Well said!
No one knew who had said it.
A thunderous round of applause erupted throughout the venue.
Everyone thought Jiang Siming had put it perfectly, every word a gem, every word striking home!
Jiang Siming merely raised his hand, signaling for everyone to quiet down.
He then turned to the male student and said:
"Let's talk again about the issue of strength and weakness as you see it. Because of historical factors such as the Qing Dynasty's policy of isolation, our country stagnated at the very time when it most needed to develop. That led to the enormous gap between us and the other great powers in modern times. This is a historical problem we cannot change, nor can we deny it. Since the beginning of the modern era, our country truly has lagged behind the Western powers. Even some Asian countries developed better than we did. That is beyond dispute and impossible to refute."
Everyone nodded slightly, their hearts heavy. The facts were indeed as he had said.
If feudal society had not been so backward, why would our country have lagged behind other nations in every respect over the past century?
If our country had begun developing alongside the others back then, why would it later have been bullied so badly?
If the people in power at the time had possessed even a little common sense, then with our country's deep foundations, we might not have led the world, but at the very least, we would not have fallen so far behind.
Unfortunately, they had left behind a complete mess—one so disastrous that it was almost beyond saving.
And yet, they had still managed to turn the tables and make a comeback.
Jiang Siming shifted the subject and continued:
"However, ever since the founding of New China,