In recent years, Yuanqi has unscrupulously exported silver to the outside world in order to implement the gold standard, such as taking advantage of the economic crisis to buy the United States with a huge amount of silver, and taking advantage of the agricultural crisis to purchase grain on a large scale with silver to help the victims in the northern provinces.

However, because Yuanqi directly linked paper money to gold, and the gold-silver exchange ratio continued to rise when Yuanqi sold a lot of silver, resulting in paper money being more valuable than silver, so although it can be freely convertible, people rarely exchange paper money for silver for the sake of value preservation.

Even if many people clearly know that Yuanqi has issued large-scale excess banknotes for disaster relief, they rarely exchange silver, because everyone knows that the annual output of the Transvaal gold mine controlled by Yuanqi is as high as more than 4 million taels of gold, equivalent to more than 100 million taels of silver, and this hole can be filled in a few years.

But now the situation has changed, the stock market has plummeted, the economy is in turmoil, South Africa is back in gunsmoke, and it is still around the battle for the Transvaal gold mines, many people out of prudence, have exchanged the paper money in hand for silver for peace of mind, after all, real money is more reassuring than paper money.

In this case, an announcement was issued prohibiting the exchange of silver for banknotes. This is tantamount to a disguised threat and intimidation, not to mention, Yuan Qi can prohibit the exchange of silver for paper money, and also prohibit the exchange of paper money for silver! In the face of panic, this move will not only not curb the momentum of the run, but will backfire, provoke panic and cause a greater run.

Hu Guangyong's worries, Yi Zhixiang naturally knew well, he waved his hand disappreciatively, "It's okay, let them exchange, the emperor has decreed that paper money is prohibited from being freely exchanged for silver during the war." It can be announced to the world at any time. ”

"Will such a tough one affect Yuanqi's reputation?" Hu Guangyong hesitated and said: "Once it arouses the disgust of the government and the opposition or boycotts ....... ”

"Xue Yan is too worried." Yi Zhizu interrupted him and said: "Yuanqi has completely monopolized the financial economy and industrial economy of the Qing Dynasty, and Huayuan has also become the legal tender of the Qing Dynasty in circulation. There is also a strong capital! ”

"When it's time to be tough, be tough!" Zhao Liewen echoed: "In the current situation, if Yuan Qi is not tough, it will inevitably lead to a huge crisis, and even the danger of collapse. ”

"My subordinates understand." Hu Guangyong said softly.

From New Year's Day 1879, the exchange of silver for paper money was discontinued. Yuanqi's announcement immediately caused a sensation when it saw the newspaper, and the government and the opposition discussed it a lot, and it was clear that Yuanqi hoped to curb the momentum of exchanging banknotes for silver, and this announcement showed Yuanqi's strength when it was strong, but also exposed Yuanqi's lack of confidence, and who doesn't know the empty situation of Yuanqi's silver inventory now?

For the wealthy businessmen and magnates who still have a lot of silver in their hands, the gentry and wealthy households, what are the banknotes on hand exchanging for silver? Or do you exchange the money you have in your hand for banknotes? It's a tough choice.

Now Yuanqi is extremely strong, from this announcement can be seen in general, the termination of silver exchange for paper money, must be the word of the word, hold the silver in hand, then silver to copper money generally out of circulation, this loss can be big.

Leave the banknotes in hand, now Yuanqi indiscriminately issues banknotes, and the overseas war is imminent, and continue to issue more banknotes, and the stock market has plummeted, the economy has signs of depression, and the West is going to rob the Transvaal gold mines, once the war is unfavorable or the war is protracted, God knows what will happen? Holding a large handful of banknotes is really hard to feel at ease.

In a dilemma, many people have made the wisest choice - to buy a home! Convert all the money or silver you have into assets - such as fields, houses, shops, or buy and store some goods to preserve their value, and those who have sufficient funds will invest in industries or sole proprietorships or joint ventures, in short, try to spend the money you have on hand.

Even those who do not have a lot of money, such as some workers, have begun to actively spend, and those who have more money buy houses, and those who have less money buy bicycles, watches, leather shoes, etc., which are considered luxury goods in their eyes.

No one wants to leave too much money in their hands, in less than half a month, the economy of the Qing Dynasty has become unprecedentedly active, and prices have begun to rise steadily, and the rise in prices has stimulated further consumption, and no one wants to watch the depreciation of the money in their hands.

"This is really, there is no intention to plant flowers but not bloom, and there is no intention to plant willows and willows." Yi Zhizu laughed loudly, he really didn't expect things to develop so unexpectedly.

"Actually, it's not hard to understand." Hu Guangyong smiled and said: "In the current situation, whether it is paper money or silver, you can't feel at ease in your hand, so you can just spend it and end up with peace of mind." ”

Zhao Liewen said slowly: "Big shopkeeper, if this situation continues, will it be of great benefit to the economy?" ”

Hearing this, Hu Guangyong's heart jumped, and he hurriedly said: "Big shopkeeper, the faster the currency circulates, the less money is needed in circulation, and vice versa.

At present, because of the over-issuance of paper money, coupled with the sudden release of many silver that does not participate in the circulation at all, the amount of money circulating in the market has been large, in this case, the faster the currency circulates, the greater the harm, which will cause serious inflation, cause a rise in prices, and thus affect the consumption level of residents. ”

"I see it differently." Yi Zhizhi said slowly: "China's currency has long been subject to the quantity of gold and silver, and China's rapid development of industry has not matched, the reason why paper money has been over-issued in recent years, not only because of the threat of economic crisis, the need for disaster relief, the need for the five-year plan, the main reason is deflation, the supply of commodities exceeds demand.

In recent years, the northern and inland provinces have developed rapidly, all kinds of large and medium-sized projects have been launched, the total economic volume is in a stage of steady rise, and the demand for currency will be more and more large, although the output of the Transvaal gold mine is large, but the hole left in recent years is not small, and it is impossible to issue paper money on a large scale in successive years, after all, China's paper money is directly linked to gold at this stage.

Therefore, it is necessary to properly stimulate and maintain a relatively fast currency circulation rate, and it is worth noting that our people have the problem of storing precious metals, and the people's demand for gold is also very large, once paper money can be freely exchanged for gold, there will inevitably be a large amount of currency turned into gold and withdrawn from the circulation market. ”

Hu Guangyong did not dare to think about the long-term, he argued: "At present, this situation has caused inflation, and if it is not stopped and allowed to develop, there will inevitably be serious inflation." ”

"There won't be serious inflation, Xueyan is too worried." Yi Zhi said confidently: "The current rise in prices is just an irrational consumption, and it will soon be calmed down." Besides, if there are really signs of serious inflation, it can also be alleviated by increasing supply and demand, and now there is an economic crisis and an agricultural crisis in the world, and China's industry is in a period of rapid development, whether it is agriculture or industry, it is easy to increase supply and demand.

Also, proper inflation is a good thing, don't mention inflation as a flood. During this period, my focus is on South Africa, and Xueyan may wish to pay close attention to the situation in the provinces, and report any signs of serious inflation in a timely manner. ”

After a pause, he continued: "Also, order the provincial branches to strictly implement the prohibition of exchanging silver for banknotes after New Year's Day, which will also lead to the withdrawal of some silver from the circulation market. ”

"Subordinates obey." Hu Guangyong hurriedly said.

Maputo, Mozambique, South Africa.

However, in just eight years, Maputo, which was just a small Portuguese foothold in Mozambique, has developed into the second largest port in South Africa, second only to Cape Town, and is the world's famous gold port - a veritable gold port, from which the gold of the Transvaal gold mine is shipped to the Qing Dynasty.

In order to ensure the safety of the Transvaal gold mine, Yuanqi spared no effort in the construction of Maputo, the largest port in South Africa, port facilities, transportation facilities are the best in South Africa, and the investment in urban construction is also not small, of course, the construction of military facilities is the top priority, continuous expansion, Maputo has been called a military fortress.

Near noon, a large fleet slowly sailed into Maputo Bay, all ships were hoisted with the Yellow Dragon Flag of the Qing Dynasty, on a huge warship in the center, Yi Zhengxing stood on the bridge with an excited face and looked at the land ahead, Maputo He is no stranger, seven years ago, he went to the Navy to participate in the Mozambique naval battle, and now it can be said that the old land is revisited.

Seven years earlier, he had been a staff officer at the Battle of Mozambique, but now he was commander-in-chief of the land and sea, in full command of the South African battlefield, accompanied by two brigades drawn from Manila and Yulin and a fleet of convoys, and he had already broken off the cable telegraph from Constantinople, and he had rushed south to join the two brigades and hurry in to strengthen Maputo's defenses.

At the port wharf, a group of officers from the Mozambique Military Region, who had rushed over early to greet them, sat in the temporary shed and chatted with great interest, "The war with England in South Africa has only been a few years, and I can't imagine that there will be an eyeless dare to come to Tai Sui's head to break ground......." ”

"The newspapers are vague, I don't know which country dares to be so bold."

"Who else can there be, it must be England, apparently the torpedo has been developed, and the guts have become fattened."

"It's really unlikely that England is really unlikely, even if the British Navy has torpedoes, and the army has heavy machine guns and rapid-fire guns, it can't be our opponent, how many battles have we fought with England? After three battles, which time did England win? ”

"You don't pay attention to the wording when you read the newspaper, you don't know the force, you think about this word carefully, this is not referring to any country, it is obvious, this time it is a joint army of several countries, and the Europeans are good at this, and several countries will jointly send .......troops at every turn."

"Good guy, you may really be right, tell me quickly, which countries will it be?"

"It can't be France, France lost the Franco-Prussian War, and France can be said to be in a state ......of collapse."

"Could it be Germany? Then this battle is really a bit of a chew. ”

"If you can chew anything, the German Army will be able to dominate ...... Europe."

"Your kid's tone is not small, the headmaster doesn't dare to despise the German Army, if it's really Germany, don't take it lightly."

"I heard that the commander-in-chief of the sea and land who commanded this battle is our young shopkeeper, and they all say that Jiangmen Huzi, I don't know how much of our young shopkeeper, Shizi Ye, has learned our principal's skills?"

"It's hard to say, but it's definitely far inferior to the headmaster."

"Needless to say, the principal is the military god of our Qing Dynasty, the army and navy of the Qing Dynasty were founded by the principal, starting from the creation of the Yuanqi group training, countless battles large and small, and there has never been a defeat, which can be called unprecedented and unprecedented. It's hard to say that there are few shopkeepers, this is the first time that a serious 800 army leader has gone on an expedition. ”

"Salty and eat radish and worry about it, the major affairs of the country, only worship and Rong, who is the principal, the major affairs of the military state, how can it be child's play? It makes sense to send a few shopkeepers here. ”

"What I said is, take 10,000 steps back, and now the cable telegraph is very convenient and ......."

Before he finished speaking, he saw the commander of the military region, Feng Zicai, coming on horseback, and hurriedly reminded: "The commander is here." ”

Feng Zicai, who was already sixty years old, was still vigorous, and he rode to the front of the long shed with a circle of horses, dismounted, and said, "Check the military appearance, line up, and follow me to meet President Transvaal." ”

Soon after the officers lined up, they heard the sound of horses' hooves, and it was the Transvaal President Pretorius the Younger who rode in the lead, and needless to say, he had also rushed to greet them.

It had been two days since little Pytorius arrived in Maputo, and Feng Zicai specially sent a telegram to invite him to come, but he did not explain what the situation was.

After dismounting and saluting the officers, he entered the long shed, and little Pretorius couldn't help but say: "Commander Feng wants His Royal Highness the Prince to tell me the truth of the matter in person?" ”

At this time, Feng Zicai felt that there was no need to hide it, and immediately said loudly: "I don't know what the specific situation is, I only know that South Africa will be in war again." ”

"British?" Little Pretorius said in a deep voice: "Haven't the English died yet? ”

Feng Zicai said in a foggy voice: "Europe has cut off the cable telegraph, and it is impossible to obtain detailed information, and it is not yet possible to determine who the enemy is, but there should be more than one." ”

More than one? Little Pretorius was shocked, how many countries did the Europeans join forces this time?

"Mr. President, need not worry." Feng Zicai seemed to be able to see through his thoughts, "As long as our country controls the sea power, it will be able to be invincible." ”