prosperous age

"You mean to replace the Ministry of Revenue's Imperial Warehouse with your Great Ming Bank?"

Upon hearing Wei Guangde finish speaking, Lao Kan hurriedly pressed for an answer.

"It did not replace the Ministry of Revenue's treasury; it simply served as a means of transferring money."

As you know, it's still quite troublesome for people in our Great Ming Dynasty to deposit and withdraw money in other places.

Those with little money could carry it with them, but it was heavy and inconvenient.

The bank I envisioned would primarily issue bank drafts. Regardless of where you deposited money to obtain a bank draft, you could exchange it for money at a designated bank.

The banks, however, only charged a percentage of the amount on the bill, and the fee would never be higher than the current market rate.

Wei Guangde began, “My Great Ming Bank values ​​its reputation and is backed by the imperial court.”

However, the most important thing is that all prefectures and counties across the country must establish branch offices, and all government offices must set up accounts there.

The imperial court allocated funds, which were processed directly through the main bank in the capital. Local government offices could then withdraw the cash from local banks based on the allocated funds.

Wei Guangde is still thinking about how to eliminate the "floating money". As for how those people embezzled the money afterward, that's another matter.

Even in later generations, it is difficult to eradicate corruption, let alone in ancient times.

The only thing the imperial court can do is ensure that the funds are delivered to the local areas in full.

As for the local governments, there is no other way but to strengthen supervision.

In fact, the silver notes that people remember from later generations only appeared in the Qing Dynasty; there were no silver notes in that era.

Of course, the Ming Dynasty also had a need for the flow of money. For example, the silver that Wei Guangde received in the capital was transferred between him and his father through the Chamber of Commerce.

However, this kind of voucher was called "hui piao" in the Ming Dynasty at that time, and was also known as "fei qian" among the common people.

Unlike bank drafts, these negotiable instruments were issued by trading companies and were usually for a clearly identified payee.

Back then, Wei Guangde could only receive the silver by presenting the receipt sent from Jiujiang.

However, if there is only a receipt, it cannot be obtained without the person's presence, so strictly speaking, a "ticket" cannot be used as money.

Of course, another use of "tickets" is for bribery.

Back then, Yan Shifan played this game very well. The bribe money was put into the Yan family's chamber of commerce to obtain "pawn tickets" or "association tickets," and then delivered to him. He did not directly receive the money, which gave him 120 reasons to refute the claims that he was embezzling.

In fact, during the Qing Dynasty, the main sources of profit for banks were money exchange, long-distance remittance, safekeeping fees, and loan interest, with long-distance remittance and loan interest being the primary sources of profit.

Wei Guangde merely pushed back the timeline of the emergence of silver shops by a hundred years, but this was a result of the difficulties reflected by those below and the reforms of the court system that he was currently promoting.

Wei Guangde had invested in too many chambers of commerce, and large sums of money from these chambers needed to be transported every year.

Well, while this did sustain the security escort industry, it was still too troublesome.

Moreover, since the Ming Dynasty opened up the seas during the Longqing era, trade and commerce have been greatly boosted, and the national economy is thriving, which further promotes the circulation of gold and silver.

In this context, if a chamber of commerce were to specialize in managing the circulation of money, it would not only generate huge profits but also have a positive impact on economic development.

Through the banks, they could even get a clear picture of the true financial situation of each business.

Solving the problem of currency exchange between the north and south not only generates income but also promotes economic development.

Allowing nobles and the imperial court to invest was naturally intended to revitalize the imperial treasury's silver reserves, while also revitalizing the gold and silver in the nobles' treasuries, allowing them to enter the circulation field and further stimulate economic development.

The capital invested by the nobles was naturally the money lent out by the banks.

Having access to the chamber of commerce's financial data gives you more confidence in lending, especially with collateral available—it's guaranteed to be extremely profitable.

The taxes accumulated by the imperial court can also be lent out to generate profits.

Of course, the reserves in the Changying Treasury cannot be withdrawn; this is the source of confidence gained after misappropriating the imperial court's taxes.

At any time, the imperial court holds a huge sum of money, which gives it the confidence to do whatever it wants.

"Let's not talk about this here anymore. Let's get together with some people later, discuss it, and then make a decision. We should also invite Minister Zhang."

Lao Kan said in a low voice.

"Yes, I'll make arrangements for the next two days and then send notes to the various prefectures."

Wei Guangde nodded. He had originally come to see the lanterns, but he didn't expect to run into them, and somehow the conversation turned to the silver shop.

"Actually, there are some things I haven't fully thought through yet. These are very important, so I need to think about them carefully."

Wei Guangde continued.

After resting for a while in the teahouse, the three families continued to tour the lantern festival together, and inevitably encountered some colleagues along the way.

Among those who served as officials in the capital, the luckiest were those Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) from Shuntian Prefecture.

Holidays in the Ming Dynasty were short, except for the New Year holiday, which was relatively long. Many people would rush home after the official closures and only return to the capital one after another before the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.

So on the tenth day of the month, some local officials also returned to the capital to see the lanterns.

Upon seeing that the Grand Secretary had also come to view the lanterns, one should naturally step forward to pay respects and then follow.

After all, the Grand Secretary usually works in the Cabinet, and officials outside can't always run into him.

If you have this opportunity, you should definitely seize it.

Showing off your face in front of the Grand Secretary might just bring you good fortune someday.

Wei Guangde was just out having fun today, so he didn't mind and chatted and laughed with them.

If you put on airs like an official, who knows what people will say behind your back.

"This year's lanterns are beautiful, but they cost 700,000 taels of silver, more than the imperial court's surplus the year before last."

"Yes, it's too expensive."

They were chatting, and the other officials following behind them were also chatting. Then someone mentioned the total amount of money spent on the Aoshan Lantern Festival, a figure that would leave everyone present speechless.

Wei Guangde also heard this and was startled.

He thought it might be around 500,000 taels, since in previous years, expenditures of 300,000 or 400,000 taels of silver had already drawn criticism behind people's backs.

But no one expected that Zhang Jing would be so bold as to spend 700,000 taels of silver on a single lantern festival.

"Lord Lu."

Wei Guangde stopped and beckoned the man who had just spoken to come over.

Lu Hao was a fifth-rank official in the Ministry of Works, and he had heard about the expenses of this year's lantern festival because he was in charge of coordinating matters with the craftsmen. He just inadvertently mentioned it.

Now that Wei Guangde has summoned him, he naturally has no choice but to go forward.

"Did the inner court spend 700,000 taels of silver on this Aoshan Lantern Festival?"

Wei Guangde asked.

"Lord Wei, that is indeed the case."

Lu Hao frankly admitted that the inner court would also reconcile accounts after the New Year, and this number could not be hidden. After all, although the palace lanterns were made by craftsmen in the palace, they were all under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Works. Moreover, when holding the lantern festival, the Ministry of Works had to allocate a large number of craftsmen to help out. Otherwise, the skilled craftsmen in the inner court alone could not have produced so many things.

"It'll be December, I think. The palace has issued an edict appointing Eunuch Zhang Jing to oversee this year's lantern festival. He's set a much larger quantity than in previous years, so the Ministry of Works has put me in charge of coordinating the effort and gathering a large number of artisans from the surrounding prefectures and counties to come to the capital to rush the production."

Lu Hao briefly explained to Wei Guangde the reasons for the large overspending: firstly, the quantity was large, and secondly, the requirements were numerous.

In fact, the palace lanterns displayed this year are indeed exquisitely crafted, especially some of which are fitted with glass, creating a spotlight effect through light refraction.

These glass mirrors, installed inside the revolving lanterns, further enhanced the light and shadow effects of the Aoshan Lantern Festival.

In fact, it was only in the late Wanli period that Western mirrors gradually entered China, thanks to the efforts of missionaries.

However, as the missions to Europe brought back a large number of glass mirrors, the Western mirrors in the palace were no longer considered precious items.

Even many high-ranking officials and nobles in the court had these items in their residences, all of which were given as gifts by Western missions.

The craftsmen noticed the refraction of light in the mirror, so it was incorporated into palace lanterns. When it was brought out at this time, it naturally had a great visual impact on the Chinese people.

Anyone who enters the lantern festival will first be attracted by these small lantern pillars rotating on the ground, with the patterns drawn on them faintly visible, creating a visually stunning effect.

"Well, that's why. Because the palace has high requirements and time is tight, more money was spent."

Wei Guangde said calmly.

In fact, Wei Guangde could accept spending three to five hundred thousand taels of silver to create a lantern festival that the people could enjoy together.

But if it costs 700,000 taels this time, what about next time?
If Zhang Jing continues to host next year, will he put on a lantern festival that costs a million taels of silver?
The Ming Dynasty didn't have an inexhaustible amount of silver, and even if it did, it shouldn't have been squandered like this.

The extra two or three hundred thousand taels of silver would be enough to reward the soldiers and garrisons of Xuanfu and Datong during the New Year.

Yes, the annual rewards for the Nine Garrisons are close to one million taels, allocated according to the troops in each garrison, which is about one tael per person.

Of course, the actual amount received may not be that much, but it is indeed a large sum of money.

"The reward for escorting the troops across the nine border regions this year is only 800,000 taels of silver."

Zhang Ke then added a comment.

This number, of course, does not include the Eastern Expeditionary Army; otherwise, it would be much smaller.

But when he said that, he was naturally expressing a certain attitude.

"I'll talk to Zhang Hong and the others about this later. The Ministry of Revenue can't possibly cover this hole."

After a moment of silence, Wei Guangde finally spoke.

Given the inner court's usual practices, if money is spent and there's an overspending, they'll most likely pass the buck to the outer court and have the Ministry of Revenue cover it up.

If it were tens of thousands of taels of silver, Wei Guangde would have just tolerated it.

However, the Ministry of Revenue would not agree to a sudden request for two or three hundred thousand taels of silver, and Wei Guangde dared not agree either.

In the ninth year of the Wanli reign, the imperial court's surplus was less than 500,000 taels of silver, and the previous year it was even in deficit because the imperial court's expenditures had increased dramatically due to the war against Japanese pirates.

If it weren't for the spoils from Sado Island, the imperial court would have been out of money.

Currently, apart from the salaries and rewards paid out by the Ministry of Revenue, many other expenditures are still outstanding, waiting for the gold and silver from Sado Island to be transported back and redeemed.

"Yes, this is the hole that Zhang Jing, that eunuch, created. Let him figure out how to fix it himself."

An official behind them muttered to himself.

The target was eunuchs, and the civil officials were often united in their hatred of the enemy and worked together against them.

These words were immediately echoed by a group of people.

Wei Guangde's lips twitched. Damn it, he was just making a gesture. Did he really expect the emperor to pay for it?

Even an emperor who is old and possesses the whole world can only say so much.

He can mobilize the resources of a country, which is indeed enormous, but when it comes to the amount of money in his pocket, the emperor probably doesn't have as much as he does.

He wanted to set up a bank, allowing not only the royal family and the imperial court to invest, but also high-ranking officials and nobles to invest, in order to cash out the gold and silver in his own treasury.

Don't underestimate the small number of carriages that deliver money to the Wei family each year; it's a major part of the Wei family's business, with profits from the south being transported directly back to their hometown.

He wasn't a nouveau riche; he only knew how to use silver to buy land, so he kept all his money in his vault.

But this was never a good solution. We still needed to find a way to invest the money and make it generate more money, which led to the idea of ​​starting a bank.

Firstly, there was indeed a need for loans among the people. The Ming Dynasty Bank was no different from the state banks of later generations. There was no fear of not being able to recover the loans they issued, as long as the loans did not end up in the hands of the emperor.

Even if the imperial court borrows money, it can use tax revenue as collateral.

Foreigners have done this kind of thing before.

The Qing Dynasty's indemnity payments used customs duties as collateral to guarantee its ability to repay.

In the capital, lenders could lend money to scholars without collateral, because they had once had the right to collect taxes.

Of course, this clause seems to be gone now, because previous policies have prohibited local governments from collecting miscellaneous taxes, thus depriving officials of this part of their mortgage rights.

However, this also shows that rights can indeed be converted into cash, and can be converted into money through collateral.

Only the imperial power would dare not use it as collateral, as it would be a capital offense.

As for the second point, it seems that the Ming Dynasty does indeed need such an institution to manage the flow of money.

The Ministry of Revenue cannot handle this matter.

Who would dare to ask the wealthy to hand over their money to the Ministry of Revenue?

The Daming Bank operated as a chamber of commerce, with the imperial power and the court acquiring a certain number of shares, and the remainder raised by powerful nobles. This was a path to immense wealth that was intertwined with the fate of the nation.

This is an absolutely highly profitable business model that involves cross-regional money exchange and lending.

Furthermore, if the Ming Dynasty's economy were sufficiently developed and the public had a huge demand for funds, it could even attract private deposits to support economic development.

Yes, Wei Guangde did not consider giving the bank a savings function, because in those days, depositing money required a storage fee, which ordinary people naturally wouldn't do.

As for paying interest and absorbing savings, that would only be done after the lending business had taken off and the family's own silver supply couldn't keep up.

Unbeknownst to him, Wei Guangde had actually figured out the most important way for the world's top tycoons to make money during this period.

It wasn't investment in real businesses, but lending.

In the 16th century, when productivity was not advanced, wealthy people in both the East and the West, apart from emperors and kings who possessed monarchical power, mainly had two paths to wealth.

First, they monopolized a trade route; second, they engaged in lending.

The Fugger family, the wealthiest family in Europe at the time, started in the textile industry and accumulated wealth through banks, controlling Italian silk, Indian spice trade, and mining rights in Tyrol and other places.

He later obtained the title of count by providing political loans to the Habsburg dynasty.

Lending is not simply a business of borrowing money; it is a way to acquire many means of production, and it remains effective even in later generations.

Most large international conglomerates are based in banking, then penetrate into industrial capital to form financial monopolies, or conglomerates. (End of Chapter)