GDP, the metric of capitalism
It's not a perfect measurement, but it creates a metric that is easy to calculate and it's easy to compare the economies of similar countries or the same country across time.
how the entire rural regions of the country have been abandoned by capitalism
Dude, you just cut the legs off your own argument and declared victory as it bleeds to death. The system that abandoned the rural regions was actually the Soviet Union. First of all, they destroyed many smallholding estates that dotted the countryside under the guise of melioration (reverse irrigation). Second of all, they botched the collective farming (stealing was super common in those too). Third of all, they exiled the most productive and educated members of society, disproportionately from the countryside. Fourth of all, rapid industrialization created a massive demand for workers who would abandon the collective farms and move to cities in droves. This process is simply continuing because once it starts, it's very hard to stop.
Now go and ask people above 50 where QOL was better, in communism or capitalism. Most people in Eastern Europe who actually lived through communism will agree that it was better on average in Communism!
Residents were asked whether they agree with the statement that it was better to live in Lithuania during the Soviet era than it is now. The majority of respondents disagreed with this statement, 26 percent of respondents completely agree or agree with the opinion that it was better to live in Lithuania during the Soviet era than it is now. 42 percent hold the opposite position. 23 percent neither agree nor disagree with this opinion.