Ming Dynasty: Domination of the World from the Imperial Examination

Chapter 378 The poor have no money in their pockets, while the rich are covered in silk and satin!
"Money is something that won't disappear out of thin air."

“It will just transfer from one person’s pocket to another person’s pocket.”

"The imperial court has no money, but the wealthy merchants and landlords below do have money, and the imperial court can borrow money from these people."

As soon as he finished speaking, he heard laughter from all around.

Huang Zicheng pretended to be exaggerated and funny and said, "Xia Xueshi, are you kidding? Borrowing money, how can there be so much money to lend to the court? The local wealthy merchants and landlords are afraid to let outsiders know that they are rich. You, on the other hand, want them to take the initiative to lend money."

"Moreover."

"Who knows if the money lent out is a waste of money?"

"You can be naive, but don't think that others are as naive as you are. They are not stupid."

There was another burst of laughter all around.

Xia Zhibai nodded.

He smiled and said, "Huang Zicheng is right. If I simply ask the local wealthy businessmen to lend me money, no one will lend me money. Even now, if I ask the officials present here to borrow money, I'm afraid no one will lend me money, or they will find all kinds of reasons and excuses to prevaricate. Anyway, they have only one purpose."

"No money, no loan."

"Besides, the Ming Dynasty court has to borrow money from the people. How can the court possibly pay it back?"

"Who dares to ask the court to pay back the money?"

"A variety of complex factors have determined that the court cannot directly lend money, and no one would be foolish enough to lend money to the court, unless the court 'takes the initiative' to ask local people and wealthy businessmen to donate some money to support the country's finances."

Yang Jing frowned and said, "Since you know it, why do you still mention it?"

He was very puzzled.

He didn't believe that Xia Zhibai was really so brainless.

He is the top scholar of their class. Although his literary talent may not be the best, no one doubts his ability. Moreover, he has traveled all over the world, from the north to the south, and has seen and experienced far more than most of them. It is impossible for him to be so naive.

There must be other reasons.

He waited to hear Xia Zhibai's explanation.

Xia Zhibai smiled and said, "Because that is not borrowing, but 'trading'. Since it is trading, it is natural to ask for a high price and pay it back low. But I am talking about borrowing, which is also the 'borrowing' in your impression."

"Borrowing money requires interest."

"I was a business official for a while, so I have some understanding of businessmen."

“Businessmen seek profit.”

"But in fact, it's not just businessmen, ordinary people are also profit-seeking."

"As long as the profits offered by the court are high enough, some of them are still willing to lend money to the court."

"Nowadays, the people who borrow money are all poor people, and most of the people who lend money are local gentry and landlords. The poor have no extra money in their pockets, while the rich are covered in silk and satin. Most of the time, these gentry and landlords who have extra money do not need to borrow money."

"Even the silver that is saved every year is carefully hidden somewhere."

"I am afraid that my property will be stolen by outsiders."

"And this gives the court an opportunity to borrow 'money'."

"The money buried in the ground is not money, but just a pile of broken copper waste. However, if the court borrows money from these people and promises to pay a certain amount of interest, some people may have ideas. After all, money buried in the ground cannot make money. But if it is lent to the court, it can make money when the time comes."

"As long as the benefits are lucrative enough and the court is trustworthy enough, more and more people will be willing to lend out the money buried in the land."

Xia Zhibai's voice echoed in the hall.

Everyone was shocked by Xia Zhibai's idea.

The imperial court borrowed money from the people at high interest rates? What was the idea?
Isn't the imperial court short of money? How can it afford to pay back?
But after just a few distractions, Yang Jing's eyes lit up. He knew how to pay it back. He could borrow new money to repay old debts. As long as the court could continue to pay the interest, it could continue to borrow money from local governments. However, once the court could not pay back the debt, it would mean that the court's credit had completely collapsed.

He no longer dared to think about what would happen then.

It's even unimaginable.

This was a scenario he had never imagined or thought about.

I could only feel a sense of fear and palpitations.

This idea is exaggerated, terrifying, and dangerous.

Yang Jing asked in a serious tone: "Your method of repaying the debt seems to be to borrow new money to repay old debts?"

"But there is also a problem. Borrowing new money and paying off old debts has not resulted in more money available to the court. The only extra money the court has is the first installment. The rest is all used to pay off the first installment. Isn't this the court giving money to the people?"

"How can this be possible in the world?"

Xia Zhibai smiled slightly and did not deny it.

He smiled and said, "What Minister Yang said is actually correct. It is true that the court is distributing money to the people. However, since the court collects the money, can't it use it to make money? As long as the court earns more money than it has to pay back, then is it making a profit?"

"That's why I've been telling Your Highness."

"The Six Departments are no longer relevant."

“As an improvement.”

"And the officials of the Ministry of Revenue can no longer stare at some account books all day long, thinking only about how to spend money and how to save money. Instead, you need to find ways to make money. Only when the court has more money to spend, my colleagues, you will not be so constrained when doing things."

"It's not just the Ministry of Revenue, the other six ministries are also rigid in their thinking."

"Take borrowing money, for example."

"Whenever local people pay taxes, many of them have to borrow money and grain from landlords to pay taxes. And throughout history, the interest on these taxes is very high. It is common for nine out of ten to return. But what if the court does this itself?"

"The court only needs nine to go out and eleven to return."

"And the court borrowed from landlords and wealthy merchants, and eleven out of ten returned it."

"Isn't this the imperial court taking the easy job of making a profit from the price difference onto itself?"

"It also reduced the burden on the people, who were no longer exploited by landlords."

"Besides."

"The court can also use this money to do something practical, whether it is building roads or building some houses for rent. This is also a way to make money. In the short term, the court will indeed bear a lot of pressure to repay the money, but the money collected later, whether it is road tolls or rent, is net profit."

"As the saying goes, a trickle of water lasts a long time."

"Countless small streams can form a river or sea."

"Just like those copper coins, one is insignificant, but if they are bunched together and piled into a mountain, who would not be trembling?"

"The court has money, and the Ministry of Revenue can be more flexible and not so constrained. Even the officials of the Ming Dynasty can benefit from this, and everyone's salary can increase significantly. Money is not everything, but without money, nothing can be done."

"The Ministry of Revenue is in charge of money. It not only needs to know how to spend money, but also how to make money."

"As a court that controls almost all resources in the world, it is natural that it should know how to make money."

"Of course, there is actually a problem with this idea."

"What if there is no money in the world?"

(End of this chapter)