The largest denomination, the "Daquan Fifty", only uses the "copper content" of two and a half five-baht coins.

To put it simply, it means that for every "Daquan Fifty" issued, forty-seven and a half five baht worth of wealth will be taken away from the people.

This move caused big families to collect five baht coins one after another, melt them down and cast them privately into "Big Springs", and then use the big springs to buy unlimited matryoshka dolls made of "five baht coins", triggering huge inflation.

This is the late Western Han Dynasty.

It was even more exaggerated in the late Eastern Han Dynasty.

Dong Zhuo cast small coins, causing the price of grain to reach hundreds of thousands, or even millions... in some cases.

What's more, Liu Bei, who has always flaunted his "benevolence and righteousness", also acted like this out of desperation.

In history, Liu Bei, after entering Shu, faced the problem of "merchants hoarding goods and driving up prices."

The method he adopted was also similar to Dong Zhuo's "casting small coins".

However, Liu Bei's name is more elegant - Zhibaiqian.

To put it simply, it is to mint a new coin called "Zhibai Qian" to stabilize prices, one coin is equivalent to one hundred coins of the past five baht coins, and then force merchants and people to replace the new coins within a time limit.

It seems like old money is being exchanged for new money, one coin for a hundred coins.

But in fact, the "copper" content in a straight hundred coin is equivalent to the "copper" content in a five baht coin.

In this way, if one coin is exchanged for a hundred coins, the copper content of the extra ninety-nine coins can be used to cast new "Zhihundian coins" for the city... On Liu Bei's side, the treasury's money and food will naturally continue to flow.

This is equivalent to deception at the official level, cheating the people's "copper" into the hands of the government by exchanging "old" for "new".

It's like running a mill out of the wheat you picked up, a business with no capital and huge profit.

Out of their trust in Liu Bei, the people in Shu didn't think too much at first and spontaneously took the five baht coins to the government and exchanged them for hundreds of coins, and prices were controlled in a short time.

But as time goes by, the people are not stupid, they find that the hundreds of dollars in their hands are becoming less and less valuable.

The money that could buy a piece of clothing before can now not even buy a sleeve.

Everyone's wealth has shrunk severely.

Everyone also discovered that although they were getting poorer and poorer, the money in Liu Bei's treasury continued to increase, and so did his military expenditures.

In the end, the entire Yizhou people's attitude towards Liu Bei also changed drastically.

That's why Liu Bei has always relied on the support of the Elder Faction, Jingzhou Faction, and Dongzhou Faction...

The attitude of the local forces in Yizhou and even the people of Yizhou towards him... can be described as "hard to describe in one word"!

Not to mention supporting Liu Bei, I just hope that you, Liu Bei, will do well and don't further reduce the copper content in the "Zhi Bai Qian" and further deceive us and squeeze us.

It is no exaggeration to say that if it were not for Zhuge Liang's unique way of governing Shu and the harsh punishments in the "Laws of Shu", the people would have suffered losses and would have been forced to settle the matter.

Otherwise, under this economic system of "straight money", public dissatisfaction in Sichuan has long been boiling, public dissatisfaction has spread, and the situation will definitely be out of control.

And this also indirectly caused the Yizhou locals, whether they were clans or people, to be unable to reach an agreement with Liu Bei.

certainly…

Although the implementation of "straight money" is deceptive.

However, Liu Bei had no choice at all.

This is based on Liu Bei's promise to the soldiers before he captured Chengdu, allowing the soldiers to take the money from the government on their own.

Not only that, according to the records in "Three Kingdoms: Zhang Fei's Biography", Liu Bei also gave each of Zhuge Liang, Fazheng, Zhang Fei, and Guan Yu five hundred catties of gold, one thousand catties of silver, fifty million yuan, and one thousand pieces of brocade...

You know, this number is extremely exaggerated... It is almost equivalent to the annual income of a county in Chengdu.

And where does this money come from?

We can only "cheat" it from the poor people of Yizhou.

This is a huge pitfall and a huge hidden danger faced by the development of the central Sichuan region during the Ji Han regime.

As for Guan Lin, he answered this question very quickly.

But it reminds me of this "unhealthy" and "abnormal" economic model in the Shu Han regime.

The charm of Shuhan...

The romanticism of the Shu Han Dynasty was originally people-oriented.

Without the support of the people and the popularity of the people, this regime will sooner or later become strangers... Therefore, Guan Lin's answer avoided "straight money" as much as possible.

You can't defraud people of their money...

Then we have to find new “economic growth points”, right?

So, Guan Lin glanced at the merchant.

In this examination paper, his first sentence was "The people are prosperous and the country is strong." This is a reminder to Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang that they must not ruin Liu Bei's "Only the virtuous and virtuous" sign and the people of Shu because of small profits.

people hope.

The second sentence is to establish a Commerce Department to collect commercial taxes.

This is to find the growth point of Shuzhong’s economy.

It's so boring to always focus on the poor people, the common people who have been "squeezed dry" of their wealth.

To make money, you have to make money from rich people.

If we talk about future generations, 80% of the wealth is in the hands of 20% of the people.

In the late Han Dynasty, 99% of the wealth was controlled by 1% of the people, which is not an exaggeration at all.

Make money from these wealthy businessmen...

Establish a Commerce Department to collect high commercial taxes and restrict their behavior.

In return, the status of merchants was greatly improved.

This is "transaction", which is the core and focus of Guan Lin's answer.

People say that rivers and lakes are not about fighting and killing, but about human relationships.

In fact, Jianghu is not about human relations, but about equal exchange.

If Shu Han wants to break the "economic" dilemma, it must pay something and exchange something.

Instead of paying for the disappointment of Yizhou people and the change of people's mentality, it is better to pay for the great improvement of the status of merchants in exchange for more wisdom from the Shu Han treasury, thus breaking the economic field.

It should be noted that merchants had the lowest status among the three religions and nine streams in ancient times.

During the reign of Qin Shihuang, merchants had to be registered in the market.

Merchants and their descendants, like criminal officials and adopted sons-in-law, were among the subjects of exile and could be sent to the frontier to serve or settle down at any time.

During the period of Emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty, it was stipulated that merchants were not allowed to wear silk clothes, ride in cars, buy land, take concubines, or even eat large amounts of meat. They also had to pay double the amount of money they paid as slaves.

By the time of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the banishment system of the Qin Dynasty was restored, and merchants with "market registration" and their descendants were once again included in the targets of expropriation.

There are even some.

The businessman... not only was he included in the list, but his descendants were also unable to stand up due to their poor background.

In this way, businessmen are classified as "untouchables" and "untouchables", and those engaged in business are classified as "untouchables".

From the perspective of merchants, it seems that... they are also extremely eager to improve their status.

…

In this answer sheet, Guan Lin only wrote three paragraphs and a few words.

Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang looked at it casually at first...

But as we look more deeply, think more deeply, and discuss more deeply...

Gradually, they discovered that the answer was brilliant.

Then, Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang discussed the feasibility of the topics of "establishing a commercial bureau", "raising the status of merchants", and "enriching the treasury" all night long.

And all Guan Lin's mental journey came to mind.

Until the dawn dawns, until the rooster crows...

Liu Bei just stood up suddenly. He seemed to have thought it through completely. He slapped the table and said in a deep voice: "What a Guan Yunqi, what a 'people are rich and the country is strong', what a commercial department, what a way to elevate the status of merchants.

In exchange for the support of merchants and the replenishment of the treasury, Guan Yunqi is amazing!"

"yes…"

Zhuge Liang also stood up slowly. The whole night of discussion made him not tired at all.

At this moment, his whole body seemed to be wrapped in a heat wave, and his mood was agitated.

"I had only thought about the severe punishments and laws in the "Laws of Shu" to restrain the people of Yizhou, but I never thought that these merchants could hoard and drive up prices. Corresponding rules could also be formulated. The 'Commerce Department' mentioned by Yun Qi is unique

, it’s eye-catching! What Yun Qi mentioned about the elevation of merchants’ status in exchange for heavy taxes on business is easy for these merchants to accept.”

Liu Bei looked at the answer sheet deeply, as if every word and sentence in it brought him deep insights.

He paused, and his tone gradually became more appreciative.

"This man's broad vision and grand structure are admirable. The Tao Te Ching says, 'If you want to take something, you must first give it to it.' If you want to take the wealth of a merchant, you must first give him a certain status. This is the principle of unity.

Both sides benefit!”

"This is also the simplest and most convenient way to replenish the treasury. What's more... if all merchants can really be brought under the jurisdiction of the 'Commercial Department', how can there still be hoarding and price gouging in Sichuan? Yunqi's suggestion

, it kills two birds with one stone and kills two birds with one stone!"

appreciate…

Liu Bei not only appreciated this suggestion, but also his nephew Guan Lin Guan Yunqi.

Speaking of which, Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang are not mediocre people who can gain a foothold in this world. They are both extremely smart and wise people.
To be continued...