Sharing a post that’s heart-wrenching to read but very realistic
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For the sake of your next generation, should you stick to cities like Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou? In their hometowns, where it’s no longer possible to return, the second generation of farmers leave for big cities as soon as they graduate, unwilling to go back to the countryside. In big cities, they can at least have a job to support themselves; if they return to the countryside, they can only engage in farming or breeding. However, agriculture in China has traditionally been loss-making, relying on weather conditions and government subsidies. The hard work put in by farmers during spring planting does not necessarily guarantee a harvest in autumn; a single strong storm or heavy rain can instantly render all their year’s efforts worthless. Without harvest, there is no income; without income, there is no hope. The true picture of rural China today: trash everywhere, dust in the air, and various painted advertisements on the walls; pharmacies often run out of medicine; village schools are located five kilometers away from homes; the grocery store at the entrance to the village sells Kangshuaifu products; the river water is discolored and smelly, with a chemical factory upstream. The situation in small towns is slightly better than in rural areas, but it is still not optimistic. Those who live comfortably in small towns are mostly employed by government agencies or enterprises related to the government. But who can guarantee that your next generation will still be able to get a job in a government agency? For young people from ordinary families, the options available back in small towns are extremely limited. First, a low-level industrial structure renders your professional skills useless, making it difficult to find well-paid jobs in your field. Secondly, if you can’t rely on your family connections and have a weak network, life in a small town becomes extremely difficult. Thirdly, when running a company, the wealthiest clients are usually government agencies – what can you do? If it were possible to succeed in a small town, why would anyone go to a big city? People only move there when they really have no other choice. Cities where one can’t integrate: 1) The shackles of household registration – people these days start striving to rely on their family connections from the moment they are born. On the day you were born, whether you stayed in a VIP room at Concord Hospital in a red building or in the corridors of the district central hospital basically determined the course of your life for the next 28 years. When you are discharged from the hospital, whether you have a household registration in a major city like Beijing or Shanghai, or in a small rural town, basically determines everything that will happen to you before the age of 35. China has no racial discrimination or caste system, but its inherent household registration system still divides people into different groups. I know a kid from out of town; he was born in Guangzhou and has always thought of himself as a native of Guangzhou. People from his hometown said he wasn’t from there, and he even cried over it. When he reached school-age, the teacher told him in person: You are from out of town, so you can only study there on a temporary basis. At that moment, he finally understood the truth in tears. 2) High housing prices: The prices of homes in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou are now on par with those in New York and London, yet you’re holding RMB in your hands. Not to mention garden houses and nice apartments, even a dilapidated small house in the city center costs nearly one million in cash – an amount that ordinary people from other places simply cannot afford. Moreover, they are forced to watch as housing prices keep rising day by day. Buying a house with one’s salary has become increasingly unreliable, after all, an individual’s efforts can never compare to the power of capital. I know very well what it means for a man to have no house. After graduating from college, I faced a series of problems due to not having a home, and it was extremely difficult for me. Women may be able to quickly improve their financial situation by getting married, but men are not so lucky. If you still see no hope of buying a house by the age of 30, then your path in the next life is bound to be extremely difficult. These days, many young people wander around the various corners of big cities after graduating, full of hope yet also devoid of it. Their most common occupations are: front desk customer service, administrative and HR work, sales, and similar roles. These young people take advantage of their youth in big cities, drifting through life; they have a meal with friends on weekends and then post it on social media to show off, which seems pretty artistic. But after turning 30, they still had no home or household registration, and financial pressures suddenly mounted; as a result, the men became depressed while the women started to complain. 3) A bleak future: If you are in a big city and rely on your youth to make a living, renting a single room, you might manage to get by until the age of 40, but what after that? There is probably no future after that. If you can’t even solve your own problems, let alone the burdens of your family. Most rural college students born in the 1980s and 1990s attend university at the expense of their parents’ happiness, but most of them see no hope of recouping those costs after graduation, leaving their elderly parents trapped in poverty. Why do college students from other places tend to lose their jobs around the age of 40? Think about it: why did companies hire you instead of those middle-aged local women in their 40s? It’s not because you have superior skills or competence, but because you are young, cause fewer problems, and have more energy. By the time you reach 40 and have become an old hand at your job, do you really think companies will be willing to keep you on until retirement? Don’t even think about it. Pack your things and go to the finance department to get your salary paid. I am very aware of the psychological salary expectations of current college graduates when looking for jobs: 5,000 yuan upon graduation, and a monthly salary of over 10,000 yuan within three years. This is actually just nonsense. 99% of university graduates see their monthly salary stop increasing once it reaches 8,000. Those who often claim to earn a million yuan per year in their social circles are usually people involved in dropshipping. The chances of earning a million yuan per year in Guangzhou are even lower than the odds of meeting Airi Suzuki while taking the BRT. In Guangzhou, if you earn over 20,000 yuan per month, you’re considered part of the middle class; earning 50,000 yuan per month is truly very difficult, and there are also strict evaluation criteria in place. 4) The cycle of history: Many years ago, at Guangzhou Railway Station, I saw countless migrant workers, carrying snake-skin bags and various packages, struggling to leave the station. They looked around helplessly, hoping to spot some job advertisement. I remember it was raining heavily that day; many migrant workers, men and women, were huddled under the broken eaves of the station, a heartbreaking sight. Twenty years have passed, and history has circled again. Today’s children from poor families, after graduating from university, come to big cities from all over. They had no time to lament the unfairness of fate; after dropping their luggage in the rental house, they went out right away to look for jobs.
Continuing, they are eager to improve their poor living conditions through their own efforts; they dare to face challenges and confront a harsh life, never losing hope. But these people are now suffering greatly, mainly from unfair employment conditions resulting from networks of influence and industry monopolies, as well as the wealth gap caused by high housing prices. The fate of the vast majority of them is to work hard their entire lives and end up in misery in old age. Fleeing one’s hometown, which is bound for decline? The high housing prices in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen are due to the fact that these cities possess all of China’s best resources and benefits, including political resources, business resources, educational resources, medical resources, human resources, intellectual resources, policy incentives, and various living benefits. Should you stay in Beijing, Shanghai, or Guangzhou, or go back to a small county town? This is a question that cannot be avoided and must be answered. If you stay in Beijing, Shanghai, or Guangzhou, you might have to suffer for 20 years before you can afford a house, but those who manage to persevere will surely be the winners. If you eventually choose to stay in a small, picturesque town with a comfortable lifestyle, you might be able to live a happy life there; but when your children reach your age, they will likely have only one option: to leave their hometowns, which are bound to decline over time. Cities like Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou certainly need young people, but the problem is that there are too many people now, so restrictions are imposed and people are encouraged to leave. But once a certain balance is reached, the gates will open again, and those who remain will be the survivors. How many years will it take? Maybe 5 years, maybe 25 years – no one knows. When I was in undergraduate college, Guangzhou was still a dusty construction site. Like my peers, my family didn’t give me any money or a house apart from my household registration. I stood alone at a job fair on Guangzhou Avenue, suffering from disdain and humiliation. Back then, I resolved to buy a house; twenty years later, I got far more than that. Poverty is not scary; as long as you don’t lose confidence and find the right methods, society will reward you. I know that many young people are the only children in their families, the pillars of the household, and the sole hope for their whole family. But four years of undergraduate study only taught me to criticize reality, blame it, and daydream. I hope these young people can wake up as soon as possible, see a world different from that of school education, and strive to adapt to reality instead of waiting for something to fall from the sky. I can’t say whether the young people on the subway will be able to turn things around in the future, but you should at least lose clearly, so that the next generation doesn’t have to go through the same mistakes. I remember a snowy night in the 1990s when I was on a business trip in the northeast. The glass in the rental house might have been broken by children; it was very late and no one could be found to fix it. I spent those cold, icy nights shivering with cold, unable to sleep, suffering until dawn.
Go on; as long as one has patience, they will see hope. If you persevere for twenty years, thirty years – if one generation fails, the next can take up the task; there is definitely hope. But if you give up, then all that hard work will have been in vain. A few heartfelt words to those from poor families. This year, your life path is destined to be full of thorns and hardships. You will encounter too much anger, sadness, helplessness, and even despair. Especially after you get married, all sorts of troubles will pile up, leaving you exhausted and in great distress. No one can solve this; you can only hold on. If you’re lucky, by the time you reach 35–40, you’ll be able to get out of this difficult situation pretty much. Remember, stop grieving over the past – nothing can be done about it; just focus on your future. Pressure drives people to progress, and suffering helps them grow. The meaning of life is to climb higher generation after generation; one generation serves as a ladder for the next. If a certain generation collapses, then it’s necessary to start over, and in any case, the effort to climb upward continues without end. Look at the New Year season: some people are in line to buy nice apartments, while others are in line to get train tickets – these are different ways of living. Don’t complain, don’t get discouraged. When you feel like you can’t go on any longer, remember to tell yourself: “I’m doing this not just for myself, but also for my family and children. I must buy a home in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, or Shenzhen so that I can settle down there. Even if it means sacrificing myself, I still have to fill this gap.” "You filled it out well; in the future, your child will be able to proceed smoothly. If you choose to give up, then your children will follow in your footsteps twenty years from now, and it will be even more difficult for them. I won’t travel far while my parents are around, but only Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen can help me succeed.
Pah, still twenty years from now, thirty years from now – with such poor working and living conditions, how many people will be able to live until retirement? At our age, we attend more and more funerals. Not to mention those from the previous generation or even older ones – people of our own age as well are closing their eyes and will never see the sun again. Stay in the big city for the next generation? All the contributions go to big cities, feeding their wealthy and powerful inhabitants whose quality of life is ensured, but what about the poor? High rent, daily expenses, the difficulty of securing tickets during the Spring Festival travel rush, parents and children not being around – all these issues; is it still possible to live a proper life like a human being? Are parents and children nothing more than \"money-making machines\" in big cities? Besides, it doesn’t even earn much money. Life is short, just a few decades; one should live as a human being, experiencing family bonds, love, and friendship, rather than focusing only on cold money. Although the city is small, many people still stay there, and the quality of life is quite high ； The city is vast – which square meter belongs to you? Living among a crowded crowd, yet feeling extremely lonely.
The last sentence touched people’s hearts.
Me, Ni? It’s Lynne.
After reading it, I felt even more desperate
That’s a bit pessimistic; people live not just so that the next generation can live better.