My Ming Dynasty, I have the final say

Chapter 63 Bi Ziyan inspects Baoquan Bureau
Daxing County, Chongjiao Fang, bought a nearby house, opened up the yard and built the Baoquan Bureau.

"Master Zhao, someone from Duzhi Division has come to urge you again."

"Hurry, hurry, hurry, the milling and turning are sparking!"

Hearing what the clerk said, Zhao Han couldn't help but roar.

"Go and tell the people from Duzhisi that you can give them [-] pieces a day, not even a penny more."

"It's Tang Guan Bi who is here in person."

"Ouch."

Hearing this, Zhao Han shivered instantly and hurriedly ran out to greet him.

This man cannot be offended. The emperor demolished the Ministry of Household Affairs just to give this man a position, which shows his status.

"I said the magpies were chirping loudly this morning. It turned out to be Mr. Bi."

"Magpie, I'm afraid it's not a crow."

After hearing Zhao Han's words, Bi Ziyan smiled.

"I urge you to ask for silver coins every day. I'm afraid you don't know how many times you have scolded me in private."

"How dare we do this?"

Hearing this, Zhao Han accompanied him with a smile.

"I wonder if Master Bi is here today?"

"I just came here to have a look around, so I can get an understanding of the minting of coins ordered by the emperor."

"Master Bi, please come this way."

After taking Bi Ziyan through the inspection, he was transferred to Baoquan Bureau.

At this time, Baoquan Bureau was extremely busy. All the craftsmen were in a hurry, taking silver and weighing it, smelting silver, copper and tin, casting it into silver plates, cutting them into silver bars, passing them through a manual roller press and then milling them. The car cuts out the tire cake, then goes to the stamping machine to press out the outline article, and then weighs and checks again.

Now Baoquan Bureau's production limit is not capped at all.

No matter how much is produced, every evening at dusk, people from the Internal Affairs Bureau and Du Branch will deliver new silver materials and carry away newly minted silver coins.

"Baoquan Bureau now has a total of 350 workers and [-] crucibles for melting silver. Each furnace can melt [-] kilograms of silver."

"There are also ten roller presses, fifteen milling and turning machines, and ten stamping machines."

"In accordance with the emperor's instructions, a two-hour cycle work system is implemented, with three shifts. Priority is given to the suppression of internal funds. Fifty thousand silver coins can be suppressed every day."

"Twenty thousand coins are the silver allocated by the emperor to Duzhisi and are shipped to Taicang."

"The remaining [-] coins will be sent to internal funds."

Looking at the people who were weighing the cakes, Bi Ziyan couldn't help but ask.

"Fifty thousand coins per day, that's 150 million coins per month. This amount is a bit small."

"Why don't you recruit people and expand production?"

"There is no one available. All the silversmiths in the capital have been plundered by low-level jobs."

Hearing Bi Ziyan's words, Zhao Han smiled bitterly.

"And even if there were enough silversmiths, there wouldn't be enough machines to make it."

Zhao Han said, pointing to the imprinting machine in front of him.

"In recent days, the palace has been undergoing restructuring. These roller presses and milling machines are used by the Military and War Bureau to make armors. They can't use them for the time being, so they lent them to humble officials. They will be returned to them in a few days."

"Bizhi has recruited craftsmen to make Baoquan Bureau's own tools, but this will take time."

"Moreover, the most lacking imprinting machine template is currently difficult to solve."

Looking at the eunuchs who had just stamped out the silver coins after checking them, Zhao Han explained.

"To imprint silver coins, you must use a steel seal, not a copper seal."

"But steel seals are difficult to make. Hundreds of carvers have only made fifty sets so far." "I understand."

After carefully observing the machine that turned the handle and suppressed the silver coins, Bi Ziyan nodded, accepting Zhao Han's statement.

After all, it is necessary to use great force to imprint patterns on the silver coins, and it will not work if it is not hard enough.

Watching the little eunuch put the inspected silver coins into piles of ten, wrap them in red paper and put them into the box, Bi Ziyan turned his head and said.

"Since the emperor paid salaries to hundreds of officials last month, silver coins and silver cents have flowed into the people. Because they are beautifully cast and cost only one penny per penny, they are very popular."

When Zhang Juzheng used the whip method, there would be losses when the government melted and recast the broken silver handed over by the people into silver ingots. The government was unwilling to bear this part of the loss, so it shared it among the civilians.

Officials, on the other hand, will never charge less if they can. When the silver ingots are finally smelted, the excess will go to the officials.

Nowadays, the cost of fire consumption in general states and counties is as much as two or three yuan, or even four or five yuan, per two.

In some remote states and counties, in order to make more money because of the tax they can collect, they will increase the fire consumption to several times the normal tax.

And now the silver coins produced by the emperor can be said to be a way of returning money to the public.

The silver coin clearly says "Pinglijiuqian" (nine coins can be used as one tael). When paying taxes, you can just use this thing as one tael of silver to pay, so that civilians don't have to pay for it.

Moreover, with silver dollars and cents, you no longer need to carry a scale when you go shopping. You can put a weight in your sleeve and hang a pair of scissors on your waist.

"Recently, someone went to Taicang to redeem silver."

Bi Ziyan said, his eyes flickering.

"We are currently accounting for Taicang. I am afraid that someone will approach Taicang and something will happen. I want your Baoquan Bureau to come forward and open a shop in Beijing to exchange money. Is that okay?"

"This..."

Zhao Han came from the Ministry of Industry, but he also knew what happened recently in the Ministry of Household Affairs, so he naturally understood what Bi Ziyan meant.

What could happen to Taicang?
Let people set it on fire.

"The matter is so important that I dare not agree rashly due to my humble position."

Zhao Han looked ashamed and Bi Ziyan raised his hands.

"The responsibility of the Baoquan Bureau is to mint silver coins. There are Jinyiwei and Dongchang patrolling inside and outside the Baoquan Bureau. To exchange silver for the people, it is okay if the amount is small, but if the amount is large, more people will come. I'm afraid that if we let people in, we'll rob the Baoquan Bureau."

"It's okay for me to lose my life here, but I'm afraid it will ruin the emperor's plan."

"However, for your humble position, you can write to the emperor and ask for someone to open a shop to exchange silver for the people."

"That's fine too."

After hearing Zhao Han's words, Bi Ziyan nodded.

"After you finish writing, I can also sign it."

Hearing this, Zhao Han quickly cupped his hands.

"I would like to express my gratitude to you for your humble position."

After taking Bi Ziyan around in Baoquan Bureau, Zhao Han stood at the door and watched Bi Ziyan get on the carriage and walk away. He kicked the stone lion at the door before turning back to the yard.

I went back to my class room and sat down, took out a piece of rice paper, and started thinking about how to write this memorial on it.

"Old Fox."

After a while, Zhao Han put down the brush impatiently without coming up with an idea.

Bi Ziyan did not come here to exchange silver for the people or to have Taicang burned down.

Are the Jinyi guards patrolling Taicang these days and the soldiers transferred from the Beijing camp just decorations?

Bi Ziyan clearly wanted to exchange more silver coins from Baoquan Bureau to put pressure on him.

This is forcing him to find ways to expand production.

After all, he did not dare to reduce the monthly silver coins he paid to the emperor.

　to read, to read, to read
　　
　
(End of this chapter)