Governing the Country Without Skill, Xi Makes Excuses—Netizens Clap Back!

Xi Jinping defends himself: “You can’t see only the trees and not the forest.” (People News illustration)

[People News] A person who doesn’t know how to swim will struggle desperately before drowning; the same is true for the Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping right now.

Xi has proven incompetent in governance—he only knows how to reverse progress. He doesn’t understand economics, nor does he care about people’s suffering. Under his rule, China’s economy has collapsed, and the people are living in misery. Since the 2022 “White Paper Revolution,” the public has openly shouted “Xi Jinping step down!” and “Communist Party step down!” Now this fire has reached the Fourth Plenary Session of the Central Committee. Online sources indicate that the anti-Xi faction is leveraging the growing public call for Xi’s resignation to pressure him to relinquish power.

Refusing to sit and wait for his downfall, Xi used the pen name “Zhong Caiwen” to publish articles for seven consecutive days in the People’s Daily, defending himself by arguing that “we cannot deny the overall economic situation just because some business entities are struggling” and that “we should not see only the trees and not the forest.”

In reality, Xi’s effort to justify himself fooled no one. It only exposed that China’s economy is in irreversible decline, public resentment is soaring, and the CCP’s rule is on the verge of collapse. His response is nothing more than the dying struggle of a drowning man. Meanwhile, netizens have started a trend of sarcastic “sentence-making,” mocking Xi’s so-called “bright economic outlook.”

Let’s look at how the netizens responded:“We can’t deny the overall economy just because 99% of businesses are losing money.”“Don’t say you’re hungry and deny that you’ve eaten.”“Don’t deny the fairness of the pension system just because farmers get only 200 yuan a month while government retirees get tens of thousands.”“Don’t deny the overall retirement system just because only some Chinese live to 150 years old.”“Don’t deny your overall health just because of a few tumors in your pancreas and lungs.”“Don’t deny ‘whole-process democracy’ just because we have only one supreme leader.”“Just because you’re holding a funeral doesn’t mean I can’t play music and dance.”“Don’t deny the leaders’ happiness just because you feel bad; our leaders feel wonderful right now.”“Even the captain of the Titanic said, ‘Don’t deny the ship’s voyage just because part of it is sinking.’”Another netizen wrote: “We can’t deny China’s economy just because the working class is unemployed, drowning in debt, unable to buy houses, and has no money to spend. Look at our civil servants and powerful elites—they’re living in luxury every day! How can you say the economy is bad?”

One netizen added: “I won’t talk about anything else. I’ll just say that my favorite Harbin sausage cost 18 yuan per jin in 2018. When I returned to China in 2023, it had risen to 38 yuan per jin. You keep saying the economy is great—then why is inflation so severe? Why have all prices skyrocketed? How do you explain that?”

Another commented: “When Xi says ‘some business entities are struggling,’ he means private enterprises and workers outside the system. Those who ‘feel good’ are the bureaucrats and employees of state-owned enterprises. Of course they feel fine! That’s why young people are desperate to squeeze into the system—because only within the bureaucracy, as a member of the ‘real tax class,’ can you live well. It’s becoming more and more like North Korea or the Cultural Revolution era.”

Another netizen observed: “Ironically, they always use a few people doing well to justify that the entire economy is fine.”

Someone else said: “Seeing that headline reminded me of Hua Chunying’s line: ‘I am one of the 1.4 billion. My colleagues are also among the 1.4 billion. Chinese media reporters are among the 1.4 billion. Why don’t we feel any oppression?’”

Boiling frogs in warm water—some frogs have already woken up, but the ‘Supreme Accelerator’ continues to turn up the heat. (People News illustration)

One commenter remarked, “This article is a classic example of high-level satire. Publishing seven of them in a row shows how dire the situation really is.”

Since the pandemic lockdowns, China’s economy has been declining. Even after the lockdowns ended, it has never recovered. Foreign companies have withdrawn, youth unemployment remains sky-high, yet the authorities continue to demand people “sing the praises of the bright economy.” Public discourse has become ever more restricted, and economists are forbidden to speak the truth—economist Gao Shanwen has even been ordered to stay silent.

X platform user Li Chengpeng (Big-Eyed Brother) posted in response:

“Everyone knows how the Chinese economy really is. It’s like the ‘boiling frog’ story—they just exposed themselves without a fight. During the ‘National Day Golden Week,’ data plummeted, hotel vacancies were high, tent camping and budget travel became trendy, luxury restaurants were empty, and box office revenues hit a record low.

Experts say China’s economy can’t collapse suddenly. I don’t understand economics, but I understand logic. China’s economy is huge—it won’t collapse overnight—but it can’t withstand ‘brilliant minds’ constantly pouring boiling water into the pot: one ladle, two ladles, three ladles… all ‘showing the way.’

A few days ago, public outrage over the K visa issue seemed to calm down because most people just changed posture in the pot. But the hand keeps adding boiling water—again and again. Scientific experiments show that ‘boiling frog in warm water’ isn’t real. Once it gets hot enough, one frog will jump first, and soon the whole pot will explode with frogs leaping out. Everyone in the pot is miserable, waiting for that moment.”

(First published by People News) △