The Green Gold Bar of Crazy Clivia Event

Clivia in refrigerator color TV, a pot of grass can be fried to a maximum of more than 100 thousand yuan. In the streets and alleys, "everyone raises orchids, and everyone says orchids", which even leads to vicious public security cases of driving with guns and robbing flower pits. In an era when commodity consciousness is budding again, a plant can actually open an economic bubble "flower of evil".

This really corresponds to Newton's sentence: "I can calculate the orbit of celestial bodies, but I can't calculate the madness of human nature."

Everyone knows that a pot of flowers is not worth that much money, but at the beginning of the reform, people just sniffed out that "money has no taste", because each has its own interests, and no one has cracked this "emperor's new clothes". This is undoubtedly the demonic release of the long-suffering ordinary people's desire for wealth.

Pandora's Box was opened. In this whirlpool, some people get rich overnight, while others lose everything.

It's like a game played by the whole people in Pass the Parcel. At the moment when the bubble burst, the voice fell and the flowers fell, and the person who picked the flowers at last was the most unlucky person.

Now playing back the master tape of this history, it is not difficult to find out why this originally simple market logic has been distorted.

Including public consumption, abnormal speculation turns a pot of grass into a "green gold bar" and then a "green killer". It's not just the citizens, the market, but also the "mayor".

The logic of the market is very clear. The price fluctuation of Clivia is normal, and it is not surprising that the price of imported products is high. The manipulation of several big families cannot be overthrown. The market is very hot, but it is not fanatical or cramped. Because the price is too high, ordinary people without purchasing power can't take over, and the market naturally cools down. What can really boil "99 degrees" water is the improper intervention of the government. First, the price was limited, and then every household was called to raise three or five pots of flowers. Even Clivia was named Changchun City Flower.

When the market was completely out of control, the government had to stop it urgently, and the big economic bubble of Clivia vanished.

"Give John's back to John and Peter's back to Peter", which was still a luxurious and advanced concept in the mid-1980s.

History is always strikingly similar. Such a bubble event is like a cold virus. It will break out in different areas every once in a while. Since human nature remains the same everywhere, history-a record of human past activities-can help people predict the future and be more realistic. Machiavelli hit the nail on the head.

A realistic example is that in recent years, Pu 'er tea has created a myth. You can buy a house but you can't afford a catty of Pu 'er tea. Once again, we can see that the local government is pushing hard, businesses are standing together, speculators are taking the opportunity to speculate and customers are following their feelings.

Since human nature is no different from all kinds of beasts in the oak forest, and people are naturally greedy, we can be sure that the Clivia incident will happen again in the past, present and future.

People are profit-seeking, the market is unpredictable, and the two forces of supply and demand are always undercurrent, so the madness of the market is unpredictable. What we can do is to be rational and calm and wait for the storm to pass. The government should strictly abide by the regulatory responsibility and control it when necessary. The most taboo is to be willing to push the hand and blow the bubble bigger and bigger.

Changchun, Clivia. Connecting these two nouns, many people will think of "madness" more than 20 years ago. Clivia, which was tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of yuan in Changchun at that time, was a "green gold bar" that everyone loved; However, it didn't take long for the storm to disappear under administrative pressure. In people's imprint, it has returned to "like a flower blooming in spring". Looking back on those years now, the clearest note is a sigh.

Legend: Crown Car can't get a pot of Clivia.

In the spring afternoon, Guo Fengyi sat in her own flower cellar, with a pot of green tea on the table and Clivia everywhere, and spent the afternoon with him as usual.

No one in the orchid community in Changchun knows Guo Fengyi, because this name is associated with a story of Clivia. "That was more than 20 years ago." Guo Fengyi, 68, said with a smile that in June of May, 5438+0985+ 10, a Hong Kong businessman who came to Changchun presented Guo Fengyi with a pot of the best Clivia "cocktail" and was rejected.

"There were two considerations at the time." Guo Fengyi recalled, "First, I don't know how much this pot of' rockhopper' is worth; Second, there was a class concept in my mind at that time, thinking that Hong Kong businessmen were bourgeois and didn't want this potted flower to come into contact with them. "

History has amazing irony. Guo Fengyi, who rejected Hong Kong businessmen, was thinking about class differences. But he didn't expect that 1985 changed suddenly in the second half of the year, and the "rockhopper" depreciated. Guo himself, as a representative of the emerging bourgeoisie, was also examined by the relevant departments.

Prologue: Changchun develops "window sill economy"

The day when the reporter interviewed Guo Fengyi was April 17. On this day 23 years ago, Tianjin Clivia Changchun Exhibition just ended.

For these time nodes, Qi Jun, a farmer of Changchun Orchid interviewed by Guo Fengyi, remembers very clearly that they are all witnesses to the rise and fall of Clivia Changchun.

Guo Fengyi said that after the reform and opening up, the trade of Clivia in Changchun has become increasingly active. 1979, he sold a Swiss watch, and Hua 180 yuan bought a "two-year flower seedling". "This price caused a sensation in Changchun orchid industry."

In the early 1980s, the price of Clivia rose all the way. Therefore, Changchun issued "16 document", requiring that the price of each pot of Clivia should not exceed that of 200 yuan. 1982 "16" made the Clivia market in Changchun fall into a low tide. This year, Guo Fengyi did a great event that has been talked about so far. In the view of Changchun orchid growers, "Lao Guo's actions have made Clivia a success."

"In the spring of 1982, I took the lead in organizing a charity exhibition to donate Clivia to save the national treasure panda." Guo Fengyi said Clivia leaned on the panda to get the flower show approved by the government. "Exhibition ticket income 17000 yuan. We sent the money to the Ministry of Agriculture and a deputy minister received us. "

This charity exhibition showed Changchun city leaders the enthusiasm of Changchun citizens for Clivia. Changchun put forward the development of "window sill economy" and called on every household to use the existing conditions to plant Clivia.

Clivia gradually entered a brilliant season.

Chao: How many suites can a good orchid buy?

That history is still fresh in the memory of Mr. Mu, a citizen of Changchun. "Money is too easy to earn. If you want to make small money, you can buy seedlings at the east end of the market and sell them at the west end. "

"The fact is this." Niu Qijun said that since 1984, several major Clivia markets in Changchun have been located near Changchun Station, Chaoyang Park, Laojuanlou, Guangfu Road, Yongchun Road, Hongqi Street, Wanbao Street and Tsinghua Road, and people holding banknotes to buy Clivia abound in the markets.

1984 in the second half of the year, the attitude of Changchun municipal government became more and more clear: support the masses to get rich by Clivia, and plant at least 3 to 5 plants per household. In the same year, June 65438+1October 65438+1October 0/Clivia became the flower of Changchun. Subsequently, Changchun held a press conference and cancelled all the original "price limit orders". The grand vision of the city leaders is to use Clivia to develop the economy and earn foreign exchange.

Finally, Clivia, with its infinite market scenery, ushered in a bright political spring. On February 4th,1984,65438+Changchun Clivia Weekly was published, and the front page headline quoted the words of State Councilor Chen at that time: Vigorously develop the flower industry.

With the high-level recognition, various economic entities of Clivia have opened in succession, and the rumors of sky-high Clivia are endless. "The highest price of Clivia I have sold is 50,000 yuan, and some of my friends have sold 10 million yuan." Guo Fengyi said.

For reference, Guo Fengyi said that the price of buildings in Changchun at that time was about 280 yuan per square meter.

Crazy: Someone lost his head for Clivia.

During this period, Clivia was known as "green gold". Someone carefully compared the two and found that the best price of Clivia has exceeded the price of gold.

This city is crazy. State Councilor visited Changchun Flower Show; Provincial and municipal leaders have pointed out the great prospect of raising Clivia to get rich; Clivia is used at the beginning of the TV program; Calendar and cover 13 are all Clivia color photos; Cigarettes, soaps, clothes, furniture and other commodities are all printed with designs or words of Clivia …

Capital is crazy. In just a few days, there have been ten companies and forty flower shops in Changchun, and countless branches and subsidiaries have expanded to other provinces and cities. At the climax, more than 5,000 people went to various places to hold Clivia exhibitions and flew back and forth. ...

The enterprise is crazy. Changchun Machinery Factory called on employees to take the road of Clivia to get rich, and more than 700 employees in the whole factory/KLOC-0 opened their own homes. Changchun Washing Machine Factory invested several hundred thousand yuan to build a 600-square-meter greenhouse on the roof of the office building.

Art is crazy. Singers Wang Jieshi and Xie Lisi sang for Clivia; Painter Fan Ceng painted for Clivia; Writer Wan wrote poems for Clivia; Calligrapher Qi Gong wrote an inscription for Clivia; Master Hou said crosstalk to Clivia. ...

This field is crazy. A positive example is that a TV station in Hong Kong provided advertisements for Clivia Changchun for free, and Japan asked Changchun to hold another Clivia exhibition for them to participate. A negative example is that a prosecutor surnamed Fang in the Lishan District Procuratorate of Anshan City, with three brothers, drove a jeep with a gun, killed Changchun and robbed Clivia. ...

Society is crazy. According to the statistics of Changchun's industrial and commercial department at that time, as many as 400,000 people enter the Clivia market every day in Changchun, accounting for one-fifth of the city's population, not including those who take to the streets without a license. In the market, Cantonese, Minnan, Hunan and Shanghai dialects ...

The whole family is crazy. A technician in the agricultural machinery department of Jilin Province kept two pots of good orchids at home, and his brother killed the hostess when he came to rob them. ...

According to Guo Fengyi and Niu Qi Jun, all of the above are extreme situations. And more ordinary citizens, with meager salaries and great enthusiasm, enjoyed that magnificent time. Until now, many Changchun people still have similar memories: taking Clivia to the store to exchange things directly.

Behind the madness, there are countless transactions near Clivia Market 1985 in Changchun. The official statistics are170,000 yuan per year, but this figure based on the total tax payment may be far below the reality.

Disillusionment: Three Social Comments on "Falling Down" Clivia

From June 65438 to June 0985, Clivia, which was popular all over the country, entered a dark summer in Changchun, the birthplace of the dream of becoming the "Clivia Kingdom".

The cause was three editorials of a newspaper in Jilin Province, and Niu Qijun kept these yellowed newspapers all the time. On June 10, 7 and 3, 1985, three editorials were published on the front page: how long can the sky-high price of gentleman orchids last? How long can the sky-high price of gentleman orchids last? We can't dig the poacher to raise the price of gentleman orchids.

These three editorials are aimed at people's motives for buying Clivia, as well as the corruption and public security problems arising from the Clivia exchange. It is concluded that the extremely high price of Junzi Orchid should be stabilized.

1985 June 10, People's Daily in by going up one flight of stairs published Clivia in a prominent position in the second edition. Why is it popular in Changchun? In this paper, "Clivia transaction" is called "virtual business" and "the four modernizations require us to do more practical things".

"Obviously, these reports follow the administrative instructions behind them," said one interviewee.

Public opinion sent Clivia, who stood at the peak, to the guillotine. Changchun's "high-pressure policy" arrived as scheduled. Guo Fengyi said that the most ruthless rule is that taxes should reach 60% of the transaction amount, and Clivia market transactions immediately fell to freezing point.

Niu Qijun recalled that when he saw these reports, he felt "dissatisfied and angry". This feeling determined his handling at that time. "Take more than two thousand flowers home, and don't sell the rest. It's freezing!"

Return: It is a "flower in full bloom during the Spring Festival"

For those who are keen on Clivia trading, it is difficult to explore one by one how to calm the mood at that time.

In short, the high-priced Clivia disappeared, the low-priced transaction almost disappeared, everyone's "dream of making money" was shattered, a comprehensive review began, and some unlucky people went to prison.

The only benign mark left by the storm in Changchun is that someone dug up the first bucket of gold and embarked on the road of getting rich. These lucky few can hardly make up for the regret of the city after many years.

It was not until 1990 that the Clivia trade in Changchun gradually woke up. At present, Clivia has been designated as the key development industry in Changchun, with the best output and quality in China. At the Clivia Flower Show in Changchun, the quality of Clivia Changchun was praised as "the best in the world" by foreign experts.

However, after the industrialization of Clivia, is it possible to relive its past glory in the face of an increasingly mature market economy?

Guo Fengyi, vice president of Clivia Association of Jilin Province, said, "Considering the difference in purchasing power between now and the past, Clivia actually depreciated by about 100 times compared with that time, and we will never return to that time."

As for ordinary people today, Clivia is no longer a "green gold bar", but a flower that likes to bloom in the Spring Festival, that's all.