Emperor Chongzhen was very surprised when he heard that Zhong Jinwei came to ask for an audience, thinking that he had something important to add to what he had just discussed.
So, he stopped what he was doing and hurriedly sent an order to summon Zhong Jinwei.
Unexpectedly, Zhong Jinwei said something else when he saw him: "Your Majesty, have you paid attention to the banknotes of the Royal Bank of Ming Dynasty recently?"
Emperor Chongzhen was startled when he heard this and blinked. It turned out that Master Zhong had something to add.
He felt relieved and said to Zhong Jinwei somewhat relaxedly: "Master Zhong, don't worry, I've already asked people to take care of it. There's no need to worry about the Ming Dynasty currency notes anymore."
When Zhong Jinwei heard that the answer was not the one he expected, he instead pulled out the Ming Dynasty Tongxing Baobao. Thinking that he could understand it just right, he asked: "Your Majesty, your method is not bad. The cost for the imperial court to acquire Tongxing Baobao is the last."
how many?"
Again, it was beyond Zhong Jinwei's expectation. Emperor Chongzhen shook his head and said, "I don't want anyone to use Master Zhong's method."
Zhong Jinwei was stunned when he heard this. He didn't use his own method, but it had already been solved. What method was used? Zhong Jinwei was very curious and asked: "Your Majesty, how did you solve it?"
Emperor Chongzhen looked at Zhong Jinwei and after thinking about it, he felt that there was no need to hide this matter from him, so he first ordered all the maids and chamberlains to stay outside the palace.
Zhong Jinwei was even more curious when he saw what Emperor Chongzhen did. Could it be that his methods were still unsatisfactory?
When there were only Emperor Chongzhen and Zhong Jinwei in the palace, Emperor Chongzhen spoke in a low voice: "Master Zhong, I asked Dongchang to send someone to burn it down." There was a hint of pride in his words.
"Ah, it's burned, what's burned?" Zhong Jinwei didn't react for a moment.
"Captain Zuo and several other distinguished nobles are really disrespectful. I have warned them several times. But they are still thinking of sucking blood from the imperial court, and they even started to join forces to pressure the imperial court to redeem the currency."
When Emperor Chongzhen thought about it, he was still a little angry. He continued bitterly: "I dumped all the Ming Dynasty currency notes to them, and then ordered Dongchang to find out where they collected the treasure notes and set them on fire.
.”
Zhong Jinwei was speechless. Originally, he was thinking of using methods within the legal rules to solve the problem. Unexpectedly, he finally used unconventional methods.
However, in this ancient time, he could not talk to Emperor Chongzhen about the importance of obeying the rules, because the emperor was the one who made the rules.
Emperor Chongzhen saw that Master Zhong was silent for a long time after hearing this. He thought he was worried that the matter would be leaked, so he comforted him and said: "Don't worry, Master Zhong. I will leave this matter to Wang Daban and let him choose a reliable and elite person."
Sir, he did it without knowing it."
There is no airtight wall in the world. In other words, when something happens, you can guess the exact outcome by looking at the ultimate beneficiary.
Emperor Chongzhen thought he did it secretly, but he was not a fool. From the clues, it can be inferred that except for Emperor Chongzhen, no one else would take this risk.
However, one good thing about Emperor Chongzhen is that they found out that he sent people to do it. As long as there is no evidence, they can only swallow the yellow lotus dumbly and cannot tell the story of the pain.
Zhong Jinwei understood this and stopped caring about it. When he was about to speak, he saw Emperor Chongzhen regaining his smile and saying: "Master Zhong doesn't know that those few fires made them realize the fire resistance of cement."
, crying and begging me to reward them with some."
When Zhong Jinwei heard this, he thought this was a good side effect. But now he still wanted to talk about what he just thought of first.
Therefore, Zhong Jinwei said to Emperor Chongzhen: "Your Majesty, do you know the current recognition of the Ming Dynasty Jiusi Baobao by the people in the capital?"
When Emperor Chongzhen saw that Zhong Jinwei no longer mentioned the issue of currency notes, he was happy not to mention it. After all, this kind of thing was tantamount to robbery and was not very honorable.
He nodded and replied: "I pay attention to it every day. I am very happy about this matter and it is progressing smoothly. Speaking of which, it is all thanks to Master Zhong for sending so much money to Beijing."
Zhong Jinwei smiled after hearing this. The property of the eight major Shanxi merchants was certainly large, and it also gave those who didn't know the exact amount an endless space for imagination.
"Your Majesty, I think the Ming Dynasty Jiu Si Bao Banknote can be promoted nationwide, or at least in the south of the Yangtze River." Zhong Jinwei suggested to Emperor Chongzhen.
As far as Emperor Chongzhen's heart was concerned, he could not wait to promote it nationwide. But he already understood that the biggest proof for the promotion of this banknote was not the court's forced promotion, but the credibility of the court.
To put it bluntly, there must be enough reserves of exchangeable silver to convince the people and promote it.
Therefore, Emperor Chongzhen frowned and asked Zhong Jinwei: "Master Zhong, currently only the capital has enough silver reserves. If you want to promote it outside the capital, unless you escort a group of silver taels from the capital, the best you can do is
It is the salary of local officials. Moreover, the Royal Bank of Ming Dynasty cannot open to every place. It is currently very difficult to promote banknotes across the country."
Zhong Jinwei nodded, knowing that what Emperor Chongzhen said was reasonable, and what he said at the beginning was a bit too loud. If you want to truly promote it nationwide, you must first establish national credibility. Only in this way can you gain popularity in some counties, prefectures, or even
It is enough to establish an exchange location at the provincial level.
The most important thing about this kind of credibility is confidence. Let the people know that there is such a place where they can exchange silver coins at any time, so that the banknotes in their hands will not depreciate, or be reduced to a piece of waste paper. There is this expectation
, people will be happy to use banknotes. After all, banknotes are much more convenient than physical currency, that is, silver coins and copper coins.
Zhong Jinwei smiled and flattered Emperor Chongzhen first: "Your Majesty is wise."
Then he went on to express his original intention and said: "Your Majesty, then things will be done step by step. At least it should be implemented in Nanjing now. The two centers in the north and south will implement it for a period of time and then spread to other places."
Emperor Chongzhen nodded slightly, but was still a little worried and said: "Master Zhong, the silver reserve in Nanjing is only the salary of officials, which is a bit small. It may take a long time to promote it."
He tasted the benefits of having large funds to quickly increase the issuance of banknotes, so he was not very interested in promoting it with a little money and felt that the speed was too slow.
Unexpectedly, Zhong Jinwei did not agree with his words this time. Zhong Jinwei said with a smile: "Your Majesty, this kind of thing has a marginal effect. With the capital's long-term example of banknote promotion, it can give other places confidence."
, the effect will be much better. Moreover, in Nanjing and Jiangnan, the economy there is more developed, and the demand for banknotes will be stronger and stronger. Therefore, compared with the process of promoting banknotes in the capital, it will be easier to obtain
many."
Emperor Chongzhen felt a little relieved after hearing this. Things always come step by step, he comforted himself in his heart.
Unexpectedly, Zhong Jinwei said something again at this time, and also said what he wanted to hear very much: "Your Majesty, private funds can be used for the next silver reserve. It may not have been possible before, but now there is an opportunity. As long as the court seizes this
If we take the opportunity, forcefully promote it, and pay attention to guiding public opinion, banknotes will inevitably develop by leaps and bounds."
When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he looked happy and asked quickly: "Master Zhong, please tell me quickly."