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  • Deng Xiaoping and the 1977 Conference on Science and Education

    Deng Xiaoping and the 1977 Conference on Science and Education
    2026/07/21
    Before gaokao was restored or Special Economic Zones opened, Deng Xiaoping himself sat down with 33 scientists and educators in a conference room at the Great Hall of the People. This August 1977 meeting, the Forum on Science and Education, was the quiet pivot point where Deng laid out his vision: science and technology are productive forces, intellectuals are workers, and China must catch up with the world. We walk through the room — who was there, what they said, what Deng wrote in the margins of their written reports — and how that single 5-day conversation set the course for China's research universities, the 863 Program, and the entire reform-era emphasis on technical talent. Featuring physicist Zhou Peiyuan, chemist Wang Ganchang, and the controversial slogan 'to catch up and surpass.' #DengXiaoping #GaigeKaifang #ScienceAndEducation #ZhouPeiyuan #WangGanchang #ForumOnScienceAndEducation #1977 #GreatHallOfThePeople #FangYi #FourModernizations #Zhongnanhai #Intellectuals #ChineseHistory #EastAsia #History #FexingoHistory #ColdWarChina #EducationReform Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    8 分
  • Deng Xiaoping's 1983 Anti-Spiritual Pollution Campaign

    Deng Xiaoping's 1983 Anti-Spiritual Pollution Campaign
    2026/07/21
    In 1983, Deng Xiaoping launched the Anti-Spiritual Pollution Campaign, a conservative backlash against Western cultural influences that had flooded China after the reforms began. For a few months, authorities cracked down on 'unhealthy' literature, music, and thought. Intellectuals were targeted, magazines shut down, and even the fashion of bell-bottoms and permed hair came under fire. But the campaign fizzled out by early 1984, revealing the deep tensions between economic openness and ideological control. This episode explores the forgotten campaign through key figures like Hu Qiaomu, who drafted the original directive, and Wang Ruoshui, a party theorist who pushed back. We follow the campaign's rise and fall, its impact on writers and artists, and how Deng himself eventually pulled the plug to avoid derailing reform. It's a fascinating window into the contradictions at the heart of China's modernization. #DengXiaoping #AntiSpiritualPollution #GaigeKaifang #HuQiaomu #WangRuoshui #ChineseHistory #1983 #CulturalCrackdown #ReformEra #ColdWar #SocialismWithChineseCharacteristics #Zhongnanhai #Intellectuals #Censorship #China #History #FexingoHistory #EastAsia Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 分
  • Deng Xiaoping's 1979 War with Vietnam: A Brutal Lesson

    Deng Xiaoping's 1979 War with Vietnam: A Brutal Lesson
    2026/07/20
    In February 1979, China launched a devastating but short-lived invasion of Vietnam, a conflict that shocked the world and reshaped Deng Xiaoping's military strategy. This episode dives into the Sino-Vietnamese War—its origins in the breakdown of Cold War alliances, the brutal month-long campaign, and the staggering casualties on both sides. We explore why Deng, fresh from normalizing ties with the US, ordered a 'punitive' strike against his former communist ally, and how the war exposed deep weaknesses in the People's Liberation Army. Drawing on Chinese and Vietnamese sources, we examine the battles at Cao Bang and Lang Son, the role of ethnic minorities in the border regions, and the war's lasting impact on China's defense modernization. Lucas and Luna also discuss the human cost: the thousands of soldiers killed on both sides, the devastating use of artillery, and the strategic miscalculations that left both nations scarred. A sobering look at a forgotten conflict that still echoes in Sino-Vietnamese relations today. #SinoVietnameseWar #BorderWar1979 #DengXiaoping #PeopleLiberationArmy #CaoBang #LangSon #ColdWarAsia #VietnamWarAftermath #Chinamilitary #DefenseModernization #GaigeKaifang #CommunistRift #PunitiveExpedition #MilitaryStrategy #BorderConflict #History #FexingoHistory #EastAsia Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 分
  • Deng Xiaoping's 1979 Border War: The Lesson That Shaped China's Army

    Deng Xiaoping's 1979 Border War: The Lesson That Shaped China's Army
    2026/07/20
    In February 1979, China launched a sudden, punitive invasion of Vietnam — a war that lasted just 28 days but left deep scars on both sides. Lucas and Luna unpack the Sino-Vietnamese War, from Deng Xiaoping's strategic calculus and the humiliating lessons learned by the People's Liberation Army to the brutal fighting in the mountain passes of northern Vietnam. They discuss the role of General Yang Dezhi, the controversial withdrawal, and how the war's failures forced a generation of military reforms. Along the way, they touch on the complex history of Sino-Vietnamese relations, from Ho Chi Minh's alliance with Mao to the bitter split over Cambodia. This episode reveals a forgotten chapter that reshaped China's military thinking and its place in Cold War Asia. #SinoVietnameseWar #DengXiaoping #Vietnam #China #ColdWar #PLA #YangDezhi #HoChiMinh #Cambodia #PeopleLiberationArmy #GaigeKaifang #1979 #BorderWar #MilitaryHistory #AsiaHistory #History #FexingoHistory #ReformEra Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    6 分
  • Deng Xiaoping's 1985 Military Parade and the Promise of Troop Reductions

    Deng Xiaoping's 1985 Military Parade and the Promise of Troop Reductions
    2026/07/19
    In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore Deng Xiaoping's 1985 decision to reduce the People's Liberation Army by one million troops, a move that shocked the military establishment and signaled a new era of reform. They delve into the 1984 National Day parade where Deng watched from Tiananmen as China's newest military hardware rolled past—including the DF-5 ICBM and Type 79 tanks—while already planning deep cuts. The conversation covers the tension between modernization and budget constraints, the role of Defense Minister Zhang Aiping in pushing for high-tech weapons, and how the cuts funded the transition to a smaller, more professional force. They also touch on the 1985 Central Military Commission meeting where Deng laid out the new doctrine of 'people's war under modern conditions.' This episode reveals how Deng balanced military strength with economic reform, a tightrope walk that reshaped China's defense posture for decades. #DengXiaoping #PLA #MilitaryReform #1984Parade #ZhangAiping #DF5 #ICBM #TroopReductions #GaigeKaifang #PeopleWarUnderModernConditions #CentralMilitaryCommission #Tiananmen #Type79 #EastAsia #ColdWar #ChineseHistory #ReformEra #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 分
  • Deng Xiaoping and the 1986 Bankruptcy Law That Shook China

    Deng Xiaoping and the 1986 Bankruptcy Law That Shook China
    2026/07/19
    In 1986, China passed its first Bankruptcy Law, a radical experiment that tested the boundaries of Deng Xiaoping's economic reforms. This episode follows the unlikely figure of Cao Siyuan, a young economist who drafted the law, and the fierce resistance from state-owned enterprises and conservative ideologues. We explore the symbolic case of Shenyang Explosion Prevention Equipment Factory, the first state-owned enterprise declared bankrupt, and the political tightrope Deng walked between market efficiency and socialist stability. How did a law designed to let failing factories die become a tool for restructuring rather than liquidation? And what does this tell us about the contradictions at the heart of Gaige Kaifang? Lucas and Luna unpack a policy battle that pitted Chen Yun's caution against Zhao Ziyang's boldness, with Deng as the ultimate arbiter. #DengXiaoping #BankruptcyLaw1986 #CaoSiyuan #GaigeKaifang #ShenyangExplosionFactory #ZhaoZiyang #ChenYun #StateOwnedEnterprises #ChineseEconomicReform #SocialistMarketEconomy #Liaoning #Shenyang #Beijing #History #FexingoHistory #1980sChina #PoliticalEconomy #LawAndReform Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    8 分
  • Deng Xiaoping and the 1982 Draft Constitution: Rule of Law in Reform Era China

    Deng Xiaoping and the 1982 Draft Constitution: Rule of Law in Reform Era China
    2026/07/18
    In 1980, Deng Xiaoping launched a constitutional revision that would reshape China's legal framework. This episode follows the drafting of the 1982 Constitution, the fourth in PRC history, which replaced the Mao-era 1975 and 1978 documents. Lucas and Luna explore how Deng sought to balance party control with legal stability, introducing concepts like 'rule of law' (yifa zhiguo) and the separation of party and government. They discuss key figures like Peng Zhen, who chaired the constitutional revision committee, and the debates over term limits for state leaders, the role of the National People's Congress, and the inclusion of fundamental rights. The episode also covers the controversial rejection of a Soviet-style presidency and the compromise that created the state chairmanship. How did the 1982 Constitution become the longest-lasting in PRC history, enduring even after Tiananmen? And why did Deng insist on a clause limiting the state chair to two terms—a rule he himself later helped circumvent? This is a story of legal engineering as political survival. #DengXiaoping #1982Constitution #ChineseConstitution #PengZhen #ReformEra #RuleOfLaw #GaigeKaifang #NPC #TermLimits #YifaZhiguo #1980sChina #LegalReform #ChineseLaw #PRCHistory #Zhongnanhai #Beijing #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    10 分
  • Deng Xiaoping's 1978 Visit to Japan: Learning from the Miracle

    Deng Xiaoping's 1978 Visit to Japan: Learning from the Miracle
    2026/07/18
    In October 1978, Deng Xiaoping stepped off a plane in Tokyo for a historic visit that would reshape China's economic future. Fresh from the Third Plenum, Deng was determined to learn from Japan's postwar miracle. He toured factories, rode the Shinkansen bullet train, and met with Emperor Hirohito and Prime Minister Fukuda Takeo. The episode delves into Deng's candid exchanges, his fascination with Japanese management and technology, and the delicate dance of acknowledging past wartime atrocities while forging a new partnership. We hear about the impromptu embassy meeting with Chinese students, Deng's quip about 'seeking the truth from facts' in a Nissan plant, and the quieter moments that revealed his strategic vision. The visit led to Japan's first official development aid to China and set the template for China's opening-up policy. Lucas and Luna explore how Deng's 1978 Japan trip was a masterclass in pragmatism — borrowing from a former adversary to build a new China. #DengXiaoping #ChinaJapan #1978Visit #Shinkansen #FukudaTakeo #EmperorHirohito #GaigeKaifang #Nissan #Zhongnanhai #SeekTruthFromFacts #FourModernizations #JapaneseEconomicMiracle #ODA #DengXiaoping1978 #EastAsia #History #FexingoHistory #ColdWarAsia Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    6 分