The Ming Dynasty started with saving the eldest grandson

Chapter 51 Lao Zhu’s powerful understanding ability

The operations of Wei and Wu?

Zhu Yuanzhang vaguely guessed something, but he still couldn't help but want to hear Chen Jingke's explanation.

Zhu Biao has been thinking about it. He had never paid attention to currency matters before.

Although I can understand Chen Jingke's words, I am not very thorough.

It takes some careful thinking to fully understand.

Chen Jingke was a little excited when he said it. After all, they were Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao.

It's hard not to be excited when you teach them.

What's more, what he talks about is what he is best at - not finance, but the history of the Three Kingdoms.

In his previous life, he was influenced by "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms". He was most fond of this period of history with shining generals, and had read a lot of relevant research materials.

I know a lot about this history.

He had an understanding of the international situation, population distribution, price changes, economic structure, etc. at that time.

If he traveled back to the Three Kingdoms period, he felt that he could prosper with these information.

It's a pity that he traveled to the Ming Dynasty that he didn't know very well.

"The state of Wu was also short of money, so they came up with a lot of money that was worth five hundred, one thousand, or even five thousand."

"However, due to lack of preparation and the decline of all industries, these large sums of money are not accepted by the people."

"Not only did it fail to benefit the people, it actually exacerbated the decline of various industries."

"It was at this time that money from the Kingdom of Shu flowed in, gradually gaining the trust of the people."

"Later, the coins of Shu almost outnumbered the local coins of Wu, and they were unable to survive."

In previous generations, archeology has excavated fifteen Dongwu tombs and unearthed a large number of coins.

There are a total of [-] coins from the three countries in these coins, including [-] coins from Shu and only [-] local coins from Wu.

Funerals have been a major event since ancient times, and the money paid for burials cannot be of inferior quality.

This shows the status of Shu coins at that time.

"The situation in Wei was even more special. Emperor Wen of Wei didn't know much about money as well as Wu. He actually abolished coins and replaced them with barter."

"However, the people's demand for coins will not change because of a policy. If the Wei State does not mint coins, the gap will be occupied by others."

"So the coins of Shu flowed in and quickly passed through Wei."

"At this time, Shu only needs to keep making money to buy a steady stream of supplies from Wei and Wu."

"This is also the reason why the Shu Kingdom can launch wars one after another with only one state."

"Prime Minister Zhuge was able to make six trips out of Qishan, which is largely due to this."

Zhu Biao couldn't help but said: "The people of Wei and Wu cannot go to Shu to buy things with hundreds of dollars. Aren't they afraid of problems?"

Chen Jingke shook his head and said, "I just said that the coins issued by the imperial court are not just money, but also the credibility of a country."

"Shu Qian has been recognized by people all over the world in terms of credibility. Unless he destroys the Great Wall, no one can shake Zhi Baiqian's status."

"And Shu also understands this truth, and those official warehouses are always open."

"Anyone with a hundred dollars can exchange it for supplies of equivalent value at any time."

"Shu brocade was the most expensive silk and satin at that time. They even linked hundreds of dollars to Shu brocade."

"In this way, the purchasing power of Zhibai money will always be there, and the reputation will naturally be maintained very well."

Zhu Biao frowned: "Are Wei and Wu just letting Shu money pass through and not thinking of any way to counter it?"

Before Chen Jingke could answer, Zhu Yuanzhang spoke first: "The general trend, the general trend of Shu money has been achieved."

"Wu's industries are in ruins and unable to counterattack, and since he is an ally with Shu, he cannot openly ban the circulation of Shu money."

"Even if Wei State re-enables coins, it will not be able to completely drive out Shu money. At most, Shu money and Wei money will go hand in hand."

Chen Jingke said with admiration: "Your Majesty is wise, that's true. The Kingdom of Wu failed to expel Shu money until its demise."

"The State of Wei re-enabled the five-baht coin during the reign of Emperor Wei Ming, but it still could not expel the Shu coin."

Zhu Biao asked doubtfully: "If this is the case, why did the Kingdom of Shu fall in the end?" Zhu Yuanzhang explained: "The national power, the family fortune left by Emperor Wu of Wei was too strong, and the land and population were several times that of the Kingdom of Shu."

"And the most fertile land in the Central Plains is under the rule of the Wei State, while the Shu State has more mountains and rivers than plains."

"If one person is added to the Kingdom of Shu, the Kingdom of Wei will be able to increase its number by five or ten."

"As long as the Wei Kingdom drags on, Shu will definitely lose in the end."

"That's why Sima Yi adopted a defensive strategy to prevent Zhuge Kongming from leaving Shu."

"On the contrary, it was the Shu State that relied on a small area to suppress the Wei State for 30 years, which is extremely rare."

"Originally, I just thought it was Zhuge Kongming's superb strategy, but I didn't expect that there was such a secret thing."

Having said this, he looked at Chen Jingke: "It's very rare for you to find this out from history books, yes."

Chen Jingke is also convinced of Lao Zhu. He understands this because he benefited from the summaries of previous scholars.

Zhu Yuanzhang could guess almost exactly what he said just by listening to a few general words from himself. This was his real ability.

"Thank you for the compliment, Your Majesty. I feel ashamed that I don't deserve it."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and said, "Is there anything else? Let's tell it together."

Chen Jingke replied: "Yes, it is only the first step to make Zhibaician recognized by the people. I dare to boast, I can do it too."

"What's really admirable about Liu Ba is that he determined the amount of Zhibai coins to be issued every year through his own calculations."

Zhu Biao asked doubtfully: "What's the explanation?"

Chen Jingke explained: "If there is less money, there will be a shortage of money, which will lead to depreciation of prices."

"It's not enough to have too much money. It will cause prices to skyrocket and the money will be worthless."

Not to mention Zhu Biao, Zhu Yuanzhang was also confused.

What do you mean, isn’t it better to have more money?
There was no other way, so Chen Jingke could only be patient and tell them what inflation was about.

The two suddenly realized.

"Copper coins are physical, so even if more are issued, it won't be a big problem."

"But straight money won't do. It is a credit currency. Once it is over-issued, it will easily lead to a situation of too much money."

"If the Shu Kingdom does not control the circulation, it won't be long before the money becomes overflowing and becomes worthless."

"It's like a treasure note, with a consistent denomination, it can only buy goods worth [-] coins."

This act of revealing his old background made Zhu Yuanzhang a little confused, and he glared at Chen Jingke fiercely.

But he wasn't really angry.

This is indeed his fault. He didn't know enough about money and came up with policies on the spot.

Now that Chen Jingke pointed it out to him and gave him a solution, he was only happy.

Chen Jingke quickly chuckled and continued:
"Issuing too little will not solve the problem of money shortage. Issuing too much will result in too much money."

"How to calculate this circulation is a very profound knowledge. The real genius of Liu Ba is that he knows how to calculate the circulation."

"He should have taught this algorithm to the Shu Han organization in charge of money and food."

"So until the fall of the Shu Han Dynasty, hundreds of coins were not distributed indiscriminately."

In fact, here he deliberately exaggerated Liu Ba's ability.

Liu Ba only proposed to cast hundreds of coins, but he died of illness not long after.

The calculation of the circulation of the Shu Kingdom is even more untrue and completely fabricated by Chen Jingke.

But one thing is certain, the Shu Kingdom did not send money indiscriminately.

This can be seen from the fact that after the demise of the Shu Han Dynasty, Zhibaiqian's credit was still not bankrupt.

The reason why Chen Jingke fabricated this incident was to remind Zhu Yuanzhang that treasure notes should not be issued indiscriminately.

Zhu Yuanzhang didn't know this, and said excitedly when he heard this:
"Do you know this algorithm?"

(End of this chapter)