Imperial Master of the Ming Dynasty

At this time, people in the secret room outside the wall were also lost in thought.

"When Li Jinglong said this, it sounds like the vast amount of silver was no different from precious banknotes to the Ming Dynasty?"

"No, no, I always feel like something is wrong."

Zhu Di murmured to himself: "How can silver be no different from paper?"

"There must be something wrong, but I haven't figured it out yet."

Zhu Di turned to his eldest son and asked, "Chi'er, you have a better memory than me. Can you tell me the reasons, history, and trends of silver monetization that Mr. Jiang mentioned before?"

Zhu Gaochi briefly recalled and then said.

“Looking at the reasons, silver has its significant advantages as a currency, namely, it is corrosion-resistant and easy to preserve, and its texture is easy to cut and cast. It is less than copper but more than gold. Broken silver can be used as small-value currency, and silver ingots can be used for large-value transactions. "

"Historically, the vast Mongol Empire has always used silver as the standard of value (standard rather than currency). This also means that in trade with Western countries, silver is the most suitable for 'cross-border international trade' Because both West Asia and Western Europe recognize silver but not copper coins."

"Looking at the trend, whether it is the devaluation of treasure banknotes within the Ming Dynasty or the private minting of copper coins, or the inflow of external silver and sea trade transactions, it will lead to a large amount of relatively stable silver entering the Ming Dynasty and becoming the main currency of the Ming Dynasty in the future."

At the end of his speech, Zhu Gaochi suddenly patted his good leg excitedly, causing his fat to tremble.

"My son, I understand!"

"I see!"

"It turns out Jiang Lang has already talked about it."

Li Jinglong also slapped his thigh, which made his own bones hurt. He said apologetically: "Don't blame me, Jiang Lang. I didn't listen carefully. I shouldn't blame you."

Jiang Xinghuo said: "Learning without thinking is useless. Only by thinking independently can you not blindly follow. You have done a good job and there is no need to apologize to me."

Zhu Gaoxu asked blankly: "What do you understand?"

"Tell me bit by bit."

Li Jinglong patiently explained his understanding, but he was no longer as proud and impatient as before.

“Let’s talk about the first point first, which is ‘the reason why silver can be monetized’.”

"That is mined silver, which is different from the paper used to make treasure banknotes. Silver can be used as currency because it is valuable in itself, and it has nothing to do with whether it represents the national power and credibility of the Ming Dynasty."

"so what?"

Zhu Gaoxu is still in a silly state.

“It is precisely based on the first point ‘the reason why silver can be monetized’ that we have the second point ‘the history of silver monetization’.”

Seeing that Zhu Gaoxu was still puzzled, Li Jinglong asked again: "Then do you still remember what Mr. Jiang said before that silver is the most suitable for 'cross-border international trade' because of its unique properties? Still in 'Western Europe', they all recognize silver but not copper coins."

"I seem to remember." Zhu Gaoxu replied uncertainly.

"It is precisely because of the first point that silver itself has value and is suitable for storage and cutting, so silver can be used as currency in all countries."

"Isn't this a matter of course?" Zhu Gaoxu's mind was almost confused.

"So the treasure banknotes can only be used within the Ming Dynasty, and the eight million taels of silver per year can be spent in other countries! Because other countries recognize silver!"

"Isn't this equivalent to Ming's unlimited printing of treasure money abroad? Moreover, other countries also think that Ming's transactions are fair and generous."

Only then did Zhu Gaoxu come to his senses and said in surprise: "So, Ming Dynasty can buy all the good things from other countries with just a dime? And it is like this every year? In this case, wouldn't Ming Dynasty become extremely powerful out of thin air? Are you rich?"

In the secret room, Zhu Gaochi said to Zhu Di.

"It's not out of thin air. The root cause lies in the 'Iwami Silver Mountain' and the 'Sado Gold Mountain'. Therefore, it is imperative to conquer Japan!"

Zhu Di nodded and said: "When I return to the palace today, I will send the eunuch to Japan to see what the specific situation is in Japan first."

"Also, Ji Gang."

Ji Gang always felt that he had heard too many secrets and his mind would soon lose its hold.

At this time, he came back to his senses. He quickly stood up from the chair and bowed in response.

"I'm here!"

Zhu Di knocked on the chair and commanded majestically: "As for your Jin Yiwei, we will also choose dozens of smarter ones to be included in the mission to Japan later. When the time comes, we will act according to the situation and conduct in-depth investigations. The main ones will be Iwami Yinshan, Sado Jinshan will assist you to determine whether it exists."

"His Majesty."

"What's wrong?" Zhu Di did not look back, "I know that Sado Jinshan is easier to find on the island. I gave this order because of my own considerations."

"No." Ji Gang said bravely, "Leave this matter to Jin Yiwei?"

When Zhu Di heard this, he understood Ji Gang's concerns in just a moment.

The black-clad prime minister Dao Yan has always been responsible for the intelligence investigation in Lianghe, Mobei and even North Korea, with the three treasure eunuch Ma He serving as Dao Yan's assistant and relay.

Nowadays, Daoyan spends his days in Datianjie Temple pondering over those mysterious things. Except for asking for a copy of Jiang Xinghuo's lecture notes to be given to him, he doesn't care about anything else.

Therefore, according to the tacit understanding and boundaries between the three intelligence agencies of the Ming Dynasty, the matter of going to Japan to participate in the investigation should be left to Dao Yan as a rule.

But now, after all, Dao Yan has let go, and Ma He is in Fujian to supervise shipbuilding and sailing to the West. Zhu Di subconsciously handed over the task to Jin Yiwei, who had just been reorganized and was still very short on manpower.

"Just do it, I trust you."

"I obey His Majesty's will!" Ji Gang's eyes flashed with ecstasy when he lowered his head.

Inside the wall, Li Jinglong finished expressing his thoughts.

"What Jiang Lang wants to say, but what do I mean by what I just said?"

Li Jinglong's 'pride-depression' duality broke out again, and he raised his head and asked.

The meaning is also very simple. I said it must be what you want to talk about.

I'm smart, come on and praise me!

"You are very smart and worthy of being my student."

Jiang Xinghuo first affirmed, and then said, "But did you forget something?"

"Forgot something?" Li Jinglong was stunned.

"What we originally talked about was that we should use silver to pay taxes instead of grain?"

When Li Jinglong heard this, he also became a goose.

yes! When did the issue of silver not paper come to mind?

Then if the silver goes abroad to buy things, isn’t the problem of using grain to pay taxes in China still not solved?

"Then how to solve it?" Li Jinglong asked blankly.

Jiang Xinghuo did not answer him directly, but said softly.

"I heard that martial arts masters in martial arts schools usually don't teach real things, and they have to hide their skills before they die. I don't have this habit."

"I'll behead him immediately, and I'll leave you with something real tomorrow."

".The real thing that can make the imperial hegemony last for thousands of years."

"You must know that in this world, force is not the only thing that can conquer people."

"What is Mr. Jiang referring to?" Zhu Gaoxu asked.

"currency!"

Jiang Xinghuo said in a deep voice: "Imagine if the Ming Dynasty built a mature international trade system based on Japanese silver and stably controlled the import and circulation of domestic silver."

"Silver can be used as anchor and reserve to issue 'silver banknotes'."

"Let the 'paper' printed by the Ming Dynasty become the 'silver' recognized by other countries."

“With ‘Silver Banknotes’, people paying taxes will not be subject to the import and export price of silver, nor will they need to face the dilemma of ‘selling grain for silver, and then using the silver to buy the grain they grow at a high price.’”

"Because in all circulation links, what is circulating is the paper 'Silver Banknotes'!"