I went to my friend's house and met his parents, listening to some life stories of the older generation.
Uncle said that he joined the Communist Party very early, with a party membership longer than his work experience. He seemed very proud when talking about it. Uncle had been teaching at the village primary school very early on, earning 6 work points. Later, in 1975, he was recommended by the workers and peasants to go to college. He studied mining in college, worked in mining for a short period after graduation, and then worked in the political and legal system. He worked in public security, inspection institute, notary office, and political and legal department. He retired at the age of 60 and is now 67 years old.
Aunt felt like she was in the same unit as Uncle. Aunt told us a story about how they needed to recruit 10 people for the fire department, and when they were recruiting citywide, they heard that 1000 people applied. While people were still applying, the list of their 10 people had already been finalized and reported. This incident fully illustrates that in the system, everything requires connections and greetings.
Uncle also mentioned that several mayors in their city who paid respects to Chairman Mao continuously rose in their careers, while those who didn't were either removed from office or imprisoned.
Aunt said there were quite a few corrupt officials who jumped off buildings in their area. She also mentioned that Uncle liked to play cards and could lose 5000 in just 5 days sometimes. His card-playing friends were retired high school teachers, individuals from the political and legal system, and various units of the public security bureau.
Uncle also mentioned that the country had allocated 800 billion to deal with the epidemic. Aunt said those doing nucleic acid testing were earning three to four times more than before, with some making thirty to forty thousand a month.
Aunt said that currently, the highest-paid individuals in the system are those in the military, especially those involved in military entertainment work.
Uncle mentioned that the country now aims to turn many private enterprises into state-owned ones. We asked, "Didn't they recently say they want to support private businesses?" He replied, "Don't just listen to what they say, watch what they do."