The first secret is that the market does not measure value; it measures the贬值 of the yardstick. We celebrate new all-time highs as a sign of wealth creation, but we rarely acknowledge the silent partner in the room: inflation. Central banks deliberately engineer a low, steady rate of currency debasement. Consequently, a stock market that remains flat in real terms over a decade looks like a heroic climber in nominal terms. The undeclared truth is that equity prices are forced upward simply to preserve purchasing power. If a company’s stock price does not rise by at least 2-3% annually, the investor is losing money. The market is a treadmill set to an incline; we mistake running just to stay in place for progress. This structural bias means that money must flow into stocks, bonds, and real estate, not necessarily because these assets are brilliant, but because holding cash is a guaranteed losing bet.