The struggle for the throne among nine princes—I really don't want to be the crown prince.

Chapter 322 The Beginning of a Tremendous Change

It's another morning!
Shen Ye woke up from her sleep and opened her eyes to find Nian Xinyue staring blankly at her.

"What are you looking at?" Shen Ye asked softly, pulling Nian Xinyue closer to his chest.

Nian Xinyue's voice was soft: "I didn't see anything, I just wanted to stay like this with the Crown Prince forever."

Seeing the tenderness in Nian Xinyue's eyes, Shen Ye smiled and said, "Then let's stay a little longer."

As they spoke, Shen Ye glanced at the wall clock by the bedside; it was almost 6:30.

If we're talking about the advantages of transmigrating, the habit of going to bed early and waking up early is certainly one of them.

Nian Xinyue knew that Shen Ye still had to pay his respects to Emperor Qianxi and the Empress Dowager today, so after snuggling in Shen Ye's arms for a while, she got up to help him get dressed and wash up.

After tidying up, Shen Ye headed towards the Qianqing Palace.

The practice of checking on one's health at dawn and dusk sounds simple, but the key is to stick to it.

Shen Ye has persisted for half a year, so naturally he will not give up.

As soon as I arrived at the entrance of Qianqing Palace, I saw Emperor Qianxi practicing swordsmanship outside the palace gate. His movements were fluid, graceful, and powerful.

Shen Ye couldn't help but mutter to himself: The forty-five-year-old Emperor Qianxi is in his prime, and with his concern for health, who knows when he'll ever ascend the throne if he just waits!
When Emperor Qianxi saw Shen Ye approaching, he did not stop immediately. Instead, he finished practicing his sword technique before putting down his longsword and asking, "Crown Prince, has the money for today's salary been prepared?"

"Reporting to Father Emperor, everything is ready."

"It was exchanged for one million taels of gold by Lord Cao Yin from his daily life. I'll borrow it from him for a while."

When Emperor Qianxi heard the Crown Prince say this, he nodded slightly and said, "Although the ministers we see every day are well-fed and clothed and have a glamorous appearance, many ordinary officials do not have an easy life."

"For example, Li Fu of the Censorate is very learned and has a great reputation, but he doesn't have much money."

“I heard he has always lived a very frugal life.”

"Recently, I've been living on borrowed money from my colleagues!"

Shen Ye smiled and said, "It is precisely because there are many people like Lord Li that I proposed to transfer a portion of the salt tax revenue to Yuqing Bank so that everyone's salaries can be paid on time."

"So that they won't have any complaints about the court."

Emperor Qianxi said, "After you go to pay your respects to the Empress Dowager, go and keep an eye on Yuqing Bank. This matter cannot go wrong."

Shen Ye respectfully replied, "Your subject obeys."

After paying his respects to the Empress Dowager and having breakfast with Shi Jingrong, Shen Ye led Zhou Bao and the others to Yuqing Bank.

At this time, the area outside Yuqing Bank was already packed with people.

Most of the people queuing up were dressed in official robes, making the scene truly spectacular.

Looking at this scene, Shen Ye felt a little amused.

I never imagined that paying wages in ancient times could cause such a commotion.

Inside Yuqing Bank, everyone from the manager to the clerk was on high alert.

Although they had made preparations, the scene was still quite intimidating.

"Your Highness!" Upon seeing Shen Ye arrive, Nian Jinfu, the head manager, immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

He was originally a servant of the Nian family, and facing so many officials, he felt that he was a little overwhelmed.

Shen Ye waved his hand at Nian Jinfu and said, "Old man, just do as I say without worry."

"With me here, you have nothing to be afraid of!"

Nian Jinfu composed himself and solemnly said, "Please rest assured, Your Highness, this servant will absolutely not bring shame upon Your Highness."

Shen Ye smiled and asked, "Have all the messages I asked you to spread been disseminated?"

"Your Highness, the word has already been spread."

Nian Jinfu said, "The effect is very obvious. Some depositors have heard that the Ministry of Revenue regularly pays salt tax to our bank to pay the salaries of officials, and they all think that we will not have any problems."

"Especially those people who were trying to get deposits for us, they were even more interested in this news than we were!"

"Many people relayed this message to their acquaintances overnight."

At this point, Nian Jinfu said, "I believe that with more people seeing this scene today, there will be far fewer people rushing to withdraw their money without paying interest."

Shen Ye smiled and said, "If this matter is accomplished, you will have done a great job."

Just as Shen Ye and Nian Dongliang were talking, a young man dressed in a blue robe and a small hat walked over and said, "Your Highness, the time has come. Shall we open the door?"

Shen Ye waved his hand and said, "Open the door."

"Also, Erlengtai, go out and maintain order."

"If anyone dares to disrupt the order, you will deal with them."

Erlengtai respectfully replied, "This servant obeys!"

Under the winter sun, the doors of Yuqing Bank were slowly opened.

As the gate opened, a dozen or so young people dressed in uniform quickly walked out.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please have the first ten people enter the bank with our guides."

"As for the other adults who haven't had their turn yet, please wait a moment."

The speaker was a friendly-looking young man. As soon as he spoke, some people at the back of the line suddenly said, "Why can't we go in together?" "We're just collecting our salaries, why do we have to wait in line?"

"Let's go into Yuqing Bank and collect our salaries!"

The moment this person uttered those words, they received responses from many others.

But as soon as he finished speaking, more than a dozen guards wearing yellow jackets walked out of Yuqing Bank.

Erlengtai stood at the door, then coldly glanced around before saying indifferently, "His Highness the Crown Prince has decreed that anyone who dares to cause trouble at Yuqing Bank will be executed without mercy!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the surroundings fell silent.

Whether they were the ringleaders or the instigators, everyone quieted down.

At this moment, the employee in uniform led ten officials, whose clothes indicated they were of the sixth or seventh rank, into Yuqing Bank.

Li Chunmo was third in line, holding a blue salary book in his hand.

His family wasn't in too much trouble, but the only reason he was so eager to collect the money was that he wanted to experience what it was like for the Crown Prince to have Yuqing Bank pay salaries.

Soon, Li Chunmo arrived at a clean and bright counter.

He had a seat, and behind the counter was a young man who looked to be in his twenties, dressed in the same clothes as the people who had just maintained order, and appeared shrewd and capable.

"Sir, it is my pleasure to serve you, employee number 0012 of Yuqing Bank."

Upon hearing this, Li Chunmo was utterly speechless.

His first impression was that it was formal!
This Yuqing Bank really... really made him feel incredibly formal.

He hesitated for a moment, then said in a deep voice, "I've come to collect my salary."

The young man said with a smile, "Please show me your salary book, your ivory token, and your seal. Only when all three items are present can I withdraw my salary."

"Also, according to our bank's regulations, you must come in person to collect your salary."

Li Chunmo was no stranger to the tips given to young people, since these things were already marked on his salary book.

Therefore, he didn't feel that people were making things difficult for him.

He immediately handed the prepared items to the young man, who quickly examined them and then said, "Lord Li, may I ask how much salary you would like to receive?"

"According to our bank's regulations, any adult who sets aside a portion of their monthly salary in their payroll can obtain an interest-free loan for up to one month."

"This loan will not exceed three times the adult's salary. As long as the adult repays the loan within one month, we will not charge any interest."

Li Chunmo was aware of this as well.

Although he felt that the discount was not very useful to him, he still felt that he should retain this right.

After all, he doesn't need to take out all of his salary right away.

So he smiled and said, "Then take five taels of silver!"

Five taels of silver wasn't much, but it was enough for his expenses for the next few days.

The clerk acted very quickly, writing a few lines on Li Chunmo's paybook and stamping it with a seal. Then he said to Li Chunmo, "Mr. Li, please sign."

Li Chunmo saw a rather thick ledger, the first line of which recorded his withdrawals, and the same information was also recorded in his salary book.

After signing his name twice and stamping his name twice, the young clerk (0012) handed him five round cakes!

No, this is not a round silver ingot, but a silver coin covered with patterns.

The obverse of the coin reads "One Tael," while the reverse features a flower he doesn't recognize, surrounded by a ring of finely detailed gears. Holding it in his hand, it felt quite heavy.

"Lord Li, this is a tael of silver from our Yuqing Bank. It weighs one tael and is mainly cast from silver and copper."

"According to the regulations of our Yuqing Bank, the silver content here is 90% and the copper content is 10%."

"The reason for doing this is to preserve the shape and pattern of this one or two taels of silver."

"If adults have any doubts, they can verify them anywhere."

Holding the heavy silver coin in his hand, Li Chunmo had a strange feeling that although the silver coin in his hand was not large, its appearance would definitely bring about a huge change.

However, he was unclear about what this change entailed.

But he knew that this change was bound to come.

“Okay!” Li Chunmo took the five silver dollars and strode out.

"Lord Li, welcome back next time!"

As Li Chunmo walked to the entrance of Yuqing Bank and saw several colleagues who, like him, held four or five silver dollars in their hands, the slight feeling in his heart slowly disappeared.

"Brother Chunmo, can we spend these silver dollars?" A middle-aged man who was on good terms with Li Chunmo asked him with a hint of hesitation.

Li Chunmo said calmly, "Why can't I spend it? There's an ounce of silver in it!"

"It's actually just one or two taels of silver!"

Just as Li Chunmo was speaking, a loud bang was heard, followed by a commotion all around!
Someone is causing trouble!

　The first update of the day is here!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)