Zai Chun felt extremely happy today. Usually, this group of teachers would take turns to abuse him, but today Zai Chun could use some of his newly learned knowledge to counter the abuse. In the face of modern financial knowledge, these noble officials are all a bunch of scum.
"What is silver, what is copper coins, what is gold, including foreign banknotes, bonds issued by the Qing Dynasty, and military coupons issued by Ryukyu, etc. In fact, it is money. These things can be collectively called money..."
"And what is money? In the final analysis, money is just an object that is recognized by both the buyer and the seller. Master Weng, do you think this silver can be used for food or clothing? Mr. Feng, do you think this pile of copper coins can be used as a house?" .”
"In the final analysis, human beings need money, not just for the thing itself, but for the things that money can buy, that is, various needs for survival, from small things like food, clothing, housing and transportation, to big things like spiritual enjoyment, etc..."
Zai Chun followed Xiao Letian's example and shrugged, and said nonchalantly, "I understand now. Don't have images of mountains of gold and silver pop up in your mind as soon as you mention the amount of money. That's your own fantasy, okay?" ah."
"Before the Qin and Han dynasties, cloth could still be used as money. The imperial government gave them grain and cloth as salary. The limited copper they had was smelted into cauldrons and weapons. Although there were some knife coins, shovel-shaped coins, etc., they were still limited. Only a few people can use it, and the people still use the traditional trading model of barter..."
"At that time, there was no silver or gold as coins. The gold and silver at that time were just jewelry and decorations for the nobles."
"Silver truly became a currency in circulation because of a whipping method implemented by Zhang Juzheng in the Ming Dynasty... Master Weng should know very well that he changed all kinds of physical taxes into silver delivery, so that silver and copper coins became The currency types circulating in society..."
"So, all kinds of things in the world, including money, are constantly evolving. As long as there is something that can fulfill the role of the target object that silver and copper coins can achieve, then even if it is a piece of paper, it can be used as an object. Money spent.”
"In Ryukyu, Rakuten Bank's daily capital throughput is about 15 million silver coins, but physical silver transactions are less than one-tenth. Most merchants just take out a piece of paper with numbers written on it from a foreign bank, called Check to buy a whole shipload of goods that he likes..."
"The captains of those seagoing ships are also very willing to accept such checks, because they are easy to carry and not easy to lose. They can even go to the bank to set a password, so that there is no possibility of loss..."
"They took ships to Shanghai, Tanggu, Guangzhou and even Hong Kong. With such a thin piece of paper, they could exchange for the porcelain, silk, tea, medicinal materials... and gold they wanted."
"When these goods return to Europe, there will naturally be European counterparts doing the same business. With the support of distribution banks, this ocean trade spanning half the world has been completed..."
Today, eleven or twelve-year-old Zai Chun became the absolute protagonist, and the envoys present became elementary school students. These simple financial theoretical knowledge became vernacular in his mouth, and he explained it to them in an easy-to-understand way. The other party listens.
This is the essence of Xiao Letian's education. He has always believed that making complex things simple is the real skill, and making simple things complicated is called being deceptive.
At the end, someone in the delegation exclaimed, "Oh my God, it's so easy for this bank to make money. You lend money with your left hand and collect it with the right hand. Once you get it, you get high interest rates, and you don't have to use the principal. Those physical gold and silver are actually huge." Part of it is circulated in their treasury, isn't it just a credit that they sell?"
With a snap, Zai Chun snapped his fingers and said, "Yes... I'm very optimistic about you. I got to the key point right away."
Weng Tonghe coughed and said, "Your Majesty, please pay attention to your manners. You are a noble person, not a heavy worker on the dock. Don't act like a businessman."
Zai Chun stuck out his tongue and said with a bitter smile, "Isn't this not in the Forbidden City..."
"Not in the Forbidden City, you are also the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty, so you must be dignified." Weng Tonghe's tone became stern.
"Okay, that's what the master taught you." Zai Chun did it in a good manner.
The official of the mission who just asked the question went on to say, "Why can't our court do such a profitable business ourselves? Why should we give Xiao Letian a free hand? Our court also has taxes as a guarantee and the government to maintain order. We are not afraid of runs, let alone bank runs." Bankruptcy, such a good thing must be in the hands of the court."
This statement aroused a strong response from everyone, but unfortunately, all they got was Zai Chun shaking his head helplessly. Feng Fu asked in surprise, "Isn't this suggestion a bad suggestion? Why is Your Majesty shaking his head and sighing."
Zai Chun stood at the window and pointed in the direction of the bay. "At the pier where you disembarked, there are several statues, and they were all kneeling statues. Among them was Lin Yuanmiao, the former Minister of the Ministry of Finance of Ryukyu... He was killed while he was still alive. People have made kneeling statues.”
"The minister of household affairs in a country was almost beheaded by the prime minister because he embezzled 700,000 silver dollars. Lin Yuanmiao and his father were sick at home and dying, and the other traveled across the ocean to study in Europe in an attempt to atone for his sins... He took that book Bring me the brochure."
Da Sixi quickly handed Mr. Weng a thin album. On it was a record of Xiao Letian's eye quotes from the Prime Minister's Mansion, where he analyzed how the bureaucracy destroyed China's industry and commerce.
Why did the sprouts of capitalism appear in China in the Song Dynasty and the Ming Dynasty, and the dawn of the industrial revolution appeared, but they were all short-lived and failed. This booklet gives a very clear answer, that is, too powerful bureaucracy class.
Xiao Letian, a man of two generations, knew that if capitalism wanted to rise, there must be a space that allowed capital to exert its influence. Several million people in the Netherlands dared to form the East India Company and compete with the United Kingdom, France, and Spain to seize the cake of maritime trade. In the end, it actually worked, thanks to the power of capital.
Britain was able to take the lead in industrialization, with textile machines, steam engines, railways, and the Royal Navy protecting maritime trade. Capital was behind everything on the surface.
As the saying goes, if you don't have money, you can't gather troops. The same goes for doing business. How can you have big output without big investment? Massive initial capital investment will naturally lead to an increase in scale and technology, thereby obtaining more profits.
But the problem arises, with so much money gathered together, who will protect him.
Zai Chun recalled the Prime Minister's speech at that time: "Millions of taels of silver gathered together are already a mountain of silver. How could greedy bureaucrats let such a piece of fat go? And for thousands of years, Chinese civil servants have been Repeating one sentence, scholars, farmers, industry and merchants are the lowest class, and their political rights have been suppressed to the lowest level..."
Note: The first update is here today. Book friends are invited to come and read The Hidden Dragon of the Qing Dynasty. Only in this way can it help Xinjing. Thank you. There will be another update soon.
