At this time, the most noble person in the dynasty was the Xu Mansion.
Xu Youzhen was the chief minister of the dynasty and had firmly held power for decades. His Majesty the Emperor trusted him very much and it remained unchanged for many years.
And Xu Youzhen also dedicated his most energetic period to the Ming Dynasty. He was proficient in scheming, experienced in power struggles, and firmly controlled the civil service group. During this period, he teamed up with Menda to defeat many stubborn people. Qingliu civil servant, and in the 34th year of Chenghua, he successfully passed the blame. During this period, Menda took the blame for some unjust, false and wrong cases that he supervised, and then Menda ended sadly. ŴŴŴ.BIQUGE.biz
And his youngest son Xu Shixian, who was deeply involved in the whirlpool of public opinion at that time, took part in the rites examination in the 34th year of Chenghua. Because of his outstanding performance, he was awarded the eighth title of the second-class Jinshi. Because of his young age, he was assigned to the Zhanshi Mansion in the East Palace. Follow the Crown Prince.
And this youngest son of the Xu family, who is not sure whether he is a son or a grandson, has been gifted since he was a child. He gained fame at the age of fifteen, and was ranked on the list at the age of seventeen. He was the youngest person on the list at that time.
Of course, except for when Xu Youzhen was able to provide him with some help when he was studying poetry at the Ministry of Rites, Xu Shixian had to rely on himself for the previous imperial examinations.
Not only was Xu Shixian good at studying, he was also well trained by Xu Youzhen in dealing with people. At a young age, he was already a master who stirred up troubles in the Beijing circle.
The Xu family also has successors...
In the Xu Mansion.
Xu Youzhen, who has white hair and is somewhat thin, is sitting in the front seat in the living room.
The clothes he wore were a green shirt, and the people sitting on both sides of the living room were all high-ranking officials of the day.
Although he is in his seventies, he does not have the twilight aura that a person of this age should have. Even though his eyes are a little cloudy, the eyes in his heart are brighter.
Xu Youzhen, who was slightly ridiculous and disrespectful for her age, has disappeared. Although in winter, there are four maids who warm the bed, all of them are fair-skinned, beautiful and long-legged. But at this time, Xu Youzhen is indeed more than willing. And lack of strength.
Next to the chopping board in Xu Youzhen's hand, there were dozens of gold and silver coins.
In the 32nd year of Chenghua, the amount of silver in private circulation surged, and the gap between the north and the south changed dramatically.
The imperial court had long noticed this situation, but it was still somewhat unprepared when faced with financial asymmetry.
In the north, you can have a meal at an expensive restaurant for only a few silver coins, and you only need ten taels of silver to get a wife. But in the south, if you want to have a meal at a luxury restaurant, the minimum guarantee is only ten taels of silver. In the past, ordinary people's marriages also cost fifty taels of silver. At the beginning, this situation was easy to deal with, but after the circulation between the north and the south, the blow to the Central Plains and the north was huge.
Many southerners come to the north to visit relatives and buy real estate. After making money in the south, they come to the north to spend it. The farming population in the north is also decreasing year by year. Many young and middle-aged people go to the south of the Yangtze River to engage in handicraft production, resulting in large-scale Land was laid waste and food prices soared.
When there are no natural or man-made disasters, the price of food surges, forming a round of food shortages. This is a very big problem. If it were not for the use of water transportation and sea routes, a large number of sweet potatoes were sent to the Central Plains, which solved the food panic among the people. , a popular uprising may form.
In response to the emergence of this situation, the imperial court could only formulate strict laws to restrict the circulation between the north and the south at the beginning. Although it reduced some effects, this was completely treating the symptoms rather than the root cause.
Therefore, at the beginning of the 34th year of Chenghua, a series of currency reforms began. Zhu Jianshen ordered the Ministry of Industry to make gold coins, silver coins, and re-introduce the use of treasure banknotes. As long as the currency can be controlled, control will be carried out. There will be great initiative.
The dozen gold and silver coins Xu Youzhen had on hand were the first batch of gold and silver coins produced by the Ministry of Industry.
The Hongwu era name is made of gold coins, palm-sized, with one or two in total. There are two lines of characters on the back, one line is Da Ming Hongwu in official script, and one line is official script Xiaozi. One or two gold coins, and there is a circle of dragon patterns around the characters.
The front was originally to be made based on the portrait of Emperor Taizu Gao. Zhu Jianshen asked the craftsmen that as long as there was time, the template could be made successfully. In terms of technology, there was not much of a problem, but after many considerations, he still chose He gave up because Emperor Taizu Gao's position was too high. If it were placed on the coins, it would cause an uproar. Then, Zhu Jianshen asked the craftsmen to replace Zhu Yuanzhang's portrait with a golden dragon. After the mold was completed, the gold coins were made faster.
The value of one tael of gold has not changed, because all he used was gold, and the common man accepted it.
Only two hundred were produced in the first batch.
At this time, Xu Youzhen put on her reading glasses and kept observing the exquisite golden dragon coin, exclaiming in surprise from time to time.
After reading it, he carefully placed the Hongwu Golden Dragon Coin on the case, and then picked up the silver coins with different year numbers.
Yongle silver coins, Hongxi silver coins, Xuande silver coins, orthodox silver coins.
The diameter is the same and the format is the same. The only difference is that the Yongle silver coin is a bit thicker and not so beautiful. Both gold and silver coins weigh one tael. Only the Yongle silver coin weighs two taels... Of course, this was also requested by Zhu Jianshen himself. Yes, the officials of the Ministry of Industry believed that this was an affirmation of Emperor Taizongwen's achievements. Of course, some officials had other ideas that they did not dare to say out loud. That is, the extra one tael was an allusion to Emperor Jianwen. The one tael that comes out is also for Jianwennian.
"You have done a good job. After I meet you, I will ask for credit for you... However, I am still a little confused. What should I do if someone fakes it?"
The director of the Ministry of Industry stood up and said: "Sir, don't worry. Your Majesty requires that whether it is Hongwu Golden Dragon Coin or the other three types of silver coins, they are all of sufficient weight. The cost of counterfeiting will be very high, even if the weight of the silver coins will change over time." It has decreased somewhat over time, but the traces on the silver coin and its reduced weight make it easy to infer its authenticity. Moreover, the imperial court will open gold and silver bureaus in major capitals in the south of the Yangtze River. When doing large-scale transactions, passes can be exchanged... …”
After hearing this, Xu Youzhen nodded: "You didn't send it to His Majesty, right?"
"After it was made, I reported it to His Majesty. However, His Majesty said that he should bring it to the Lord Pavilion to see it first. When you come to see the saint, he will go there with the gold and silver coins..."
Although she became much calmer, Xu Youzhen still felt happy after listening to the official's words. It seems that love will never disappear. Even if one of her legs has lost its use and one of her legs has been inserted into the coffin, His Majesty still treats her like this. Trust made him the longest-serving, most powerful, and most favored person in the Chenghua Dynasty.
"In that case, I will quickly enter the palace and discuss it with His Majesty. Sirs, please do as you please."
After Xu Youzhen finished speaking, the two women who had been behind him hurriedly stepped forward, held Xu Youzhen's arms on the left and right, and asked him to stand up.
Before the old Xu Youzhen stood up, all the officials in the hall stood up and bowed to Xu Youzhen to leave...
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