248: Chapter 248 Wishing everyone a happy new year!

Hearing this, on the other end of the phone, Zhou Ping subconsciously held his breath.

"Academician Lin, please go ahead."

He unconsciously lowered his voice, his back straightening a bit.

Lin Yuan was in no hurry to speak.

On this end of the line, Lin Yuan leaned back on the sofa, his fingertips lightly tapping the armrest.

"Director Zhou, lowering electricity prices is the most direct and obvious manifestation of the dividends of unlimited energy."

"The higher-ups' plan has already addressed this point very well."

"But electricity prices are merely the surface layer of this energy dividend."

Lin Yuan's voice was steady and unhurried, each word carrying a clear logical chain.

"Have you considered that once the base electricity price drops off a cliff, the cost structures of these energy-intensive industries will undergo a massive shock in a very short period?"

"Costs will be halved, and profits will skyrocket."

"Those capitalists, with senses sharper than a dog's, will never let such a massive cake brought by this impact slip away easily."

"The higher-ups need to think through ahead of time what they will do."

There was silence on the other end for two seconds.

Then, Zhou Ping's voice rang out again, his tone steady and carrying a hint of confidence.

"Academician Lin, the higher-ups have actually had full discussions regarding this point."

"The chain reactions triggered by drastic cost changes in energy-intensive industries were naturally given systematic evaluations and considerations when the higher-ups were drafting the grid integration plan."

"But to be honest, this is a lagging effect after all."

"After electricity prices drop, the reduction in upstream costs will take time to gradually propagate to the market terminals."

"Our country is currently a market economy where everything is interconnected; the higher-ups believe that being too hasty might instead cause chaos in market order and backfire."

"As the macro-regulator, the state cannot directly use administrative orders to forcibly intervene."

"So the current strategy is to prepare various economic contingency plans in advance to deal with overcapacity, price wars, and capital fluctuations."

Zhou Ping paused for a beat, his tone revealing pragmatism and experience.

"We need to use steady means to ensure a smooth transition of this energy dividend, maximizing the benefits for the real economy and ordinary people, rather than letting it be intercepted by intermediary capital."

After Zhou Ping finished, his tone carried a bit of confidence in the efficiency of his think tank team.

After listening, Lin Yuan first nodded in deep agreement.

"Director Zhou, your considerations are very comprehensive, and the higher-ups' concerns are also very thoughtful."

He first gave a sincere affirmation.

But immediately after, a very light chuckle came through the receiver.

"However, Director Zhou."

Lin Yuan's tone remained relaxed, perhaps even more casual than before.

"Everything you just said is based on the framework of a market economy, performing passive defensive regulation."

"Whether it's contingency plans or preventing capital interception, they are essentially waiting for the market to digest the dividends itself, with the state just standing by to provide a safety net."

"There's nothing wrong with this line of thinking."

"But—"

Lin Yuan's voice paused for a beat.

"Besides the market economy."

"Doesn't our country still have the state-owned economy that holds an absolutely dominant position?"

On the other end of the phone, Zhou Ping was stunned for a moment upon hearing this.

Lin Yuan didn't give him much time to react and continued.

"Director Zhou, let me just give a few basic examples."

His tone was relaxed, as if chatting casually after a meal.

"Telecommunications."

"Tap water."

"Natural gas supply."

"Public transportation."

He rattled them off one by one, and with each one, the silence on the other end of the line deepened.

"These fields are all core infrastructure related to national welfare and people's livelihood, and they are all absolutely dominated by our State-Owned Enterprises!"

"And they share a common characteristic."

Lin Yuan's index finger lightly tapped the armrest of the sofa.

"In the daily operating costs, electricity consumption accounts for an extremely terrifying proportion."

"Telecom base stations need uninterrupted power, and data centers are power-hungry beasts."

"The extraction, multi-stage purification, and city-wide pressurized delivery of tap water—every step is inseparable from high-intensity electric power."

"The electrification of public transport has been accelerating at full speed over the last few years; the high-speed rail crisscrossing the country, subway lines in major cities, the increasing number of electric buses on the streets... ultimately, they all rely on electricity for support."

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone.

It was so quiet that Lin Yuan could even hear Zhou Ping's heavy breathing.

Lin Yuan's tone was firm as he continued to press on.

"Director Zhou."

"When the dividends of unlimited energy hit and electricity prices drop off a cliff."

"The operating costs of these state-owned basic industries will inevitably drop significantly along with it."

"This isn't speculation; it's an absolute certainty."

"Once costs drop, a massive profit margin will emerge."

Lin Yuan paused for a second, the smile at the corners of his lips fully spreading.

"And this extra profit margin doesn't need to wait for the market to slowly digest it, nor do we need to worry about it being intercepted by those capital sharks!"

"Because the primary entities in these industries are the state itself!"

"The state can lead the way and flip the table at any time!"

From the other end of the phone came a very heavy breath from Zhou Ping.

"Communication fees."

"Water bills."

"These are fixed, immovable expenses that come out of the people's pockets every month."

"If, at the same time as the Controlled Nuclear Fusion grid integration, the state announced a comprehensive and significant reduction in these basic livelihood costs..."

"Then what the people would feel wouldn't just be that 'electricity is cheaper.'"

"It would be an all-around collapse of the entire cost of living!"

"It would be real money, saving hundreds or even thousands of yuan a month, allowing the people to buy a few more pounds of meat at the market or a few more pieces of new clothing!"

Zhou Ping's Adam's apple bobbed violently.

He had a vague premonition of what Lin Yuan was going to say next.

And sure enough.

Lin Yuan's voice rang out again, calm, firm, and carrying a natural warmth.

"Director Zhou."

"The reduction in electricity prices is already a settled matter."

"Since we're doing it, why not take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and do it all at once?"

"If the electricity bills for telecom base stations drop, can internet and phone bills follow suit?"

"If the electricity bills for water plants drop, can water bills drop?"

"If the operating costs for high-speed rail and subways drop, can travel fares drop?"

"My personal suggestion is to tie these livelihood projects related to the people's basic needs—food, clothing, housing, and transportation—to electricity prices and lower them all in one package."

Lin Yuan tilted his head slightly, his gaze passing through the window and landing on the distant skyline.

"Isn't the New Year coming up soon?"

"Since Controlled Nuclear Fusion is set to be integrated into the grid before the New Year."

"Then why don't we take this opportunity to give the 1.4 billion people across the country an unprecedented livelihood red envelope!"

Lin Yuan's voice was low, yet powerful and resonant.

"Let our people of Xia Country all have a good New Year!"