Ming politicians

The task of establishing a bank and issuing banknotes soon began to be implemented. The imperial court issued an imperial decree. The imperial court was led by Shang Shuling, the first assistant of the cabinet, Zhu Shenxuan, Zhongshu Ling, and the second assistant of the cabinet, Yang Sichang. The right servant of the household department, Song Sijun, was specifically responsible for the establishment of the bank. The imperial court also made a decision. In Dongcheng, the Dongchang, which was close to the Guanglu Temple and belonged to the original Daming, was changed to the headquarters of the Jingcheng Bank. Inside the Hall of Martial Arts.

Su Tiancheng also explained the relevant requirements in detail, especially the requirements for banknotes, which must not be easily imitated, must have the unique imprint of the imperial court, and must be able to press out hidden flowers. A handful of craftsmen are able to master this technique.

The people of the Jin Dynasty are still very simple, and the merchants are not so treacherous, but Su Tiancheng can't guarantee that with the development of commerce, people's thinking will gradually change, and many negative things will gradually change. Therefore, it is probably the best way to increase the intensity of education and let people do things in accordance with the requirements of Confucianism, and the government should also work hard in this regard.

The task of uniformly issuing banknotes can be handled directly by governments at all levels, and this is also a phased matter. Once banknotes are actually circulated in the market, most of the work will be transferred to the bank. , but there is no way for the government to undertake the matter of establishing a bank. You must know that the imperial court’s request is unusual. All prefectures and counties must establish banks, but the scale is different. For example, Beijing and Nanjing Locally, at least two banks need to be established. As for some small counties, it is enough to have such institutions as banks.

Many details about the operation of the bank.Su Tiancheng personally reviewed it. With the deepening of the discussion, Zhu Shenxuan, Yang Sichang, Fan Jingwen, Su Tianhao, and Song Sijun almost became experts. Every detailed rule has gone through repeated discussions and intense discussions. controversial.

The governors of various places attached great importance to the establishment of banks and the unified issuance of banknotes.

Su Tiancheng's speech in Huangji Hall.It was made into an imperial decree and issued to all prefectures and counties.

It was at this time that the relevant provincial-level institutions were also undergoing reforms. The original chief minister was abolished, and his functions were assigned to the governor's office. The commander was also revoked.The army is under the unified command of the imperial court, and the functions related to public security are placed under the direct responsibility of the governor's office.

After such a reform, the functions of the governor's office are extremely clear, and they are directly responsible for all matters related to the national economy and the people's livelihood, except for the judiciary, which cannot directly interfere.

In addition, each province has added branches of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, which are directly under the leadership of the Metropolitan Procuratorate.The local governor shall not interfere, and the main responsibility of the branch.It is to supervise whether the government is performing its duties correctly, and to directly investigate the illegal behavior of officials.

The key to whether the bank can be an instant success lies in the many scholar-officials and merchants.

Ordinary people don't have that much money, even if they have a small amount of money, they are carefully stored at home, and they will definitely not be easily taken into the bank for deposit.Because they are worried, only after the banknotes are completely circulated in the market and the gold and silver are basically withdrawn, I am afraid that ordinary people will deposit silver in the bank.Besides, gold and silver are traded goods.The same has a major role, and it can also be circulated in the market.

Another key is the staff working in the bank.

There has also been a lot of controversy about how to determine the identity of the bank's staff. Except for Su Tiancheng, everyone believes that the bank must establish a rank, and everyone is an official of the court. The government treasury of Fuzhou County, whether it is the place where gold and silver are stored or where grain is stored, is directly responsible for officials.

Su Tiancheng knew that government-run banks had the only way to survive, especially in the early stages of establishment, so he gave in on this issue, and the president of the bank was directly served by the right servant of the household department. Banks in various places also had to It is an official who directly serves as the president of the bank and must be an official official of the imperial court.

Song Sijun, who is mainly in charge, is more careful and he is also the busiest person. It is not just about the selection of candidates for the bank. After the bank is established, it must be able to store enough gold and silver, so that the bank can really support it. Only then can it play a role in stabilizing the overall situation.

Regarding some of the emperor's views, although Song Sijun insisted on his own views, he still had to follow the decisions made by the emperor. This is indeed reasonable. If the two cannot be completely tied together, it is estimated that the establishment of the bank and the unification of banknotes will encounter great difficulties.

As for the emperor's suggestion that the bank should not enter the government agency, Song Sijun on the other side firmly disagreed, and even Zhu Shenxuan and others had a fierce dispute with the emperor in the Qianqing Palace, and they have always been engaged in business transactions and management. Song Sijun knows very well that banks must have the cloak of the government. Although they say that they are close to commercial activities, without the direct support of the government, many things are difficult to handle, and even more difficult to manage.

As a person of this era, Song Sijun is exceptionally outstanding among merchants, but there are also limitations in his understanding. In addition, the idea of ​​official status is very serious nowadays. For example, Song Sijun's identity has not passed the imperial examination. However, he became the right servant of the household department of the third rank of the Jin Dynasty. If he was in the Ming Dynasty, such a thing would never have happened. Even if he piled up money to buy a low-rank official hat, he would be looked down upon.Therefore, in Song Sijun's heart, there is a thought of gratitude. Whatever he does, he must work hard and do his best, even though Song Sijun's own ability has been unanimously recognized by the officials of the court.

Whether the issuance of banknotes and the establishment of banks can be successful is largely due to the support of gentry, rich households and merchants. Needless to say, the officials in the court must take the lead. Once the court starts to issue banknotes uniformly, the officials in the court will All the salaries received are banknotes, and the gold and silver in the officials' homes have to be deposited in the bank.

Officials in the court began to use banknotes, which can push the issuance of banknotes at the fastest speed. Once the common people see that officials and lords are using banknotes, they will follow suit. It is really possible to feel great convenience from the use of banknotes.

From this level of comparison, the slightly more difficult thing is probably the establishment of a bank.

To put it bluntly, banks must use people to deposit gold and silver, and then deposit banknotes, so that banks can carry out comprehensive deposit and loan obligations and earn the difference in the middle. Early banks mainly play The role in this aspect, as for the pivotal role played by the bank after it becomes bigger and stronger, that is something to consider in the future.

Therefore, Song Sijun must consider these issues.

This is also Song Sijun's advantage. So many years have passed, decades of business career, including the management of many businesses later, Song Sijun has a very extensive network of contacts, and has an unusual influence among merchants. After serving as Minister of the Right, he has an extraordinary prestige among merchants. In addition, Song Sijun is flexible in his work, takes into account the interests of merchants, and handles the relationship with everyone very well. Of course, Song Sijun needs to establish a bank this time. Get the support of merchants.

Several of the largest merchants have expressed their opinions a long time ago, because Song Sijun discussed with them the reasons for the establishment of the bank and many details. You must know that in the Ming Dynasty, merchants did not have much status, unless it was a combination of government and businessmen, with a scholar-bureaucrat and the status of a scholar, but there are not many such merchants after all, and the focus of the gentry and rich households is still to make money from operating land, so several big merchants actively support them, and clearly stated that once the bank is established, they will definitely transfer all their gold. Silver is deposited in the bank.

Propaganda and mobilization were carried out in such an atmosphere. The mutual propaganda among merchants, as well as some small books that Song Sijun tried to make to promote the role of banks, were widely circulated among merchants.

Because the imperial court encouraged the development of commerce and trade, commerce and trade in various places developed at a very fast speed. During this process, money shortages abounded. Especially in the process of expanding workshops, many merchants had to borrow money privately. , merchants are the most understandable and most supportive of the propaganda about the functions and functions of banks.

From the perspective of modern people's thinking, banks also have a function, which is to use the money of ordinary people to make more money for the rich. This is an inevitable law, because the rich use it to do business If wealth is created, it can promote the development of society. If the money is not used, it will not be able to produce any benefits.

Song Sijun's move has achieved very good results. Most of the merchants support the establishment of a bank, and they are also looking forward to it.

The last thing to consider is the staffing of the bank. There are banks in all prefectures and counties, and a large number of manpower is needed. Zhu Shenxuan and others have conservatively calculated that at least 8000 to [-] people are needed, and among so many people, according to The distinction between officials and officials, half of them are officials and half of them are officials, which is a bit stretched for the court, which is already short of manpower.

The final workaround is that the prefectural and county yamen transfer officials who were originally engaged in household affairs to enter the bank, and the imperial court also transferred some officials from the capital. Recruitment, in addition to the imperial examination in the second half of the year, it is also necessary to recruit a lot of scholars to enter the court to do things. (To be continued..)