The currencies of major European countries are available here, of course the most common ones are the pound sterling and the gold franc, which are now the largest settlement currencies in the world.
Stacks of neatly arranged banknotes are as neat as tofu cubes. Each stack is pressed heavily in the hand, and the white paper seal on it indicates the amount.
"One hundred thousand pounds... fifty thousand pounds... one hundred thousand francs..."
"One hundred thousand marks... fifty thousand dollars..."
Bundles of cash were placed in cowhide boxes, and ten soldiers began to pack them quickly under the supervision of four French accountants.
Every bundle of cash was moved away, which made France present feel heartbroken, especially the muscles on the face of the person leading the way began to tremble, and the pen under his hand was shaking and the data recorded was crooked.
The prevailing monetary policy in Europe in this era is the gold standard. Even though these are paper currencies, according to the regulations of central banks of various countries, these money can be exchanged for the same amount of gold.
One pound is equivalent to 732,238 grams of pure gold, one franc is equivalent to 293,225 grams of pure gold, and one dollar is equivalent to 5,463 grams of pure gold... These are laws and exchange ratios fixed by laws in various countries, and they also support banknotes and gold. exchanged.
What the Chinese took away was not boxes after boxes of paper, but boxes of gold! How can the French not feel pain?
It also takes time to count and pack seven million cash. Xiang Ying stood in the middle of the vault with his hands behind his back. On the surface, he was monitoring the cash delivery process, but his eyes were darting around. The iron cabinet became the focus of his attention.
There was also a brown paper bag on the table in the middle. The English and French words on it made his heart skip a beat.
Since the monetary policies of various European countries were strictly linked to the gold standard in the 19th century, the exchange rates between various currencies were quite stable. Unless there was a major adjustment in gold and silver production or a war, the exchange rates between currencies rarely changed.
One pound is equal to twenty-five francs, five US dollars, twenty marks... Xiang Ying has memorized these exchange rates in his heart, so even though there are many types of currencies, it is not slow to settle them.
Soon the Chinese soldiers shipped out four huge suitcases, and compensation worth three million francs had been moved out of the Canal Company. At this time, the cash cabinet of the Canal Company had bottomed out, and the accountants had grimacing faces. road.
"I'm very sorry. The counselor doesn't know the company's financial situation this morning. A batch of cash was transferred from the Egyptian headquarters early this morning, so now we can only provide you with four million francs in cash..."
"Is it okay to issue an IOU in the name of the canal company for the remaining three million?"
Xiang Ying closed his eyes and pondered for more than ten seconds, "In principle, I can only accept an IOU of one million. The amount of three million is too large. I can't explain it if you don't pay it back..."
"How is that possible? Our canal is a river of wealth flowing with gold. We can raise this amount of money for you in a month! No, no, no... just half a month!"
"Haha... I can't wait for you for half a month, because we will leave Port Said the day after tomorrow after we resolve the matter here... Let's do this, you give me the collateral! I will pay it back after the cash arrives. How are you?"
"Collateral? What kind of collateral do you want..." the four accountants asked in confusion.
"Stocks! I want the stocks of the Canal Company...the stocks worth three million francs. I will keep them for you. When the cash is delivered, I will return the stocks to you!"
"Stocks?" The four accountants looked at each other and then retreated to the corner and started talking.
Xiang Ying waited patiently. He knew that the other party would definitely agree, because the stock market in the 19th century was completely real-name and manual delivery. One stock corresponded to a person's name, and any transaction must go through strict transfer procedures. .
In other words, the stocks with the name of the French Canal Company written on them are useless paper in Xiang Ying's hands. Because there is no transfer procedure, the Canal Company does not need to pay dividends to Xiang Ying, or even recognize the legality of Xiang Ying's stocks. .
Because there are no normal transactions between Party A and Party B, and no middlemen for transfers, the Canal Company can completely determine these shares as illegal gains. Even a French scoundrel can declare Xiang Ying's shares abolished and then print a new batch of shares. of stocks.
The four accountants thought about it and decided that using three million francs of stock as collateral was not a big problem. The total market value of the canal stock was close to 30 million pounds, which was a full value of 750 million francs. Even if the Chinese were allowed to get 3 million francs. One million will not pose any threat to the shares.
"Okay! We agreed to use the stocks as collateral and give you IOUs and stocks..." The accountants then crossed their keys and opened a brand new iron cabinet, which contained thick paper documents wrapped in kraft paper.
Xiang Ying was waiting for this moment. He stared at the documents in the cabinet like a hawk, imprinting the rows of letters on it in his heart.
Although Xiang Ying did not have a photographic memory, the most important basic skill for ancient Chinese scholars was recitation, and rote memorization was their strength.
Xiang Ying's IQ is low. He doesn't dare to remember all these dense words, but he can remember at least 60%.
There are only three minutes from opening to closing the cabinet, but Xiang Ying has memorized many valuable words in these three minutes. Now he does not dare to waste time. He must leave here as soon as possible and memorize it. Everything is written on paper.
"Oh! God, my appetite is so uncomfortable...I have stomach trouble again..."
"Captain, what's wrong with you?" the soldier beside him asked anxiously.
"I need to go out and take some medicine... Let the earl handle the rest! I'll leave first..."
The four French accountants had no idea what Xiang Ying was up to, but when they heard that a count was delivering the goods, they didn't care. As long as they could send these Chinese away, they would come.
Rushing out of the Canal Company, before Hyoutarou could ask, Xiang Ying grabbed a windproof kerosene lamp and squatted in the corner to start writing in a notebook. Strings of English words jumped on the paper. No one around him knew what he was doing. what are you doing.
Hyoutaro was too lazy to pay attention to this lunatic. He turned around and walked into the Canal Company to settle the last three million arrears as his earl. Naturally, such things as making IOUs were very fast. In a short time, he took a thick The brown paper bag came out.
"Are you okay? Your nerves are gone..."
Before Hyoutaro could finish, Xiang Ying threw away the cigarette he had just puffed on, grabbed his arm and whispered, "Let's leave Port Said. Our mission has been successfully completed. Let's go see Yuan..."
"I know you have questions in your mind. I will explain it to you personally when I return to the Zhiyuan in a while!"
