The strongest eldest son of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 94 This move can ensure that the Ming Dynasty's paper money will not collapse!

"Secondly, completely shut down the unrestrained printing of money, establish a dedicated currency bureau, and legislate to lock down the total annual issuance."

"Based on the total national trade volume, population growth, and commodity circulation, the amount of money to be printed will be scientifically determined, and we will never arbitrarily increase the amount of money printed just because the national treasury is short of funds."

"Furthermore, the market exchange rate was standardized, and the government forcibly anchored the exchange rate between paper money and gold and silver to a fixed ratio that remained unchanged year after year."

"Local governments and merchants are prohibited from privately lowering prices or refusing to accept paper money. Violators will be severely punished to stabilize public confidence in its circulation."

"And most importantly, separate the fiscal and monetary systems."

"The deficit in the national treasury, military expenditures, and palace expenses can only be filled by taxes, land reclamation, and commercial taxes."

"We absolutely cannot rely on printing more paper money to fill the hole. Once paper money becomes a tool for fiscal bailout, it will inevitably continue to depreciate."

"Finally, a system of parallel circulation of paper money and silver was implemented, allowing gold, silver, and paper money to circulate freely without conflict and exchangeable freely."

"By making paper money a convenient means of circulation, rather than a tool for the court to exploit the people, its credibility will naturally be solid."

"Simply put, paper can be printed at will, but gold and silver cannot be produced at will. The amount of paper money that can be issued is limited by the amount of hard currency available. This is the only truth for stabilizing the money supply."

After Zhu Yao finished his easy-to-understand yet fundamentally economic discourse, the entire room fell silent.

Zhu Yuanzhang sat there, his eyes slightly glazed over, his mind still in a daze.

He spent half his life fighting and governing the country, knowing only about money, grain, taxes, and coinage; he had never heard of such a comprehensive and systematic approach to currency.

In a short while, Liu Bowen was the first to come to his senses, his eyes flashing with brilliant light, his face filled with shock and emotion.

He strode forward, clasped his hands in a deep bow, and spoke with heartfelt admiration and respect.

"Young master, you are truly brilliant! This gold and silver standard system is an unprecedented and ingenious strategy for governing the world!"

"Since ancient times, dynasties have only known to set the value of coins by imperial power, but they did not know that the value of coins does not lie in imperial power, but in the actual reserves of goods."

"With gold and silver as a backing, paper money is a convenient currency that circulates throughout the world; without gold and silver as a backing, paper money is just an empty IOU!"

"This statement reveals the core of the rise and fall of the currency system throughout history. If it had been implemented earlier, the Ming Dynasty's paper money could have remained in circulation for a century!"

Zong Yonghe, who was standing to the side, also came to his senses, his face solemn, and he exclaimed in admiration.

"Only today do I truly understand what a genius who can govern the world is!"

"Gold and silver are the roots, and paper money is the leaves. Only with deep roots can the leaves flourish. This system firmly locks in the fundamental nature of the world's currency."

"In the past, the imperial court only knew how to print money to replenish the national treasury, putting the cart before the horse and wasting the imperial family's credit. No wonder the currency has depreciated year by year!"

The two men took turns praising him, which gradually brought Zhu Yuanzhang back to his senses.

He came to his senses, and a broad smile slowly spread across his face, his eyes filled with pride and joy.

But this joy did not last long. Liu Bowen frowned slightly and immediately raised the most fatal practical problem.

"Your method is perfect, except for one dead end - the reserves of gold, silver and copper in our Great Ming Dynasty are seriously insufficient."

Zong Yonghe nodded emphatically, his face grave, and then elaborated on their current predicament.

"Now that the world has been pacified, after years of war, most of the country's mineral veins have been abandoned and depleted."

"The Central Plains have been densely populated and developed to the extreme since ancient times, and there are no large gold, silver and copper mines left to be mined within its borders."

"The gold, silver, copper and iron produced by the official mines each year are barely enough to support the court's daily minting of coins and the forging of military equipment, with no surplus at all."

"With such meager reserves, it is simply not enough to support the currency circulation needs of the entire Ming Dynasty."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yao smiled freely, his eyes sharp and open, his tone casual yet extremely domineering.

"If we lack something locally, we'll just go out and steal it."

"It is true that our Great Ming Dynasty is vast and rich in resources, but its mineral deposits are limited. However, the countries beyond our borders are full of gold and silver, with astonishing reserves."

He proceeded calmly and methodically, recounting the current state of the surrounding countries rich in mineral resources in the eighth year of the Hongwu reign, presenting a clear and logical account.

"The first one was Annam, which is now Jiaozhi. It was full of gold, silver and copper mines, with dense veins that were very easy to mine."

"At this time, Annam was weak, plagued by internal strife, and powerful ministers held sway. The country was powerless and had no ability to protect its rich mineral resources."

"Furthermore, there is the Korean Peninsula, where the northern mountains are buried with large amounts of silver and iron ore, with abundant reserves. At this time, the Korean regime is incompetent and its military is in disarray."

"There are also many island nations in Southeast Asia, with open-pit tin and gold mines everywhere. The indigenous tribes are ignorant and backward, and do not know how to mine and utilize them. They are sitting on a treasure mountain without realizing it."

"And then there are the Japanese pirates from the East, it's practically a gold and silver treasure trove at sea!"

"These countries possess endless mineral resources, yet lack the power to protect them; they are perfectly suited to be used by our Great Ming."

These words made Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes shine brighter and brighter, his heart surged with passion, and his ambition to conquer and expand was instantly ignited.

He had completely forgotten his original purpose for this trip, his mind filled with grand plans to expand territory, plunder mineral resources, and consolidate the foundation of the nation.

Just as Zhu Yuanzhang was in high spirits and had begun to plan his military campaigns to conquer foreign territories.

Empress Ma, standing beside her, coughed lightly twice, her voice gentle yet carrying a hint of deliberate reminder.

Cough cough--

She glanced at Zhu Yuanzhang, her eyes subtly reproachful, silently signaling him not to stray from the main task.

Zhu Yuanzhang was instantly pulled back to his senses by the two coughs, and he slapped his forehead, laughing awkwardly.

He quickly suppressed the conquering ambition in his eyes, straightened his expression, and looked at Zhu Yao in front of him with a gentle and loving smile.

"Look at me, I got so engrossed in the conversation that I forgot about the important matter!"

"Yao'er, the reason my wife and I have personally led this delegation to Chenzhou is not to discuss national policies or currency."

"We came here specifically to find you a wife you'll truly love!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang laughed heartily and clapped his hands lightly.

As the crisp applause subsided, the curtains of more than ten exquisite carriages behind them were simultaneously lifted.

More than twenty slender young ladies from noble families stepped out of the car one by one and stood in a line.

They were all beautiful, with elegant makeup, dressed in exquisite clothes, and possessed a refined and extraordinary temperament, each with their own unique charm.

Zhu Yao looked up and stared in astonishment, his eyes wide with disbelief, his whole body slightly dazed.

He stood there stunned for a long time before subconsciously turning to look at Zhu Yuanzhang, his tone filled with disbelief.

"Father... are these all the women you've chosen for me as wives?"

Zhu Yuanzhang threw his head back and laughed, his eyes full of doting affection and certainty, and answered loudly, patting his chest.

"A promise is a promise, and I will do what I say! Today, I will personally arrange your marriage!"

Empress Ma, standing to the side, covered her mouth and smiled gently, taking a half-step forward and teasing softly.

"Yao'er, we've come all this way after a long journey, are you just going to leave us standing outside? Aren't you going to invite us in?"

Zhu Yao snapped out of his daze, quickly composed himself, and bowed apologetically.

"It was my fault, Father, Madam, ladies, please follow me into the mansion."

The group followed Zhu Yao into the magnificent Pentagon building...