Chapter 246: Marquis and nobles actively participated in the large deposit project, and the grain silver entered the historical stage of the Ming Dynasty
Upon hearing this, all the ministers present began to whisper to each other.

Lan Yu's eyes widened even more, and he thought to himself: If I could invest more money into it, wouldn't the returns be even more substantial?

At this moment, Wang Daoheng, who was responsible for assisting Su Shu, the trial minister of the Ministry of Revenue, stepped forward.

He asked respectfully, "May I ask, Your Highness, are there any risks in this business?"

Zhu Gang smiled, his eyes fell on Wang Daoheng, and he slowly said: "Da Ming Money House is endorsed by the imperial court, you can rest assured."

After a brief pause, he continued, "In addition, the bank has a dedicated team to manage funds, which can ensure that your wealth continues to increase in value."

After listening to Zhu Gang's explanation, everyone's doubts gradually dissipated.

Those officials who were originally hesitant could not help but feel excited at this moment.

Lan Yu, whose mind was in a state of confusion at this moment, gritted his teeth.

Finally, he made up his mind and said, "In this case, this general has decided to sell part of his family's property and invest it in the Daming Bank to support the court and His Royal Highness the Prince of Jin!"

Although Lan Yu has no title yet, as the uncle of the crown prince and the Prince of Jin, he will at least be a marquis in the future.

Now that this royal relative has expressed his intention to sell part of his property and invest it in the Ming Dynasty Money House, all those with titles in the court have immediately begun to take action.

"Your servant, Lu Zhongheng, the Marquis of Ji'an, is willing to take out 100,000 treasure notes and invest them in the Daming Bank."

As soon as Lu Zhongheng finished speaking, Mei Sizu, the Marquis of Runan, also stood up and said, "Mei Sizu, the Marquis of Runan, is willing to sell part of his property and take out 100,000 taels of silver to invest in the Daming Bank."

Ten marquises, including Tang Shengzong, Marquis of Yan'an, Wang Zhi, Marquis of Lu'an, Fei Ju, Marquis of Pingliang, Guo Xing, Marquis of Gongchang, and Gu Shi, Marquis of Jining, successively expressed their willingness to invest 100,000 taels of silver in the Ming Dynasty Money House.

Zhu Yuanzhang said with a meaningful look: "I never thought that in such a short time, you officials have raised 110 million taels of silver and strings of Ming treasure notes.

We will not force those ministers who have not participated in this. Anyway, starting from next month, the court will deposit your salaries into the Ming Dynasty Bank in advance.

We will accumulate the interest earned and use it as bonuses to officials with outstanding performance.

In addition, starting this year, Shanxi will serve as a pilot area for tax management reform.

The grain collected by the prefectures under its jurisdiction will be converted into silver and deposited in the Daming Money House."

According to historical records: the monetization of silver in the Ming Dynasty began with converting land tax into silver.

In August of the first year of the Zhengtong reign, Emperor Yingzong of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Qizhen, adopted the suggestion of Deputy Censor-in-Chief Zhou Quan.

He ordered Nanzhili, Zhejiang, Huguang, Jiangxi and other places without navigation to convert tax grain into cloth, silk and silver, and send the tax to the capital as salaries.

In the middle and late Ming Dynasty, grain silver became an important part of taxation.

If a disaster occurred, the government had to rely on grain and silver to provide relief. In addition, the promotion of grain and silver also promoted the financial reform and commodity economy development of the Ming Dynasty.

However, with the promotion of grain silver, new problems also arose.

The most representative plan is the problem of local governments’ arrears to the central government’s finances.

Although this situation did not begin in the late Ming Dynasty, its scale and impact reached the point where it jeopardized the central government's finances, which was an unprecedented new problem in the Ming Dynasty.

Fortunately, Zhu Gang, who learned from history, had already thought of a solution in advance.

So he started to suggest, "Father, I think that all the silver used to exchange for grain should be made of fine silver with full color and gold flowers.

In addition, the concave surface of the silver ingot should be engraved with the place name, tax type, weight, internal consumption, and the names of relevant officials and silversmiths to facilitate future responsibility tracing.

In order to avoid the possible theft, I suggest that the grain silver be minted into a uniform weight of fifty taels per ingot. "

Zhu Biao immediately showed an expression of appreciation, "What my third brother said is a true insightful view, I hope your Majesty will adopt it." There was no such thing as "freedom of speech" during the Hongwu period, and Zhu Yuanzhang didn't care whether others supported him or not.

Because this would not affect Zhu's use of those ministers. In his own words, "Too much support is not good. If I were faced with pairs of admiring eyes, I would be too embarrassed to take action."

Perhaps thinking of the bloody lessons from the past, all the civil and military officials present began to echo each other.

"Every word your Highness the Crown Prince and your Highness the Prince of Jin said is a pearl of wisdom. I second your opinion!"

Looking at the grand court meeting which had become a one-man show, Zhu Gang always had a feeling that a storm was about to come.

It is well known that when a company gradually gets on the right track and grows bigger, it needs processes and systems to regulate it.

At this time, democracy is more conducive to long-term development than dictatorship.

Zhu Gang secretly made up his mind: he must build the cabinet framework as soon as possible and at least complete the promotion of the first batch of cabinet ministers this year.

After the court meeting ended, Zhu Yuanzhang did not immediately begin reviewing memorials.

Near noon, he summoned Xie Cheng, Marquis of Yongping, Xu Da, Duke of Wei, Fu Youde, Marquis of Yingchuan, Lan Yu, the deputy governor, and several princes in Yingtian to the Kunning Palace.

"I once told my sons that Kunning Palace is our home.

There aren't any outsiders here today, so don't be too restrained."

As they were talking, Xu Xingzu and Jingquan, who had been appointed as third-rank officials of the Ministry of Rites, came in personally carrying steaming hot dishes and leading a group of beautifully dressed palace maids.

“Pepper and vinegar shrimp, roast goose, garlic and vinegar white blood soup.

Steamed fish, three-fresh soup, and black bean noodles.

Mutton with minced pepper, fragrant rice, garlic cheese... a total of 24 dishes for lunch, please enjoy it, Your Majesty and the nobles."

When Xu Da heard that there would be "roast goose" in the lunch, his expression suddenly became a little gloomy.

"Your Majesty, I understand your thoughts. This is what the dukes asked me to pass on."

After Xu Xingzu and Jing Quan turned around and left, Xu Da quickly took out a stack of land deeds from his sleeve and turned around to hand them to Zhu Yuanzhang who was sitting not far away.

“If you want to participate in the savings agreement, just bring the silver or banknotes here sometime.

These land deeds...Are you guys planning to borrow money from the Ming Dynasty Bank to start your business?"

Cooperation between officials and businessmen was quite common during the Ming Dynasty, mainly involving the exchange of economic and political interests.

In the economic field, officials and businessmen can invest together, and some business activities require official approval and protection.

Officials can gain financial rewards through cooperation with businessmen.

In addition, officials and businessmen can provide each other with loans or guarantees to help each other obtain more business opportunities and benefits.

However, this does not include the Hongwu period under Zhu Yuanzhang, when relevant laws stipulated that officials were not allowed to run their own businesses or participate in commercial activities.

Officials were also prohibited from forming partnerships with merchants or serving as referees in commercial disputes.

Xu Da could neither answer that he needed a loan for business, nor provide a reasonable reason for applying for a loan to Zhu Gang, the founder of the Ming Dynasty Money House.

Just when he was in a dilemma, Zhu Gang smiled and said, "Dad, Uncle Xu and the Dukes must want to use this loan to participate in the subsequent investment projects of Daming Bank!"

(End of this chapter)