The Great Disconnect: Xi Jinping War Vision vs the 'Rat People' Generation

Facing the ever-increasing pressure of the tariff war, Xi and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) seems to have only one solution: shift the blame to the United States. At the same time, it demands that officials and citizens sacrifice themselves and actively prepare for war.

However, the sudden rise of the term and phenomenon of "Rat People" on Chinese social media raises an important question. Does the CCP still have the ability, as it did during the Korean War (1950–1953) decades ago, to send hundreds of thousands of young people to the battlefield?

CCP Revives Long March Rhetoric

As the US-China trade war rages on, a sense of despair permeates the entire CCP bureaucracy. Apart from calling on Party members to draw upon the so-called Long March Spirit and the Chosin Reservoir Spirit from the "War to Resist America and Aid Korea (Korean War)," Xi Jinping's proposed solutions also reportedly include large-scale confiscation of assets and wealth from purged officials and their families. These resources would be used to stabilize the regime amid economic decline and fiscal exhaustion, and to prepare for military operations around the Taiwan Strait.

The so-called Long March Spirit refers to the period before the CCP seized power. At that time, it was still an illegal organization facing repeated large-scale military encirclements by the then-legitimate Nationalist government.

Forced into a massive retreat, CCP members sometimes survived by eating wild herbs and tree bark. According to Party propaganda, there were even instances where they boiled and ate leather belts. Such scenes are frequently depicted in propaganda films and posters.

*Monument commemorating the departure of the Red Army on the Long March (Wikimedia Commons)*

The Chosin Reservoir 'Spirit'

On the other hand, the so-called Chosin Reservoir Spirit stems from the Korean War. During the conflict, the CCP sent 150,000 young Chinese soldiers to fight in freezing conditions without proper winter clothing against well-equipped US forces. Roughly two-thirds of them were either frozen to death or severely frostbitten. Despite the horrific losses, the CCP glorified the outcome as the "Chosin Reservoir Spirit," even producing films to boast of the sacrifices.

Now, in the face of tariff war pressures, the CCP seeks to revive this spirit of human sacrifice, urging both officials and citizens to engage in a struggle against the US. Is it any wonder that this has led to widespread despair among Party cadres?

Social Media Reveals CCP's War Plans

Though much of this remains internal information, short video clips circulating on social media suggest this is indeed the CCP's actual plan and intent.

In one such clip, styled as a conversation between siblings, the younger brother asks the elder sister, "Why must we fight a trade war with the United States when things are already so hard?"

The sister educates her brother sternly: "However hard it is now, was it harder than what our grandparents endured? The current conflict with the US is not mere friction — it is war. It's not that we want to fight. We are being forced to fight. And since it's war, someone must sacrifice and pay the price."

In an impassioned speech, she emphasizes that today's dignity was earned by winning the Korean War, and so, a battle with the US is necessary once again. "What if we sacrifice? My money can be military funding, but it must never be reparations. My body will only lie in the trenches, never in a mass grave."

This rhetoric is unmistakably war mobilization. It calls on young people not only to contribute their wealth but also to be prepared to die in the trenches for the CCP.

The CCP's Four Steps Toward War

According to insider information from within the CCP, four major initiatives are currently being implemented in preparation for war.

First, aggressive recruitment. Military districts and armed forces departments across China's provinces have been instructed to establish new "Group A" reserve divisions. The aim is to increase the number of reserve troops to 4 million by the conscription rounds in autumn and winter of 2026.

Group A denotes the highest-priority or readiness category within China's reserve system, comprising individuals who are relatively young, healthy, and militarily capable, and who can be mobilized swiftly.

Second, the People's Armed Police mobile divisions are being ordered to focus on urban warfare as the central theme of their combat readiness training, specifically emphasizing Taiwan's major cities as the projected battlefields.

Third, all levels of Party committees are being directed to supervise relevant departments and units in carrying out a comprehensive inspection of central and local strategic reserves. These reserves include grain, oil, meat, sugar, and energy. Inspections will take place between 2025 and 2026, with the goal of ensuring both the quantity and safety of these essential supplies.

Fourth, deployment of troops to the Russia–Ukraine battlefield to gain real combat experience.

According to CCP insiders, among the nearly 13,000 so-called North Korean soldiers currently fighting in Ukraine, nearly one-quarter — over 3,000 individuals — are in fact ethnic Koreans from China or Chinese soldiers fluent in Korean. Their presence is meant to provide firsthand exposure to modern warfare, enabling them to gather experience in preparation for a future conflict in the Taiwan Strait.

Xi Jinping's Broader Strategy

This information was recently disclosed by former Peking University professor Yuan Hongbing in an interview with Chinese-language media outlet Vision Times.

Yuan believes these measures clearly indicate that Xi Jinping is preparing to launch a war over the Taiwan Strait. The Taiwan conflict is, in fact, a critical step in Xi Jinping's broader strategy of global expansion under communist totalitarianism.

Therefore, the entire international community must be adequately prepared for Xi Jinping's military adventurism. The only way to stop him from launching a war is to make him fully aware that initiating a Taiwan Strait war would be tantamount to digging his own grave — a path to self-destruction.

Rat People

Of course, reality may be far removed from the CCP's expectations and imagination. Just as the regime calls on youth to sacrifice their lives for it, Chinese society has seen the rise of yet another internet buzzword and new social phenomenon: "Rat People." This trend takes the previous "lying flat" youth mindset to a new level.

What are "Rat People"? The term describes individuals who live like rats in the corners of cities — burdened by life's pressures, timid and cautious, with disordered schedules, active at night and asleep by day.

They operate on low energy. Their primary activity is lying in bed and scrolling through their phones. Constantly anxious and tense, they dare not "lie flat" completely and must endure silently. They describe themselves as "rat struggling to survive in the cracks of society," using "Rat People" as a form of self-mockery.

In one video, a Rat Person whispers softly in the dark, saying he doesn't want to live this way. In his cheap rental room — dimly lit and filled with the stench of mildew — he sees no future.

Survival or Silent Rebellion?

In another video, a young man and a young woman document their day as Rat People: they sleep during the day and engage in "low-energy" activities at night. "Every day I don't work or socialize. I wake up, eat, lie down, and sleep again…"

Topics related to this "low-energy lifestyle" have already garnered billions of views across the Chinese internet. At one point, the term topped the trending charts of China's video-sharing platform Xiaohongshu. Content related to "Rat People" has amassed nearly 2 billion views in total, making it one of 2025's most popular new online personas. Everyone wants to be a Rat Person.

Some say the rise of Rat People reflects the spirit of the times in China. People have lost hope for the future and for life itself, choosing to survive in the lowest-energy way possible.

Others say this is actually a form of soft resistance. Young people have not given up thinking — instead, they silently wait for real change. Though deeply resentful of the CCP, they have no outlet, so they choose this way to protest the regime, refusing to continue dedicating their lives for the benefit of the Communist Party.

Some even say, "I believe this is a strong and clear signal of the coming end of the Chinese Communist regime."

So, can such young people truly be sent to war with the US, sacrificing their lives in battle?

Public Security Failures Shake CCP Leadership

Not only has this low-energy "Rat People" phenomenon spread among the public, but signs of "lying flat" and neglect are also emerging within the CCP's bureaucracy and public security apparatus.

On April 15, three banners were hung from an overpass in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, bearing bold anti-CCP messages:

"Without political system reform, there is no national rejuvenation."

"The people do not need a party with unchecked power."

"China does not need anyone to point the direction. Democracy is the direction."

*Banners in Sichuan bearing anti-CCP messages.*

However, what truly shocked and enraged the CCP leadership was not the banners themselves. Rather, despite being displayed in a bustling area with heavy traffic, no one reported them for nearly two hours.

It was only after a routine patrol by a police officer that the banners were discovered and reported to higher authorities. What's even more astonishing is that the officer's superiors did not order immediate removal but instead instructed him to "preserve the scene as evidence." As a result, the banners remained for an additional 30 to 40 minutes, hanging for nearly three hours in total before being taken down.

Reportedly, this incident deeply alarmed and infuriated the CCP's top leaders. They suspect disloyalty within the police force, seeing them at best as "two-faced people" who display passive resistance. This poses a serious threat to the CCP's tightly controlled stability maintenance system.

It is said that Xi Jinping himself has taken notice of this case, ordering a joint investigation by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the Ministry of State Security. The public security bureau has been completely excluded from the investigation, signaling Xi's growing distrust of the police system.

The Present State of Chinese Society

Such is the current state of Chinese society. Xi Jinping remains detached from reality, obsessed with competing against the US for global dominance. Mid- and lower-level officials are opting to lie flat and shirk responsibilities, while the youth, once considered the most energetic and vibrant part of society, embrace "low-energy" lives as Rat People.

In such a society, what future remains?

Author: Jennifer Zeng