"This issue even has new stories, 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms' and 'Chu Han Contention'!!"
The common people who received the newspapers clapped their hands in admiration after reading them. Cheers erupted everywhere on the streets, spreading from one person to ten, and then to a hundred.
Liang Xiao, under the pen name "Wu Cheng'en," had his "Journey to the West" serialized in the Great Gan Daily, which had already gained nationwide fame. Even the people of the Great Liang Kingdom were deeply captivated, and storytellers specializing in explaining "Journey to the West" emerged in various places.
People were already enthralled by the fantastical imagination of "Journey to the West." Suddenly, the clash of weapons, the intrigue of a chaotic era, appeared, feeling incredibly novel, and they were quickly drawn into the new stories.
The sales of the Great Gan Daily increased by forty percent compared to previous days!
Upon receiving the news, the members of the Ouyang family's faces grew increasingly grim.
"Uncle, Liang Xiao's newspaper must also be operating at a loss. The more it sells, the more he loses. Don't worry!" Ouyang Sheng said with a smile, trying to comfort them.
The others felt a little better.
Although the Great Gan Daily brought significant influence to Liang Xiao and his bookshop, they believed that the newspaper's losses would gradually drag down Liang Xiao's bookshop!
However, it was currently Liang Xiao's wedding, and the citizens of the capital were celebrating for him. They did not wish to publicly humiliate Liang Xiao's bookshop, lest they draw trouble upon themselves.
The Great Gan Daily had specially added an extra page for the first installments of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and "Chu Han Contention." The common people also believed that Liang Xiao was selling the newspaper at a loss and were deeply moved.
Yet, Liang Xiao's bookshop refused to increase the price of the newspaper no matter what. The citizens of the capital felt it awkward to be the first to suggest a price hike, as it would affect all buyers.
Upon learning that Yue Lian had consummated her marriage with Liang Xiao, Zuo Wushang was greatly relieved. He specially went to worship the portraits of Yue Lian's parents and then privately requested an audience with Liang Xiao.
Liang Xiao, with Yue Lian, arrived at Zuo Wushang's courtyard and noticed several boxes placed around.
Zuo Wushang immediately explained his intentions to Liang Xiao.
These boxes contained Great Gan bank notes totaling ten million taels of silver!
Approximately a quarter of the hundred-tael bank notes in the Great Gan Kingdom were in Zuo Wushang's possession.
Back then, the remnants of the Great Heng Kingdom believed Yue Lian to be dead. Most of the property that originally belonged to the imperial family was temporarily held by Zuo Wushang. Zuo Wuji parted ways with Zuo Wushang, taking five million taels and quietly exchanging it for silver at various banks before fleeing to the Great Liang Kingdom.
Now, Zuo Wushang had meticulously counted and returned nearly eight million taels of property that nominally belonged to Yue Lian, adding two million taels himself as a wedding gift from his compatriots to the couple.
"Husband..." Yue Lian nervously clutched Liang Xiao's arm, seeming somewhat at a loss.
She had never imagined that she would suddenly possess such a fortune!
Liang Xiao knew Yue Lian wanted him to arrange things and shook his head. "Father-in-law, please distribute these as you see fit. Your allegiance and that of your compatriots are already a cause for great celebration. His Majesty and I accepting your gifts would be unreasonable, and Yue Lian would also be unwilling."
With Liang Xiao's agreement, Yue Lian obediently nodded.
These former subjects of the Great Heng Kingdom would need to settle down and live in peace in the future. It was possible that for a long time to come, they might still have to bear the strange glances of the surrounding populace.
Zuo Wushang looked at Liang Xiao and Yue Lian with shame.
"According to your and Princess Xi Yue's wishes, everyone has received their due distribution. This was originally her family's property. To distribute it further would be truly unreasonable..." Zuo Wushang trailed off, unable to continue.
He had already sworn an oath to abandon any aspirations of restoring the kingdom.
However, abandoning the restoration of the kingdom was a moral failing towards the Great Heng imperial family. Now, they were also to divide Yue Lian's property, which made them feel extremely ashamed.
Liang Xiao remained silent.
Hong Jie, having a sudden inspiration, advised, "Take this money to accelerate your plans in various regions. Defeating these political enemies would also be a way to avenge our fallen compatriots! After all, they have more or less collaborated with the Huichun Sect and the Gongyang Clan, albeit in secret."
Zuo Wushang and Shangguan Jiusi repeatedly agreed.
The Dugu family also had collaborations with the Barbarians and Zuo Wushang, though they were well-concealed. Zuo Wushang was unable to assist Liang Xiao in exposing them.
The couple, unable to refuse, finally accepted the bank notes.
In Liang Xiao's room, Xiao Qing clung to Liang Xiao's embrace. Upon hearing this, she was also overjoyed. "It seems they are sincerely surrendering. It's all thanks to Brother Xiao! It's just that we currently have no way to issue more banknotes~"
Liang Xiao suddenly realized.
Banknotes were a form of credit for the Great Gan Kingdom. Essentially, they were paper with anti-counterfeiting features, but their issuance and promotion were not solely dependent on the word of the court.
To issue banknotes, a sufficiently large proportion of gold, silver, and copper coins was required as a reserve, deposited in banks across the land.
Otherwise, if people could not exchange banknotes for gold and silver, the official credit would collapse.
The prototype of banknotes during the Song Dynasty, the initial issuance of "Guan Jiaozi," amounted to 1.26 million guan, with 360,000 guan held as reserves, a reserve ratio of 28%.
Due to the vast concentration of wealth in the hands of the rich in the Great Gan Kingdom, convenient "banknotes" had unexpectedly developed. Currently, the reserve ratio had reached an astonishing fifty percent. With most of the gold and silver deposited in the banks of the capital, the credit of the banknotes was upheld, supporting hundred-tael notes.
However, transactions between countries still used gold and silver, or bartering.
Transactions between common people generally only used copper coins and silver, as there were some handling fees involved in exchanging banknotes.
Xiao Qing had a windfall and exchanged the silver stored in the capital's banks for an equivalent amount of gold. This silver could then be freed up for troop recruitment and land repurchases in various regions.
However, if Xiao Qing were to suddenly issue a large number of banknotes and present a pile of gold and silver as reserves, it would absolutely not escape the notice of the Ministry of Revenue, and thus could only be temporarily suppressed.
Furthermore, the sudden influx of a large quantity of banknotes into the market could also affect market stability.
Liang Xiao mused, "This gold cannot solely circulate domestically. It would be best to use it to purchase essential goods from neighboring countries. For instance, prized horses from the Western Regions and the Barbarian lands, weapons from the Guishuang Dynasty, ores from the Peacock Dynasty, and various materials from the Great Liang Kingdom..."
In modern times, the outflow of gold is not necessarily a good thing. However, if the Great Gan Kingdom exchanged it for resources that strengthened its national power while weakening others, the effect would be doubled.
The premise was a reasonable price, and they must not allow the other party to dictate exorbitant prices.
For example, when Han Dynasty silk was sold to Rome, it was more precious than gold. Silk was not a necessary item that would make the Roman Empire stronger, but rather a luxury. The Han people and intermediaries still earned a large amount of gold and silver from the Romans.
More than half of Xiao Qing's gold needed to be used for repurchasing land, and the remaining half could not be spent in the short term.
After the distribution of gold was roughly determined, if there was a significant surplus, Xiao Qing could even use it for economic warfare.
Guan Zhong of Qi during the Spring and Autumn period's "scheme of purchasing deer" from Chu was a prime example. By purchasing deer from Chu at a high price, he enticed the Chu populace to abandon farming and focus on hunting deer. When a famine struck Chu due to a lack of cultivation, the kingdom's strength greatly diminished.
Xiao Qing listened to Liang Xiao's explanation, her eyes sparkling, and she would occasionally act coy.
Admiration!
Her Brother Xiao always provided her with various inspirations.
However, the more outstanding Liang Xiao was, the more reluctant Xiao Qing felt.
After all, Liang Xiao would eventually leave the capital, leaving her to endure the pangs of longing. And soon he would be traveling to Yanzhou!
Towards the end, Liang Xiao suddenly remembered something and quietly asked, "What is the situation with that 'Sophia'?"