unclear

Chapter 1054 Tulip Futures

No matter how beautiful it is, it is just a flower. How can it be compared with 46 cows? But it happened in reality. Economists in later generations gave this strange phenomenon a name: economic bubble.

It refers to soap bubbles, which are easy to blow up but very fragile. They will burst if poked, and nothing will be left after they burst.

Hong Tao had read relevant records in later generations. When he learned that the futures price purchased by Silva was only about 4000 guilders, he knew that the price had not yet been hyped up to the limit and it would take some time for the bubble to burst, which meant that there was still hope.

But I can't let this fat black man get away with it too easily. He must be punished for playing tricks on me. Losing money is fine, the couple have made great contributions to the empire, and their contributions and hard work are enough. But I have to lose face. I have to explain the matter clearly in front of the ministers and see if he dares to have any evil thoughts in the future.

"...Your Majesty, all I used were Oyani and mine savings, and I did not take a single extra silver coin from the bank!" Silva's fat face began to sweat after his true colors were exposed by the emperor, but he still gritted his teeth and refused to give in.

"Stupid! If you two had touched the bank's money, you wouldn't be talking about it here! I brought this up not to punish anyone, but to save people. If you still regard me as your sovereign, quickly hand the voucher to Minister Yang, and have the Ministry of Rites send it to the Netherlands, and have the ambassador there help sell it.

If you don't believe me, I won't blame you. In a year at most, the tens of thousands of taels of silver you and Oyani have worked so hard to save will all be gone. If there is still half left, I will compensate you in full!"

Facing Silva's insistence, Hong Tao curled his lips with disdain and spoke very confidently, leaving no room for doubt, in order to prove his credibility. As for the reason, there was no explanation. If you are willing to believe it, then believe it. If you are not willing, then forget it.

Anyway, even if they lost their savings, they and their daughter would not be cold or hungry, and their lives would even be better than those of ordinary people. I just don't know if they will be devastated or seriously ill after this blow.

"..." The fat black man had already raised his hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead for the third time. He wanted to compromise but was unwilling to do so. If he sold it at this time, he would not only make no profit but also suffer a small loss. After all, he had to pay the handling fee to exchange tens of thousands of taels of silver for Dutch guilders.

Stick to it, but I feel uneasy. If someone else said this, not only would they not believe it, they would even retort. But the one who said this was the emperor, who, in addition to power, also had an unparalleled grasp of the economy.

In Oyani's words, if Emperor Jingyang went to Europe, he would have a territory within ten years without any soldiers, and it would be no difficulty for him to become the richest man in Europe in twenty years.

"Master Xi, your Majesty's words of advice are not without basis. Why are you still hesitating? Hurry and obey your orders! After the court is dismissed, I will send someone to your house to get the certificate. There will be a ship to Europe in three days, so we can take it with us."

The Minister of Rites Yang Sichang saw that the fat black man refused to agree and was afraid of angering the emperor, so he quickly tried to persuade him and try to persuade him to get off the slope.

"Minister...can you go back and ask Oyani before making a decision?"

In the end, Silva still didn't obey and decided to listen to his wife's opinion first. After all, it was not a small amount of money. If he waited a little longer, he might be able to earn back all the hard work of several years in one go.

"No need, I will talk to Oyani. If she can't even figure this out, she should not work for Sun Moon Bank. All the ministers present here, if a flower is sold for thousands of taels of silver, and the results can only be seen after several years, will you buy it?"

But Hong Tao did not give Silva a way out. He must be held accountable for this matter, not publicly but privately. As the head of Sun Moon Bank, how could he make such a low-level mistake, using the family's savings to speculate in futures, and there were thousands of miles between them. However, the next thing to talk about is not how to deal with Silva and Oyani, but to take advantage of the topic and bring up the issue of turmeric futures to discuss in today's meeting.

"Except for Academician Xi, no one else would believe such a ridiculous thing." Li Ruzhang was the first to express his opinion, and he spoke to Silva, with the sarcasm in his words evident.

"Grandmaster Xi must have listened to slander and been deceived. Now that your Majesty has enlightened him, it is not too late to stop."

Liu Lishun, the Minister of Taxation, had worked with Silva before and they were good friends. He didn't want to see his old friend embarrassed in public, so he quickly offered help. But the meaning was also very clear: tulip futures were not trustworthy.

"No one lied to me. There were indeed many people in the Netherlands who bought tulip futures, which is why the price was driven so high! Including Governor Cohen, who bought earlier and more than me!"

Silva not only refused to appreciate it, but also tried to refute it. The reasons he gave were not unreasonable. Not all Dutch people were fools. If it was a scam, why did so many people rush to buy it? Let alone others, the Governor of Batavia of the East India Company, Coen, was such a shrewd person that it was not easy to deceive him.

"Grand Secretary Xi, you and Governor Cohen are in a foreign country, so it's understandable that you don't have much information." Wang Zheng, the Minister of Industry, and Silva are old acquaintances. Seeing that the fat black man was still stubborn, he couldn't help but give him some advice.

"My fellow officials, please don't rush to persuade Xi Daxueshi. Even if he loses all his savings, it's only tens of thousands of silver coins. With his salary, he won't worry about food and clothing. Today's topic is that the court is short of money. So many projects are waiting for money. If we can't raise money, we have to cut some of it. This is a big deal!

The reason why I want to bring up the matter of Xi Daxueshi buying tulip futures in public is not entirely to persuade him to stop in time to prevent losses, but to throw out a brick to attract jade, and to introduce this method to the Ming Dynasty to attract private capital to solve the urgent need for money in the court. What do you think? "

Seeing that the imperial meeting was moving towards discussing the issue of personal investment security, Hong Tao quickly stepped forward to end the topic, reiterated today's agenda, and put forward a suggestion.

"Absolutely not, Your Majesty, absolutely not! If this law is introduced, the people of the Ming Dynasty will suffer. At the very least, they will have to sell their land and houses, and at worst, their families will be destroyed. In this case, it would be safer to increase taxes."

As soon as the emperor finished speaking, Zuo Guangdou became anxious. He didn't care whether it was in accordance with etiquette to refute loudly in the Yangxin Palace. He stood up and denied it, his face full of anxiety. While speaking, he looked at the ministers present, hoping that they could also speak up for the country and the people of the Ming Dynasty.

"I second the opinion. What the Left Censor said makes sense. It is absurd to speculate a worthless flower for thousands of taels of silver. However, people are greedy for money and often rush into things without seeing the danger. In the end, it is just a flower, which can neither be eaten nor drunk, and is of no benefit to the people or the country.

Your Majesty has always loved the people like his own children, and has done everything he can to ensure that they have enough food and clothing since he ascended the throne. However, this method will do more harm than good to the people. Even if the court gets enough silver, it will only be a temporary solution. "

Dali Temple Minister Zhen Xianshi responded immediately and also stood up to make a direct remonstrance, but he gave the emperor some face and affirmed it while denying it, thus avoiding embarrassment.

(End of this chapter)