"What's the harm in hearing your story, Lord Xu?" Li Tianjing said with a smile, "Western missionaries have also spread rumors that there may be British or Ming people living in Europe around His Majesty."

Xu Guangqi shook his head and said, "How could an Englishman be around His Majesty? If there were, it would be impossible to hide it. As for Ming people living in Europe, there's a slight possibility, but there's no evidence. In my opinion, His Majesty may have read Western books and come into contact with people who spoke Spanish and sailed abroad."

After pausing to think for a moment, Xu Guangqi said, "Besides this, Your Majesty is incredibly intelligent and has excellent comprehension."

As he spoke, he spread his hands and said with a wry smile: "Is there any other explanation?"

Li Tianjing nodded repeatedly and said, "That's true. I can't think of any other reason except that it's just talent. You can tell from Wansui's skill in mechanical skills and his extreme intelligence."

Xu Guangqi looked at Sun Yuanhua and said earnestly, "If Your Majesty won't tell me, then don't ask, let alone ask for advice in person. Chuyang, I know your character, and you must have done this."

Sun Yuanhua smiled wryly and nodded, saying, "Your Majesty, please be lenient. I haven't replied, nor have I been punished. But I won't dare do it again in the future."

"If you have any questions, you can submit them to the memorial. If Your Majesty gives you guidance, you can follow it." Xu Guangqi said slowly, "If Your Majesty has no solution, you can solve it yourself."

Sun Yuanhua bowed and said, "Student understands."

Li Tianjing smiled and said, "Lord Xu, there's no need to be too harsh on Chuyang. He's eager to learn and ask questions. Perhaps that's why His Majesty trusts Chuyang! Asking him in person might not be appropriate, but asking for advice on the question book should be fine."

Xu Guangqi blinked slowly and said nothing, which was considered as his agreement.

Sun Yuanhua knew his teacher wasn't sure either, so he stopped asking and changed the subject. "Right now, besides forging weapons, we're also minting silver coins. I'm confident we can do that. Just focus on compiling the calendar."

"Minting silver coins is a matter of great importance to the nation. While there's no rush, we must pay close attention." Xu Guangqi warned, "There are many Western silver coins along the southeastern coast, and they're gradually making their way into the interior. If this continues, it will be detrimental to the Ming Dynasty."

Sun Yuanhua agreed respectfully, and the three of them casually talked about other things.

………………

During the Wanli reign of the Ming Dynasty, as maritime trade flourished, silver coins minted in the West began to flow in. Because tea, porcelain, and silk were selling well, and the trade surplus grew, the number and variety of foreign silver coins also increased.

In the beginning, foreign silver coins were traded based on weight and fineness converted into foot marks.

Later, because of the stable purity and uniform weight of silver dollars, as well as their ease of use, they became popular among domestic merchants, who were willing to exchange each tael of pure silver for a silver dollar with a purity of about 90% and weighing about seven cents.

If this continues for a long time, such exchange will inevitably lead to the outflow of domestic silver, seriously damaging the economy of the Ming Dynasty.

Therefore, Zhu Youxiao accelerated the pace of abolishing the Liang-yuan system and changing the currency. At the same time, preparations for the establishment of the Imperial Bank were also in full swing.

In Zhu Youxiao's view, since foreign silver coins were accepted by merchants on the southeast coast, there was no reason why the Ming Dynasty-made silver coins would be boycotted and unable to circulate, given their fineness and weight.

Of course, traditional thinking and habits will still exist for a while, which is the transition period of using both methods, but the impact should not be significant.

Beijing, Nanjing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou. Zhu Youxiao was quite cautious and only set up branches of the Imperial Bank in these four places in the first batch.

For the time being, only one mint will be set up in the capital, and more mints may be built in Tianjin and Shanghai in the future.

The planning had been completed, but what made Zhu Youxiao feel difficult was the lack of economic talents.

The civil servants in the court had no problem discussing poetry, songs, and beautiful articles, but when it came to finance and economics, few people could understand.

Zhu Youxiao had no choice but to recruit talents from private money shops and banks, and then train them to become staff members of the Imperial Bank.

The first president of the Imperial Bank also gave Zhu Youxiao a headache, because there were so few officials in the Ming Dynasty who were good at economics and financial management!

After much deliberation, he could only transfer Jin Fu Bi Ziyan back. Although not now, Zhu Youxiao had already explained to Bi Ziyan through the secret channel.

For example, the business scope and operating characteristics of the Imperial Bank were written by Zhu Youxiao himself and improved through research by many people.

After Bi Ziyan understood the emperor's general ideas about the Imperial Bank, he must have done a lot of homework and made many suggestions in his secret report to the emperor.

After this communication, Zhu Youxiao felt relieved and sent Li Banghua to Tianjin to familiarize himself with the work and prepare for the handover with Bi Ziyan.