The Economic System of China I. The ‘China estion’ II. The Impact of Ideas III. A General Concept of Contracts IV. Evolution of the Responsibility Contract V. The Manifestation of the Responsibility Contracts and the Rise of the Comig Xians VI. The Sharecropping Nature of the Xian System VII. The Sharing Formula and Its Effects VIII. Economic Interpretation of the Xian Phenomenon IX. Side Effects of Xian Competition X. The Monetary System of China and the Rise of the RMB XI. Concluding Remarks An Unhappy Epilogue