Comrade Xi Jinping pointed out in the report of the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China: “All of us in the Party must work hard and live simply, guard against arrogance and impetuosity; and lose no time in progressing along the long march of the new era.” This important discussion has also become one of the hot issues of the National Committee of the two sessions this year. Standing at the new historical starting point, we deeply understand the  guidance of Comrade Xi Jinping. We must aim high, strive for hard work, seek truth from facts, follow the law, set feet on the ground and start again, step by step, take the long march of the new era.  

Socialism with Chinese characteristics has crossed the threshold into a new era. This is a major political judgment made by our party in scientifically judging the international and domestic trends and major social contradictions, and making new historical directions for China's development. This new era will be an era of building on past successes to further advance our cause, and of continuing in a new historical context to strive for the success of socialism with Chinese characteristics. It will be an era of securing a decisive victory in building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, and of moving on to all-out efforts to build a great modern socialist country. It will be an era for the Chinese people of all ethnic groups to work together and work hard to create a better life for themselves and ultimately achieve common prosperity for everyone. It will be an era for all of us, the sons and daughters of the Chinese nation, to strive with one heart to realize the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation. It will be an era that sees China moving closer to center stage and making greater contributions to mankind. Undoubtedly, this new era is a great era for us to show great ambitions and create extraordinary achievements.

It is noteworthy that in the face of the great judgment made by our Party that Socialism with Chinese characteristics has crossed the threshold into a new era, and in the face of the brilliant achievements and great victories that have been achieved, there are some comrades who are blindly optimistic and mistakenly think that it is a breeze to realize the great blueprint of our party. Some comrades even set some unrealistic development goals regardless of China's current basic national conditions and local realities. Some comrades are conceited and pleasure-seeking, unwilling to work hard and create new glorious achievements. 

History serves both as the best textbook and dose of sobriety. On the basis of comprehensively summarizing historical experience and profoundly grasping the requirements of the times, in the face of major changes in the main contradictions of our society, Comrade Xi Jinping emphasized that the new era is a new era of socialism with Chinese characteristics, not any other new era.  As socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, the principal contradiction facing Chinese society has evolved. What we now face is the contradiction between unbalanced and inadequate development and the people’s ever-growing needs for a better life. But the evolution of the principal contradiction facing Chinese society does not change our assessment of the present stage of socialism in China. The basic dimension of the Chinese context—that our country is still and will long remain in the primary stage of socialism—has not changed. China’s international status as the world’s largest developing country has not changed.

The primary stage of socialism is a historical stage in which underdevelopment is gradually shaken off and socialist modernization is basically realized. This stage needs at least a hundred years, and it is an insuperable historical stage for China's development. 

We must also see that although China’s economic aggregate has now ranked second in the world, economic strength, scientific and technological capabilities, defense capabilities, and comprehensive national strength have entered the forefront of the world, and China’s international status has been improved unprecedentedly. However, at present, there is still a big gap between China’s per capital GDP and developed countries. The rural poverty population in China is still over 30 million, and the poverty headcount ratio is 3.1%. China is still facing the pressure of the developed countries' dominance in economy, science, technology and military. China is still the largest developing country in the world. This reality is always the basic basis for us to think about problems, make decisions and do things. 

The era gives us examination paper, we are the examinees, and the people are the examiners. Looking forward to the future, we are confident to answer the examination paper of this era for building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, basically realizing modernization, building a great modern socialist country, and then realizing the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation. We always have such ambitions. However, these ambitious goals can never be achieved easily. We cannot proceed from the subjective wishes of wishful thinking, can not start from a variety of foreign models, cannot proceed from the dogmatic understanding of individual assertions in Marxist works and some wrong arguments attached to the name of Marxism. We must always keep in mind the principle of "Empty talk harms the country; while hard work makes it flourish”. On the basis of the national condition that our country is still in the primary stage of socialism, we must get feet firmly on the ground, work hard and turn the blueprint into a living reality step by step.

Studying from history, we can see the rule of falling and rising. Keeping feet firmly on the ground and start again, this requires us to always maintain a struggling revolutionary spirit and revolutionary fighting spirit. Yesterday's success does not mean that we will succeed forever. The glory of the past does not mean that it can be brilliant forever. We must not be proud of victory, we must not slack off because of our achievements, and we must not withdraw because of difficulties. At the same time, we must be soberly aware that it is not easy to be alert to dangers even in times of calm. In the period of prosperity and development, it is not easy to maintain the mental state of making great efforts in the early stage of entrepreneurship. It is not easy to be frugal and restrained after taking power. It is not easy to punish official administration, prevent corruption and extravagance. It is not easy to follow the trend and adapt to the people's hearts at the time of major reform. The more achievements we have made, the more cautious we must be, the more alert to dangers even in times of calm we must be. We must not make strategic and subversive mistakes because of the blindly act as foolhardy. 

Difficulties and hardships are the foundation of success. Keeping feet firmly on the ground and start again, this requires us to carry forward spirit of hard struggle. Struggle is hard, without hardship, it is not a real struggle; Struggle is long-term, each generation has its own historical mission, great cause needs several generations, dozens of generations or even decades of people to continue to struggle; Struggle is tortuous, to struggle there will be sacrifices. We need to always carry forward the spirit of fearless and unselfishness. The new era is the era of the strugglers, and hard work will always be the fine tradition and style of our party. To carry forward the great spirit of struggle in the new era is to real grasp, brave grasp, skillful grasp, tough grasp, not to dream unrealistic, not to pursue illusory things. Through hard work and quiet cultivation, we will achieve extraordinary performance, create a better life, and realize the true meaning of happy life. 

Time always favor a person who struggles unremittingly. Entering the new era, facing the great opportunities and unprecedented challenges, we must not only have the great dream of national rejuvenation, the heroic spirit of fighting hard, but also take the scientific attitude of seeking truth from facts and the spirit of reverence, abandon all unrealistic fantasies, have feet firmly on the ground and start again, then we can take the long march of the new era step by step, and deeply leave the footprints of our generation's indomitable struggle in this historical journey. 

(The author is the vice chairman of the Shandong CPPCC and the secretary of the Party Committee of the Shandong Academy of Social Sciences)