Chapter 515: Another Year of Joy and Hidden Worries for the People
Zhu Youtang's heart moved slightly, and he immediately asked seriously: "What method?"
"Although my mother has abandoned the little prince in the capital, I don't think my mother really gave up her own flesh and blood. How can this flesh and blood relationship be cut off? As long as we take good care of the little prince, so that he can ride a horse and shoot arrows even if he has a leg disease, then we can exchange Xuan'er back!" Yikexi said with empathy and looked very serious.
Poor parents in the world, as long as they provide enough help to the little prince, the little prince can still become a qualified heir.
At that time, my mother would have no reason to refuse the request for the transaction, and naturally agreed to return her Xuan'er to me.
Zhu Youtang's eyes flashed with disappointment, but he knew that this was actually the most ideal way at present: "The little prince's leg disease is not a minor illness, how sure are you?"
"Fifty percent! But our Xuan'er is in my mother's hands, and now it is the best way!" Yikexi's eyes flashed with a trace of loneliness, and then said very seriously.
After careful consideration, Zhu Youtang immediately decided to let Yikxi try first, while continuing to put pressure on Manduhai to ensure Zhu Houxuan's safety.
Although raising troops to attack can relieve his hatred, as Yikxi analyzed, not only is there no absolute guarantee to encircle the headquarters of the Northern Yuan Dynasty, but his son's situation may become worse.
In fact, they have fallen behind, and it is unlikely to turn the tables in one fell swoop. The best way is to plan slowly and try to get his son back safely as soon as possible.
As for the safety of his son, from all the signs, Manduhai is sure not to use his son for surgery, and it is more likely that he wants to train his son to become the master of the Northern Yuan Dynasty.
After finalizing the new rescue idea, the Northern Concubine began to solve the problem of the little prince's leg disease, and Zhu Youtang asked the Night Department to keep a close eye on Manduhai's every move.
Originally, the seventh year of Hongzhi had a good start. Not only did it occupy Shikoku Island, but it also included the islands around Ryukyu into the Ryukyu Governor's Office of the Ming Dynasty for military control, and even smallpox broke out in the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean.
Unfortunately, as the year was about to pass, the Ming Dynasty actually lost a prince.
The civil and military officials of the Manchu court were also collectively attacked. It was their greed for the control of the political situation in the Northern Yuan Dynasty that made them fall into the trap of an old Mongolian woman.
As the Spring Festival approached, the capital was even more lively than in previous years.
For the sake of the court's face, the fact that the Ming court lost the prince became a secret. Not only was it not allowed for the people to discuss it privately, it was as if this matter had never happened.
In fact, the presence of the Ming prince was very low, even the eldest son of the emperor had no presence, so the loss of a prince had no effect on the people at all.
Instead, it was a carnival moment for the people of the capital. The people of the capital had already taken action at dawn.
"The national debt can be redeemed!"
"I can get one point of interest on my national debt again, haha..."
"You only get one point of interest, and the pig iron workshop debt I bought is two points of interest!"
...
This time of year is the happiest moment for the people. As long as there is no accident, they can take the bonds in their hands to the royal bank for principal and interest redemption.
Now the varieties of national debt and corporate bonds in the Ming Dynasty are increasing. In addition to national debt related to gold mines and infrastructure, it also involves the emerging iron ore bonds.
From an economic perspective, the rise and fall of commodities depends entirely on market demand. As long as the market has enough demand, even sand can be sold at a good price.
Now the Ministry of Revenue has prepared 10 million silver dollars to build the Beijing-Tianjin Railway, so this project requires as much pig iron as possible on the market.
As a result, iron ore workshops have sprung up everywhere. These iron smelting workshops are supervised by local yamen, and all the pig iron produced can be sold to the court.
Now the iron smelting workshop is simply a hen that can lay golden eggs, so the local yamen also likes the iron smelting workshop to be bigger and stronger. Even if they are troubled by funds, they can issue corporate bonds through the royal bank.
Due to the classification of credit ratings, the interest rate of national debt issued by the royal name is one cent, but the corporate bonds of these private enterprises need to pay two cents.
In fact, driven by the need for steelmaking in the imperial court, the mining of the Xishan coal mine in Beijing was also driven, so there are actually corporate bonds for coal mines.
But no matter whether it is national debt or corporate debt, now it is time to pay the principal and interest as agreed. After washing, the people went straight to the various branches of the Royal Banks in Beijing.
The Royal Bank in the north of the city is crowded again this year.
A long queue formed in front of the door, and everyone was talking and laughing, as if they had entered the happy time of the Spring Festival in advance.
Now they have not only been reduced in taxes by the imperial court, but also enjoyed the employment opportunities brought by economic development. What is more rare is that they are enjoying the dividends of the development of this era through national debt.
If Chenghua is a revival, then Hongzhi is definitely a prosperous era, and now everyone's face is filled with happy smiles.
"Although the interest rate of pig iron workshop debt is high, gold mine debt is still stable!"
"I heard that the gold mine in Luzon can be mined for another 30 years without any problem, so gold mine debt is still stable!"
"No matter what kind of national debt it is, it is a favor from the court to us ordinary people. There was no such good thing in the past!"
"Our lives have been getting better day by day in recent years. The Ming Dynasty has really welcomed a wise ruler who is rare in a century!"
……
After the people of the Ming Dynasty got the principal and interest at the counter with satisfaction, although there was a difference in interest rates between the national debts, everyone seemed very excited.
Each person bears different risks, which leads to different preferences for national debts.
It's just that the current social development is good, whether they choose the most stable gold mine bonds or the emerging private pig iron workshop bonds, they can get considerable returns.
Of course, it's not just ordinary Beijing people who participate in it. There are actually dignitaries of Beijing officials here, who are also an important group of national debt buyers.
Like the wife of Xu Hong, the current Shangshu of the Ministry of Justice, as one of the first batch of national debt eaters, she still continues to buy national debts to make a profit.
That's right, the healthy development of national debt is enhancing the cohesion of the country. Whether it's overseas resource mining or domestic infrastructure construction, these measures have received unanimous support from everyone.
For ordinary people, this income will be a guarantee for their good years and can also contribute to the economic prosperity of Beijing.
"The money has been transferred to your savings account. Please keep your deposit certificate!" The Royal Bank officially launched a personal savings account. The staff handed back a small book respectfully.
Now many people are getting richer and richer. Considering that it is not safe to keep all the money at home, many people choose to hand over their money to the Royal Bank for safekeeping.
There is another advantage of putting money in the Royal Bank, that is, when buying new national bonds after the Spring Festival, the transaction can be completed by transferring it through a personal account.
The Royal Bank in the north of the city is particularly lively today.
"Manager Liu, please come in!" When Liu Ying appeared here, he was immediately led into the VIP room by the front desk staff.
Although the national infrastructure has been developing in full swing in recent years, the main product exported by Daming is still cotton cloth, and the textile industry is the cornerstone of overseas trade.
The reason why Daming can successfully exchange so many overseas resources is that cotton cloth has no competitors in the world, and cotton cloth has become a hot commodity wherever it goes.
Because of this, many emerging rich people have been born in the field of textiles, and their personal wealth has naturally risen, and Zhang Ying is one of the best among them.
Although Zhang Ying was born as an ordinary weaver, her current status is different from the past. She looks more capable and even has several bodyguards behind her.
She put the money she exchanged into her personal savings account, but looked at the financial consultant Chen Xiaochuan: "Consultant Chen, the overseas market for nylon button clothes is promising. I wonder if your bank can give me another loan?"
"Manager Zhang, when will you ask for it? How much do you want?" Chen Xiaochuan heard that Zhang Ying wanted to enter a new field, and immediately became very alert.
Zhang Ying is a woman who is vigorous and resolute. She said her request very seriously: "The sooner the money is, the better, and the more the better!"
"Manager Zhang, I can help you apply for the new willingness, but since the amount given to you before is not low, I can't guarantee success! However, with the scale of your workshop, it actually meets the conditions for issuing corporate bonds. Have you ever considered issuing nylon bonds in the name of the workshop?" Chen Xiaochuan analyzed very professionally and then gave a suggestion.
Zhang Ying was stunned for a moment, then she gave a thumbs up.
Perhaps it was because of her habit of thinking. Although she was now a big businessman in the true sense, it was difficult for her to completely forget that she was once a poor woman with a baby.
Now that her workshop could issue bonds, she could also raise funds in this way to make her workshop bigger and stronger.
Especially since she had already received the dividends of the times, and now the overseas market was very eager for the nylon button clothes of the Ming Dynasty, so she also hoped to bring benefits back to the people of the Ming Dynasty through her own efforts.
As time went by, the long queue outside became shorter and shorter.
"Haha... It's finally my turn!"
"I have to come earlier to line up next year. There are too many people today!"
"It's okay to redeem treasury bonds now, but it's really crazy to sell treasury bonds after the Spring Festival!"
...
The people of the Ming Dynasty got their turn sooner or later. They were enjoying the dividends of the development of the times, and everyone was very excited to get back the principal and interest.
Today was destined to be their happy moment. As long as they entered the treasury bond trading market, they could get considerable returns, and everyone was full of expectations for the future.
Of course, there are some hidden worries here, and even some discordant voices have appeared.
The national debt issued by the Ming Dynasty court is indeed very rich, but relying solely on the mining of gold mines in Luzon and Dongji Island seems to be insufficient to support the court's financial squandering.
Whether it is the Beijing-Tianjin Railway under our noses, or the Ming-Myanmar Highway that goes directly to the Indian Ocean in the southwest, or the large and small engineering projects in recent years, all of these require real money to be invested.
But the country's credibility ultimately needs gold mines to maintain, and now what can dispel everyone's doubts is probably the New World of America that brings back treasures to the Ming Dynasty.
If Su Can had not betrayed the Ming Dynasty, then these would not be a problem, but Su Can, a big variable, appeared, making the gold of the American continent confusing.
That's right, although many people enjoy the dividends brought by national debt, they can't help but keep an eye on the American continent, and want to know if there is really gold all over the mountains there.
The eighth year of Hongzhi is coming, and this year's New Year's Day will be obviously more lively.
Affected by the smallpox epidemic, envoys from various countries in Southeast Asia came to Ming Dynasty in large numbers. However, due to the epidemic, they did not need to go by land, but arrived in Luzon City or the Governor's Office of Donghai to report, and then they were directly arranged to go to Tianjin Port.
However, they may all be carriers of the smallpox virus, so they need to go through a period of observation before they are allowed to enter Beijing from Tianjin.
"Your family members can stay in Ming Dynasty, but Ming Dynasty is now entering a period of comprehensive construction. You should do your best to provide pig iron to Ming Dynasty!"
Ming Dynasty now seems to be suffering from pig iron demand. Although the iron mines in Tangshan continue to provide pig iron, it still cannot meet the demand of projects such as the Beijing-Tianjin Railway.
That's why Ming Dynasty now openly asks for pig iron from various countries, and uses the pig iron from these vassal states in Southeast Asia or Donghai to promote the construction of the Beijing-Tianjin Railway.
"We, the Malani Kingdom, are willing to pay tribute of 10,000 catties!"
"We, the Batangas Kingdom, are willing to pay tribute of 15,000 catties!"
"We, the South Vietnam Kingdom, are willing to pay tribute of 25,000 catties!"
...
In order to cling to the thick thighs of the Ming Dynasty, the countries in Southeast Asia naturally agreed to pay tribute to the Ming Dynasty with pig iron, and there was even a sign of comparison.
In fact, the destruction of the Ryukyu Kingdom made many countries in Southeast Asia know the Ming Dynasty's obsession with pig iron, and they could get peace by paying tribute to some pig iron, which was undoubtedly a good deal.
Zhu Youtang looked at the envoys of various countries who were able to pay tribute to pig iron, and the corners of his mouth could not help but rise slightly.
Although most of the pig iron for the Beijing-Tianjin Railway had to be solved by themselves, it was undoubtedly a good phenomenon that all countries were willing to try their best to find pig iron for the Ming Dynasty.
After the year, the Ming Dynasty also faced a thorny problem.
Since smallpox was not effectively contained in Southeast Asia, especially the epidemic in the Indian Ocean was getting worse and worse, it was inevitable that the smallpox virus was transmitted to the Ming Dynasty.
After the Ming Dynasty learned of this situation, it quickly organized personnel to prevent the spread of smallpox.
The cowpox vaccine can only play a preventive role. If the people of the Ming Dynasty really contracted smallpox, then the Ming Dynasty would also have no medicine to cure it.
Although the Ming Dynasty has promoted vaccine planting for many years, cowpox has never been available. The current penetration rate is only 20% to 30%, and there is still a large group of people who have not been vaccinated with cowpox vaccine. (End of this chapter)