Uncle Lai in the Red Chamber

Chapter 320
early morning.

Lai's new house.

Lai Shangrong was eating breakfast and reading the Di newspaper in his hand.

Perhaps due to the habit of his previous life, Lai Shangrong always has a bowl of porridge as a base no matter how rich his breakfast is.

Of course, porridge without side dishes is soulless.

Pickled melon, pickled cowpea, dried radish and pickled cabbage, etc.

However, side dishes are just side dishes. He can't understand the brain circuit of Bangzi. He has the nerve to create a kimchi culture with just spicy cabbage. Such a lack of culture, so he is embarrassed, wraps the pickled cabbage, and puts it on the counter. Come up to promote?
However, it is not so strange when you think about the army hot pot that later generations were proud of.

It is precisely because they do not have their own culture and have been deeply influenced by us that they jump over the wall and start stealing.

I just don’t understand that a country that only has one weather report for the whole country can also breed 24 solar terms?
Lai Shangrong was not complaining out of the blue, but he thought of these past events after seeing the news about the tributes from the Xian and Japanese countries in the Di newspaper.

Of course, Xian Guo and Bangzi cannot be generalized.

He had always believed that the Korean orthodoxy was in the north, and he was a little familiar with the history before and after the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea. It was not difficult to see that the group of people who founded the country were actually the leading party during the Japanese colonial period. After the Japanese were defeated in World War II, Meiliguo took over the identity of the Japanese masters. , just another father.

It is precisely because of this characteristic that he can sneak around so fast on the battlefield, and even completed the mission of attacking our own camp for our army many times.

So, don't think that the stick of future generations will be excited when they talk about the country of Japan. They really hate Japan.

It cannot be said that they are inextricably linked, at least not unrelated. Otherwise, how can we jointly host the World Cup?

At first, when he saw the news about the tribute paid by the two countries, he was a little puzzled.

In my memory, the Japanese nation had been secluded for 200 years since the Imjin Japanese Rebellion, so the sudden payment of tribute seemed a bit inexplicable.

After looking through the Di newspaper carefully, I found that there was actually a relationship with myself in it.

Last year, Britain withdrew its troops from the Qianxiang Kingdom and focused its main attention on Shendu. As a result, the Netherlands' space in Shendu was gradually compressed.

Although they did not know the specific situation of the negotiations between Britain and Daxia, it was a fact that they were withdrawing from Qianxiang Kingdom. Therefore, they did not dare to stroke Daxia's tiger beard, so they set their sights on the Korean and Japanese countries in the east.

Even, for the sake of safety, Gaulji was invited to divide it together.

Many people have certain misunderstandings about the profession and connotation of samurai in Japan.

Different from our culture, as long as you reach the level of self-cultivation, or pass a certain assessment, and are recognized, you can be called the corresponding title.

As for the Japanese country, even if you have the spirit of a warrior and have a high force value, you may not be called a warrior.

Only those who have masters are called warriors, and those who have no masters can only be called ronin.

Therefore, the Japanese nation's search for a master is a cultural heritage engraved in their bones.

The reason why the word "find" is highlighted is because they are still used to backstabbing their master when they are weak, to strengthen themselves, and then find a new master.

For such a country and people, you must always be vigilant, even if you are his master.

Therefore, when Lai Shangrong saw the envoys from the two countries coming, he couldn't help but frown.

In ancient times, these two countries have always been vassal states, and now that they have come to visit them again, it is difficult to guarantee that Daxia will not lend a helping hand if they get mad.

After eating, he pushed away the bowls and chopsticks, and boarded the carriage to the yamen. On the way and in the yamen, he was thinking about how to speak to the emperor.

Unexpectedly, before he could prepare the memorial, he was summoned by the emperor.

Immediately followed Eunuch Zhou who delivered the order and came to the palace.

Inside the imperial study.

"Lai Aiqing! Nowadays, many ministers in the DPRK and China have proposed to expand sea trade with the Western Yi and increase the treasury. Can those restrictions be relaxed a little?"

The emperor was not looking for him because of the envoys of Xian and Japan. After all, this kind of vassal country was not worthy of the emperor's attention.Lai Shangrong was delighted when he heard the emperor's inquiry.

"Your Majesty, you must not do it! We are short of silver mines in Daxia, but we have abundant reserves overseas. Not to mention, the Japanese country to the east is rich in silver. If we let go, it will inevitably lead to a huge increase in domestic silver and inflated prices. , and those foreign countries can also use silver to seize our supplies in Great Xia, and once supplies are in short supply, prices will inevitably rise further."

Our country's silver reserves are not high, but its copper mines are very abundant. This is why copper coins have been the main currency in all dynasties.

Even the maritime ban during the Ming and Qing Dynasties was not without such considerations.

Don’t think that the ancients had no concept of finance. The earliest bank note in the world was Jiaozi from the Song Dynasty.

The emperor might have been fascinated by Bai Yin before, but after Lai Shangrong said this, he also reacted.

He sighed with emotion: "I didn't expect that Aiqing is also good at economics. It's just that since we are short of silver in Daxia and want to replenish the national treasury, this is inevitable. What I and several elders want to do is to gradually relax and try our best to reduce the impact."

Precious metals have been used as currency throughout history, so in the eyes of emperors and courtiers, this step was inevitable as long as they wanted to make money.

Although Lai Shangrong may not know much about finance, he has lived in modern times and knows the difference between currency and silver.

Moreover, he knew that silver would be eliminated sooner or later due to reserves. The original Qing Dynasty government was robbed of a huge amount of wealth just because the currency switched from the silver standard to the gold standard.

"Your Majesty, I have a better way!"

"Oh? My dear, please tell me!"

“My method is mainly divided into three steps.

First of all, there is no need to change domestically for the time being. We will only change the foreign trade settlement from silver to gold, so that the difference earned from our foreign trade every year will not depreciate due to the proliferation of silver.

Secondly, the official silver minted by the Mint of the Salt and Iron Department will no longer be made into silver ingots, but will be changed into silver coins with designated denominations.Of course, you also need to match gold coins and set the official gold and silver exchange ratio.

Finally, mine overseas gold and silver minerals to ensure good exchange channels. "

Lai Shangrong's ultimate goal was, of course, to issue banknotes. Originally, it might not have been impossible to achieve it with the force of the imperial court, but the treasure banknotes of the previous dynasty had completely destroyed the credibility of banknotes.

To complete this idea, you must proceed step by step.

First, the credibility of the court must be established.

In this regard, Lai Shangrong plans to go back to the old path of the pound and first issue silver and gold coins of a certain denomination.

In ancient times, silver was not the ingots commonly seen on the screen in later generations, but scattered silver of varying purity and shapes. Most private transactions had to be weighed.

As long as the denomination is set, the exchange channel is guaranteed, and the existing transaction method is replaced, it is not difficult.

Ancient merchants often suffered losses in transactions due to varying purity. The emergence of denominations solved this worry.

Of course, if you want to guarantee exchange, you must have sufficient reserves. Therefore, on the one hand, there are restrictions on foreign trade settlement, and on the other hand, overseas mining is also imperative.

He did not tell the whole truth to the emperor. I am afraid that the real replacement would take his lifetime, and the sudden step would be too big, and the emperor may not be able to accept it.

But the emperor agreed that it could solve the problem of silver flooding and increase the gold reserves of the treasury.

Of course he had his doubts.

“How to mine overseas gold and silver?”

Lai Shangrong spoke for a long time, waiting for this sentence.

"I heard that the Japanese and Xian delegations have arrived in Beijing. If the emperor can trust Wei Chen, why not let Wei Chen receive the two delegations!"

Originally, he had never thought of implementing the currency reform so early. He mainly wanted to seek dominance in the affairs of the two countries.

However, the emperor's ladder has already been set up, so taking advantage of this opportunity, we might as well kill two birds with one stone.

(End of this chapter)