time, Jack Ma was arrogant and didn't realize that his patrons were not someone Xi Jinping could afford to offend. Since then, Jack Ma has been exiled worldwide. Some naive people say this is persecution of private entrepreneurs. Have you ever seen a private entrepreneur who has the investment and protection of members of so many Politburo-level families?

However, the deeply entrenched political-business relationships forced Jack Ma to return. From Anta Financial to Anta Financial, some people asked if Jack Ma would run in the future. The answer is simple: Would Hu Xueyan have run back then?

Let's look at other Chinese billionaires who won't run. Many friends hoped that Ren Zhengfei would run away, just as they saw Wang Lijun's defection come true back then. In fact, I also particularly wanted to watch the drama. But over the years, the state's support for Huawei has far exceeded trillions of yuan! The entire national diplomatic machinery was mobilized to rescue Meng Wanzhou. Moreover, the level of surveillance on the military, AI, and chip industries is so high that the Party knows exactly what you dream about at night. Even if Ren Zhengfei and Meng Wanzhou were to face death for knowing too many secrets, how could an eighty-year-old man and a middle-aged woman run?

The Party's surveillance far exceeds Canada's electronic ankle monitors, and Lei Jun won't run either. He wanted to build new energy vehicles, but he didn't have a license. The State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission directly lent him BAIC's license and gave him 2,600 mu of land. There were no bidders, and all were sold at the reserve price. Last year, Lei Jun's wealth increased by 196 billion yuan, and he has served multiple terms as a National People's Congress representative. He is a standard

In 1949, Chinese shipping magnate Lu Zuofu had four potential paths: the United States, Hong Kong, Taiwan, or mainland China. The Kuomintang (KMT) sincerely sought his allegiance; He Yingqin invited him to be the Minister of Communications, which he refused. Yan Xishan also invited him to be Minister of Communications, and he refused again. To avoid further entanglement with the KMT, Lu Zuofu even left Guangzhou in advance. Later, KMT Executive Yuan head Yu Hongjun flew to Hong Kong and once again invited him to join the cabinet, but Lu Zuofu refused again.

However, when the Communist Party sent Pan Hannian, he immediately agreed. Under Zhou Enlai's arrangement, he attended the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in Huairentang. Mao Zedong met with him twice and hosted banquets for him and Rong Yiren. Deeply moved, he returned and led his fleet back to the mainland. To prevent interception by the KMT navy, he specifically had the ships fly only Canadian and Panamanian flags. This daring voyage reminded people of the Sino-Japanese War exactly twelve years prior.

That year, to transport China's remaining industrial materials to Chongqing in the rear during the war, Lu Zuofu, braving Japanese bombings, almost single-handedly and at a loss, transported over 1.5 million people and vast quantities of industrial materials, known as China's Dunkirk. Twelve years later, Lu Zuofu once again bravely led his fleet. By the way, you might not know that the concept of joint public-private ownership was first proposed by Lu Zuofu himself to Zhou Enlai. Upon hearing this, Mao Zedong was overjoyed and called on the nation to learn from Lu Zuofu, making Minsheng Company the first joint public-private enterprise in New China.

Subsequently, all joint public-private ventures followed the path conceptualized and personally practiced by Lu Zuofu, a tragic path. Lu Zuofu, disregarding personal gain and serving his country, was both moving and pitiable, yet also detestable. His business acumen was great, but his judgment was poor, a common failing of domestic entrepreneurs.

Moreover, he implicated his brothers. The managers and captains who followed him back to the mainland were almost all persecuted. When the Five-Antis Campaign began, Lu Zuofu made his first public self-criticism, shedding tears on the spot. Slogans were posted in the meeting hall, welcoming General Manager Lu to confess honestly. He was accused of treating colleagues to meals, baths, and shows, using

He has truly surrendered. You must understand that during the Rong family's peak, they controlled one-third of the nation's flour production and one-fifth of its steel production. Their scale far surpassed Jack Ma's; they were more formidable than Ma. However, during the Cultural Revolution, Rong Yiren's home was raided, his head was shaved in an 'yin-yang' style, his index finger was broken, he was sent to scrub toilets, and he was tormented for a full thirteen years.

Some might say that was the Cultural Revolution. Well, it was the same later on, not just for private entrepreneurs but also for state-owned enterprise managers and directors. Chu Shijian transformed a small, near-bankrupt factory into Asia's number one and the world's third-largest tobacco empire, generating 99.1 billion yuan in taxes and profits. Yet, before his retirement, he took $1.74 million from the company's petty cash and was sentenced to life imprisonment. In his later years, he went to Ailao Mountain and contracted 2,000 mu of wasteland to grow oranges, creating the famous Chu Oranges.

Wang Shi visited him eight times and even wrote a preface for Chu Shijian's biography, titled

In 1303, King Edward I of England promulgated the Charter of the Merchant. The villainous Venetian merchant in Shakespeare's play, selfish and greedy, also had the right to go to court. The judge had to deal with merchants according to the law, not bully them, and reason with them. At the same time in the Ming Dynasty, a merchant was of the same rank as prostitutes, actors, and slaves – they were considered lowly people. If you weren't allowed to wear boots, you couldn't. In 1602, the Dutch established the world's first joint-stock company and the world's first stock exchange. This was in the 30th year of the Wanli reign of the Ming Dynasty.

What was China doing? Imposing closed-door and maritime bans! It wasn't until 1904 that China had its first commercial law, called the "Regulations of the Great Qing Governing Commerce." By then, the Great Qing was on its last legs. It's worth noting that this was a full nine hundred years after the Italians promulgated the world's first maritime commercial law. As everyone knows, Europe's most famous commercial family was the Medici family. They sponsored Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, driving the Renaissance and the progress of Europe.

And in the same era, the Chinese merchant Shen Wansan – setting aside whether he truly existed or not – the "History of Ming" records a true story: a rich man named Shen Xiu helped rebuild one-third of the city walls of Nanjing and even offered to fund and reward the three armies. When Zhu Yuanzhang heard this, he was furious: "You lowly fellow dare to reward my emperor's army? This is a rebellious person, and he deserves to die!" It was only after Empress Ma pleaded for a long time that his death sentence was commuted to exile in Yunnan. You see, European merchants' sponsorships propelled the Renaissance, while a Chinese merchant's sponsorship almost led to beheading, confiscation of property, and exile.

So, why does Europe have a long tradition of commerce and commercial freedom? One major reason is that Europe rarely had a unified empire. If you weren't allowed to do business in one place, you could go and do business elsewhere. However, a unified empire is our glorious tradition in China. The Emperor believed that merchants, with their resources and wealth, would win over the hearts of the people, thus shaking his rule. This is the Emperor's most fundamental logic. Therefore, whether Ren Zhengfei flees or not is not important.

If Ren Zhengfei doesn't flee, then Zhang Zhengfei, Li Zhengfei, Wang Zhengfei, and Han Zhengfei will. In a place without commercial rules, without a commercial tradition, where merchants are purely dependent on power, where the past is scrutinized for thirty years at any moment, even if GDP is temporarily glorious and a few richest people are produced, they will perish within two generations. Meeting adjourned.