I rode and slashed unparalleled in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1183 Imperial New Policies
"Extra number! Extra number!"

"By His Majesty the Emperor, the China Money Bank has been renamed! The 'China Money Bank' is now known as the 'Imperial Bank,' and from today onwards, branches will be established throughout the country. Your banknotes can be exchanged for gold and silver, and are accepted worldwide!"

On Zhuque Street in Luoyang, newsboys waved copies of the still-wet "Da Han Daily," their crisp shouts piercing the morning mist and drawing passersby to stop and watch.

Among the crowd, Mani, a Sogdian merchant who had just come to Luoyang from Parthia to do business, pushed his way forward, bought a newspaper, pointed to the entry for "Imperial Bank," and asked the Han merchant next to him, "Sir, can this 'Imperial Bank' really exchange paper money for gold and silver in Persia and Rome?"

The Han merchant patted his chest and laughed, "Brother Mani, you may not know this, but His Majesty has already issued an edict that from Luoyang to New Chang'an (Byzantium), from Guangzhou to Pataliputra, all ports and capitals under the Empire's rule must have branches of the Imperial Bank. The drachmas you earn in Parthia can be exchanged for 'Han Ding Gold' at the local branches; and the banknotes from Luoyang can be exchanged for silver in Alexandria—from now on, we won't have to carry heavy loads of gold and silver all over the world to do business!"

Mani's eyes lit up, and he immediately followed the crowd toward the Imperial Bank's headquarters on the east side of the street. Before the three-story stone building, a long queue had already formed, including Central Plains gentry, Western Region merchants, Roman officials who had surrendered, and Indian monks. Inside the hall, behind the counter stood a gilded plaque inscribed with the eight characters "Gold and Silver as the Foundation, Precious Paper Circulates," and several bank employees in blue official robes were methodically processing exchange transactions for the people.

"Sir, how many do you wish to exchange?" The clerk took the ten Parthian drachma silver coins handed to him by Mani, weighed them on a specially made scale, and then tested their purity with a silver probe. "These silver coins contain 72% silver. According to the imperial exchange rate, ten coins can be exchanged for one 'Dragon Pattern Silver' coin, or fifty paper notes—which would you prefer?"

Mani said without hesitation, "I will deposit the precious paper in the bank and withdraw it when I go to Guangzhou to buy goods!"

The clerk smiled and nodded, took out a "deposit book" with a gold-embossed cover, wrote down the deposit amount with a brush, and stamped it with the Imperial Bank's vermilion seal: "With this deposit book, you can withdraw money at any branch, and you can also transfer funds using the book—for example, if you are a merchant in Guangzhou and also have an account at the bank, you only need to fill out a 'transfer slip,' and the money will arrive in your account on the same day, saving you the risk of having to escort goods!"

This was Su Yao's crucial move in establishing the empire's financial system—upgrading the original "Chinese Money Bank" to the "Imperial Bank," which would not only handle currency exchange, deposits, and loans, but also weave a global financial network. In his plan, the Imperial Bank's headquarters would be located in Luoyang, with "regional headquarters" in the two capitals and five major cities, "branches" in various maritime post stations and governor's capitals, and even "agent points" in the former capitals of Rome and Parthia, forming a four-tiered structure of "headquarters-regional headquarters-branches-agent points," ensuring that financial services could reach every inch of the empire's territory.

To ensure the stability of the system, Su Yao also established three ironclad rules: First, the Imperial Bank was directly under the Council of State Affairs, supervised by the "Supervisory Censor" personally appointed by the Emperor, and audited by both the Ministry of Revenue and the Censorate, strictly prohibiting any official from misappropriating gold and silver from the treasury; Second, the issuance of banknotes was strictly anchored to gold and silver reserves, with one tael of "Han Ding Gold" or twenty "Dragon Pattern Silver" required to be deposited in the head office's gold treasury for every one string of banknotes issued, and the reserve list was published monthly for public supervision; Third, a "unified interest rate system" was implemented, with an annual deposit interest rate of 0.5% and an annual loan interest rate of 0.12%, strictly prohibiting branches from privately adjusting interest rates to prevent usury from exploiting the people.

When the news reached the Western Regions, on the opening day of the Taisifeng branch, Ardashir, a former Parthian nobleman, arrived with a chest of gold. After depositing the gold in the bank, he held the deposit slip and exclaimed, "Even the Parthian treasury of the past might not have been so well-organized. Now, with just this piece of paper, I can retrieve gold in Luoyang. His Majesty's methods truly surpass those of the past and present!" Just as the Imperial Bank's network was rapidly expanding, at the docks of Guangzhou Port, ships flying the flag of the "Great Han Maritime Trade Corporation" were slowly leaving the shore, laden with Shu brocade, blue and white porcelain, and tea, their destination the Malacca post station in Southeast Asia. Zheng Xuan, the Commissioner of the Maritime Trade Office, stood on the high platform of the dock, holding the "Maritime Trade Token" personally issued by Su Yao, and loudly ordered the fleet commanders: "Remember His Majesty's decree: upon arrival in Malacca, first verify the tribute list with the local princely states, then sell the government-run silk at the set price. Private merchant ships must present a 'trade license' before unloading cargo. Smuggling spices and ivory is strictly prohibited!"

This is another core aspect of Su Yao's economic policy—state-run maritime trade. He deeply understood that the profits from maritime trade were not only a source of tax revenue but also an "economic bond" that maintained the empire's rule. If it were allowed to be monopolized by powerful clans, it would at best lead to a widening gap between the rich and the poor, and at worst breed separatist forces. To this end, he established the "Great Han Maritime Trade Corporation," directly governed by the imperial court, to uniformly manage "strategic commodities," while simultaneously regulating private trade, forming a pattern of "state-led and privately-assisted" operations.

First, the "List of Officially Operated Monopolies" was established: Su Yao designated silk, porcelain, tea, ironware (excluding agricultural tools, weapons, and armor), and gunpowder (for official use only) as "officially monopolized commodities." These were to be procured, transported, and sold by the Maritime Trade Corporation, and no private merchant ships were permitted to engage in such operations. Taking silk as an example, the Maritime Trade Corporation established "officially operated weaving workshops" in Sichuan, recruiting weavers and providing them with standardized raw materials and specifications. The woven Sichuan brocade was divided into three grades based on quality: the highest grade was supplied to the imperial family and bestowed upon foreign countries; the middle grade was sold to Rome and India via official ships; and the lowest grade was supplied to the domestic market. This approach ensured both quality and price stability.

Secondly, there is the "standardization of private trade":
Due to the inherent dangers of ocean trade in the modern era, Su Yao did not fully open up private operations. Instead, he continued to encourage private capital to participate by investing in government-run companies or forming franchised caravans, using the large-scale government-private partnership models he had previously explored, such as the Western Regions Development Company and the Southeast Asia Development Company.

Private merchant ships had to first apply for a "trade license" from the Maritime Trade Office, registering the shipowner's name, number of crew members, and cargo manifest, and pay a "license fee" before they could participate in the trade of non-monopolized commodities (such as cotton cloth, sugar cane, pottery, and grain). To protect private merchants, Su Yao also stipulated that government-owned fleets must provide "escort services" for private merchant ships—private merchant ships could pay 10% of their profits as an escort fee to sail alongside government ships, protected by naval warships and spared from pirate attacks.

The Chen family, merchants from Guangzhou, had been in the porcelain business for generations. Previously, due to rampant piracy, they dared not venture into maritime trade. Now, having obtained a "trade license," they sailed to Ceylon on official ships, returning laden with pepper and gems, their profits tripling. Chen Fu, the family manager, knelt before the maritime trade company, holding account books and gratefully saying, "His Majesty's implementation of this policy not only freed us merchants from the scourge of pirates but also allowed us to participate fairly in maritime trade. The Chen family is willing to serve the Great Han for generations to come!"

The more profound impact was that the state-run maritime trade policy tightly bound the economies of various parts of the empire together: the silk and porcelain of the Central Plains needed cotton and spices from India as raw materials, while the silver and glass of Rome needed sugar and ivory from Southeast Asia as exchange. All trade was settled through the imperial bank's paper money and transshipped through ports of the sea stations. Over time, the originally scattered territories formed a community at the economic level where "all prosper together and all suffer together".

Of course, while implementing these economic and military policies, Su Yao did not forget the final step, which was also the most crucial: vigorously promoting population migration and cultural integration.

(End of this chapter)