China's policy of Reform and Opening-up was started by Deng Xiao Ping in December 1978. After he was appointed as the First Vice Premier of the State Council in July 1977, Deng Xiao Ping restored national college entrance examinations, and removed the power of Chinese Communist Party officials in deciding who among applicants could enroll in universities. 


Because of his father's senior official position, Xi Jinping had been recommended by a tiny number of CCP officials to enroll in Qinghua University in 1975. Unlike hundreds of thousands of college applicants who sat for the college entrance examinations which were standardized on a national level, Xi did not have to prove anything and got into a well-known university the easy way. 


Deng's policy opened the door to college applicants who passed the national competition to enroll in top universities based on their scores. The examination process was largely transparent and much less corrupt as compared with the one that Xi benefited from. For the first time since 1968, the Chinese people got a taste of freedom in a small area - They did not have to curry favors with communist officials to get into colleges. It excited whole China and every family started talking about Deng's bold move in ridding of CCP officials' meddling in the process of college admissions.
 
From this experiment, people saw how much energy and productivity could be unlocked by loosening the shackles that the CCP had forced upon the Chinese people. Once free, the Chinese people would create wonders. This was an exciting beginning that led to the Reform and Opening-up, which Deng formally launched in late 1978. The Reform and Opening-up led to large growth opportunities for private businesses and uplifted the GDP per capita in China from US$156.40 in 1978 to over $10,500 in 2020. 




Xi has deep envy and fear of those people who were able to pass the standardized national college entrance examinations, including the current premier Li Keqiang who got high scores and was able to enroll in Peking Unveristy where he earned a Ph.D. in economics. The fear and envy drove Xi to enroll in Qinghua University doctoral program in 1998. This time, instead of chemical engineering for his undergraduate major, Xi got a Ph.D. degree in Marxist and Communist theories.

Xi proved that he barely had to study for this Ph.D. degree because during the years 1999 - 2002, Xi served as the governor and communist party secretary of Fujian Province. It was a coastal province with 38 million population. Many were busy pursuing their opportunities made possible by Reform and Opening-up. Each one of Xi's official titles would require a full time commitment. Either Xi was exceedingly brilliant or the Ph.D. at Qinghua University in Marxist theories was obtainable without much of an effort. 

Xi fears and resents those who want freedom and opportunities to earn a better living through their own talent and efforts. Xi is terribly scared by people who are free. Xi is particularly fearful of free-spirited people who dare to speak up, display their talents and pursue their dreams. Entrepreneurs who build businesses in China are exactly such people - free-spirited, and brave enough in taking actions to pursue their dreams. How can they achieve their goals otherwise? 

Xi transformed his insecurity and fear of free-spirited people into an attempt to stop using the words of Reform and Opening up in official documents at the conclusion of the National People's Congress which ended in March. Despite his failure, Xi was reluctant to even utter the words Reform and Opening-up in his official remarks. 


Xi created a number of work groups and named himself head of each group. Using this scheme and by insisting on the dominance of the CCP over executive power and functions of the State Council which is headed by Premier Li Keqiang, Xi has usurped much power for himself. 


In the 40 years of the Reform and Opening-up under Deng Xiao Ping, Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao, private businesses enjoyed some limited freedom. Throughout his career as a city and provincial bureaucrat, Xi has witnessed the power of private businesses, which produced miracles when given a chance to prosper. Xi developed an envy and fear of the private businesses. He feels his own power is threatened by the growth and prosperity of private businesses. Xi tries to control if not squash businesses' growth whenever he could. 


Xi has inserted himself into many areas where he knows little or has no experience. His zero-Covid policy is just one such example, not to mention his disastrous policies that crushed industries like China's extra-curricular education, Internet economy, real estate, wolf-warrior foreign policies, just to name a few. 


Having abolished the term limit by altering the constitution, Xi has made himself the emperor for life with unlimited power over the military, the CCP and the Chinese government. This is unstable and not sustainable as Xi's rule has already crippled China's economy.