Chapter 89 Old Zhu is Excited
There was silence in the imperial study. Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty and Crown Prince Zhu Biao both looked horrified.
Zhu Chong's words opened the eyes of the two supreme rulers of the Ming Dynasty, and at the same time, they felt a kind of fear and trepidation.
Neither Zhu Yuanzhang nor Zhu Biao had expected that the issuance of treasure notes would actually affect the destiny of the Ming Dynasty!
They really wanted to refute Zhu Chong in their hearts, but no matter how hard they racked their brains, they could not think of a reason to refute Zhu Chong, which made them even more frightened.
The Ming Dynasty's destiny was considered a taboo by both Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao. Neither of them wanted the Ming Dynasty's destiny to be damaged because of their own reasons.
For a moment, there was dead silence in the imperial study. Zhu Chong stood with his head held high, waiting for Old Zhu's final reaction.
At this moment, Old Zhu's hands were like eagle claws, then clenched, the veins on the back of his hands bulged high, his eyes stared straight ahead, his pupils were unfocused, and his face was purple as if he had passed out.
Perhaps Old Zhu would rather die at this moment, or perhaps he had never heard Zhu Chong's words. He just stood quietly in the hall, gritting his teeth, his body trembling slightly. The atmosphere in the imperial study became even more solemn.
Seeing this, Zhu Biao felt the same as Old Zhu, but he was still able to remain a little sober at this moment.
"Father, what the Second Brother said is indeed correct. How about you consider whether to continue issuing the treasure notes, or first..."
Although Zhu Biao was the crown prince and Zhu Yuanzhang's most beloved son, he also knew what Zhu Yuanzhang's forbidden food was.
Baochao was his hard work, but the harm caused by Baochao as described by Zhu Chong was too terrifying.
Zhu Biao seemed to see a monstrous catastrophe, which had already spread from the imperial palace of Yingtian Prefecture to all the prefectures of the Ming Dynasty with lightning speed and would overthrow the Ming Dynasty in an instant.
Zhu Biao did not dare to ask Zhu to prohibit the issuance of treasure notes directly, but the meaning of his words was obvious.
Old Zhu naturally understood what Zhu Biao meant. After hearing Zhu Biao's words, his face became even gloomier, and it took him a long time to focus his gaze on Zhu Biao.
"Then tell me, where will the money for the Northern Expedition come from? Will we continue to suppress the Japanese pirates? Will we continue to fight against Japan? Are we going to give up on continuing to conquer those bastards who are harming the country and the people, and allow the world to continue to fall into dire straits?"
Old Zhu's questioning seemed to be directed at the prince, but in fact it was directed at Zhu Chong. He now regretted letting Zhu Chong enter the palace and letting him know the dangers of treasure notes, but he now wanted to know more about how to resolve the current crisis.
Crown Prince Zhu Biao was helpless. It was impossible for him to think of a solution in the short term. If he had any ability, he would not have brought Zhu Chong into the palace. It was for this reason that he wanted to persuade Zhu Biao to give up the treasure notes.
Zhu Chong looked at the expressions of Old Zhu and Zhu Biao, and he almost laughed out loud. It turned out that time travel was really good. With the nearly thousand years of knowledge accumulated by these top figures of the Ming Dynasty, it was his turn to show off again!
He was just exaggerating. From the beginning to the end, Zhu Chong had no intention of persuading Zhu Da and Zhu Biao to give up the treasure notes.
Of course, what he said was not wrong. In history, the Ming Dynasty treasure notes did become worse than waste paper and were once regarded as a disaster by the people. As a result, the currency eventually returned to the old path of being mainly composed of gold, silver and copper coins.
However, the benefits of Baochao are still obvious, but at the moment, no one except Zhu Chong can explain it clearly.
"Your Highness, the Imperial Banknotes are the blood and sweat of His Majesty. They must not be discarded. Otherwise, wouldn't it damage the royal dignity and give His Majesty a bad reputation for fickleness?"
"Hmm?" A gleam of light flashed in Old Zhu's eyes. He was waiting for Zhu Chong to say this. Obviously, his son could see the bad side of Baochao, so he could naturally see the good side and how to avoid the drawbacks of Baochao.
Zhu Biao was stunned by Zhu Chong's words and blurted out, "Second Brother, what do you mean? Are we going to let the treasure banknotes deplete the Ming Dynasty? That would be a disgrace for eternity!"
"Brother, you are in the middle of the situation, and you are just too concerned." Zhu Chong smiled faintly, "There are ways to avoid the drawbacks of treasure notes. It depends on whether Your Majesty and Brother have the courage to do it!"
"Tell me about it!" Old Zhu seemed a little impatient at this time. He could see that his son had indeed thought of a solution.
But the method is certainly a bit strange, but compared with the fact that there is no need to abolish the treasure notes, that is not important.
Zhu Biao also reacted at this time. It turned out that his second brother had been waiting for so long just for this moment. However, he also wanted to hear what Zhu Chong had to solve the drawbacks of Baochao.
"Your Majesty, Crown Prince, as I mentioned earlier, a treasure note is simply a piece of paper. Its actual value is very low. It is only because it was created by Your Majesty, has a corresponding face value written on it, and is recognized by the court that it becomes money."
"But if we avoid risks and ensure that it always has the same value as gold, silver, and copper coins, then it won't harm the interests of the people of the world, and there won't be anything that will harm the Ming Dynasty."
"Please explain it clearly." Old Zhu could vaguely guess what Zhu Chong wanted to say, but he was impatient to guess.
"The method is actually very simple. It is to completely bundle the treasure notes with the gold, silver and copper coins and establish clear rules."
"For example, it was clearly stated that one guan of treasure notes was equivalent to one liang of silver. This was clearly decreed throughout the country, allowing anyone holding one guan of treasure notes to exchange for one liang of silver at any time and anywhere at designated government offices."
"In this way, the value of the treasure notes can be maintained, and there will be no situation of wasting the country's life."
Zhu Chong's words are actually very easy to understand. To put it bluntly, the court will act as a guarantee and prepare the corresponding amount of gold, silver and copper coins for every amount of treasure notes issued.
This is actually the same principle as bank reserves in later generations. Any country that issues currency will have reserve reserves. Simply put, gold, silver and copper coins are directly linked to treasure notes.
Issuing currency without reserves is pure rogue behavior. For example, the current Ming Dynasty treasure notes are following this path.
However, the Ming treasure notes have not depreciated too much yet, but the depreciation has already begun. If it continues, the country will inevitably fall apart.
Old Zhu was originally very excited to listen to Zhu Chong, but as he listened, the excitement on his face gradually disappeared, and his hands began to switch between eagle claws and fists.
Zhu Chong’s method does sound good at first glance, but if you think about it carefully, isn’t it just a joke?
Zhu Chong's method is a good one. If we do as he says, the treasure notes can indeed maintain their value and there will be no damage to the country's destiny.
But the problem is that the current situation in the Ming Dynasty makes it impossible for Zhu Yuanzhang to meet the conditions mentioned by Zhu Chong, especially the reserve fund!
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