On their way back to Kunning Palace from the Imperial Treasury, the two remained silent.
The sheer awe of that vast and empty treasure vault weighed heavily on Xiao Che's heart, and on Lin Wanwan's as well. Only when they returned to the brightly lit study in Kunning Palace did the chilling aura emanating from the heart of the empire dissipate somewhat in the warm embrace of the room.
Instead of sitting down at his desk to handle official business as usual, Xiao Che stood by the window, looking at the deep night outside, his back still carrying a hint of lingering loneliness.
After a long silence, he finally spoke, his voice slightly hoarse: "Wanwan, what exactly do you mean by 'Royal Women's Bank' that you mentioned earlier?"
He turned around, his deep dragon eyes filled with confusion and inquiry. He could understand "royal" and "woman," but putting these words together, especially the unheard-of word "bank," was a completely foreign concept to him.
Lin Wanwan knew that what she was about to say might completely overturn the emperor's understanding of money and even the entire empire's economy.
She didn't answer directly, but walked to the desk and personally brewed him a cup of hot tea before speaking slowly and confidently: "Your Majesty, before that, I would like to ask a question. How do the ladies in the palace, as well as the ladies of the princes and nobles in the capital, usually store their private savings?"
Xiao Che was taken aback, clearly not expecting her to ask this. He pondered for a moment and replied, "It's nothing more than locking it in a box or entrusting it to a trustworthy money exchange for safekeeping, collecting a small amount of interest."
“That’s right!” Lin Wanwan’s eyes lit up as she grasped the key point. “That’s the problem. Whether it’s locked in a box or kept in a bank, most of the time this money is just ‘sleeping’ and is ‘dead money’.”
Looking at Xiao Che's still confused expression, she smiled and presented the first core concept.
"The first thing I need to do with the 'Royal Women's Bank' that I'm referring to is to establish an official institution guaranteed by the Empress, which is to say, I myself. We will announce to all the concubines in the harem, and even to all the noblewomen in the capital, that they can deposit their idle private savings with us, which we will call 'deposits'."
"Store it here?" Xiao Che frowned even more deeply. "Why would they do this? A bank could also store it there."
“Because we can offer them more benefits.” Lin Wanwan held up two fingers, her tone full of allure. “First, safety. With the Empress's involvement and the royal family's guarantee, is there anywhere safer in the world? They will no longer have to worry about the bank going bankrupt or their homes being burglarized. Second, and most importantly, interest. We can pay them 'interest' far higher than any other bank! Think about it, Your Majesty, the same amount of money is dead money elsewhere, but with us, it's not only safe and secure, but it also generates more money while lying down. Why wouldn't they be happy to do that?”
Xiao Che's breath hitched slightly.
He was incredibly intelligent and instantly grasped the brilliance of this first step. By leveraging the royal reputation and high interest rates, it could indeed act like a giant magnet, continuously attracting the private wealth scattered throughout the capital.
But this seems to be... just borrowing money?
“I understand,” Xiao Che said in a deep voice. “This can indeed raise a huge sum of money. But where will the interest come from? We can’t use the deposits of later depositors to pay the interest of earlier depositors; that would be robbing Peter to pay Paul.”
"Your Majesty is wise; you've hit the nail on the head!" Lin Wanwan's smile grew even brighter. She knew that the real shock was just beginning.
She walked up to Xiao Che, her eyes gleaming with wisdom, and uttered that revolutionary concept, word by word.
“The huge sums of money we’ve raised certainly won’t just sit idle in a warehouse. We need to make it ‘live’ and ‘generate’ money! The second thing the bank needs to do is invest these funds in the form of ‘loans’!”
"Loan?" Xiao Che was filled with curiosity about this new term.
“Yes, loans!” Lin Wanwan explained, “Your Majesty, think about it, how many shops in the capital, and even the entire Great Liang, want to start a business but lack the capital? How many promising emerging industries are unable to develop due to a lack of funds? We can lend them money to support their growth. Of course, it's not a free loan; they will need to pay higher interest rates than we pay to depositors. The difference is the bank's profit!”
She looked at Xiao Che's eyes, which were slightly wide with shock, and knew that he was rapidly processing the concept, so she summarized it in the simplest terms.
"Simply put, the 'Royal Women's Bank' model is: pool scattered funds, invest them collectively, and share the profits! We gather the 'dead money' from countless women and transform it into a massive, fluid torrent of capital. We use this torrent to nurture promising industries, helping them flourish. Ultimately, the prosperity of these industries will bring substantial returns, and we will distribute a portion of these returns as interest to the initial depositors, with the remainder belonging to us. In this way, money generates money, interest compoundes, and the cycle continues endlessly!"
boom!
Lin Wanwan's words were like a thunderclap, exploding in Xiao Che's mind!
His pupils suddenly contracted, and his body tensed instinctively due to the enormous impact.
Money... can be used like this?
In his ingrained view, money is just money, an inanimate object used for buying and selling. The money in the national treasury comes either from taxes or from monopolies; every penny spent is a penny less. But Lin Wanwan describes a completely different world.
In this world, money is no longer a static treasure, but a living, self-replicating, and powerful force! It is a kind of "capital"!
"Gather scattered funds, invest collectively, and share the profits..." Xiao Che repeatedly pondered these twelve words, and with each recitation, the light in his eyes grew brighter.
He abruptly walked away from the window and paced back and forth in the study, his mind racing at an unprecedented speed.
What he saw was no longer just the "first pot of gold" to solve the empty treasury.
He saw a brand new, powerful tool that could shake up the entire economic landscape of the empire!
They can use this "bank" to support merchants loyal to the royal family to fight against the salt and iron merchants controlled by the regent!
They can use this "bank" to invest in emerging industries, open up new sources of revenue, and make the national treasury no longer solely dependent on traditional taxes!
They could even use this "bank" to bind the wealth of the entire capital and even the whole country to the imperial power in a gentle yet effective way!
This... this is no longer a simple money-making scheme, this is a dragon-slaying technique!
Xiao Che abruptly stopped, turned around, and stared intently at Lin Wanwan, his eyes filled with unprecedented surprise, admiration, and awe. He had always known that his empress was exceptionally intelligent, but he had never imagined that such a magnificent and intricate world resided within her mind!
What he married was not just a queen brought to bring him good fortune; she was clearly a priceless treasure that could help him create a prosperous era!
Overwhelmed by excitement and joy, he nearly lost control of his emotions. But he was, after all, an emperor. After a brief moment of shock, reason quickly returned, and a most critical question surfaced.
He strode up to Lin Wanwan, placed his hands on her shoulders, his eyes sharp as an eagle, and asked in a deep voice, "The idea is good, groundbreaking! But there's a crucial question—how can you guarantee that the shops we invest in will be profitable?"
His voice trembled slightly with excitement, yet it also carried the prudence and composure unique to an emperor.
"The business world is like a battlefield; there are victories and defeats. If investments fail and all capital is lost, how will the bank pay depositors' interest? Once it is unable to make payments, the royal family's reputation will be ruined, and the entire bank will collapse in an instant."
This question was like a bucket of cold water, precisely poured onto that raging fire that had just begun to burn.
Yes, that is the most deadly risk.
Lin Wanwan looked at the rational glint in his eyes, and instead of being stumped, she revealed a mysterious yet confident smile. That smile seemed to say: Your Majesty, your ability to think of this truly qualifies you to co-manage this vast instrument with me.
Meeting his anxious gaze, she didn't answer but instead asked a question, her voice carrying a hint of sly laughter:
"Therefore, before we talk about 'open source,' we need to look at how the country's money is actually 'flowing' out."
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