I realize that I have painted a darkly realistic picture of mainland China today, but what I am trying to do is to explain the basic situation that the Chinese communists must face: hardships, shortages, the apathy of the masses and the rigidity of the bureaucracy.
我知道我已為目前的中國大陸描繪出一幅黯淡真實的圖象。無疑地，各位之中有人會問我，何以我沒有談到中共目前的若干改革。我今天想做的，是要說明中共必須應付的基本情況﹘﹘困苦、匱乏、大眾的冷漠和官僚的頑固。