Hu Rongtao and Peng Yiming: An Examination of the Origin and Discourse Innovation of the Concept of a "High-Standard Socialist Market Economy System"
"High-level socialist market economy system" is an important concept of "new-type relations of production" generated during the transition of China's economy from a stage of high-speed growth to a stage of high-quality development, adapted to new quality productive forces; it is a vital goal of Chinese-path modernization. Currently, the academic community has conducted scholarly discussions around the study of the high-level socialist market economy system, covering its challenges, connotative characteristics, historical logic, core tenets, construction paths, world-historical significance, and key tasks. However, research into the philological origins and discursive evolution of the "high-level socialist market economy system" concept from the perspective of conceptual history remains somewhat insufficient. As a highly distinctive conceptual expression within the Communist Party of China's (CPC) reform discourse system, the formation and development of the "high-level socialist market economy system" has undergone a lengthy historical process, reflecting the CPC’s arduous journey, its original aspiration and founding mission, and its intellectual wisdom in exploring the construction of economic systems. Systematically tracing the formation process and semantic evolution of the "high-level socialist market economy system" from the perspective of conceptual history can reconstruct the cognitive process regarding economic systems among people of ideals and integrity [1] in modern China—particularly the Chinese Communists. It reveals the Party's conscious sense of mission in exploring the Chinese path over the past century, providing beneficial support for uncovering the "code of success" of the Chinese path and profoundly grasping China's economic development model.
I. The Discursive Origins of the "High-Level Socialist Market Economy System" Concept
The generation of a concept is conditioned by specific contexts, characterized by intellectual continuity, and manifested through discursive construction. The concept of a "high-level socialist market economy system" primarily originates from the CPC's unremitting exploration of the economic system—with the relationship between the government and the market as the main thread—while adhering to the principle of the "Two Combinations" [2]. Therefore, a philological investigation of the origins of this concept must, on the one hand, examine the context of classical Marxist writers to clarify the concept’s theoretical foundation; on the other hand, it must analyze the contexts of the late Qing and early Republican periods and the early CPC to reveal the intellectual sources regarding the relationship between the government and the market.
(1) The Meaning of the "Economic System" Concept in the Context of Classical Marxist Writers
In the context of Marx and Engels, the capitalist economic system was the systemic root cause of economic crises, social imbalance, the wealth gap, environmental pollution, and the hardship of the people. Only by comprehensively and thoroughly critiquing the capitalist economic system could a socialist economic system based on principles of economic justice, institutional fairness, and social equity be constructed. Their description of the socialist economic system was essentially built on the foundation of public ownership of the means of production and an immense abundance of material goods, possessing distinct characteristics of planning. First, the abolition of bourgeois ownership and the construction of socialist public ownership constitute the institutional bedrock for establishing a socialist economic system. In the Communist Manifesto, Marx and Engels emphasized the need to "abolish bourgeois property." Private ownership of the means of production provides the proprietary support for the operation of the capitalist economic system, wherein capital exploits surplus value, leading to the alienation of the social community. Consequently, only by abolishing bourgeois ownership and reconstructing individual ownership can the evolution of the social community progress from the alienation of labor to a humanistic return, advancing the social system from backwardness to maturity, social order from chaos to regulation, and social identity from weakening to strengthening. Second, the immense abundance of material goods and highly developed productive forces provide the material basis for establishing a socialist economic system. Marx pointed out: "The development of social productive forces will be so rapid that, although production will be aimed at the prosperity of all, the disposable time of all individuals will still increase." Under a socialist economic system, people will achieve prosperity in a collective sense, and disposable time will become the measure of wealth. Third, the socialist economic system is a planned economy. Marx and Engels noted the need to "increase national factories and instruments of production, bring waste lands into cultivation, and improve the soil generally in accordance with a common plan." Planned production can control the productive capacity and proportions of various production departments according to national development needs and the actual economic conditions of different regions, thereby avoiding the outbreak of periodic economic crises through the effective role of the government.
After World War I, the economic recovery of Soviet Russia was slow, and food crises frequently broke out. To restore the economy, stabilize production, and consolidate political power, Lenin adopted the New Economic Policy—a strategy of "retreating in order to advance." In Lenin's context, the idea of a socialist economic system involving an appropriate "retreat" was reflected in measures to reduce government intervention and expand market mechanisms in fields such as agriculture, industry, and commerce. In the agricultural sector, the surplus-grain appropriation system—originally intended to defend the Soviet regime—had led to the agricultural collapse, rural depression, and peasant famine due to excessive plunder; this became an important breakthrough point for Lenin’s reflections on economic system reform. Lenin pointed out: "Replace the surplus-appropriation system with a tax in kind." Only when peasants had grain surpluses could they maintain their lives, production, and livelihoods, stimulating the momentum of rural market development and facilitating the exchange of rural agricultural products for urban industrial products through the development of cooperatives. In the industrial sector, insisting on the government delegating power and allowing firms to retain profits was conducive to local enterprises improving their autonomy and initiative in development, allowing them to emerge from a highly centralized planned economic system. Lenin proposed: "Expand the degree of independence and initiative of each large enterprise in managing funds and materials." The expansion of "independence and initiative" meant improved corporate efficiency, enhanced technological innovation capabilities, and increased worker productivity, which were conducive to maintaining the Soviet regime economically. In the commercial sector, Lenin advocated for free trade in commodities, moving away from policies that abolished "private traders" and trade controls. Lenin pointed out: "To master trade, to guide it, and to keep it within certain limits—this is something the proletarian state power can do." Lenin viewed commerce as the link between small-scale peasantry and large-scale socialist industry, supporting the development of economic factors such as cooperatives, land rent, currency, and foreign capital, and encouraging the development of various economic forms—including the state-owned economy, private economy, and state capitalism—to transition circuitously to socialism.
(2) Reflections on the "Economic System" in the Context of the Late Qing and Early Republic
In the late Qing and early Republican periods, terms such as qun (group/community), "commercial warfare," "socialism," "economy," and "system" were translated into China via Europe, America, and Japan, gradually promoting the formation of economic system concepts regarding how to correctly handle the relationship between the government and the market. After the Opium War, influenced by Western "mercantilist" trends of thought, progressive figures such as Wang Tao and Zheng Guanying abandoned the traditional concept of "suppressing commerce." They accepted Western market economy concepts and proposed ideas such as "commercial warfare," "building the nation through commerce," "opening trade," and "protecting commerce," encouraging technological innovation to improve labor productivity and advocating the use of government power to promote the development of industry and commerce. With the abolition of the imperial examination system in the late Qing, the gentry group—an important social institution—exited the stage of history. The shift from a "gentry public sphere" to a "gentry-merchant public sphere" caused the original political order and conceptual system of feudal society to gradually disintegrate. Simultaneously, social trends promoting ideas of freedom and equality while criticizing the role of the Qing government gradually emerged. Because progressive intellectuals had not yet formed a scientific understanding of socialism, they explained it only from the perspective of translation and introduction, making it difficult for them to truly understand the significance of the abolition of private ownership in socialism. Liang Qichao believed that "socialism is a special product of the world in the last hundred years. To summarize its most important meaning, it is nothing more than the nationalization of land and capital, specifically regarding labor as the source of value for all things," and that "China’s ancient jingtian [well-field] system shared the same standpoint as modern socialism." Liang Qichao emphasized that public ownership of land was the starting point for developing socialism, but in practice, he did not support the Chinese government adopting land public ownership. Sun Yat-sen advocated for the development of a state-owned economy and championed the Principle of People’s Livelihood [3], which involved developing the economy, improving people’s lives, and regulating capital; he opposed China’s implementation of a Soviet system centered on the elimination of private property. Regarding land, the regulation of capital manifested as the state enjoying the bulk of land value appreciation during the course of development, so as to overcome the problem of the wealth gap generated by imperialist capital exports to China. Sun Yat-sen believed that "moreover, if China implements the Principle of People's Livelihood today, it will be much easier than in Europe or America." As a pioneer of the democratic revolution, Sun Yat-sen argued for both the active intervention of the government in the market and the effective role of the market to promote the development of the national capitalist economy. Compared with Yan Fu’s idea of government non-interference and Sun Yat-sen’s idea of active government intervention, Zhang Jian advocated for maintaining a balance between government intervention and market regulation. Zhang Jian's economic thought originated from the exploratory practice of China's modernization and recognized the interaction between the government and the market relatively scientifically.
(3) Understanding of the "Economic System" Concept in the Context of the Early CPC
In the context of the early CPC, "economic system" had already become an entry point for Chinese Communists to reflect on socialism. They began to use concepts such as "nationalization," "public ownership + planned economy," and "developing the economy in a planned way" to analyze and study the relationship between the government and the market. After the October Revolution, Russia bypassed the "Caudine Forks" [4] of capitalist development by establishing and developing a socialist economy. Li Dazhao scientifically explained that public ownership is the prerequisite for a socialist economic system, advocating for the nationalization of enterprises and the implementation of a planned economy. In 1919, under the influence of Li Dazhao, a group of intellectuals centered around the Morning Post (Chenbao) purposefully promoted Marxist economic thought through translation. For instance, Chen Puxian translated Kautsky's The Economic Doctrines of Karl Marx from Japanese to Chinese (based on the translation by the Japanese Marxist Motoyuki Takahatake) under the title An Explanation of Marx’s Capital, which was serialized in the Morning Post, revealing the insurmountable contradictions in the operation of the capitalist economic system. Li Dazhao pointed out in his article "Socialism and Social Movements": "Socialism is not about making everyone rich or everyone poor; it is about making production, consumption, and distribution develop in a balanced way." Evidently, in Li Dazhao’s view, the socialist goal of common prosperity was not an egalitarian richness but a prosperity with a certain degree of appropriateness under specific national conditions, which needed to be realized through the development of a socialist economic system. Based on recognizing the respective pros and cons of planning and the market, Li Dazhao proposed that "all large-capital enterprises: railways, mines, steamship companies, transport undertakings, large-scale manufacturing industries, and large stores, should be nationalized." Li Dazhao affirmed the state-owned economy and the planned concentration of the means of production, advocating for the gradual nationalization of individual industry and commerce to prevent the emergence of capitalist economic crises. Chen Duxiu believed: "Under the system of public property, namely the socialist system, in terms of production, there is no malady of a few people owning the tools of production; with statistics on social needs, there will be no descent into a state of anarchy, and all products are produced for social needs." Based on his critique of private ownership of the means of production, Chen Duxiu’s vision for a socialist economic system was "public ownership + planned economy." Facing a complex international environment and China’s semi-colonial and semi-feudal social nature, Cai Hesen proposed that public ownership of the means of production should be used to liberate and develop productive forces. After analyzing the experience of Russian economic reform, he proposed that China could likewise use "socialist principles and methods" for economic transformation. Cai Hesen argued: "Use socialist production methods to develop China’s large-scale production enterprises, so as to build the economic foundation of a communist society." Cai Hesen’s idea of "developing large-scale production" via public ownership aimed to provide the preparatory conditions for modernization.
Early Chinese Communists' understanding and application of the "economic system" already surpassed the capitalist economic development model under Western binary-opposition thinking, exploring an economic development model suitable for China through social revolution, theoretical research, and innovation. Against the historical backdrop of saving the nation from extinction, the "socialist economic system" remained a theoretical conception based on text translation, intellectual innovation, and the clash of social trends, awaiting further theoretical exploration and breakthrough innovation on the basis of revolutionary practice. Through the revolutions of the early Chinese Communists and their collisions with various social trends, the specific context of the Chinese Communists’ "economic system" concept entered the logic of Marxism. In revolutionary practice and theoretical research, they promoted the spread of Marxist economics, opening a path for its transition to the construction and practice of New Democratic economic thought. This promoted a profound transformation of Marxist economic thought from traditional to modern, from passive to active, and from foreign to Sinicized, pointing the way toward a scientific development model for China’s economy.
II. The Generation Process of the "High-Level Socialist Market Economy System" Concept
The generation and evolution of a concept cannot rely solely on logical deductive structures; it is inseparable from fertile historical soil and the abstract summarization and contemporary reflection on practical experience by historical subjects. In the different historical contexts of socialist revolution, construction, and reform, Chinese Communists have continuously deepened their scientific understanding of the socialist economic system and persistently promoted the practical and theoretical exploration of China's economic development model...
The semantic form and extension of the embryonic concept of the "socialist market economy system" took shape through a specific historical process. In the New Era, Chinese Communists have adhered to the principle of the "Two Combinations," creatively proposing the landmark concept of a "high-quality socialist market economy system," thereby enriching the conceptual system of China's economic development model.
(1) The Incubation of the Embryonic Concept of a "High-Quality Socialist Market Economy System"
The global unfolding of the 1929–1933 economic crisis in the capitalist world inevitably had a massive impact on the economic development of the Republic of China. Chinese intellectuals actively explored measures to respond to the crisis, launching discussions centered on the idea of a planned economy. Hu Yisheng argued that the characteristic of a planned economy lay in comprehensive planning across all economic links, and that China should actively draw lessons from this development model. Zhang Sumin believed that the realization of China’s modernization could not rely solely on private capital. Deeply influenced by Marxism, Shen Zhiyuan emphasized in his Outline of New Economics that basic contradictions still exist in socialist society; he proposed the question of the applicability of a planned economy to socialist society, advocating that "under the conditions of a socialist planned economy, since capitalist laws no longer exist and the anarchy of production has been replaced by planning." Zhang Wentian, in his "Outline on the Economic Composition and Basic Principles of Economic Construction in the Northeast," proposed the idea of a "New Democratic planned economy," advocating for the combination of the state-owned economy with the cooperative economy to ensure that the New Democratic planned economy gained the upper edge in the struggle against anarchic and unorganized economic sabotage. Mao Zedong, in his article "On New Democracy," proposed the concept of a New Democratic economy, emphasizing that "large banks, large industries, and large commerce shall be owned by the state of this Republic," providing an initial conceptualization of the New Democratic planned economy system.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, focused on an independent economic development model, the Party and the academic community conducted extensive reflections on the critical relationship between planning and the market. Scholars such as Xue Muqiao, Sun Yefang, and Gu Zhun were among the first to propose theories regarding a socialist commodity economy, providing the theoretical accumulation for the birth of the "socialist market economy" concept. In 1956, Chen Yun proposed the economic system idea of the "three mainstays and three supplements" [5]. This perspective, based on affirming the respective advantages of planning and the market, reflected dialectical thinking on the relationship between the two under a planned economy system. Mao Zedong noted that commodity production, "when linked to the socialist system, is socialist commodity production." He not only proposed the category of socialist commodity production but also affirmed the important role of economic laws such as "commodity exchange" and the "law of value" in the development of a socialist economy. From 1959 to 1960, Mao Zedong advocated for the study of the Soviet Textbook of Political Economy within the Party to clarify ideological confusion regarding the socialist economic sphere. Given his reflections on the highly centralized Soviet economic system, Mao proposed the concept of "republic of a titular monarch" (xujun gonghe) [6] regarding the moderate devolution of power, which initially shaped an economic management system characterized by the decentralization of power between the central and local governments. Zhang Wentian, based on historical materialism, engaged in deep reflection on socialist economic issues, advocating that the operation of a planned economy must obey systematic economic laws. He argued that "this special relation of production is the relationship of ownership of the means of production and products within a certain social formation," emphasizing that relations of production possess a duality of both general and specific characteristics. He maintained that the socialist economic system possesses both the general requirements of modern productive forces and the specific requirements of socialist ownership.
(2) The Formation of the Embryonic Concept of a "High-Quality Socialist Market Economy System"
The concept of the socialist market economy serves as the embryonic form of the "high-quality socialist market economy system." In fact, the German scholar Alfred Weber first proposed the concept of a "socialist market economy" internationally in 1950. Due to limitations in ideology, discourse hegemony, international blockades, and habitual thinking, the consensus before reform and opening up was that a market economy was incompatible with the socialist system. China's economic system reform was a "strategic retreat" [7] conducted under the premise of maintaining the nature of the reform and the leadership of the Party, rather than a "hasty retreat" toward capitalism. In April 1979, Chinese scholar Yu Zuyao, in his article "A Tentative Discussion on the Socialist Market Economy," analyzed the objective necessity of forming a socialist market economy under the premise of China adhering to commodity production and respecting the law of value. He proposed that "the socialist market economy is a new type of market economy built on the foundation of public ownership of the means of production." This was the first time the Chinese academic community proposed the landmark concept of a "socialist market economy," characterized by distinct theoretical scientificity, ideological foresight, and logical rigor. In November 1979, Deng Xiaoping criticized the view that socialism could not adopt a market economy, arguing: "We rely mainly on a planned economy, but we also integrate it with a market economy; however, this is a socialist market economy." The proposal of the "socialist market economy" concept represented the Party's scientific definition during the early period of reform and opening up regarding the dialectical relationship between socialism and the market economy, providing an important foundation for the incubation of the "high-quality socialist market economy system" concept.
Subsequently, through a process of soliciting opinions, expert participation, and Central Committee decision-making—and following several Party Congresses regarding economic system reform—the concept of China’s economic system continuously evolved toward the socialist market economy. In September 1980, Xue Muqiao, acting as a consultant to the State Council Office for Economic System Reform, presided over the drafting of "Preliminary Opinions on Economic System Reform," proposing that China's reform aim for a commodity economy. In the early stages of reform and opening up, the central leadership invited economic experts such as Włodzimierz Brus and Ota Šik to hold symposiums with domestic economic workers, fully absorbing the opinions of domestic and foreign experts to advance the top-level design of economic system reform. The top-level design and grassroots exploration mutually shaped one another, consolidating a consensus among discourse subjects—including the Party, government, enterprises, scholars, and the public—collectively constituting an important method for the formation of the socialist market economy system discourse. Given the confusion over whether the private economy was "surnamed 'Capitalism' or 'Socialism'" (xing zi xing she) [8], Deng Xiaoping's scientific judgment of the "two 'does not equals'" [9] during his Southern Tour talks in early 1992 expressed the Party’s support for the organic integration of socialism and the market economy on the basis of firmly safeguarding the people's livelihood. This advanced the liberation of thought and the formation of the "socialist market economy system" concept. In June 1992, after comparing different names for socialist economic systems, Jiang Zemin stated he was "more inclined to use the formulation 'socialist market economy system'." This concept received the approval of leaders including Deng Xiaoping, Chen Yun, and Li Xiannian, and obtained unanimous agreement within the Party, signifying the ideological unification of the Party regarding the new economic system. At the 14th National Congress of the CPC, Jiang Zemin proposed that "the goal of China's economic system reform is to establish a socialist market economy system." The Third Plenary Session of the 14th CPC Central Committee proposed constructing the basic framework of the socialist market economy system across aspects such as the modern enterprise system, the market system, and the macro-control system. With the development of the times, the connotation of the socialist market economy system concept has centered on the relationship between government macro-control and market resource allocation, continuously enriching and developing on the basis of deepening the practice of reform and opening up, with the aim of advancing the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics through the perfection of the socialist market economy system.
(3) The Emergence and Shaping of the Concept of a "High-Quality Socialist Market Economy System"
China's economic system reform is a concrete process of continuous perfection centrally focused on the relationship between the government and the market, along with the resulting conceptual reframing, discourse innovation, and evolutionary shifts in ideas. Since reform and opening up, the CPC has led the Chinese people in "realizing a historic transformation from a highly centralized planned economy system to a vibrant socialist market economy system." The Sixth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee, when summarizing the achievements and experiences of the CPC's century of struggle, highly affirmed the historic changes in economic system reform. Faced with a difficult systemic transition, "we must come up with a relatively good method to solve it step by step and transition to a true socialist market economy." Deeply advancing economic system reform requires not only adhering to and strengthening the Party's overall leadership but also understanding the role of local officials—acting as "strategic groups" formed by shared interests, spirits, and habits—who understand China's national conditions. Looking at the evolution of economic system discourse in Party Congress reports, the construction of the discourse on the socialist market economy system with Chinese characteristics has, with prominent continuity, developed a narrative of combining government macro-control with market resource allocation. The 15th National Congress proposed "perfecting the macro-control system" and "further playing the basic role of the market in resource allocation"; the 17th National Congress proposed "better playing the basic role of the market in resource allocation institutionally, forming a macro-control system conducive to scientific development"; the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee proposed "letting the market play the decisive role in resource allocation and better playing the role of the government." In the historical evolution of economic system discourse since the new century, the government discourse has shifted from "macro-control system" to "better playing the role of the government," from "devolving power and yielding profits" (fangquan rangli) to "streamlining administration and delegating power," and from "government management" to "government governance"; the market discourse has shifted from "the basic role of the market in resource allocation" to "the market playing the decisive role in resource allocation." These changes highlight the Party's increased level of understanding regarding respecting market laws and exercising the government's role, providing the conceptual foundation for the emergence of the new concept of a high-quality socialist market economy system.
The "high-quality socialist market economy system" is an original concept proposed by the Party within the context of the "two overarching situations" [10] and the "transformation of the principal contradiction in society in the New Era." The discourse construction of a "higher starting point, higher level, and higher goal" high-quality socialist market economy system expresses the objective requirements for perfecting the socialist market economy system with Chinese characteristics in the New Era. The proposal of this concept adheres to the people-centered socialist value narrative, while using the "high-quality" target positioning to expand innovative discourse narratives regarding the relationship between the socialist market economy system and Party leadership, comprehensively deepening reform, high-quality development, and Chinese-path modernization. The Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee formally proposed the concept of a "high-quality socialist market economy system." Against the backdrop of the New Era, high-quality development is the primary task for advancing Chinese-path modernization, and the emergence of the "high-quality socialist market economy system" concept has led to a conceptual coupling between "perfecting the socialist market economy system" and "high-quality economic development." In the New Era, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council have issued joint documents on themes such as "a more perfect system and mechanism for the market-oriented allocation of factors," "building a unified national market," "promoting the development and growth of the private economy," and "perfecting the market access system." This has enhanced the political momentum of the economic system discourse and advanced the adaptive shaping of the "high-quality socialist market economy system" concept. Xi Jinping emphasized: "Deepen the market-oriented reform of factors and create a world-class business environment that is market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized." Discourse constructions such as "marketization of factors" and "business environment" have advanced the upgrade of the socialist market economy system discourse toward a "high-quality" target narrative. The 20th National Congress of the CPC made detailed deployments for building a high-quality socialist market economy system, proposing to "perfect the modern enterprise system with Chinese characteristics," "build a unified national market," and "improve the modern budget system." The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee proposed "taking economic system reform as the lead," placing "building a high-quality socialist market economy system" at the top of the "Seven Focuses," and interpreting the perfection of economic systems and mechanisms through five chapters, including "perfecting systems and mechanisms for promoting high-quality economic development," "building systems and mechanisms to support comprehensive innovation," "improving the macroeconomic governance system," "perfecting systems and mechanisms for integrated urban-rural development," and "perfecting systems and mechanisms for high-level opening up to the outside world." The emergence and shaping of the "high-quality socialist market economy system" concept is an innovative demarcation of the era-specific connotation of the economic system made by the Party from a comparative perspective of past and present, China and the West. It is the theoretical crystallization of adhering to the "Two Combinations," marking that the basic socialist economic system with Chinese characteristics has become more mature and finalized.
III. Discourse Innovation of the "High-Quality Socialist Market Economy System" Concept
Discourse innovation includes methods such as original innovation, integrative innovation, and borrowed innovation. Among these, original innovation is rooted in the endogenous soil of China's development practice, history, culture, national traditions, linguistic habits, and era-specific thinking.
The concept of a "high-standard socialist market economy" is an original, landmark concept resulting from the integration of Marxist economic thought with China's actual conditions. It supports the innovation of discourses such as the CPC's "comprehensively deepening reform," "institutional advantages," "Chinese-path modernization," and the "great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation."
(1) Enriching the discourse system of the socialist market economy with Chinese characteristics through the principle of upholding the fundamentals and breaking new ground
Upholding the fundamentals is the prerequisite for innovation, while innovation is the implementation of upholding the fundamentals. Regarding the discourse of a "high-standard socialist market economy," in terms of upholding the fundamentals, it contains the internal requirements of persisting in the socialist public ownership of the means of production and the centralized, unified leadership of the CPC. In terms of breaking new ground, it contains realistic considerations for optimizing the methods and quality of allocating scarce social resources in combination with economic development practices, thereby achieving high-quality development through the combined force of the two.
On one hand, the discourse of a "high-standard socialist market economy" interprets the essence of the basic economic system through the defining characteristics of the era. From the perspective of the duality of the relations of production, the operation of the socialist market economy must not only reflect compliance with the objective laws of the market economy and the development of productive forces, but must also manifest the essential connotation of socialist economic relations and the nature of socialist ideology in its institutional stipulations. The Fourth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee proposed that "the mainstay status of public ownership, with multiple forms of ownership developing together; the mainstay status of distribution according to work, with multiple modes of distribution existing alongside it; and the socialist market economy constitute the basic socialist economic system." This trinity-based discourse construction of the basic socialist economic system reinforces the self-confidence and ideological function of the socialist market economy discourse. It reflects the Party’s adherence to its firm original aspiration and founding mission in its requirement to transcend the "historical cycle" [11], and demonstrates the Party’s improved scientific understanding of the maturity and normalization of the socialist market economy while observing the laws of market operations.
On the other hand, a "high-standard socialist market economy" transcends the discourse hegemony of Western economic systems through its prominent criticality. The discourse on the adaptation of new quality productive forces to new relations of production embodies the connotation of upholding fundamentals. The conceptual enrichment of the socialist market economy with Chinese characteristics contains the laws of economic operation that combine particularity and universality within the process of Chinese-path modernization. It transcends the Western universalist hegemony of economic systems centered on "universal values" [12] and responds to Western questions regarding the fundamental nature of China's economic system, its market economy status, and "competitive neutrality." Persisting in people-centered supply-side structural reform is an inherent requirement for building a high-standard socialist market economy. Faced with the challenge of Western discourse hegemony, our Party's construction of the discourse on supply-side structural reform critiques the "Supply-side School" that advocates privatization as its core and the neoliberal logical traps behind it. This is conducive to interpreting the internal connection between supply-side structural reform and high-quality development within the context of China's development, guiding the further comprehensive deepening of reform through a people-centered perspective.
(2) Expanding the discourse system of Marxist economic development models through the lens of dialectical logic
Insisting on the combination of an "efficient market" and a "proactive government" is an inherent requirement for building a socialist market economy with Chinese characteristics; this discourse contains the dialectical logic of "two-point theory" [13]. On one hand, this combination is an internal advantage of building a high-standard socialist market economy. Regarding the coordination between the government and the market, Western neoliberalism advocates an economic system of "big market, small government," whereas the socialist market economy with Chinese characteristics should be an economic operating system that dialectically treats the relationship between "letting the market live" (market flexibility) and "the government managing effectively" (government control). In actual economic development, the market is not absolutely efficient, nor is the government inherently "bad." The spontaneous operation of the market can produce market failures or social polarization, while the government has much to offer in correcting market failures, effective economic governance, and promoting common prosperity. Xi Jinping pointed out: "We must adhere to dialectics and the 'two-point theory,' continue to work hard on combining the basic socialist system with the market economy, and give full play to the advantages of both sides, seeking both an 'efficient market' and a 'proactive government,' striving to solve this worldwide economic puzzle in practice." This dialectical discourse construction persists in utilizing market laws, stimulating the vitality of market entities, promoting technological innovation in enterprises, and improving the business environment, while also emphasizing the government's effective role in promoting social equity and justice.
On the other hand, the combination of the market's decisive role in resource allocation with government macroeconomic regulation is an intrinsic quality of building a high-standard socialist market economy. From the perspective of the functions of the market and the government respectively, this combination is the practical orientation of the "high-standard socialist market economy" discourse, requiring the unification of perfecting basic market institutions and macroeconomic regulation systems. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee proposed to "focus on building a high-standard socialist market economy, give full play to the decisive role of the market in resource allocation, and better leverage the role of the government." The "decisive role of the market" means affirming and respecting the laws of the market economy, while "better leveraging the government's role" means improving the macroeconomic regulation system under the Party's leadership, comprehensively adopting economic regulation policies such as counter-cyclical and cross-cyclical adjustments. From the perspective of historical political science, the discourse innovation of the high-standard socialist market economy is based on the continuation of socialist discourse and characterized by breaking through the economic system discourse centered on the "government-market relationship," which helps provide resources for the Party's long-term governance legitimacy.
(3) Developing the discourse system of Chinese-path modernization through a "revolution in terminology"
The "revolution in terminology" was first proposed in academic history by Engels: "Every new aspect of a science involves a revolution in the technical terms of that science." A "revolution in terminology" is a key link in achieving knowledge production, containing powerful theoretical innovation and academic influence. Promoting the construction of an autonomous system of economic knowledge oriented toward Chinese-path modernization inevitably requires a "revolution in terminology" and discourse innovation in political economy with Chinese characteristics, guided by the problems of the era and economic practices. The "revolution in terminology" carried out in developing the socialist market economy has forcefully promoted the shaping of the discourse system for Chinese-path modernization.
First, the concept of a "high-standard socialist market economy" enriches the "ought-to-be" [14] discourse of Chinese-path modernization. This discourse is an ideal expression describing the target state of Chinese-path modernization, reflecting the improved level of the Party's understanding of its long-term governance status and the methods for achieving it. The 20th CPC National Congress proposed "building a high-standard socialist market economy" as an important task for achieving high-quality development. In terms of conceptual meaning, the referent of "building a high-standard socialist market economy" is the operational goal of China's economic system in the New Era, enriching the target system of Chinese-path modernization. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee stated that "a high-standard socialist market economy provides an important guarantee for Chinese-path modernization." This outlines the internal connection between the two from a functional perspective. Objectively, through localized reconstruction, refinement for the era, and creative development, this concept emphasizes the Chinese nation’s historical self-confidence, practical innovation, and cultural subjectivity. It also enhances its inherent theoretical interpretative power and ideological leadership through institutional discourse containing high "political potential," endowing the goals of Chinese-path modernization with a unique connotation of institutional civilization.
Second, the concept develops the "as-it-is" [15] discourse of Chinese-path modernization. This discourse reveals the reality of the historical process of Chinese-path modernization, built upon the Party’s judgment of objective reform practices. The construction of Chinese-path modernization discourse has undergone transitions from the "Four Modernizations" to "Chinese-path modernization," "comprehensively building a moderately prosperous society," and "comprehensively building a modern socialist country." This highly matches the historical process of transitioning from a planned economy to a high-standard socialist market economy. Since the Reform and Opening-up, the discourse construction of China's economic system has evolved from "planning as the mainstay, market as a supplement" to a "planned commodity economy," to a "socialist market economy," and finally to a "high-standard socialist market economy," highlighting the distinct characteristics of reform and opening-up. It is evident that these two discourse narratives coexist, merge, and shape each other. The discourse resources, era-specific concepts, institutional resilience, and civilizational ideas contained in the generation of the "high-standard socialist market economy" make the "Chinese-path modernization" discourse more profound, specific, and pragmatic, presenting the value concepts and practical vision of the interaction between modernization and economic systems more comprehensively.
Finally, the concept shapes the "can-be" [16] discourse of Chinese-path modernization. This discourse interprets the means of realizing Chinese-path modernization, pointing out the action mechanisms, core concepts, and practical paths for the transition from the "as-it-is" state to the "ought-to-be" state. From the perspective of action mechanisms, the "Four Comprehensives" strategic layout contains expressions of the leading subject, reform momentum, rule of law guarantees, and modernization goals, constituting the narrative of the practical path for building a socialist market economy with Chinese characteristics in the New Era. The rich connotation of the "high-standard socialist market economy" concept interprets the realization method of the Party leading economic modernization, enriching the strategic layout discourse of Chinese-path modernization and enhancing the focus and appeal of its "can-be" discourse. Regarding core concepts, the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee emphasized that further comprehensively deepening reform must "focus on improving the quality of people's lives." Based on the need to maintain discourse power and produce theoretical knowledge, the people-centered narratives of the socialist market economy with Chinese characteristics and Chinese-path modernization shape each other, jointly leading the autonomous construction of Chinese-path modernization and promoting its integration into the historical process of using Chinese-path modernization to comprehensively advance the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. From the perspective of the practical path, adhering to "systems engineering" is the scientific method for building a high-standard socialist market economy, emphasizing rule-of-law, openness, and constructive thinking. As an effective response to reform challenges, building a high-standard socialist market economy is the inevitable path for further comprehensively deepening reform, following the internal laws of the benign interaction between modernization and reform.