It was already mid-August when Li Mu returned to Nanyang City.
It was not easy to go out once. This time he purchased another 10,000 tons of wheat, 10,000 tons of rice, 3,000 tons of sugar, 100,000 barrels of gasoline, as well as several thousand tons of medicine, raw materials for gunpowder and steel.
After such a long period of westward migration, the number of people pouring into Nanyang has finally decreased, and now there are only about 10,000 people every day.
Despite this, in the past two months, the entire Nanyang area has seen an influx of two to three million people at once.
In the past, Li Mu always thought that if he had more people, he would have more money to support him. Now, he finally feels a little numb.
With such a large increase in population, the demand for food has also greatly increased. Fortunately, he used space to transport a lot of food back when he went abroad several times before, so there will be no shortage of food in the next two or three months.
However, after two or three months, if the private air route is not opened, we will really be blind.
It's not impossible for him to support himself by taking civil flights to transport food back and forth. If the civil airport in Hankou can operate normally, it will be better, and it won't take long to go back and forth.
Now, you can't take the civil aviation in Hankou, and you have to go in a big circle to get out. The same is true when you go back to your country. Every time you go abroad, you waste a lot of unnecessary time on the road.
Sometimes, if you are unlucky and miss your flight, you won't be able to go back and forth for half a month.
If he really wants to transport grain in this way, he won't have to do anything in the future...don't bring any goods. Spend all his time transporting grain back and forth, and he will probably be able to meet the consumption of the people.
Days like this make my head hurt just thinking about it.
Li Mu could only urge several airports to speed up construction, strive to complete the trial flights as soon as possible, and open up this private route.
As long as it is connected, you no longer have to travel everywhere to take civil aviation. You can even reach Singapore from Nanyang in one day, and the round trip time is greatly shortened.
Just dedicating a few days a month to transporting food can satisfy the people's consumption.
The efficiency has improved, not only can more materials be transported, but also more time can be spent on domestic matters.
In addition, under the banknote strategy of the Far Eastern Commercial Bank, overseas routes were also secured.
In a remote port town in the north of Malaysia, there is a small abandoned cargo airport, which was bought by the Far East Trading Company and is currently being repaired urgently.
At the same time, there is a medium-sized port near this small town, which is currently in a semi-abandoned state. It is not that the port is not good, it is a good deep-water port, but the main reason is that the location is not very good, it is not on any traffic artery, and the merchant ships passing by are not very good.
a bit less.
Otherwise, with such good port conditions, it can develop into a medium-to-large port city.
Today, this port has also been contracted by the Far East Trading Company, and is undergoing simple repairs and building many large warehouses.
This small port town in northern Malaysia is 700 to 800 kilometers closer to Beishan than the mainland.
It is unrealistic to drive a fighter jet directly to Singapore. Everything Li Mu purchases from now on will be shipped over and stored in warehouses at these ports.
When he got off the plane, he could pick up the goods directly without going to Singapore. The airport was shortened by 700 to 800 kilometers, which saved trouble and time.
In the next few days, Li Mu has been dealing with people's livelihood issues. Although the grain he shipped has stabilized some prices, driven by surrounding areas, prices still began to rise uncontrollably.
If prices rise but wages do not, livelihood problems will naturally arise.
Tan Lin, who is in charge of financial issues at the Office, said: "Commissioner, I believe that the rise in prices is not only driven by surrounding areas, but the more important reason is the depreciation of legal currency."
Li Mu nodded: "What you said makes sense. As the war spreads, more and more occupied areas are occupied, Guofu's credit is reduced, and with the excessive issuance of currency, the legal currency becomes less and less valuable."
"Do you have any good suggestions..."
Tan Lin said: "Based on my opinion, given the current battlefield situation, Guofu's financial situation is deteriorating, and its income will become less and less. The only way is to issue more legal currency."
"The territory of Guofu itself is getting smaller and smaller, but the amount of currency issuance is increasing. Large-scale inflation is inevitable, and the depreciation of legal currency will also accelerate."
"At this time, whether you use legal currency or hold legal currency, the gain outweighs the loss."
"Especially prices. Where legal currency is used, prices will get higher and higher. This cannot be reduced by increasing the supply of food or materials."
"The only way is to use a new form of currency to replace fiat currency and circulate it in the market."
With that said, Tan Lin took a step forward and whispered: "Commissioner, we have an active economy, developed commerce, a large population, and a large amount of material support. We can even sell it to various places. The conditions are very favorable."
"In fact, the local government can also issue some credit currencies specifically for local circulation."
Li Mu thought for a while and said: "Our conditions here are okay, but legal currency is legal tender after all. Isn't it too eye-catching to issue currency directly locally?"
Tan Lin said: "Although it is eye-catching, it is the best way to resist currency devaluation. Places like Yan Laoxi, northern Shaanxi, Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan are now issuing their own credit currencies privately."
"Firstly, it resists the devaluation of the legal currency and avoids being harvested by the Guo government. Secondly, it is also a source of wealth. As long as the people approve it, control inflation, and all money is printed, it can be spent to hire workers and purchase supplies."
Li Mu nodded, thought about it for a while and said: "It's too early now. If you don't have enough strength, it's not a good thing to show up too early."
Tan Lin was a little disappointed: "Commissioner, how do we deal with the devaluation of legal currency?"
Li Muchao: "Let's start from two aspects, silver coins and food stamps."
Tan Lin asked confused: "Silver dollars and food stamps?"
"The commissioner is saying to restore the situation before the issuance of legal tender and allow silver dollars to be recirculated in the market."
"This is indeed a good way to deal with the depreciation of legal currency. Our country has always been silver standard in ancient times, and silver has high monetary properties. In addition, silver is a precious metal and has its own value. It will not depreciate indefinitely like legal currency, which is a problem in troubled times.
There are few currencies in the world that can maintain their own value.”
"However, in this way, unlike credit currency, which can be printed by oneself, a large amount of financial resources will be lost out of thin air."
Li Mu said: "We are not short of money, there is no need to come forward now. When conditions are mature in the future, it will not be too late to issue."
Tan Lin nodded regretfully: "Okay!"
Li Muchao: "Although credit currency cannot be issued, it does not mean that some commercial bills cannot be issued!"
Tan Lin's eyes lit up and he said: "Commercial coupons?"
Li Mu said: "Yes!"
"We have sufficient supplies of food and supplies, which provides conditions for issuing some coupons."
"If the Commissioner's Office issues a batch of food coupons, and these coupons can be exchanged for food at the food bank we operate, will everyone accept it?"
Tan Lin said in surprise: "Of course I will agree. Starting from selling grain at a discount and balancing commodity prices, the credibility of the Office has been established."
"Not to mention too much, there is absolutely no problem in issuing food stamps worth hundreds or tens of millions of French currency. Commissioner, would you like to try issuing one?"
Li Mu said: "Are we short of money now?"
Tan Lin shook his head and said: "There is no shortage, there is sufficient funds."
Li Muchao: "What's the use of issuing so many food stamps and recovering a large sum of legal currency that is depreciating day by day?"
Tan Lin smiled bitterly and said: "Yes! If you take a sum of legal currency and put it in your hands, it will also depreciate."
"Are we still going to give out food stamps?"
Li Mu said: "Fat?"
Tan Lin was stunned for a moment: "Fa..."
Li Muchao: "Yes, but it's not for the market, it's for internal development."
"The depreciation of legal currency and skyrocketing prices will not only affect the Office, but also the many workers we employ, and will also have a great impact on their livelihoods."
"Especially those who are thrifty and save money to run their families. They have saved a large amount of French currency, thinking that they finally have some wealth. After a few years of large-scale depreciation, it may only be enough for a few meals. By then, these people will be
What's your mood?"
"So frugal, so frugal, and the money you save is worthless in the end?"
Tan Lin sighed: "According to the current situation, the probability of this happening is very high. As long as Guofu continues to issue additional legal currency on a large scale, the legal currency will depreciate more than ten times in the future..."
Li Mu smiled and thought tenfold. In the future, the devaluation of legal currency will be in units of hundreds of millions. It is not impossible to buy a chicken drumstick with one billion legal currency.
"So, this situation should be avoided."
"I decided to issue a batch of food stamps internally. With the food stamps, you can go to the stores under our grain bank to redeem the food. You can redeem it immediately with the coupons."
"Based on the current situation, not only will these food stamps not depreciate in value, but the more expensive the food will be in the future, the higher its value will be. For many people, saving this is better than saving money to preserve their value."
Tan Lin said: "In this case, once it is taken out, everyone will not go crazy. How should we distribute it? Should we let the workers exchange it freely or..."
Li Mu said: "The number of food stamps must also be limited and cannot be exchanged freely. We don't have that much food for everyone to exchange freely."
"I think it can be distributed to everyone in the form of remuneration."
"In the future, everyone's salary can be given a certain percentage of food stamps based on their position and salary."
"In low-level positions, the salary is small, and most of the money earned is used to buy food and maintain food and clothing for the family, so we should issue more food stamps and less cash."
"For mid- to high-level positions, the salary is high, so you don't have to worry about food. If your consumption in other areas is high, then you should issue less food stamps and more cash."
"Try to be as humane as possible. We do this to facilitate everyone, not to make it more troublesome."
Tan Lin said: "Yes, I understand."
Li Mu continued: "The promotion of the use of silver dollars cannot be forced. In the future, it will start with the payment of wages. For all projects started by the office, the remuneration will be paid in silver dollars plus food stamps."
"As for taxation and commercial activities in the world, there is no need to force it. With the Office of the Commissioner setting an example, everyone is aware that legal currency is increasingly depreciating, and naturally more and more silver dollars will be used."
Tan Lin hesitated for a moment and said: "But...Commissioner, please wait for everyone to react. Isn't it too slow? As long as the Office convenes everyone for a meeting, silver dollars will soon replace the trading status of legal tenders."
Li Mu sighed and said: "It's not easy for Guofu now. It all relies on issuing legal currency to make some money. The legal currency has depreciated too fast, which is not good for the war. Let's not add insult to injury."
Tan Lin hesitated for a moment and nodded silently.