Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 554: Silver Notes and Military Pay
"Eunuch Ma is going back to Haizhou now?" Yuan Keli asked.

Ma Xiandian patted the stiff Jinglüe card in his arms. "I've come north to Liaoyang not only on errands ordered by Eunuch Hui, but also to meet with Jinglüe Xiong, Futai Yuan, and the other generals. Now, I have all the necessary tasks and people to meet, and even you've unexpectedly come to see me. If I linger any longer," he smiled and bowed in Xiong Tingbi's direction, "I'm afraid Jinglüe Xiong will find me annoying!"

"Haha, it seems my poor hospitality has displeased the eunuch?" Xiong Tingbi laughed heartily. His laughter echoed through the signing room, seemingly shaking the black ink in the inkstone. "If the eunuch wishes to stay in Liaoyang for a longer period, I would be more than happy to do so!"

"No, no, look at my nonsense!" Ma Xiandian pretended to be touched and patted his oval face twice. "I really want to stay in Liaoyang and accompany the governor for a long time, but things are just beginning and it's not appropriate to delay. I have no choice but to go south."

"Haha." Ma Xiandian's tone and choice of words gave Xiong Tingbi goosebumps all over his body. But at this moment, he could only laugh dryly and pretend to be regretful.

"Why doesn't Eunuch Ma directly open the Shandong branch in Liaoyang?" Yuan Keli asked in confusion.

"It's not that I don't want to, it's that I can't." Ma Xiandian shook his head. "The palace had already arranged how many branches the Shandong branch would open, where they would open them, and what business they would handle after they opened before I left Beijing. I was simply following the decision from above. I guess the palace didn't open a branch in Liaoyang because they were concerned about the instability on the front line due to the continued suppression of the rebels. Once the rebels are quelled and Liao is safe, I'm sure the palace will let me move the Shandong branch to Liaoyang."

Yuan Keli nodded, and when he asked again, his tone was a little more serious: "Eunuch Ma, I have another question I want to ask you."

"Yuan Bingxian, you can ask as much as you want." Ma Xiandian waved his hand.

"I'd like to ask, since the palace has opened a bank in Liaodong, are they planning to use silver bills instead of cash for salaries?" Yuan Keli had wanted to ask this question earlier at the dinner table. But he was only halfway through when he was distracted by other matters.

"No, at least not yet." Ma Xiandian smiled and glanced at Xiong Tingbi. Not long ago, Xiong Tingbi had asked the same question. "The palace has assigned me the task of establishing a bank and developing some commercial and financial businesses. How salaries and rations are distributed in the future will be decided by the governors themselves. Of course, if Xiong Jinglue and Governor Yuan are willing to issue banknotes to pay the soldiers, we won't refuse."

Before being sent abroad, Wei Chao gave them a stern warning with a dark face. He ordered them not to interfere with local military and political affairs, otherwise Gao Huai and his men would serve as a warning. Regardless of whether others listened or not, at least Ma Xiandian did.

"In fact, we can also use silver notes to pay military salaries." Xiong Tingbi suddenly said.

"Oh! How much does the governor want?" Ma Xiandian's eyes lit up and he immediately followed up. "Just tell me the number, and I'll get someone to bring the banknotes to you when I get back."

"Jinglüe, this is not appropriate, right?" Yuan Yingtai, who had been silent all this time, could not help but interrupt.

"Governor Yuan," Ma Xiandian said, looking at Yuan Yingtai with a smile, "Are you worried that the bank might take the money but not honor it?"

"Of course I believe the bank can honor them," Yuan Yingtai said, "but these newly issued silver notes aren't accepted in Liao territory. It's foreseeable that within a short period of time, merchants in towns, garrisons, post stations, and even ordinary citizens won't recognize them. Soldiers won't be able to use the notes unless they exchange them for cash. But the only places to exchange them are Haigai and Guangning. We can't expect soldiers in Shenyang to collect their pay and then run 200 miles to Haizhou to cash them in. If they all went there to cash, what would happen to the border defense? It would shake the morale of the army!"

"We'll expand it after the trial," Xiong Tingbi said, stepping around the table and coming to the center of the group. "Since Haizhou can pilot taxation with silver bills, we can also pilot military pay with them. The military governor will distribute the silver bills, and those who want to keep them can keep them. Those who don't can exchange them at the nearest location, which is no more than 200 miles away. If Haizhou does well, we can expand it to Gaizhou and Guangning. After a period of maintenance, starting with the soldiers, wouldn't all the merchants and common people in Liao Dynasty accept the imperial silver bills?"

"Yes! Yes!" Ma Xiandian immediately agreed, and took the opportunity to flatter him. "As expected of Xiong Jinglüe! He has a far-sighted vision!"

"This..." Yuan Yingtai frowned and thought carefully, but he really couldn't find any words to refute. In the end, he could only say quietly: "If you keep going back and forth like this, I'm afraid I'll have to make a new account."

Xiong Tingbi reached out and patted Yuan Yingtai on the shoulder, staring at him intently. "This is all for the Emperor's new policies. At worst, we can just hire another clerk."

Xiong Tingbi had already seen clearly that banking affairs were not a simple job of "competing with the people for profit". The emperor's arrangement was aimed at nationwide monetary reform. As the most powerful official in the world, he had to show sufficient support for this policy as much as possible.

Indeed, even though Yuan Keli had obtained the unprecedented authorization from the emperor to depose the King of Korea, Xiong Tingbi still held a superior position to Yuan Keli and was the most powerful provincial governor in the world. This was confirmed the moment Xiong Tingbi looked up after reading the imperial edict for the second time.

The official title the emperor had bestowed upon Joseon was merely the ordinary title of Right Vice Minister of War and Right Censor-in-Chief, while he held the title of Left Vice Minister of War and Left Censor-in-Chief. Furthermore, he was the only other provincial governor holding this title during the Taichang reign. The distinction between high and low was clear. Xiong Tingbi even ventured to speculate that the emperor's promotion of him last year was not only a gesture of unwavering support to his critics, but also perhaps a foreshadowing of his own plans.

Three people make a tiger, and Zeng's mother threw the shuttle. Military exploits not only inspire morale, but also arouse suspicion at court. To maintain the emperor's trust, Xiong Tingbi must demonstrate his unwavering loyalty through concrete actions!
Xiong Tingbi judged that this new policy to smooth the money system was an excellent entry point, even better than bringing all the civil and military officials of Liaoyang out of the city to welcome the imperial envoy at the beginning of the year.

Yuan Yingtai looked back at Xiong Tingbi, as if realizing something. He nodded slowly and said half-jokingly and half-seriously, "Then let's hire another clerk."

"Could you please give me another ticket, General Xiong?" Ma Xiandian smiled happily and bowed left and right.

"Don't sign two tickets for one thing. That ticket is enough. Eunuch Ma should go and talk to Zhang Yuheng directly. As long as you explain our considerations clearly, he should no longer have any doubts." Xiong Tingbi said.

"That's right." Ma Xiandian stopped pestering.

"When are you planning to return to Haizhou? I will send someone to escort you," Xiong Tingbi asked with a smile.

"You're very thoughtful, General. I plan to set off early tomorrow morning and rest in Anshan for the night," Ma Xiandian said politely. "But there's no need for guards. We won't encounter any bandits in this hinterland."

"That won't do!" Xiong Tingbi insisted, "You're an imperial envoy from the palace. You can't make any mistakes. Otherwise, I won't be able to explain to the emperor."

Ma Xiandian was extremely pleased, his face practically breaking with laughter, but he still declined politely: "A show of grandeur and ostentation would make me seem inconsiderate. You know, when Eunuch Hui traveled, he had only a few dozen followers, and most of them were busy on official business." "That's different," Xiong Tingbi insisted. "Eunuch Hui is traveling through the interior of the country and won't encounter any danger. But even if the Liaonan hinterland is peaceful, there are still bandits and scouts who venture close by. How about this: I won't send too many people to embarrass Eunuch Ma. I'll just transfer 200 cavalrymen from the standard camp to accompany him. There's no war going on right now anyway, so the standard camp is idle anyway."

"Well," Ma Xiandian took a half step back and bowed deeply, "I would like to thank Xiong Jinglüe for his kindness!"

"You're welcome, Eunuch Ma. This is what I should do." Xiong Tingbi waved his hand.

"Xiong Jinglie, Governor Yuan, Military Commissioner Yuan, Captain Lu, I'll take my leave now." Ma Xiandian smiled and bowed to everyone present one by one. Even the clerk who handed Ma Xiandian the envelope nodded.

"It's still early, please sit for a while longer, sir," Xiong Tingbi said to persuade him to stay.

"The signing room isn't a teahouse, so you can't just sit and chat. I'll have a drink and chat with you gentlemen another day when I'm free." Ma Xiandian bowed again, "I won't disturb you all for now."

"Then I'll take you out." Xiong Tingbi waved his hand to indicate that he was leading the way.

"It's really not a big deal. Please take me out of the yamen, sir." Ma Xiandian looked at the clerk.

"Send Eunuch Ma away and don't lose the proper manners." Xiong Tingbi said.

"Yes!" The clerk immediately understood what Xiong Tingbi meant.

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After the clerk sent Ma Xiandian away, only Xiong Tingbi, Yuan Yingtai, Yuan Keli and Lu Wenzhao were left in the signing room.

Xiong Tingbi sat in his chair and took a sip of the new tea that was still hot and smoking.

"Li Qing just said that he wanted to go to Shenyang?" Xiong Tingbi held the teacup and blew gently.

"Yes. Ten thousand volumes of military books are no match for a single arrow in front of a battle. I want to see the situation at the front, and it would be best if I could meet those soldiers who survived the bloodbath, to understand how the battle was fought and how the city was defended." Yuan Keli nodded.

"Will we make it in time? Don't delay the division. Li Qing, after you arrive in Zhenjiang, you must at least get to know the local soldiers and generals, right?" Xiong Tingbi put down his teacup and looked up at Yuan Keli. "It's a big taboo in military strategy for soldiers not to know their generals, and for generals not to know their commanders."

Yuan Keli thought for a moment. "I've calculated that the distance between Liaoyang and Shenyang is 120 li, which means a round trip of 240 li. After returning to Liaoyang, we'll go through Tianshui Station into the mountains, then take another 400 li of mountain roads to Zhenjiang. The two sections combined are only 640 li. Even with the rugged mountain roads, we can only cover 60 to 70 li a day on average, so we should be there in ten days. Even if we're delayed for a few days, we'll definitely reach Zhenjiang before the 25th."

"Well," Xiong Tingbi thought for a moment and suggested, "If you, Li Qing, have already decided to go to Shenyang, I won't stop you. However, I suggest that you take the Weining route instead of returning to Shenyang."

"Can we get to Zhenjiang via Weining?" Yuan Keli recalled the maps and records in his memory. He only remembered that the Weining Camp was the rear guard of Yagu Pass. After the fall of Yagu Pass, Weining became the most important barrier east of Liaoyang.

"You can get there," Xiong Tingbi said. "Go to Fengji first, then enter the mountains from Weining. From there, follow the mountain path southwest to Lianshan Pass. Then, south of there, you'll reach Qingtai Valley." The road beyond Qingtai Valley overlapped with Yuan Keli's planned route, so Xiong Tingbi didn't elaborate further. "This way, if you're quick, you can save two days. It's a little dangerous, though. That area is the front line of slave bandit activity. Even if Old Wild Boar Skin doesn't lead a major attack, you might encounter dozens or even hundreds of roving slave bandits attempting to raid villages. These alerts occur almost every month."

At this point, Xiong Tingbi smiled again. "If you want to be safe, you can also do as Eunuch Ma suggests and go to Haizhou first, then go through Ximucheng into the mountains, then exit the mountains through Xuancheng, and finally head north to Zhenjiang. This will take two more days, but it's the safest route. You can also cash the banknotes you have in your pocket."

"There's no rush to use the money; it's good to have it in your pocket." Yuan Keli said with a smile, "I'll go into the mountains from Weining. If I really run into bandits, I can tighten my brain a little more."

"Great!" Xiong Tingbi immediately pulled out a piece of white paper weighed down by a paperweight. "I'll write you a ticket and have elite soldiers from the castles along the way escort you!"

Yuan Keli refused, "The capital sent me guards, and General Gao Qian also came at noon. Brother Feibai should still remember him."

"No, those wild boars digging for ginseng in the ravines may not be accustomed to the king's ways, but we must not underestimate them. Furthermore, more importantly, these soldiers, newly transferred from the Beijing camp, have never seen blood. Even if they are tall and strong, they only look impressive. They may be able to hold up a facade, but they will be defeated by the enemy's attack." Xiong Tingbi picked up his pen and wrote, "Since I am afraid that Eunuch Ma will make a mistake, I will not let you encounter any unforeseen circumstances."

"Okay." Yuan Keli was touched and immediately bowed to express his gratitude. "Then I'll accept it with a smug look on my face."

"When does Li Qing plan to leave Liaoyang?" Xiong Tingbi quickly wrote the new ticket and stamped it with the seal of the Liaodong Governor.

"The day after tomorrow," Yuan Keli said, "I want to see how the Liaoyang troops are training."

"Okay," Xiong Tingbi stood up. He walked over to the cabinet with the empty envelopes, took out an envelope, and put the ticket ordering the generals from all over the country to send troops to escort Yuan Keli into it. He walked up to Yuan Keli and handed him the envelope with both hands. "You must be tired after traveling all the way. Go back to the post station and rest first. I will send orders to the various armies later, asking General Li, General Chen, and General Qi to each bring a battalion of elite soldiers to the south of the city to train at dawn tomorrow."

Yuan Keli also stood up. He solemnly took the envelope and bowed, saying, "Thank you."

(End of this chapter)