Chapter 421 A Letter to the People of the Great Song Dynasty
Chapter 421: Letter to the People of Song Dynasty
I thought about it and said, "Master, your proposal on raising donations and issuing war bonds is very good. I will accept it. Xiao Qi."
Xiao Qi, who was outside the door, came in and said, "Your Majesty, I am here."
"Xiao Qi, pass on my will. Let Ruan Dengbing of the Great Song Yinzhuang and Liao Yingzhong of the Ministry of Commerce come here for a meeting in half an hour. Master, you will stay after the military affairs meeting and discuss with them with me."
Could the initiator of the war bonds be Liao Yingzhong? I suddenly had this idea. However, judging from what I learned next, it was indeed Jia Sidao's own idea.
"Yes, Your Majesty. I'll go ahead now."
After Xiaoqi left, I asked: "Dear ladies, do you have any other questions?"
Lu Xiufu said: "Your Majesty, I still have this memorial."
"Yes. Please speak."
"Your Majesty, I think it is inappropriate to establish a forward headquarters in Yicheng."
"Really? It's because it's too close to Xiangyang City." I looked at the map and said.
"Your Majesty Mingjian, it is very close to Xiangyang. This is one of the reasons. Although Yicheng County has a long history, the city is too low and dilapidated. It has been damaged by many wars and has not been repaired. It is not conducive to defense. It can easily be invaded by the Mongols. The cavalry broke through. In addition, the original naval base in Yicheng waters is basically in a state of abandonment. If it is to be re-expanded, it is bound to invest a lot of manpower and material resources. Not to mention that it is not enough in terms of time. Therefore, I suggest that it be The forward headquarters is located in Yingzhou Prefecture (today's Zhongxiang City) in the south of Yicheng County. The city of Yingzhou is relatively strong. It is only 180 miles from Yingzhou to Yicheng. It is also on the edge of the Han River, which is conducive to defense. And station troops."
"Your Majesty Shi Yanzhi agrees with Mr. Lu's proposal."
"My minister Fan Wenhuan agrees."
Next, almost all the ministers in the apse agreed with Lu Xiufu's proposal. I knew what Lu Xiufu and others meant. They were mainly worried about the Mongolian attack, which would be detrimental to my safety. I thought about it and said, "That's fine. .Set the forward command headquarters in Yingzhou."
Half an hour later, Liao Yingzhong and Ruan Dengbing followed Xiaoqi to the Yanhe Hall behind the Daqing Hall, which is also commonly known as the rear hall.
"Your Majesty, Liao Yingzhong and Ruan Dengbing, are here to see you. Long live your Majesty. Long live your Majesty."
"My dearest ladies, please sit down without any courtesy."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
"My dear friends, I have asked you to come here today to discuss with you the issue of war bonds."
Liao Yingzhong and Ruan Dengbing looked at each other and asked in unison: "War bonds. Your Majesty, what are these."
I smiled: "The purpose of issuing war bonds is to alleviate the increasing military expenditures. It is equivalent to the court borrowing money from the private sector. Master, please explain it to your two beloved ministers first."
Jia Sidao repeated what was said in the previous meeting.
Ruan Dengbing said: "This is very similar to Yinzhuang's time deposit."
"Yes. In essence, there is not much difference between the two. For bonds, the interest paid by the court will be slightly higher than that of regular savings. What's more, this amount will not be retained in the bank. All of it will be used for military affairs."
Liao Yingzhong frowned and said: "Your Majesty, if it is used for war, it will never come back. How should I return it after it expires?"
"Liao Aiqing, don't worry about this. I think that with the speed of our economic development, we can completely redeem these bonds in the future. However, the burden of your Ministry of Commerce will be even heavier."
"Your Majesty, don't worry. I will do my best."
"Well, Liao Aiqing. Don't worry. Let's discuss the details of the war bonds together. I just thought about the following questions while taking a break. The first is the face value of the bonds. Because the war bonds are for our country. All common people. Therefore, the face value cannot be very large. The second is the repayment period. I suggest starting with two years. Bonds can be issued in two, three and five years. The third is the interest payment period and interest rate. The principle of the bond interest rate is slightly higher than the interest rate of the same regular savings. During the interest payment period, I suggest that the bond be paid together with the principal and interest after the bond matures. The fourth is the issuer. In order to reassure the people, this time the bond The issuer is jointly named by the royal family and the bank as the debtor of the bond. The fifth issue is the liquidity of the bond. Whether this bond can be circulated in the market like the Chinese currency of our dynasty."
I finished talking about the bond-related matters in one breath. This was originally an extremely common thing, but when Jia Sidao heard it, he seemed a little surprised and a little disappointed. Jia Sidao originally thought that the bond issue was his first priority. I thought of it. Others will not have a deeper understanding in a short period of time. Unexpectedly, I thought of so much just within a quarter of an hour after the military affairs meeting. It was simply more thoughtful than the proposer. Jia Si Dao originally wanted to show off. Unexpectedly, I understand bonds better than he does.
I continued: "I have decided on the issuance of war bonds. The specific implementation details do not need to be finalized immediately. Today is just a discussion. Sir."
"I'm here."
"The proposal about war bonds is very good. You have made a great contribution this time. It can be said to be the first contribution in the Song-Mongolian War." I chuckled and praised. "Master, I will reward you at tomorrow's court meeting. I agree. I think you will be responsible for the preparations for the issuance of this bond."
Jia Sidao nodded and showed a smile: "Yes, Your Majesty."
"Ruan Aiqing, Liao Aiqing. You two will assist. The Royal Bank of the Song Dynasty will host it."
"Yes, Your Majesty. I obey your decree," Liao Yingzhong said. "Your Majesty, can this bond method be promoted?"
"Liao Aiqing, what do you think?"
"Your Majesty, although this is the first time I have heard of bonds, I have a vague idea. For example, the sales of Chinese Royal Liquid are very good. However, due to production capacity, it has limited the significant increase in sales. I don't think We can also issue Chinese Royal Liquid bonds and borrow funds from the private sector to expand production workshops. This can not only save the court's funds to support the armament needs of the war, but also speed up the production of Chinese Royal Liquid."
"Of course it is feasible. The issuance of bonds will not be limited to war bonds. It will form an economic instrument. I will notify the Government Affairs Council to incorporate this matter into the government affairs system. However, I plan to divide the bonds into two categories. One category is issued by the imperial court. Guaranteed national bonds, such as war bonds. The interest rate of such bonds is higher than that of equivalent regular savings, and there is no risk. The other type is commercial bonds. For example, the Chinese Royal Liquid Bonds that Liao Aiqing just mentioned. The interest rate should be equal to the Chinese Royal Liquid Bonds. The return is linked to the income. In other words, the return is determined based on the annual income of China Royal Liquid. It may exceed the interest of the national bond, or it may be lower than or even have no interest. This kind of commercial bond has a certain degree of speculation. Of course, the commercial bonds allowed to be issued by the imperial court will definitely be the items with the best returns."
Liao Yingzhong said: "It seems feasible."
"The feasibility should be very high. The above is just my general idea. You still need to do some research and long-term deliberation before you can draw a conclusion. Bonds are a sign of economic development to a certain extent. It is a benign matter. I agree with it. Good. That’s it. The discussion regarding the bonds will end here today.”
After lunch, I called Yuan Ji and Xiao Qi to the Red Cross.
In Pu Shougeng's house, I told the three presidents of the Red Cross my intention straight to the point, so as to raise funds for the upcoming battle between Song and Mongolia.
"Sir, since we are raising war expenses from the private sector, using the name of the Red Cross is naturally better than asking the court to come forward. I will definitely cooperate actively." Pu Shougeng said immediately after hearing this.
Xiao Tiandao: "My lord, every man is responsible for the rise and fall of the world. I believe that this move will definitely be supported by the people of our dynasty."
"Sir, when will it start?"
"President Pu, I plan to let newspapers from all over the country carry out publicity first, calling on me to unite with the people. If you have money, give money. If you have the strength, use force. Stand with the court and win this upcoming war. This warm-up propaganda period is about It will take a month. During this period, let Shifeng, Pu's Trading Company and Suzhou Zheng's Trading Company serve as representatives of the merchants and take the initiative to ask for donations. In addition, let the people of Longya ask for donations in their own names to contribute to the country. By July In the middle of the month, the Red Cross will formally come forward to raise funds for war preparations from the private sector."
Fang Lingdao: "Brother, first promote it, then set an example, and finally raise funds from across the country. This is a good way."
"Really? Ling'er. You've seen through all my tricks."
"Haha. That's right."
In late June, Lin'an City's Song Dynasty Royal News published a news. Suzhou Zheng's Trading Company and Quanzhou Pu's Trading Company each donated 100,000 Chinese coins (the Chinese currency was equivalent to the original most circulated currency) in order to support the imperial court in the Anti-Mongolian War. (copper coins of the Song Dynasty) to enrich the armaments of the Song Dynasty. Both donations were forwarded to the court by the Royal Newspaper Agency. Once the news was published, various newspapers reprinted it one after another. While the people felt that the war was approaching, they also expressed their gratitude for the righteous deeds of the two trading companies. Feel inspired.
A few days later, Song Shou, Empress Dowager Xie Daoqing, Queen Quanjiu, Prince Fu, Prince Rong and other royal family members donated their own gold and silver jewelry to support the Anti-Mongolian War. According to calculations by the Song Yinzhuang, this donation totaled Chinese coins. Three hundred thousand. On the same day, Fuhua Newspaper published the news that Jia Sidao, the Grand Master of the Song Dynasty, donated 100,000 Chinese coins to the court.
At the end of June, Shifeng Commercial Bank and Fujian Lin Zhixiong donated 80,000 Huaxia coins and 30,000 Huaxia coins to the court respectively.
Afterwards, many people went to the Royal Newspaper of the Song Dynasty and the Yinzhuang of the Song Dynasty to inquire about ways to donate money. Among them were people from Longya. There were also many people from Lin'an City. Even the monks from Lingyin Temple spontaneously came to the Royal Newspaper office. . Donate the incense money that you save and spend frugally. I hope to contribute to the Great Song Dynasty.
On July 7, all the major newspapers and tabloids in Lin'an City published an article signed by me on the first page in full. The title was "A Letter to the Common People of the Song Dynasty". This was also the first time that I publicly published my signature in a newspaper. article.
Of course, the wording of the article is not my specialty. It was ghostwritten by Quan Jiu.