In the Southern Song Dynasty, I competed with Mongolia for the world

Chapter 491 Military stamps and food stamps

In mid-May, Guo Xiong came to Lin'an and first went to Jia Sidao's house.

Although Jia Sidao is Zhao Qi's uncle, he is not much different in age and he often took them to play together.

Guo Xiong came to pay homage to his elders, but was surprised to find that Jia Sidao was no longer in the Ministry of Rites, and he had also gone to work in a bank.

"Uncle Jia went to Borneo?" Guo Xiong was stunned.

Jia Sidao chuckled: "Exactly, I just returned to Beijing yesterday, and I have to attend a meeting this time."

It is relatively far from Borneo to Lin'an now. For normal merchant ships and warships, if they don't dock, it will take about half a month to a month (depending on the favorable and adverse winds).

The imperial court now has a kind of fast boat, which is similar to a clipper boat. The boat is not big and can seat a dozen people at most. It mainly travels along the coast. It is faster for Han Dynasty post boats and messenger boats.

Jia Sidao came to Beijing on a clipper ship. It took about ten days from Borneo to Lin'an, and he only stopped in Hanzhou for supplies once.

Guo Xiong was even more shocked: "It only takes about ten days for Bo Luo to arrive in Lin'an?"

However, banks in many places have not yet been fully established. This meeting will mainly focus on promotion and technical learning. It is estimated that the actual implementation will take place in half a year.

In a few days, the heads of banks from all over the country arrived in Lin'an, and officials from the Ministry of Revenue organized them to go to a base in the Ministry of Revenue.

Zhao Yurui chuckled and waved his hand: "Everyone, get up, everyone, no courtesy, let's get down to business——"

"That's a fast boat, but a big boat can't do it." Jia Sidao said, "Most people don't dare to ride on it."

Zhao Yurui plans to use this as a voucher.

There is a large machine one foot high in front. Most of it is made of metal and shines with a metallic luster. There is a huge metal tank in the back with hot steam coming out of it.

For example, Guo Xiong deposits 100,000 silver coins in the bank in Lin'an and plans to go to Borneo Province to purchase spices. He does not need to bring so many silver coins with him, he only needs to bring the certificate.

The Bank of Borneo has this number, for example, Borneo No. 001-998.

Emperor Zhao Yurui called on everyone to gather around, and everyone looked attentively.

Guo Xiong could see patterns engraved on the countertop, similar to templates.

Guo Xiong and Jia Sidao were walking in the crowd. They were mostly surrounded by young people, and Guo Xiong knew most of them. They were either family members who were close friends of Zhao Yurui when they started their business, or businessmen who supported Zhao Yurui back then. The local tycoons who had taken refuge in the Song Dynasty very early.

Jia Sidao was a relative of the emperor and was obviously better informed than Guo Xiong. Guo Xiong now knew that the imperial court wanted to keep accounts within the bank.

When everyone rushed in, they saw that Emperor Zhao Yurui was also present.

Even if the voucher is picked up by someone, others do not know the number and cannot exchange it at a Borneo bank.

After he calmed down, he had time to look at the machine in front of him.

Sure enough, after the liquid was injected, there was a boom, and the top of the machine fell from the sky and hit it hard.

The imperial court only used it for communication and as a post ship.

The number is not printed on the voucher, it will only be told to Guo Xiong when it is issued by the bank, and he will keep it in mind.

It turns out that Jia Sidao guessed wrong. This was not a coin mint.

Only then did everyone realize that the rubber tree that Zhao Yurui bought with a lot of money and prizes could actually produce this.

Guo Xiong's voucher is No. 003. When he arrives in Borneo, he can find the corresponding No. 003. After the redemption is completed, No. 003 will be canceled for this year.

For example, Peng Yibin's son is also here today, and he is also doing this.

The amount will be engraved on it according to the deposit.

For example, Guo Xiong is going to Borneo Province.

Businessmen deposit money in Lin'an Bank, and then take their passbooks to withdraw money from banks in Borneo, thousands of miles away.

I saw a pipe on the left side of the machine injecting some kind of liquid onto the table, but it looked like liquid but not like water, it was very viscous.

"This is made of rubber. It can be called - rubber cloth - it will be better if it needs to be cooled -"

Guo Xiong hurried forward and got one decisively. It was a little warm and soft, like cloth and not like paper, but it was smoother and heavier than cloth, and it was very tough. He spread his hands and pulled it, and it was still able to open a little, but He was afraid of breaking it, so he quickly let go.

The material of the voucher is similar to the hot water bottle of later generations. It is a little thinner and can be rolled up for easy portability.

Jia Sidao came up from behind and whispered: "It seems like a steam coin machine?"

When he got up again, the material that had just been glued to the silk had been pressed down like paper.

Ten cards came out at a time and Zhao Yurui distributed them to everyone.

When Guo Xiong stood up, he found that Emperor Zhao Yurui glanced at him and nodded to him with a smile. He suddenly felt excited and quickly puffed up his chest.

If you encounter danger or pirates, just burn or tear up the voucher to ensure that it will not be taken away. At worst, your trip will be in vain and you will not lose money.

After cutting, Zhao Yurui casually picked up the pieces of paper that rolled into a basin. Each piece was about the size of a palm, all black and white, with uneven surfaces that were all carved from the mold.

The machine started moving again, moving to the right, clattering, and flashed by again. Guo Xiong could see several blades falling in the sky, seeming to be cutting. The whole process was quite smooth. I don't know how the craftsmen did it. Yes, he was also secretly amazed when he saw it.

That is what Guo Xiong said to his followers before.

"See your majesty, long live your majesty." Everyone hurried forward to pay homage.

Everyone quickly entered a relatively huge house. This house was much taller than an ordinary house and was similar to a factory building in later generations. Before they entered, everyone could already hear the rumbling sound of machinery.

There were no computers in this era, so it was troublesome to keep accounts. Zhao Yurui also studied it for a long time, and only started to implement it after banks were built all over the country.

It also has a number on it.

"The exchange requires a voucher and a serial number. Both are indispensable. This ensures the safety of merchants on the road and eliminates the need to bring a large amount of money." Finally, Zhao Yurui said: "And just in case -"

"For example, if one of you goes to sea, you can tell your family the serial number, then tell the bank and write down the family's name and situation."

"In extreme cases, once you die at sea and the voucher is lost at sea, it doesn't matter. Your family members who have reported it at the bank can go to the bank to claim the money you have stored."

The first batch of bankers from the Song Dynasty were present. After seeing the vouchers and numbers obtained by His Majesty the Emperor, they were all reassured.

Nowadays, rubber is under the control of the imperial court, and only the imperial court can grow and process it. The current rubber certificate cannot be copied by local or other countries. After adding the number, it is absolutely foolproof.

As long as the court promotes it well, private businessmen will definitely accept it. Because sea trade is now developed, many people have to bring a lot of money with them when they go to sea to do business. In history, during the Song and Yuan Dynasties, many merchant ships went to sea with a ship full of copper coins and then sank in the sea, losing both people and money.

Now according to Emperor Zhao Yurui, emergency contacts can be left in the bank. In the event of a disaster at sea, the contact person can go to the bank to retrieve the money. Even if someone loses someone, the bank can still keep the money.

This innovation of the emperor and the court won the hearts of everyone. There were many wealthy people in the Song Dynasty, and their families all had big businesses. They all thought that the bank restructuring of the court was very good, and the deposit certificates were also very beneficial to their business.

Then Zhao Yurui waved his hand again, and the machine just started to cast new things.

Everyone watched with interest.

Guo Xiong saw the staff changing molds. One layer was removed from the top of the machine, another layer was removed from the bottom, and then the molds were replaced on both sides.

These molds are relatively heavy, and several people are busy working on them.

After changing, the processed rubber liquid begins to be injected from the other side, and then pressed on the top.

Boom, after a loud noise, this time someone on the side quickly poured cold water on it to cool it down.

Then pull out a bunch of new vouchers from the mold.

There are craftsmen nearby explaining that there is usually no need to cool down, and they will be collected and cooled slowly. Today I want to show it to everyone, so I will cool it down quickly.

The vouchers that Guo Xiong got this time were much smaller than before, each one was only as long as his thumb and one finger wide.

The shape is similar to the 'food stamps' of later generations.

Yes, this is Zhao Yurui's new invention, overseas colonial food stamps.

"The overseas territory of our Song Dynasty now includes Haisanwei, Kushuo Island (later Kuye), and places further north, as well as Dayuan, Hainan, Hanzhou, Borneo, and Persia, and will continue to do so in the following years. The conquered Malacca area——" Zhao Yurui said slowly.

There was no map at the scene, but most people like Guo Xiong and others had seen maps and knew that the overseas Song Dynasty now had a very large territory, several times larger than the original territory of the Song Dynasty.

These bankers are as young as Guo Xiong, who is only in his teens, and the elder is in his early thirties. All of them can feel proud and shocked by the vastness of the Song Dynasty.

It was precisely because the Song Dynasty firmly occupied these places that these wealthy merchants and nobles were able to do business everywhere and earn a steady stream of money from these places.

"In the past ten years, the total number of people immigrated to various places in the Song Dynasty has exceeded one million, and the number of troops stationed in various places has reached 50,000."

Zhao Yurui did not say the actual number at this meeting. The actual garrison had already exceeded 100,000.

After all, the places occupied by these overseas countries are already larger than those of the previous Song Dynasties, so there are still more Song armies stationed.

At present, the largest number of troops are stationed below Hainan in Nanyang. The next step is for Zhao and Rui to send more troops to Hainan, Sanwei and North.

"The local garrison and their families totaled two to three hundred thousand people. In the past, the court used to distribute food and salaries on time every month."

"But transporting a large amount of silver coins every time is quite troublesome. Last year, a ship sank along the Borneo Strait (later known as the Karimata Strait, near Palembang), and hundreds of thousands of coins were lost."

Zhao Yurui has now made two preparations. One is to set up mints in Hanzhou (Philippines) and Borneo Province (Brunei, Malaysia, Yinni and other regions) to prepare copper coins, silver coins and gold coins.

At the same time, military stamps (i.e. food stamps) were promoted in the garrison.

There are twelve face values ​​of military coupons: ten coins, twenty coins, fifty coins, one hundred coins, two hundred coins, five hundred coins, one string, ten coins, twenty coins, and fifty coins, all of which are considered large denominations.

It is mainly used for military pay and is distributed to local garrison troops.

In the eyes of everyone, this is somewhat similar to the previous meeting, but not exactly the same.

First of all, the military tickets are made of rubber, and their quality is far superior to that of Huizi, which is also easier to preserve.

In fact, military stamps are only issued in the military, and sergeants can use them for shopping and consumption overseas, and they are also easy to collect.

In the past, some people spent several years overseas and saved hundreds or even thousands of silver coins, but had no place to put them. Some people would even ask a sea ship to send them back to their hometown. Nowadays, military notes are only a few thousand coins.

Overseas sergeants rotate for five to six years, and further afield for ten years. When soldiers return home, they can go to their hometown bank to exchange them all for gold, silver and copper coins.

After the Bank of Borneo is established, soldiers can still deposit their money in Borneo and then withdraw it when they return to their hometown with the certificate.

In short, it can be ensured that soldiers do not need to carry a large amount of heavy silver and gold and silver coins.

After all, the newly issued gold and silver coins are also quite heavy.

After the emperor finished speaking, someone in the crowd immediately asked: "How do sergeants spend money locally?" Gold and silver coins are in Persia, and the locals in Persia will recognize them, but if you use military tickets, how will they recognize them?
Zhao and Rui said that first of all, the garrisons in various places had special stores run by the imperial court, which were equivalent to the supply and marketing cooperatives of later generations. All Song Dynasty commodities and local specialties were sold by the imperial court. When sergeants bought things in these stores, the prices were higher than those purchased by outsiders. Still cheap.

Secondly, if the sergeants insisted on buying goods from outside stores, the court would allow it.

The military coupons received by foreign businessmen can also be exchanged for gold and silver coins at the local military.

To put it simply, sergeants use their military coupons to shop at local Persian merchant stores. After the merchant receives it, he can find the local garrison logistics department and directly exchange it for gold, silver, copper coins, and even commodities.

In this way, it is easier for local people to accept military votes from the Song Army.

Moreover, there is no discount for this kind of exchange, unlike the previous discounts when exchanging money at Huizi. The Song Army guarantees a consistent military coupon, which can be exchanged for a consistent amount of money, or an equivalent amount of gold and silver coins.

In fact, the Song Army currently only has transactions with local people in Borneo and Persia, and can receive gold and silver coins from overseas. The rest in Haisamwei, Hanzhou and other places only have indigenous people, and they can just use military coupons, and there is no need for anything else. currency.

In addition, there are troops stationed in Goryeo, so it is not troublesome to transport money there. Shandong and Jeju can be reached directly across the sea in a few days.

Therefore, military funds were mainly used in distant places such as Persia and the South American colonies to be established later.

For example, Zhao and Rui built six or seven strongholds along the coasts of South America and Africa. There were tens of thousands of troops and civilians. You had to pay them. If you transport money there, the journey is too long and it takes up space. Once the ship sinks, you will suffer heavy losses.

Zhao and Rui first transported military notes to ensure the supply of salary and silver for the sergeants. After the sergeants returned home, they could directly exchange them into silver coins, and the court guaranteed not to give any discounts.

Ten or twenty years later, when the local rule of the imperial court is stable and the population is too large, military stamps can even be made directly from rubber on the spot in South America, eliminating the need for long-distance transportation.

Zhao Yurui's currency reform this time required the cooperation and investment of banks, so this time he called all bank heads to the capital for a meeting.

In a word, you should do what the court requires. If you do well, keep doing it. If you do not do well, everyone will know Zhao Yurui's methods.

Then Zhao Yurui asked the banks to go back and promote it so that people could save money.

People in later generations like to save money, but no one in the feudal dynasty likes to save money. In the Ming Dynasty, the rich and landlords cast their silver into the size of winter melons and stored them in underground kilns, but they refused to take them out.

Zhao Yurui was thinking of ways to force them to save money.

(End of this chapter)