Dramatic changes in the movies and TV shows

Chapter 1159: Silver Dollar War (Part )

The reason why this happened was entirely because the gold yuan coupons issued by the Guo government before were really lacking in virtue.

They used the legal tender and gold yuan coupons to reap the money of ordinary people over and over again.

Therefore, the people of Shanghai were afraid. No, the people of the whole country were afraid. People no longer believed in any paper currency in their country. They would rather exchange it for real money, or use silver dollars or foreign currencies.

The reason why people are so panicked at this time is not only because they do not believe in the RMB which is also a paper currency, but also because there are actually evil spirits manipulating behind the scenes.

For example, the capitalists, compradors, and investors in Shanghai will not miss this opportunity to make a fortune from the national crisis.

Not to mention, some of them are financial spies specially developed by the Guo government in order to undermine China's financial stability.

From the day the RMB was exchanged for silver, there was a rumor in the market that "within a month, the RMB will become worthless like the gold yuan, so everyone should go and exchange for silver dollars."

There are even people in the financial market saying that "the People's Liberation Army can enter Shanghai, but the RMB cannot."

The spread of rumors, coupled with the fact that many businesses on the market do not accept RMB, has led to a rapid increase in people's distrust and panic towards the RMB.

Faced with this situation, the Military Commission informed the public through newspapers published in Shanghai that the Military Commission has the ability and determination to maintain the stability of the RMB.

At the same time, the public was asked not to use silver dollars anymore, and businesses were warned not to use silver dollars, because the military control would not collect silver dollars when paying taxes, and any losses caused at that time would be borne by the businesses themselves.

The statement was issued three days in a row and seemed to have played a certain role. The circulation of RMB in the market has improved a little, but it is only slightly better and the effect is ultimately limited.

No. 422 Hankou Road, Shanghai Bund, is home to the Shanghai Stock Exchange Building, the largest stock exchange in the Far East and the base camp for big capitalists and speculators.

It’s just that because of the war, the stock trading here has been suspended, but at this time there are people coming and going in the stock exchange building, and even outside the building is full of people.

Hundreds of telephones in the building were ringing non-stop, and the scene inside was very busy.

"You have all seen that the Red Party's Military Control Commission has repeatedly issued statements in newspapers, demanding that gold, silver and foreign currencies not be used. Recently, the renminbi has depreciated a bit before it has stabilized."

Chen Ruitang, a fat man wearing a silk Tang suit, said meaningfully.

Li Rongran, who was reading a newspaper nearby, sneered and said:

"I'm afraid that the Red Party mayor still thinks that the notice he issued is useful. If it was really useful, he should have issued a notice when Xiao Chang came to Shang Beach to fight tigers. He would not have left in such disgrace!"

"That's right. Even that little jerk Lao Chang had to pay homage to us when he entered Shanghai in the 17th year of the Republic of China. The Red Party doesn't even know what they are like and ignores us. We must let them know that Shanghai is not that easy to enter!"

Chen Ruitang seemed quite proud, completely forgetting how Chiang Kai-shek had suppressed them to the point of suffocation after receiving funding from the United States.

Hearing what they said, Ai Zhongfu frowned slightly and snorted in his heart. He was the leader left behind by the Guo Mansion to make counterfeit money, so naturally he couldn't stand these people's shameless words.

These guys who criticized the Chairman really deserved to die, but we still need them to deal with the Red Party now, so we have to be patient for the time being.

So he winked at his subordinate Li Xingyu, who nodded slightly, understanding that it was his turn to step forward.

"Then isn't it time to take action? If we can really restore people's confidence, it won't be so easy for us to get rich then." Li Xingyu encouraged everyone, urging them to act quickly.

Chen Ruitang nodded slightly, picked up the phone and said:

"Hey, are you ready? Let's start today. Throw RMB to me. I want all the silver dollars on the market to come to us."

"Hey!" After finishing the call, Chen Ruitang sighed:

"After all, we have to thank the Chairman. If he hadn't taken away Shanghai's 3500 million silver dollars, and if it had been taken by the Red Party, it wouldn't have been so easy for us to short the RMB!"

"Yes, thank you, Chairman. You cheated us and now you are helping us to get rich. Life is really wonderful. Come, let's have a drink and wish us to get rich." Li Rongran took out red wine and poured a glass for everyone present.

"Let's get rich, let's get rich together!" Ai Zhongfu said while praising them.

After the call was made, the silver dollar dealers in Shanghai began to take action. The reason why Chen Ruitang was so confident was not because of anything else, but because they had capital.

In addition, there are enough silver dollar dealers in Shanghai, and he can mobilize several thousand of them at present.

Others were not to be outdone and picked up the phone to coordinate their forces. One order from them could affect at least 20,000 people.

All of a sudden, all the silver dollar dealers were selling off RMB and frantically buying up silver dollars.

As a result, the market price of RMB against silver dollars began to plummet. On May 1949, 5, the second day after the liberation of Shanghai, the exchange rate between RMB and silver dollars was 28 to 2.

而到了6月8日，这个数字竟变成了2000比1，换句话说，10天前的1元人民币，10天后只值3角多一点。

Many people regard the RMB that has just been put on the market as a hot potato and dare not hold on to it for too long.

In order to preserve the value of their RMB, people tried every possible means to exchange their RMB for "hard currency" such as gold, silver dollars, and foreign currencies. For a time, silver dollar dealers could be seen hawking their wares everywhere in the streets and alleys of Shanghai.

According to statistics from the East China Finance Committee, more than 30 people in Shanghai alone actively participated in the buying and selling of silver dollars.

The sabotage by enemy agents and lawless elements not only seriously damaged the credibility of the RMB, but also triggered an unprecedented financial crisis and inflation.

In a short period of time, the prices of daily necessities such as rice, flour, cooking oil, and coal increased by 2 to 3 times, and some small and medium-sized enterprises were on the verge of collapse.

At this time, a large number of counterfeit RMB appeared on the market, making the financial crisis even worse.

A boss who originally had capital equivalent to millions of RMB had his capital reduced to very little overnight, and he could only make a living by running a bakery.

The lives of ordinary people were even more miserable. The remaining reactionary forces in Shanghai were clamoring arrogantly:

“The People’s Liberation Army can enter Shanghai, but the RMB cannot enter Shanghai!”

Faced with this situation, the Military Control Commission once again issued a notice through the media, prohibiting silver dollar speculation and requiring merchants to bear any losses themselves.

The people were also informed that the Military Control Commission would quell silver dollar speculation within a week and that the people should not panic.

But this was of no use. On June 6, the exchange rate of the silver dollar to the RMB was 4:1, and panic began to spread to the surrounding newly liberated cities.

There is no other way. Shanghai is the financial center of China at this time. If there is a shock here, it will inevitably begin to affect several surrounding provinces and cities, and even abroad. The mayor of the Military Control Commission was walking around the office anxiously at this time. Looking at Lin Hao who was leisurely reading the newspaper, he said:
"My dear Comrade Xiao Lin, you are so patient. What's going on in the market right now? You are still sitting here reading the newspaper!"

Then he put a few counterfeit bills in front of Lin Hao and said:
"Look, these enemy agents are so lawless and unscrupulous that they actually exchanged counterfeit banknotes for our real silver dollars!"

"I think we can't wait any longer. Those speculators and capitalists are trying to bring down Shanghai Finance. We will only lose more, especially with the sudden appearance of counterfeit money!"

"No, we have to seal that place off!"

The Stock Exchange Building is the headquarters for shorting the RMB. It should have been sealed off after the liberation of Shanghai, so that the comprador capitalists would have no nest and their activities would be relatively difficult.

However, Comrade Xiao Chen, who was sent from above, refused and told him the plan from above, and also sent Lin Hao over.

Lin Hao picked up a few counterfeit banknotes, shook his head and said:
"If it is the previous RMB, it is indeed easy to counterfeit, but after I gave you the color-changing ink formula, the RMB produced is actually very easy to distinguish from this crudely made counterfeit banknote!"

"So the best way is to increase publicity. After all, RMB with color-changing ink is actually very easy to identify. Anyone who has seen it once can easily identify the authenticity!"

When in Xibaipo, Lin Hao handed over a complete set of banknote printing machines brought back from abroad, as well as the principle of color-changing ink and several ready-made formulas to his superiors.

After entering the capital, the new RMB has been issued with color-changing ink, which is highly recognizable.

The new RMB gradually replaced border currency, military notes, and local RMB, and was exchanged for gold yuan coupons and legal tender before liberation.

But the problem is that you have to see the new RMB to be able to tell the authenticity, otherwise it is still easy to be deceived by counterfeit banknotes.

Although the counterfeit banknotes deceived some citizens during the exchange of RMB this time, the harm was far less serious than in history, which is why Lin Hao was so calm.

At this time, Comrade Xiao Chen, who came down from above, also said with a smile:

"My dear comrade mayor, why are you in such a hurry? We have only just arrived. If we want to build Shanghai, we must first get rid of the cancer and clean it up thoroughly!"

"If we don't hurt them this time, they will come again. We don't have the time to play with them!"

"As for not sealing up the securities building, we've already dug out their lair, and the fish will be everywhere. It won't be easy to catch them then!"

"It's better to use it to make nests and attract them all. You can set up some arrangements first, and then kill them all in a few days!"

Lin Hao and Comrade Xiao Chen's words finally calmed Old Chen down. This was his first time taking over such a big city. If he messed it up, he would really be unworthy of the trust the central government had in him.

If it weren't for his trust in Comrade Xiao Chen and the huge amount of supplies that Lin Hao brought back from overseas, he would have been unable to resist taking action.

"By the way, Comrade Kobayashi, have those speculators started lending money to you?"

"Yes, but not much!" Lin Hao thought for a while and said:

"Most of them have quite a lot of wealth. If we don't give them a hard time, we probably won't be able to hurt their foundation!"

Old Chen thought of the countless supplies and two thousand tons of silver that Lin Hao had transported, which gave him enough confidence, so he gritted his teeth and said:
"If I don't kill these guys this time, I won't be called Lao Chen."

On the same day, the Military Control Commission issued another notice, demanding a ban on silver dollar speculation and making an ultimatum that all consequences would be borne by investors. It also mobilized students and workers to take to the streets to propagate, mainly to persuade ordinary people to use RMB instead of silver dollars.

"Didn't they say they would calm down the silver dollar speculation within a week? I thought the Communists were very capable, but this is the result?"

"Is it enough to just publicize and issue a notice? This is really interesting. Tell the people below to continue short selling and raise the price of silver dollars to 2000 tomorrow!" Chen Ruitang said proudly.

By June 6, the price of the silver dollar had risen to 5, and the RMB had already collapsed in the market. Just after the new silver dollar price came out, the Military Commission issued a final notice in the newspaper:

"If you want to fight, then go ahead. Don't say I didn't warn you!"

On June 6, thanks to Lin Hao's massive amount of silver as a backing, the price of silver dollars soared to an unprecedented high of 6 due to deliberate indulgence, but at this time there was no demand for it.

That is to say, although the exchange rate of RMB against silver dollar reached 3500, there were not many transactions.

But on that day, more silver dollar dealers suddenly appeared on the street. They began to sell silver dollars at a price of 1:3000, with no limit on the quantity.

Speculators, compradors and capitalists who smelled the scent knew that the Military Control Commission had taken action, attempting to stabilize the price of the RMB by selling silver dollars.

But they were not panicked at all, and announced that "they would take whatever silver dollars were available on the market!"

In the original history, due to the limited power of the municipal government, it only took out 10 silver dollars to stabilize the currency.

But it was different this time. One ton of silver was equal to 4 Yuan Datou silver coins, and 2000 tons of silver was equivalent to 8000 million silver dollars.

More than 100 million silver dollars were bought on that day, but the price of the silver dollar fell at the beginning, but it still pulled back to 3550.

However, on the next day, the silver dollar dealers came again with 200 million silver dollars. This time the price was still 3000, and everyone could buy silver dollars at will.

This caused a complete madness. The RMB in the hands of the people, businesses, and investors poured in. They believed that with the strength of the new government, the silver dollars that could be taken out would definitely be limited.

Unless we use force, we will definitely not be able to defeat those big capitalists. After all, millions of silver dollars failed to bring down the price yesterday.

So 200 million silver dollars were exchanged that day, which sucked away a large amount of RMB cash, and 300 million silver dollars were absorbed in the market. The silver dollar finally fell for the first time, and the exchange currency was pulled to 3000.

At this time, some people had already sensed that something was wrong. The Military Control Commission had too many silver dollars, and the price of silver dollars plummeted by 500 in one day.

Some small investors borrowed money from banks and added a lot of leverage. Some bought silver dollars at a high price of 3500 and went bankrupt in an instant.

At this time, many timid people felt that the new government was still powerful, so they began to withdraw and sold their silver dollars.

Therefore, on the third day, before the city government made any move, the silver dollar fell. The exchange price initially fluctuated around 2900, and there was a trend of continued decline.

At this time, panic began to break out in the securities building. They were unsure how many silver dollars the Military Control Commission had.

Some investors have begun to get scared because the amount of RMB cash they have in their hands has shrunk by more than half.

"Retreat, you can retreat now, you have silver dollars in your hands. If we retreat now, how much will we lose? If the price of silver dollars returns to 100, I would like to ask everyone here, is there still a way to survive?"