AWB Chapter 306 Emperor Xia: Can you say something that we can understand?
Chapter 306 Emperor Xia: Can you say something that we can understand?
"His Majesty……"
Gu Jingzhi sighed, "The aristocratic families control nearly half of all the gold and silver in the world, and most of this gold and silver is stored in cellars, gathering dust. Although the court has introduced currencies such as silver notes and copper coins, I wonder if Your Majesty has ever discovered a problem?"
"Gu Qing, please speak!"
Gu Jingzhi said: "I have checked the case files. From the first year of Jianwu to the third year of Jianwu, a white flour bun only cost one cent, a fried cake only cost two cents, and a pound of charcoal only cost three cents..."
"Gu Qing, why are you telling me this?"
As an emperor, he only cares about big things. Things like steamed buns and fried cakes... are what the common people care about. The two of them were just talking about upper-level construction issues such as currency, so how come they suddenly talked about these mundane things?
Gu Jingzhi sighed, "Your Majesty, at first glance, steamed buns and fried dough sticks may seem like the only things that ordinary people care about, but the world is built on these little things!"
"In the fourth year of Jianwu, our army fought a year-long war, nearly exhausting our national strength. Since then, domestic food prices have been rising. Even though Great Xia's national strength and people's livelihoods have gradually recovered and prices have fallen, today, steamed buns have become two cents each, fried cakes have become three cents, and charcoal has become six cents per pound!"
Emperor Xia listened, feeling impatient, but he still said, "Our Great Xia has been established for twenty years, and the people have gradually become richer. Isn't it normal for prices to rise over the past twenty years?"
"Your Majesty, rising prices are normal, but is it true that the people are getting rich?"
"During my time in the local government, I consulted a lot of historical materials. Even in the previous dynasty, when the country was at its peak, steamed buns only cost a penny each..."
"Your Majesty, our Great Xia has been established for twenty years, but to say that the people are prosperous is not entirely true. What we have done for the people of the world is nothing more than to allow them to move from a chaotic era to a peaceful one, and from a year of famine to an era where they can at least have enough to eat!"
“Is this affluence?”
"Your Majesty, a steamed bun or a fried dough stick may not mean much to you and the officials, but it affects whether an ordinary citizen can have a full meal. Do you still think this is a trivial matter?"
"This……"
Emperor Xia frowned, thought for a moment, and asked, "What does Gu Qing want to say to me today?"
"Your Majesty, I have been discussing currency. However, I need some background on the purpose of currency so Your Majesty can better understand it!"
Gu Jingzhi said, "It is true that the people are getting richer, so it is natural for prices to rise. However, I have compared the situation over the past ten years and have not found that the people of Daxia have become much richer!"
"On the contrary, due to rising prices, the copper coins in the hands of the people are becoming increasingly useless. In some places, people have even begun to revert to the era of barter!"
"Your Majesty, the emergence of currency has greatly promoted the changes of the times. But why did the people abandon currency and instead practice barter according to customary methods?"
Emperor Xia frowned, some ideas came to his mind, but they didn't connect the dots!
Seeing this, Gu Jingzhi immediately said, "Your Majesty, this is because the copper coin has depreciated!"
"I will give your Majesty an example!"
"A strong man working at the docks, though hard work, could still earn about fifteen cents a day. Before the third year of Jianwu, this fifteen cents could at least ensure that a family of four would not go hungry!"
"But by the 20th year of Jianwu, the same 15 coins could only buy seven steamed buns. A family of four could barely afford one per person in a day!"
boom!
Gu Jingzhi's words rang like a thunder in Emperor Xia's mind!
The same labor, the same money, but after twenty years, they have nothing to eat. This vicious cycle continues. Is this the reason why people barter in the customary way?
But soon, Emperor Xia was puzzled again and asked, "However, since the founding of Great Xia twenty years ago, prices have been rising, but wages have not increased?"
"Your Majesty, wages are naturally rising, but Your Majesty has overlooked one issue!"
Gu Jingzhi said, "Our Great Xia has been at peace for twenty years. During these twenty years, a new generation has grown up and the population has increased. If we regard the population as a labor force, it means that this labor force has become surplus!"
"When there's no one available in a trade, the existing workforce naturally has more work to do. But with more workers, there are more options. Once there are more people, even if wages go up, there might still be only so much work to do!"
"Let me ask you, even if wages go up, how much of that will actually reach the people?"
"Of course, this is just a topic in another field. What I want to talk to Your Majesty about today is only the issue of currency!"
Seeing that Emperor Xia looked thoughtful, Gu Jingzhi quickly changed the subject. After all, this involved economics, which could not be explained in just a few words.
But whether it is economics or something else, currency is the foundation.
Gu Jingzhi said, "The reasons for the devaluation of copper coins can generally be attributed to two factors. First, as Your Majesty said, Daxia has been established for twenty years. Even if the times are developing slowly, it is inevitable that prices will rise. However, I do not believe that in this era, the price of the most common steamed buns will double!"
"So, after much thought, I've concluded that it boils down to the second point: the proliferation of copper coins..."
"An overflow of copper coins?"
Emperor Xia frowned and said, "Gu Qing, please tell me in detail. I am listening!"
"His Majesty!"
Gu Jingzhi said sternly, "Although the power to mint coins belongs to the imperial court, can Your Majesty guarantee that the noble families that control the copper mines will not mint coins privately?"
This……
Emperor Xia naturally cannot guarantee it.
However, even though we know that this happened, the world is so big, wouldn’t it be extremely difficult to obtain evidence?
Although Emperor Xia was willing, he was completely unable to solve this problem!
"Although their actions are not tolerated by the imperial court, there is more money in the world, and at least more money is reaching the people. Isn't it good for the people to have money?"
Although I asked this question, I became even more suspicious when I thought about what Gu Jingzhi said, that the people gave up money and instead used barter.
Gu Jingzhi smiled bitterly and said, "Your Majesty, let me give you another example. Suppose there are 10,000 steamed buns and 10,000 copper coins in the world. Originally, one could buy one for one penny, but the coins suddenly became 20,000 and 30,000 respectively. If someone wants to get more steamed buns, what will they do?"
Ga?
Emperor Xia was confused.
Gu Jingzhi said: "Then, the price of steamed buns will increase. Some people will use two or even three cents to buy them. In this way, the price of steamed buns will go up!"
"And the people who originally only had one penny couldn't even buy steamed buns. For them, they couldn't even afford a full meal. How could they care about copper coins?"
What the hell...
Emperor Xia glared. Is this what you mean?