Film and Television World Life Record

Even the Minister of the Sea had a smile on his face. Metal mines and oil fields—one could build a fleet, and the other was the fleet's energy source. From now on, they would no longer be subject to others' control. How could he not be happy?

After a long while, Hirohito asked, "Where is it located?"

The Minister of Commerce said, "The nearest oil field is more than 100 kilometers from Manchuria; another oil field is 70 kilometers further north; and three other large metal mines are also within 100 kilometers of these two oil fields."

"If the Kwantung Army marches north, they can take over all the oil fields and metal mines in one... at most two days." He said, his body trembling slightly, very excited.

These days, notebooks are produced in small quantities and exports are scarce. Heaven knows how many ways they have to go to earn foreign exchange in order to purchase oil and steel.

Since the start of the war, countless Japanese women have gone south to Southeast Asia and even Europe and America... exchanging their bodies for foreign exchange.

All of this was in exchange for oil and steel.

If we had enough oil and steel, things would be very different.

Hirohito then asked, "What about the reserves?"

The Minister of Commerce wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said, "We don't know yet. The client is very certain and has spent a lot of money on it, hiring well-known prospecting teams to explore reserves. We also have teams involved, so they definitely can't hide it from us."

Hirohito suddenly let out a few sighs: "So it's still not certain?"

Araki Tadashi said, "Your Majesty, should we take action first, seize the territory, and scout it out ourselves? Our Kwantung Army will not let Your Majesty down..."

Hirohito was silent for a while, then suddenly shook his head: "Now is not the time. Let's wait and see. We'll decide whether to take action after we've confirmed the two oil fields and three metal mines... If the fighting continues in the south and then breaks out in the north, that will mean two separate battlefields."

"Without sufficient benefits and adequate compensation, launching a war rashly would be a losing proposition."

Araki Sadao bowed his head and said, "Hai!"

After discussing a few more topics, everyone became somewhat distracted upon hearing news about the oil field, and the meeting ended hastily.

……

Chapter 449 Heading South and Heading North

Li Mu returned to Nanyang City in mid-August.

It's not easy to go out, and this time he purchased 10,000 tons of wheat, 10,000 tons of rice, 3,000 tons of sugar, 100,000 barrels of gasoline, and several thousand tons of medicine, gunpowder raw materials, and steel.

After such a long period of westward migration, the number of people flocking to Nanyang has finally decreased, now only about 10,000 per day.

Nevertheless, within these two months, the entire Nanyang region saw a sudden influx of two to three million people.

In the past, Li Mu always thought about bringing in more people, since he had plenty of money to support them. Now, he's finally starting to get a chill down his spine.

With such a large increase in population, the demand for food has also increased significantly. Fortunately, he used his spatial ability to transport back a lot of food during his previous trips abroad, so there will be no shortage of food for the next two or three months.

However, if private routes are not established within two or three months, they will be truly at a loss.

He could afford to feed them by himself transporting grain back and forth on commercial airliners. If the civilian airport in Hankou were operating normally, things would be a little better, as a round trip wouldn't take too long.

Currently, flights from Hankou are unavailable, requiring a long detour to get out. The same applies to returning home; every time I travel abroad, I waste a lot of unnecessary time on the road.

Sometimes, if you're unlucky and miss your flight, you might not be able to make a round trip for half a month.

If we really rely on this method to transport grain, he won't need to do anything else... and he won't need to carry any goods. He'll have to spend all his time transporting grain back and forth, and that's probably the only way to meet the people's needs.

Just thinking about days like that gives me a headache.

Li Mu could only urge the airports to speed up construction and strive to complete the trial flights as soon as possible to open up this private air route.

Once the route is opened, there will be no need to travel around taking commercial flights anymore. You can even travel from Nanyang to Singapore in a single day, greatly reducing travel time.

If a few days are set aside each month specifically for transporting grain, the people's needs can be met.

With increased efficiency, we can not only transport more supplies, but also have more time to handle domestic affairs.

In addition, under the Far East Trading Company's cash strategy, overseas air routes were also secured.

In a remote port city in northern Malaysia, there is an abandoned cargo airport that has been bought by Far East Trading Company and is currently undergoing emergency renovations.

Meanwhile, there is a medium-sized port near this small town, which is currently in a semi-abandoned state. It's not that the port is bad; it's a deep-water port. The main problem is its location. It's not on any major transportation routes, and there are relatively few merchant ships passing through the area.

Otherwise, with such excellent port conditions, it would not have been able to develop into a medium-to-large port city.

Today, the port has also been contracted out to the Far East Trading Company, which is carrying out simple renovations and building many large warehouses.

This small port city in northern Malaysia is closer to the mainland, about 700-800 kilometers away.

It's impractical to fly fighter jets directly to Singapore. Everything Li Mu purchases from now on will be transported here and stored in warehouses at these ports.

After he got off the plane, he could pick up the goods directly without having to go to Singapore. The distance between the airport and the city was shortened by 700 to 800 kilometers, which saved him both trouble and time.

Over the next few days, Li Mu focused on addressing the livelihood issues of the people. Although the grain he brought helped to stabilize prices to some extent, prices still began to rise uncontrollably, driven by the surrounding areas.

Prices have risen, but wages haven't, so making a living will naturally become a problem.

Tan Lindao, the Commissioner's Office in charge of financial matters, said: "Commissioner, I believe that the rise in prices is not only driven by the surrounding areas, but more importantly, by the devaluation of the legal tender."

Li Mu nodded: "What you said makes sense. As the war spreads and more and more areas fall into enemy hands, the credibility of the government is declining. In addition, with the over-issuance of currency, the legal tender is becoming increasingly worthless."

"Do you have any good suggestions...?"

Tan Lin said, "In my opinion, given the current battlefield situation, the financial situation of the government is deteriorating, and revenue will decrease. The only solution is to increase the issuance of legal tender."

"The territory of the Guo family is shrinking, while the amount of currency being issued is increasing. Large-scale inflation is inevitable, and the legal tender will depreciate rapidly."

"At this point, whether you use or hold fiat currency, it's not worth it."

"Especially in places where legal tender is used, prices will continue to rise, and this cannot be brought down simply by increasing the supply of food or other goods."

"The only way is to replace the fiat currency with a new form of money and let it circulate in the market."

As he spoke, Tan Lin stepped forward and whispered, "Commissioner, our area has a vibrant economy, thriving commerce, a large population, and abundant supplies. We even trade with various regions. Our conditions are extremely favorable."

"In fact, local governments can also issue some credit currencies specifically for local circulation."

Li Mu thought for a moment and said, "Our conditions here are acceptable, but after all, legal tender is legal tender. Is it too conspicuous to issue currency locally?"

Tan Lin said, "Although it is conspicuous, it is the best way to resist currency devaluation. Places like Yan Laoxi, as well as Shaanxi, Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan, are now issuing their own credit currencies in private."

"Firstly, it helps to resist the devaluation of the legal tender and prevent the government from seizing a large amount of wealth; secondly, it is also a source of revenue. As long as the people approve and inflation is controlled, all the money printed can be spent to hire workers and purchase supplies."

Li Mu nodded, and after considering for a long time, said, "It's too early now. If we don't have enough strength, it's not a good thing to show ourselves too early."

Tan Lin asked with some disappointment, "Commissioner, how do we deal with the devaluation of the legal tender?"

Li Mu said, "We should approach it from two angles: silver dollars and grain coupons."

Tan Lin asked in confusion, "Silver dollars and grain coupons?"

"The commissioner means restoring the state of the currency before its issuance, allowing silver dollars to circulate and be used again in the market."

"This is indeed a good way to deal with the devaluation of the legal tender. In ancient my country, the silver standard was always in place, and silver itself had a high monetary value. In addition, silver is a precious metal and has its own value. Unlike the legal tender, it will not depreciate indefinitely. It is one of the few currencies that can maintain its value in times of chaos."

"However, this means that unlike fiat currency, which can be printed by ourselves, a large amount of revenue is lost out of nowhere."

Li Mu said, "We are not short of money, there is no need to take the lead now. We can issue the shares when the conditions are right."

Tan Lin nodded regretfully: "Alright!"

Li Mu said, "Although we cannot issue fiat currency, it doesn't mean we can't issue some commercial bills!"

Tan Lin's eyes lit up and he said, "Commercial tickets?"

Li Mu said, "That's right!"

"Our food and supplies are plentiful, which provides the conditions for issuing some coupons."

"If the government issues a batch of grain coupons, which can be exchanged for grain at the grain shops we run, would people accept that?"

Tan Lin exclaimed with delight, "Of course we'll approve! Starting with selling grain at a discounted price to balance prices, the credibility of the government office has been established."

"Leaving aside the large sums, issuing grain coupons worth hundreds of millions of yuan is absolutely no problem. Commissioner, how about we issue one to test it out?"

Li Mu asked, "Are we short of money right now?"

Tan Lin shook his head and said, "No shortage, we have plenty of funds."

Li Mu said, "What's the use of issuing so many grain coupons and then withdrawing a large sum of money from the legal tender that's depreciating day by day?"

Tan Lin smiled wryly and said, "Yes! Even if you collect a sum of money and keep it in your hand, it will still depreciate."

"Will they still issue food coupons?"

Li Mu asked, "Send?"

Tan Lin paused for a moment, then said, "Send..."

Li Mu said, "Yes, but it's not for the market, it's for internal distribution."

"The devaluation of the legal tender and the soaring prices not only affect the government, but also have a great impact on the livelihoods of the many workers we employ."

"Especially those who are thrifty and frugal, who have saved up a large amount of legal tender, thinking that they finally have some savings. After a few years of large-scale devaluation, it may only be enough for a few meals. How will these people feel at that time?"

"So much money saved through such frugality and careful budgeting, and it ended up being worthless?"

Tan Lin sighed, "Given the current situation, the probability of this happening is very high. As long as the government continues to issue large amounts of legal tender, its value will depreciate more than tenfold in the future..."

Li Mu smiled to himself, thinking that with a tenfold increase, the future devaluation of the legal tender would be measured in hundreds of millions. It wasn't unheard of for someone to spend a billion yuan on a chicken leg.

"Therefore, this situation should be avoided."

"I've decided to issue a batch of grain coupons internally. With these coupons, you can exchange them for grain at any of our grain bank's shops. The coupons are valid for immediate exchange."

"Given the current situation, these food coupons will not only not depreciate, but their value will increase as food prices rise in the future. For many people, saving these is a better way to preserve value than saving money."