In May 2030, to welcome the upcoming fortieth anniversary of independence, the weathered Kremlin was given a fresh new look.
Wang Ye was still working in that familiar office. Twenty-one years had passed since he first took office and moved into the Kremlin, and he was now serving his fourth consecutive term.
In his forties, a man was at the height of his charm—let alone a man who had wielded power and commanded immense influence across the globe for more than twenty years.
Thus, compared to twenty years ago, Wang Ye was practically a different person.
Back then, when media outlets and magazines described him, they preferred terms such as "handsome and upright," "charismatic," and "young and accomplished." After all, politicians as young, handsome, and highly placed as him were exceedingly rare.
But now, whenever he was mentioned, no one paid attention to his appearance or age anymore. They only marveled at his "powerful presence," "influence," "approval ratings," and "political acumen."
While most politicians in their forties were still striving to climb higher, Wang Ye had already sat at the "mountaintop" for twenty-one years...
Under his leadership, Russia and all of Eastern Europe had undergone earth-shaking changes over the past twenty years.
Russia's GDP had maintained rapid growth year after year. Although it had failed to sustain the astonishing annual growth rates of 20% to 30% seen around 2010, it had never dropped below 10%!
After twenty consecutive years of rapid growth, by 2030, the nation's GDP had quadrupled compared with twenty years earlier. It ranked second in the world, behind only one Asian country!
Measured by per capita GNP, it had also entered the ranks of highly developed nations. Russia had become an unquestionable superpower!
As for the former number one power, beginning in 2025, a debt crisis had