The recovery of the Han Yeping United Company is important, but it is not significant compared to the financial reforms that are being carried out intensively in the hands of Jiang Jiying.

The burden on Jiang Jiying is very heavy. The first is the establishment of the central bank, which involves the merger and reorganization of two government-run banks, Daqing Bank and Bank of Communications; The second is financial reform, which introduces the gold standard from the silver standard.

It would be more difficult to abolish the silver standard and introduce the gold standard than to establish a central bank with the power to issue currency and then rectify the chaotic money market.

Jiang Jiying had already discovered the problem of the silver standard. It is no secret that the price of silver has continued to fall, and people in the financial circles who are a little interested have discovered that the most direct cause is that the United States, which suffered from the financial crisis in 1873, abolished the free minting of silver coins and adjusted the composite standard of gold and silver to the gold standard. Although Jiang Jiying discovered this fact, he did not enter the industry too early, and China Yan zhòng lacked theoretical talents in this field, let alone detailed statistical analysis. It was not until 1909 that he planned the rubber stock market and was introduced by Old Diwen to an American named Jingqi in Chinese, and he learned that this gentleman Jingqi submitted a report to the Manchu government in 1904 on the introduction of the gold standard, and provided the number he had.

The number jù is staggering, and according to Jingqi, if the price of 100 in 1873 was compared, in 1879 only six years later, the price of silver fell to 84. 71 in 1889 and 48 in 1894. 36 in 1903. That is, China on the silver standard. Two-thirds of total assets have been evaporated in 30 years!

This is the first time that Jiang Jiying has seen the cruelty of financial warfare through the number of jù. He began to collect relevant information and research, and recruited talents to set up a small organization within the commercial bank he managed to study financial and exchange rate issues. It was not until the Mengshan army occupied Beijing that he met Liang Shiyi of the Bank of Communications, and the Liang family, who was eager to make meritorious contributions to gain the status of the new dynasty, poured out his money to Jiang Jiying as far as he knew, and strongly advocated the abolition of the silver standard and the establishment of the gold standard, and the sooner the better.

Liang Shiyi said to Jiang Jiying, in fact, he should have noticed that there was a problem with the silver a long time ago! Thirty years ago, Shen Baozhen borrowed 2 million taels from HSBC Bank in the United Kingdom on the condition of borrowing silver to repay gold! Even Sheng Xuanhuai, who prides himself on being shrewd, has also suffered a big loss! Later, there were more and more foreign currency loans under such conditions, so a proper term "pound loss" appeared, which became a heavy burden for the imperial court. As far as I know. Gengzi indemnity alone, the annual "pound loss" is 7 million taels! How's that going?! Mr. Jiang is a leader in the financial industry and is deeply trusted to eliminate the malpractice. You have to start here! Imagine. How difficult is it to collect 7 million taels of silver from the people? Just because of a "pound loss" deposit zài. It's gone in the blink of an eye.

Jiang Jiying thought so. As a result, Liang Shiyi was taken under the account and became his main assistant in the formation of the central bank. Liang was originally a general in the financial world of Yuan Shikai, but now the Beiyang Department has long lost his sincerity. Liang is even more psychologically burdened, his goal is only to keep the Bank of Communications, which he founded in the national financial reform led by Jiang Jiying, and prevent Jiang Jiying from taking the opportunity to swallow up the Bank of Communications. Therefore, Jiang Jiying merged the Shandong Commercial Bank with the Daqing Bank to form the central bank of the new dynasty, and put aside his own bank, which was actually very difficult to operate, so as to achieve his goal of continuing to control the bank of communications, which had the right to issue currency.

After Jiang Jiying came to Beijing, he immediately took over the Daqing Bank and moved the Beijing branch of the Shandong Commercial Bank to the headquarters of the Daqing Bank, which had just been renamed the Hubu Bank for more than a year in Xijiaomin Lane, thus opening the prelude to the merger of the Shandong Commercial Bank with the Daqing Bank.

What bothered Jiang Jiying was not only the conversion of the silver standard to the gold standard, but also the confusion of currency issuance. For a long time, China's currency was silver taels, and the second was money, which was commonly known as "Brother Confucius". The measurement of the storage zài is not standardized, the fineness is different, and the use is inconvenient. The silver and copper dollars minted by the mints established in the provinces have become the main source of finance for the provinces, weakening the central government's control over them, although the problem of the fineness of silver ingots has been partially solved by technological advances. Shandong is a good example, the silver dollars minted by the Shandong Mint Bureau passed through the sea, which greatly supported the development of the Mengshan army, but objectively weakened the financial resources of the Manchu center. Now that the Mengshan army has seized Jiangshan, it is natural that this situation can no longer be continued.

Long Qian claimed that he did not understand finance and did not understand money. However, Jiang Jiying was clearly instructed to rectify the national financial and monetary order with two goals: First, to establish an authoritative central bank and put an end to the current chaotic situation in which the provinces issue their own currency. The central government has no authority regardless of the coinage power. The second is to choose the opportunity to issue the Chinese dollar to gradually replace the metal currency currently in use. The third is to issue domestic construction bonds to raise funds.

The first is relatively easy to do. It is not the late Qing Dynasty now, with the military occupation of the provinces by the Mengshan Army and the implementation of military control, the ban on the coinage rights of the provinces is just an order of the center, at least the commanders of the major military regions do not dare to disobey Long Qian's order. What Jiang Jiying had to do was to use the Shandong coinage as a model to unify the currency and recover the various silver coins and copper dollars that were in chaos in the market. Therefore, Jiang Jiying sent a letter to Shandong in the name of the Economic Bureau, instructing that the silver dollar and the auxiliary currency copper dollar should be produced at full capacity to form the basis for a unified currency. Jiang Jiying has set a timetable to complete the work by 1 April.

But issuing Chinese dollar banknotes is not an easy task. The Americans said that they could provide technical support, but Long Qian had great concerns, first, technical security and could not rely entirely on foreign parties. Second, the danger of inflation must be guarded against, and it is intolerable to have a serious economic crisis immediately after the founding of New China, which will greatly damage the prestige of the government. In addition, to establish a gold standard system, there must be sufficient reserves, otherwise the issuance of paper money is in danger of getting out of control.

Reserves, of course, preferably gold. But the Mengshan army had few gold reserves, including the Shandong trading house run by the Mengshan army. To this end, Jiang Jiying drew up a plan to write to the whole country in the name of the order of the Military Commission, and immediately stop the free trading of gold. The purchase was carried out at a fixed price and a large amount of gold was recovered from the private sector as a reserve, laying the foundation for the issuance of paper money.

This is tantamount to forcibly snatching back the gold of the people! If this order is issued, it will surely boil over public resentment. The common people did not have much gold in their hands and could be ignored, but the power of the gentry class should not be underestimated, especially in the early days of the opening of the Congress. Therefore, Long Qian naturally could not agree to Jiang Jiying's drastic plan, but said that the gold standard must be done, and Long Qian adopted the part of Jiang Jiying's plan on stopping the free trade in gold. If the people want to sell gold. You can only go to the designated bank and exchange it at the published price.

This designated bank is, of course, the central bank that will be established. But the establishment of the central bank is not a sentence, Jiang Jiying must sort out a large number of claims and debts of the Daqing Bank, for this. Jiang Jiying issued an announcement in the name of the Economic Bureau. A group was set up to rectify and clean up the Daqing Bank. Carry out nationwide rectification and clean-up work.

As for the issuance of bonds, Jiang Jiying had already thought of it, and he put forward a grand plan. In the first tranche of 20 million silver dollars of bonds, the arrears of the officers and men of Mengshan can be converted into bonds, which can be settled by about a quarter, and the remaining 15 million will be distributed to the provinces and completed within a time limit. The raising of this money is not only to alleviate the increasingly urgent financial pressure, but also to make some preparations for the establishment of the gold standard.

During this time, Jiang Jiying became a frequent visitor to Haiyan Hall, and asked Long Qian about a series of issues such as the establishment of the central bank and the issuance of banknotes and bonds, and Long Qian's attitude was to wait for the parliament to convene before announcing the establishment of the central bank. As for the reserves necessary for the gold standard, Long Qian believes that it is not necessary to use gold, but foreign currencies, such as the US dollar. If we have $50 million in reserves, can we use them to issue 150 million to 200 million Chinese dollar notes? The Chinese dollar is pegged to the US dollar, such as determining two Chinese dollars to one dollar, so as to solve the exchange rate problem?

This is tantamount to providing a new way of thinking. After studying the matter, Jiang Jiying and his think tank team believed that it was feasible to issue 200 million Chinese yuan banknotes, because it was impossible to ban the circulation of silver and copper dollars at once, and it would definitely have to go through a relatively long process. With 200 million creditworthy Chinese dollar banknotes in hand, how many things can be solved? At least the construction of the Tianjin-Pudong Railway, which Long Qian is concerned about, can resume work.

So, is it possible to get this huge loan from the Americans? Zhou Xuexi didn't count it in his heart, but Long Qian knew it in his heart, not to mention that the gorgeous machinery of David's father and son could be used, it was not difficult to exchange the oil from Jiyang, Shandong for 50 million US dollars from Rockefeller.

Today, when the three giants of the Economic Bureau gathered, Jiang Jiying informed Song Jinguo of the work of preparing for the establishment of the central bank and planning to issue Huayuan some time ago. Like Zhou Xuexi, Jiang Jiying also thinks that although Song Jinguo is the deputy director of the Economic Bureau, his roots are much deeper than them, and in terms of Long Qian's trust, this person definitely surpasses the two of them. Therefore, Jiang Jiying's name is a report, which is actually the tone of the report. After finishing speaking, he respectfully asked Song Jinguo, "Minister Song, do you think there are any problems in the preliminary work?" ”

Song Jinguo smiled, "Mr. Zhou and Mr. Jiang have done a lot of work, which I admire. I won't hide it from you, I don't understand the economy, I have been the commander's butler all these years, and I am just optimistic about the finances of the Mengshan Army for him. Needless to say, the importance of establishing a central bank is not to mention the contributions made by Shandong Commercial Bank over the years, but even the commanders of the major military regions are well aware of it. I just don't think I can rush, I can't mess up, I have to take it step by step. I believe the Commander, he must have thought about it all. ”

"Minister Song is too modest. You handled Han Yeping extremely beautifully, and even the handsome man praised it. By the way, have you gotten in touch with your hometown? "Jiang Jiying and Song Jinguo are both from Shanxi, and they are consciously close.

"Contacted ......" In fact, as early as two years ago, Jiang Yun found Song Jinguo's family, Ding Chouqi was barren Shanxi, three million people starved to death, Song Jinguo fled to Shandong because his hometown was really unable to survive, and the grass fell in Mengshan. When he left, his parents and younger brother were dead, and his sister sent a large family to be a child bride, and his brother was separated from him on the way to escape the famine. I didn't expect the girl to be alive...... Song Jinguo asked Jiang Yun to bring some money over, but he didn't let his sister come to Shandong to find him, and he brought a message to his sister-in-law, saying that he would go back to his hometown to see her when the world was quiet. Now that he is in a high position, he should meet this poor sister who has been separated for more than ten years, but now he definitely can't, "Let's go back when I have the opportunity." ”

"I'll go back with you then." Jiang Jiying said with a smile, "It's convenient for you to talk there, Commander, shouldn't the Commander also go back to Shanxi?" The folks in my hometown are looking forward to the commander's return to my hometown. ”

Jiang Jiying is different from Song Jinguo, he has always been in contact with his hometown. Even in the days when the Mengshan army and the Qing court were bloody, the Shanxi authorities did not violate Jiang Jiying's relatives. If wealth does not return to his hometown, Jiang Jiying has long been looking forward to returning to Shanxi in a dignified manner.

"Where can the commander take care of it? At least after the founding of the state. Song Jinguo said with a smile, "This is a beautiful thing, I will tell the commander, and when the time comes, we will accompany the commander back to his hometown." ”

"That's not better." Jiang Jiying was waiting for this sentence, "Friends from my hometown have written several times, hoping that the handsome clothes will return to their hometown." ”

"Well, the wealthy people of Shanxi are considered meritorious heroes." Song Jinguo nodded. He knows that in the process of development of Shandong Commercial Bank. It would not be possible without the support of the Shanxi ticket number. Now the merchants are betting on the right treasure. However, in the last decades of the late Qing Dynasty, there were constant internal and external troubles, and the center used the Shanxi ticket number as an ATM, and "squeezed" tens of millions of silver from Shanxi before and after. Crack down on Shanxi ticket numbers. They are already the yellow flowers of the past. It's long gone. Of course, the remaining ticket number wants to use Jiang Jiying to revive the rivers and mountains.

While he was talking, a phone call came in, and it was Wang Zhao, Long Qian's secretary. Asked if Minister Song Jinguo was still there, Wang Zhao said that if Minister Song did not leave, the marshal would invite his family to dinner, and the secretariat would send a car to pick up his family. Please ask Director Zhou and President Jiang to accompany you.

So, Song Jinguo, Zhou Xuexi, and Jiang Jiying rushed to Long Qian's residence in Haiyantang.

"Brother Song, you have done a good job in Hubei, you have made meritorious contributions to the country." I haven't seen him for several years, Long Qian made an exception and hugged Song Jinguo, "I've already gone to pick up my sister-in-law, I know you haven't returned to your new home yet." ”

Zhou Xuexi and Jiang Jiying glanced at each other, this is the old team, whose wife and sister-in-law will Long Qian call? But this Song Jin Kingdom insisted on getting it, humble and low-key, quite Wang Mingyuan's style.

"Sit down, we haven't seen each other in years. Lao Song has taken care of logistics for me all these years, and the three-word evaluation, 'public, loyal, and capable', especially in dealing with Han Yeping this time, has achieved great results, which has made a good start for us to deal with the negative assets left to us by the Manchu Qing Dynasty and gained some experience. For the great powers, it is necessary to be reasonable, beneficial, and responsible! Do not be afraid of them, nor be brutal. Someone once said why admit their debts to the Great Powers, which the Manchus owed them, and they wanted to find them, let them go to the Manchus to ask for them. This viewpoint is foolish, and you who are engaged in economic work must not be like some generals in the army, thinking that if you have soldiers and guns in your hands, you will not care about anything, and you will rely on the barrel of a gun to solve every problem. If the Manchu authorities had been more sober-minded and familiar with international relations, the tragedy of the Gengzi Year would not have occurred. You see, a Xinchou treaty has made us carry a lot of baggage? The Tianjin-Pudong Railway, which is now under construction, still has to take a few rounds. Long Qian took a sip of tea, "In short, we must learn to deal with the great powers, and we are no longer afraid, just like Lao Song categorically rejected the threat of the Japanese." We are not afraid of war, but when the country is just being built, we must strive for a time for peaceful development, and the economy will be boosted, and when our strength reaches a certain point, we will slowly settle accounts with them! ”

Long Qian mentioned the Tianjin-Pudong Railway, the importance of the Tianjin-Pukou railway, everyone here understands that the construction began the year before last, but the initiators are Germany and Britain. Because of the passage through Shandong, more than 30 stations were preset in Shandong, and the Germans who were in charge of the matter at that time repeatedly negotiated with Yang Shixiang, and Song Jinguo was involved in this matter. At the beginning, Long Qian had led the main force of the fifth town to the south, and Long Qian instructed that he would make every effort to assist in the construction of the railway, because the road was of great significance to Shandong, and the engineering troops of the Shandong column and a large number of people in Shandong participated in the construction.

"With the big marshal with us, we will definitely be able to recover all the rights and interests we have lost."

"No, it's a joint effort." Long Qian told Zhou Xuexi, "I am generally satisfied with the work of the Economic Bureau, except for agriculture. During this period of time, you have focused your energy on finance and finance, but agriculture is our foundation, and if we do not develop agriculture, the ten-year plan for industry will be an empty word. What kind of construction can you talk about if you can't eat enough? Your courage is too small, your steps are too slow, this Deng Gongchao can't do it. He was too conservative, and the survey he conducted also had the problem of being partial and comprehensive, and fundamentally represented the interests of the landlord class. The candidate recommended by Mr. Koshiyuki is not good. ”

Zhou Xuexi really didn't take care of the affairs of the agriculture department. It is only known that Deng Gongchao organized several groups in Shandong to conduct surveys on land occupation, cultivated area, crop variety yield, and per capita share, and formed an investigation report. Zhou Xuexi read this report and thought it was very detailed, so he reported it to Long Qian without changing a word.

However, Long Qian was obviously dissatisfied with Deng Gongchao's report.

"I asked him to come up with a few measures to reform the maladministration of land, but his opinion was basically to make small reforms and maintain the status quo. I know that land reform involves a lot of things, but it will never work if you don't change it! If we do not solve the problem of excessive land annexation, we will not be able to liberate the productive forces in the rural areas, let alone industrial construction. Shandong is the old base of the Mengshan Army, and rural autonomy has been practiced for many years, how can this person not even understand my fundamental purpose? The National Assembly is about to convene, and I was thinking of throwing out one or two major land policies to study and discuss in the Congress, but now it seems that it has come to an end, delaying my business! Let's make a substitution. told Chen Yuezhi to let him re-elect two people, and first put forward a few clauses on land circulation and the collection of land tax at different levels according to Shandong's investigation report. ”

Hearing Chen Shu talking to Song Jinguo's wife and three children outside the window, Long Qian ended the conversation, "Don't talk about business, let's eat, and talk while eating." (To be continued......)