Master Yuan, start!

Although Shiduo did not read many books, he listened to a lot of operas, including the Three Kingdoms storytelling and the Sui and Tang Dynasty storytelling.

So we also know the two more famous monarchs with bad posthumous names, namely King Li of Cao Wei, Cao Fang, and Emperor Yang of Sui, Yang Guang.

However, Shiduo knew that the two of them were given bad posthumous titles entirely because of the political needs of later generations.

When Cao Fang came of age, the power of Cao Wei had already fallen into the hands of the Sima family. In order to eliminate the power of the Sima clan, he intended to abolish Sima Shi's position as general.

After the incident was exposed, he was deposed as King of Qi by Sima Shi, and then died of illness, with the posthumous title of Li.

Sui 98 Si San Can 5 Sou￥Suo: Emperor Yang Guang, needless to say, it was completely necessary for the rebellion.

When Li Yuan started his rebellion, the Sui Dynasty had not yet perished. After the establishment of the Tang Dynasty, if Li Yuan did not want to be labeled a traitor, he had to find fault with Yang Guang.

Therefore, he gave him the bad posthumous name "Yang".

Those who are fond of domestic affairs and neglect state affairs are called Yang; those who act recklessly and tire themselves out are called Yang; those who abandon propriety and distance themselves from righteousness are called Yang; those who go against the will of heaven and oppress the people are called Yang.

Shiduo knew that Guangxu's situation was very similar to that of Emperor Yang of Sui.

Would Yuan Xiangcheng give him the posthumous title of "Emperor Yang of Qing"?

In the crowd, Shiduo looked up and looked at Yuan Shikai on Tiananmen Square, with an indescribable emotion in his eyes.

Just at this moment, Yuan Xiangcheng's voice came again:

The last emperor of the Qing dynasty, Guangxu, ascended the throne at a young age, inheriting the ills of the Xianfeng and Tongzhi periods. He was quick-witted and fond of innovation, admiring Western methods and eager to reform and revive the declining order. However, the system had long been in disarray, with power relegated to the shadows. Despite his ambition for reform, he was ultimately constrained by constraints and, on the day of his wedding, was murdered.

Fortunately, there were loyal ministers and brave generals who, in the name of serving the king, led their troops into the pass and welcomed the throne back. Then they worked hard to govern the country, and with their wisdom and talent, they were able to turn the tide in the turbulent times.

However, he was unable to do so and was assassinated in the street. Later, the government of the country was entrusted to the wrong person, which led to the collapse of the world situation and the invasion of the barbarian enemies.

The sufferings that Guangxu endured were not caused by himself; the difficulties that Guangxu encountered were not caused by himself.

Therefore, today, the Republican government gave him the posthumous title of "Huai".

Emperor Huai of Qing, Aixinjueluo Zai! "

Chapter 501 Gold and Silver

Under the watchful eyes of Yiktang'a, Shiduo and other bannermen, all the Han people present, and Chinese and foreign journalists, Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty was sent to the Qing Chongling Mausoleum, where only the underground palace had been completed, for a simple burial.

Next, Yuan Shikai returned to Tianjin and entered a busy period of domestic affairs handling.

After 1899, the Republican government's military problems were no longer urgent, and economic issues became increasingly important.

In the days since the end of the war against France, the government, from top to bottom, has not only been taking over and dealing with the assets of local warlords, but more importantly, has been studying currency reform.

Unlike the Qing Dynasty, the country's gold and silver reserves were insufficient and the government had no experience.

After several years of training with the "Northeast Dragon Dollar" issued outside the Great Wall, the Republican government has mastered all aspects of paper currency issuance.

After the war against France, it was basically a foregone conclusion that the Republican government would gain national power, but this also meant that monetary standard reform had to be put on the agenda.

Northeast Longyang, which once used "food" as collateral, had to withdraw from the stage of history.

It’s not that Yuan Shikai didn’t want to continue using the Northeast Longyang, but that economic operations have their own natural laws.

In a short period of time and within a small scope, a small amount of currency can be issued based on grain and food, but this will not work on a national scale.

If Yuan Shikai had many mathematicians proficient in advanced mathematics under his command, he could have established a planned economic system by the end of the 19th century.

Unfortunately, he didn't.

Therefore, embracing the precious metal monetary standard is the only way to reform the currency system.

The scope of currency reform is too broad, and it is not something that Yuan Shikai can decide on a whim. As early as years ago, the economic meetings within the government had already conducted many discussions on the issue, but still failed to reach a consensus.

Today, most countries adopt the gold standard system, and silver is used as a supplementary currency, circulating only in small quantities and with a small value.

However, China is still a major country that uses silver as its common currency.

Historically, whether China was paying foreign indemnities, collecting taxes internally, or collecting customs duties, the main form of payment was silver.

However, the situation has changed slightly in this time and space.

The current situation is that countries that have already adopted the gold standard, such as Britain in 1816, Germany in 1871, and France in 1878, have not changed their gold standard.

But historically, Tsarist Russia and Japan, which established themselves as gold standard countries in 1897, have not yet had time to carry out reforms.

Historically, Japan completed the reform of the gold standard system by relying on the reparations from the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895.

In the original time and space, Tsarist Russia borrowed a large amount of loans from the French to complete the transition to the gold standard.

But in this time and space, they lost such an opportunity. The Japanese economy continued to be sluggish and is still struggling in the quagmire.

After losing the Far East War, Tsarist Russia was heavily in debt. After seeing the defeat of the Tsarist army, European capitalists were unwilling to lend money to it easily.

As for France, Russia's former major financial backer, it is currently in a state of uproar over the "Three-Party Division of Indochina" issue. Left-wing forces are constantly using public opinion offensives to launch fierce attacks on the right-wing government. France's political and economic situation is extremely turbulent, and the capitalists can only focus on domestic arrangements first.

In other words, Tsarist Russia and Japan, like China, still have a silver standard system.

This gave everyone reason to dispute.

...

In Tianjin, in the side hall of the Zizhulin Conference Hall, the third economic meeting on currency reform is underway.

Those who support the reform of the gold standard are debating with those who oppose the gold standard. If nothing unexpected happens, this will be the last meeting.

Whichever side's views win out will determine the system that will be implemented in the country in the future.

Whether rescue is better or worse does not actually lie in the system itself. The most suitable one is the best. Adopting different systems in different time periods is the best choice.

Si Yuan Xiangcheng did not have a deep knowledge of the monetary system. He only knew that the gold standard collapsed in the mid-20th century and was then replaced by the dollar-oil standard.

But before that, in the 19th century and early 20th century, the gold standard was still the trend among the world's powers.

The fact that many countries have adopted the gold standard shows that there is some reason for this.

But is China really suitable for major reforms and direct adoption of the gold standard?

In order to avoid being too advanced and causing turmoil, Yuan Xiangcheng handed the final decision-making power to the elites of the era. The judgment of these professionals is always much better than that of an outsider like him.

Yuan Xiangcheng instructed: "Gentlemen, in this meeting, when discussing the merits and demerits of the currency system, you should base your decisions on the actual domestic situation and must not follow the example of European and American countries.

If the current situation is not suitable for change, it is fine to continue with the old practices and use silver as the standard.

I hope you will carefully consider your opinions before speaking, for your opinions will determine the fate of our nation and the future of republican China."

Xiang Zhuang's sword dance was aimed at Pei Gong. In fact, the purpose of this currency reform was not that simple.

The deeper intention was to unify the currency of the newly born Republic of China, to take back the coinage rights of local warlords, and to abolish the currencies previously issued by local warlords.

The right to mint coins can be abolished with an administrative order, but there is no good way to deal with these currencies in the short term.

It is naturally possible to directly and bluntly turn the former Northeast Dragon Dollar into the legal tender of the Republic, but the premise is that the new "Republic Coin" needs to be

If the Republic Coin is backed by only food, it cannot support such a large volume.

There were many people attending the meeting, but not many were qualified to speak. In addition to the cabinet ministers, the main speakers also included some people from the financial industry.

For example, Zhang Bishi, the former general manager of the Northeast Frontier Bank and a Chinese overseas in Southeast Asia;

Minister of Commerce, Zhang Jian;

Zhu Baosan, founder of Shanghai Jiangnan Commercial Bank.

In the original time and space, Zhu Baosan was the founder of the first bank in the country, the Commercial Bank of China.

In this time and space, because the Hunan Army controlled the south of the Yangtze River and the north and the south could not be unified, although he also established a bank, he named it "Jiangnan Commercial Bank".

After the end of the Yizhengxiang Campaign, he expressed goodwill to the Republican government, donated 20 taels of silver, and bought 50 taels of French debt.

Ling was then invited to Tianjin to participate in the economic conference.

Finally, there is a rare guest that no one expected, "Sheng Xuanhuai" who was captured and imprisoned during the Huai River Campaign.

Lu Zhangjian was the first to speak: "As you can see, the gold standard is not bad. What I am worried about is the insufficient reserves in the national treasury.

Ninety years ago, England had accumulated more than 1,500 tons of gold, and France had nearly 1,000 tons, before they implemented the gold standard.

If the Republic of China wants to establish a gold standard, it must have hundreds of tons of gold.

I observe that with the growing prosperity of industry and commerce today, we need to increase the amount of gold and commodities by more than ten tons each year in order to meet the demand for issuing banknotes and ensure the smooth flow of trade. However, the gold mines in Zhaoyuan, Shandong, Jiapigou, Jilin, Mohe, Heilongjiang and other places in China only produce more than ten tons of gold each year, which is barely enough.

When the Third National Revolutionary Army entered Beijing and counted the Qing treasury, they found only more than 30 tons of gold, which was truly a drop in the bucket. How could the gold standard be established?

If Lu Youyou talks about engaging in trade and purchasing gold from European and American countries, how long will it take to raise enough money?

This is like adding fuel to the fire, and it will not last long.

Therefore, I believe that it is appropriate to restore the gold and silver standard, which is a policy that is adapted to the current situation."

Zhang Jian’s meaning was very clear. The current domestic economic development trend is good. If currency is issued, it will require more than ten tons of gold to cover the annual economic growth.

The current domestic gold production is just enough.

The United Kingdom started the gold standard with 1500 tons of gold reserves, and France started the gold standard with 1000 tons of gold reserves.

So, where can we make up for the more than 100 tons of gold used to establish the gold standard in the country?

There were only more than 30 tons of gold left in the Qing Dynasty treasury. If the country wanted to switch to the gold standard, it would need at least 100 tons. To be on the safe side, 200 tons would not be a small amount.

Zhu Baosan, founder of the Shanghai Jiangnan Bank, objected, "Minister Zhang is overly concerned. Gold reserves are insufficient, but don't you have a good plan to address it?

Now that the silver standard has been abolished, the huge amount of silver in reserve can be used to buy gold from other countries when needed. Nowadays, most countries are using the gold standard, and there is no ban on the silver market and no obstacle to exchanging it for gold.

Even if there are difficulties, financial leverage can still be increased. As long as the government is trusted by both China and foreign countries, there will be no risk of trade deficit, gold and goods will not be leaked abroad, and there will be no risk of skyrocketing commodity prices.

The key to both the gold standard and the silver standard lies in trust and integrity. If the government does not uphold trust and integrity, then the only option is to use real gold and silver as currency."

Zhu Baosan’s meaning was very clear: if there is not enough gold, just buy more.

In other words, all you need to do is take out 1200 million taels of silver and buy gold from European and American countries.

It has to be said that Zhu Baosan has classic comprador thinking.

Just buy it from foreigners.

Chapter 502 God Helps Gold

The gilded bronze clock in the Zizhulin Council Hall in Tianjin struck three times, and the debate in the side hall became more intense.

As soon as Zhu Baoer's "Buying Gold Nine Theory" was thrown out, Zhang Lingbishi stood up and sneered, slipped out a stack of telegram copies from his sleeve, and pressed them on the rosewood table with a "snap".

"General Manager Zhu, please don't try to trick us into not knowing the London silver price!" He spoke in a thick Cantonese accent, pointing his finger at the figures on the paper where the ink was still wet, and said:

"1500 million taels of silver in exchange for gold, according to the foreigners' calculations, can be exchanged for 30 tons of gold.