Nian’s statement–that ‘Deng perfected socialism’–captures in three words the topsy-turvy world that the Party and the private sector have come to inhabit in China. The Party, which espouses socialism, spends much of its time deferring to the market. Entrepreneurs like Nian, who worship the market, are careful to defer to the Party. In this environment, it is little wonder that the dividing line between what is public and what is private in China is often still impossible to detect.
