The podcast examines how China's 'engineering state' mentality, which drove its incredible growth, has led to significant problems. The real estate boom, exemplified by developers like Evergrande's Xu Jiayin, created a crisis with 90 million empty homes after the government shifted policy. This overbuilding is a form of malinvestment, where prestige projects are prioritized over public needs. Simultaneously, China faces a demographic crisis with a fertility rate of 1.0 and high youth unemployment, which hit 21% in 2023. Many young people, like Aza, are opting out of grueling 996 jobs, living off savings and hiding their unemployment from parents who experienced the boom era. Economist Nancy Qian notes that the one-child policy allows some to inherit property, enabling them to leave the workforce, while high-skilled white-collar jobs shrink. The state attempts to engineer solutions, such as encouraging childbirth, but faces a generation that is less optimistic about the economy.