Chapter 85: A New Major Infrastructure Project: Addressing Future Crises...
"Does Prefect Mu know about this?"
Qi Chengming snapped out of his daze and asked in a profound and enigmatic way.
He sensed the new prefect's undisguised flattery, but he was only busy telling the Liuzhou county government, which was on good terms with him, or perhaps also the highest-ranking local official. This would lead to two different perceptions.
Feeling the young prince's scrutinizing gaze, Lu Yu's throat tightened with nervousness. He had never discussed this with a new emperor like this in his previous life. Excited yet apprehensive, he forced a smile and said:
“I’ve already said that… The prefect is about to leave, supposedly to visit a friend, to see if he can help us out a little more.”
Qi Chengming's expression softened slightly, and he understood.
I heard that before Prefect Mu came to Liuzhou to take up his post, he had served as an official in several nearby prefectures for many years. It is normal for him to have connections such as friends and classmates who he could ask for help.
This feeling of having reliable teammates who can fight alongside you is amazing!
Qi Chengming was thrilled.
It's not that the others around him don't count, but in such important matters... Prefect Mu is among the most capable of playing a significant role.
"We were just discussing these things... County Magistrate, cough!" The Liuzhou County Magistrate gave the County Magistrate a look, signaling him to speak, as the County Magistrate was specifically in charge of taxes.
Before the magistrate of Liuzhou County lay an abacus and a thick stack of documents. He reeked of ink, his hands calloused. After tidying the documents, he looked up at the sound:
“I previously collected information on the damage to the rice harvest from October last year to the beginning of this month… The losses were too severe, with many people reaping nothing. Even if we start planting early rice after the ‘rain water’ in a few days… because the new fertilizer has increased the yield, I’m afraid it won’t be enough to cover this year’s land tax.”
The county magistrate's brow furrowed, and after a pause, he added, "...If the potato harvest is decent, and everyone manages to get through this difficult time, there might be a chance."
I heard the prince say that potatoes are a staple food during famines, and they grow quickly, although they are not easy to care for... Now we've encountered an urgent need for them.
The shortcomings don't matter anymore.
I just hope it can really help more people survive.
"...Phew." Qin Liusong breathed a sigh of relief, his expression unchanged, but he felt fortunate.
It's wonderful that the new ruler will bring those new crops.
...He didn't believe a word of it that these unheard-of crops were discovered by caravans from other places.
“But the amount of cloth and silver requisitioned for military pay is…” The county magistrate was still speaking when he shook his head and exchanged a heavy, knowing look with the registrar. “It’s impossible.”
"...cloth, if there's no cloth, shouldn't we pay for it in exchange?" Qi Chengming asked slowly.
He was no longer some modern novice who had just transmigrated and knew nothing about people's lives.
In ancient times, people gathered hemp and spun it themselves, but weaving was still a time-consuming and laborious task that would require one person in the family to work. In those days, regardless of gender, ordinary people had to work in the fields, toiling away like madmen.
The extra bolts of cloth we have to deliver... will waste time and reduce the amount of farm work we can do. Will we end up either starving or running out of cloth and having to exchange it for new or buy new cloth?
The county magistrate suddenly remembered something, his eyes lighting up: "Your Highness! The new plows that were implemented earlier can at least free up one person's time for weaving... so it's not too bad..."
"Then all that's left is money." Qi Chengming's voice deepened. He thought of a possibility, and his tone became strange—
Surely the imperial court wouldn't be that stupid?
With the recent outbreak of war, they are in a hurry to raise money for the war, so they came up with this kind of operation?
Salt and iron were both under government control. Although illegal mining was rampant, it was officially prohibited. In other words, most mineral resources were not allowed to circulate outside the government, while the court's tax collection significantly increased the shortage of copper coins.
Is this an attempt to force ordinary people to collect their mineral resources for minting coins and hand them over? Wealthy merchants, powerful families, and government officials could even make a profit from the minting process itself.
Taxation is the foundation of a country's economy. These may sound insignificant, but they actually have considerable potential.
But... that's so stupid!
Anyone who has taken a history class knows that ordinary people would honestly convert their visible wealth into cash and hand it over. Not to mention how much mineral resources ordinary people have around them, and how much the wealthy and powerful have around them—they are the ones who profit the most!
Furthermore, since everyone is allowed to mint coins privately, what kind of coins can they be made into is entirely up to them, right? For the same copper coin, as long as the shape remains the same, if the amount of copper ore inside is reduced by half…
Doesn't that mean you've already earned half of it?
Qi Chengming could already imagine the scene... When the court imposed strict tax increases in the future, the money collected from the people would look the same, but its actual value would be much less...
Even if the government realizes this when issuing the order, and only collects the full amount of copper coins as taxes, the people still suffer! How can they afford such heavy taxes? It won't just be a matter of increasing taxes many times over.
From beginning to end, only the common people are affected by the exploitation; the imperial court and wealthy merchants and clans may even make a fortune.
Moreover, this would lead to soaring prices, market chaos and instability, and ultimately, collapse. These were the downsides of opening up the right to mint coins that Qi Chengming had foreseen from the very beginning…
Is the imperial court really desperate for money? If they run out of funds to wage war, the country will perish?
Qi Chengming was too far from the capital and Qiongzhou, so he could only guess at the situation.
Otherwise, if Emperor Hongren had lost his mind, what about all those ministers? Did they not object, or did they fail to object successfully?
The discussion in the county government office was quite heated.
Aside from Qi Chengming's aimless speculation, the other officials were also talking animatedly, utterly perplexed as to why this policy existed. Prefect Lu, being a reincarnated individual, did have some ideas regarding future development. Eager to prove himself, he stood up and paced back and forth, saying:
"I think... the fact that the ministers did not strongly oppose this decree must be related to the current availability of silver notes."
Upon hearing this, many people present frowned, as if recalling some unpleasant memory.
"Silver notes?" Qi Chengming asked, his mind racing with a series of guesses. "What's wrong with the silver notes?"
Think about it carefully.
He would only receive silver notes when caravans delivered large sums of money to him, but these notes were always in boxes and boxes of silver, a mixture of gold bars and silver notes.
The bandit hideout he raided on his way to Liuzhou yielded mostly gold bars and silver coins. Qi Chengming perceived silver notes as having too high a face value and being difficult to use; coupled with his modern experiences, he preferred tangible gold and silver.
Basically, Qi Chengming only used banknotes during large-scale operations like the hurricane, and he spent them all, almost running out of money that time.
...Silver notes, what's wrong?
“Silver notes.” Qin Liusong’s feelings were also complicated. He sighed almost imperceptibly and explained to the new emperor, “Silver notes were originally easy to carry and replaced large amounts of silver, but they were always inconvenient to use. Later, the government made many smaller notes that could replace silver and copper coins.”
Qi Chengming couldn't find this type of denomination in his memory, which meant that practically no one around him used it. He had a vague realization of what was going on, and his expression was subtle, as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.
"Then what?"
Isn't this just the same as paper money?
Then, just as Qi Chengming had thought—
In ancient times, there was not much common sense about economics, and the imperial court tasted the benefits: simply making some paper pieces was equivalent to increasing wealth.
Perhaps they are aware of the potential dangers, but as long as they squeeze the people a little... money will flow in. What in the court doesn't require money?
It's very difficult to stop.
Such practices have been repeated in recent years, causing the purchasing power of banknotes to fluctuate from year to year. The imperial court has also changed the design of banknotes two or three times in a row, and now...
Except for occasions where silver notes are necessary due to involvement with government offices, or when the amount is huge, or when it is impossible to carry valuables on a long journey and silver notes are mixed with silver and gold, it is rare to see silver notes in normal times.
Small-denomination banknotes are almost nowhere to be seen.
So now, people mainly use copper coins, silver, and gold. But the reserves of gold and silver in the national treasury are very small, and copper coins are also becoming insufficient... What can the government do?
Qi Chengming: "..."
A perfect example of the pre-Yuan and pre-Ming periods!
He began to realize that the palace hadn't been so stingy with the money they gave him for settling down; in fact, it had been quite generous.
This was due to the imperial court's serious financial problems, its bankruptcy of credibility, and the addition of a critical war.
Not fighting means repeated defeats, shrinking territory, and imminent national demise. Fighting, however, requires vast sums of money, but at this point, squeezing every last drop of resources is futile. Should they try to find a way to generate new funds?
The former is a tangible physical crisis, the harm of which even an ancient person could understand. The latter is an economic crisis, whose harm is more gradual compared to war.
Qi Chengming was initially baffled by the absurdity of the imperial court's decision to approve such a ridiculous policy. He could only see its downsides; there were no advantages whatsoever.
Now he understands.
When faced with two poisons to choose from, a desperate situation naturally leads to the slower-acting one, even if it's like drinking poison to quench thirst. Because often, there isn't even a second poison to choose from.
“I think it’s also possible that… our Emperor wants to emulate the historical practice of allowing private minting of coins, and then use the pretext of a crime to revoke the official order, confiscate a batch of assets to enrich the national treasury, so as to re-establish a new currency?”
Prefect Lu hesitated and said in a low voice.
Qi Chengming was even more shocked: "..."
You're really going crazy and tormenting the people!
The government, having overdrawn its credit, is barely surviving and is on the verge of collapse. Should they relinquish the right to mint coins to the people to recover some of their losses initially, only to have the copper coins become worthless and unusable, leading to a collective credit collapse?
So we're back to square one, right? Then we can recoup our losses and establish a new money-making model? That's wishful thinking. Won't we just completely mess things up?!
When the market is flooded with inferior currency, prices soar, chaos ensues, and people suffer. For new currency to be accepted by the people, a great deal of effort must be made, and it needs a suitable anchor to serve as credit, without being redeemed and turning into inferior currency…
Emperor Hongren, can you handle this?
Qi Chengming became increasingly suspicious.
He probably can't handle it; he's in a bind now.
However, Qi Chengming thought again that since these minor details had not appeared in the succession struggle, it meant that by the time the Seventh Prince was able to fight for power a few years later, the matter would have been resolved.
"We will definitely succeed, I believe in His Majesty!" Prefect Lu said firmly.
He spoke with great passion, but his eyes were fixed on the young prince—the future new emperor.
Only a new emperor could turn the tide and patch things up in the face of these daunting hidden problems!
Qin Liusong's expression as he looked at Prefect Lu gradually became subtle: "..."
OK.
Having listened to this silently for so long, he was now completely certain: ha, this guy had also had a miraculous encounter, and had returned from the future!
Qin Liusong's vigilance immediately went into overdrive.
Not to be outdone, he leaned forward slightly, staring at the table and implying, "I think... no matter whether it can be resolved in the future, the people will suffer a lot in the meantime. Sigh... if only there were a way."
"...When a dynasty prospers, the people suffer; when a dynasty falls, the people suffer." Qi Chengming murmured repeatedly in a deep voice, "...We must think of a way."
He now deeply understands this statement.
A new task popped up on the infrastructure system after a long absence:
[Infrastructure task: Establishing a currency.]
[Task Description:]
Let's establish a stable currency within the scope of infrastructure development to ensure that local residents are minimally affected during periods of soaring prices and widespread poverty.
[Infrastructure Mission: Shipbuilding and Sailing!]
[Task Description:]
Build three sturdy seagoing ships and recruit a crew. Let's go see what's to come...
Qi Chengming took a deep breath and decisively accepted these two major tasks.
Well... the second task seems nonsensical, but it was actually exactly what he was thinking, which is why the infrastructure system was triggered.
Sure enough, he didn't believe in his heart that Emperor Hongren would be able to turn the tide and smooth things over.
This is absolutely going to backfire!!
Qi Chengming didn't care how things were saved in the original plot. He only believed in himself now—
'I might as well do it myself.'
Qi Chengming's gaze calmed down as he thought this.
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