King

The Ministry of Government is particularly sensitive to the "money shortage". In addition to the need for a large amount of funds to promote development in the Near East, the main reason is that the southeastern provinces have been the hardest hit area by the kingdom's previous money shortages.

The land is fertile, suitable for agricultural production, and far away from the battlefield. The southeastern provinces surpassed the central region a hundred years ago and became the most economically developed region in the kingdom.

Economic prosperity often means a large demand for currency. Unfortunately, the kingdom does not have the ability to send enough currency to the southeast region, and it does not even have the idea.

Facing the "money shortage", the only strong measure the kingdom took was to allow local nobles to pay in kind when taxing.

For the rest, let time heal the trauma naturally. Anyway, as long as the war is over, the kingdom's dependence on the outside world will decrease.

The situation of sharp decline in import trade volume and continuous outflow of gold and silver will gradually be changed.

Through mining and trade with the Orc Empire, the amount of currency circulating in the market will slowly increase until the "money shortage" crisis is overcome.

As for the economic pain experienced during this process, no one has a good way to solve it and can only fight it through.

Rubbing his forehead, Hudson also looked embarrassed. Theoretically speaking, if a "money shortage" occurs, all we need to do is increase the money supply.

Unfortunately, this theory is not feasible in the Aslant continent. Under the gold and silver currency system, it is difficult to increase the money supply in a short period of time.

“Paper money”, just think about it.

Under the current basic conditions, if the Alpha Kingdom dares to be the first in the world to issue banknotes, it will immediately be taught by the market.

Changing the monetary system is different from the previous gold tickets issued by the Near East Development Bank, which requires very strong credibility.

The value of paper money will not be recognized internationally, and the nobles within the kingdom will most likely not accept "paper money" as a replacement for gold and silver.

If you really have no money, it is easier to accept rusty iron coins than "paper money".

Compared with paper money, the gold tickets issued by the Near East Development Bank are just a small game for Hudson. Only a few hundred thousand copies have been printed in total, and not all of them have been released yet.

In the eyes of the outside world, this thing is just an anonymous deposit certificate and is not considered currency at all.

The top chambers of commerce all issue their own business tickets, but they have different names. Those linked to gold coins are called gold tickets, and those linked to silver coins are called silver notes.

Without exception, the circulation of these notes was very small. It can only be used in certain areas and has great limitations.

If the golden tickets issued by Hudson were not linked to the territory's commodity trading, even dogs would probably dislike it.

In the eyes of the outside world, this thing was created by Hudson to facilitate transactions. It can be used in Mr. Ha's fiefdom, and it will be a waste of paper if you leave here.

For this thing to replace gold coins and become the mainstream currency on the market, it is estimated that Hudson will have to destroy the Orc Empire and establish a great human empire of his own.

"The money shortage has become a foregone conclusion. And this situation will continue for several years. How is the Ministry of Government prepared to respond?"

Hudson asked concerned.

If the monetary system changes are too advanced, it can only be solved in primitive ways. In this regard, Hudson was not necessarily as good as the native territorial officials.

"Your Excellency, the money shortage is at the kingdom level, but you personally are not short of money.

Counting the income from magic potions, our currency actually has a net inflow. However, the stalls were too large and there was a short-term shortage of money.

There are currently two most suitable solutions:

1. Reduce external procurement, engage in bartering internally, and use gold tickets as a supplement to payment methods;

2. Introduce funds from the outside world.

The first option is the most common measure.

As early as half a year ago, bartering began in many places in the southeastern provinces.

At that time, Xueyue Territory had just started, and the Mountain Territory had basically achieved self-sufficiency. The daily trade volume was not large, and we were not affected by the money shortage.

It was not until recently that the smuggling trade flourished and Crescent Port's trade volume soared that there were signs of a money shortage.

As long as we buy fewer slaves and promote the golden ticket settlement system, the crisis of money shortage can be contained.

However, the sequelae are also very serious. Slaves are an important supplement to the labor force in the territory. If they are stopped suddenly, it will slow down the development of the territory.

The second option seems simple, but is actually very difficult to operate.

It is easy for funds to flow out, but no one has experience in how to bring money in.

The Ministry of Government has only one reference measure: you can sell future magic potion quotas in advance and get a sum of cash back.

However, this cash can only meet urgent needs. The money shortage is a crisis for the entire kingdom, and we cannot be alone.

If we want to quell this crisis, we may have to invest tens of millions of gold coins in the market to solve the problem.

Such a huge funding gap is not something our family can raise. "

After hearing Jacob's explanation, Hudson nodded slightly. Both of these methods can solve the problem, but neither of them is what he wants.

If there was no threat from the orcs, Hudson would definitely choose the first method. Stability was the most important, and it would be better if the development speed was slower.

“It is unrealistic to sell magic potions in advance, and reservation orders are placed several years in the future.

There are a lot of magic potion masters outside who are studying it, and no one can tell how long the monopoly can be maintained.

Once substitutes appear, prices are bound to plummet.

It is difficult to sell uncertain things at a good price, and the outside world may think that I have no money.

The Near East Development Bank has just got on the right track and must not break such news.

Invite major chambers of commerce for me and tell them that I have a big deal to discuss with them! "

Hudson said without changing his expression.

…

Emerald Palace. Caesar IV felt the same troubles even more deeply.

The "money shortage" crisis spread further, not only affecting the kingdom's financial revenue, but also affecting the development progress of the royal realm.

The stalls are all set up, and there is absolutely no reason to take them back temporarily.

The internal conflicts in the Alpha Kingdom have tended to ease, but that doesn't mean they will disappear. The disputes between the royal family and the great nobles have never stopped.

Either the east wind prevails over the west wind, or the west wind overpowers the east wind.

The political struggle surrounding power has never stopped.

No matter which party it is, as long as it reveals its decadence, it will trigger a new round of political struggle.

Especially in the previous actions, Caesar IV's behavior of eating alone offended many of the kingdom's nobles.

Affected by this, even the actions against the five nobles in the North ended in failure.

It doesn’t matter if there is conclusive evidence. Politics is never based on evidence alone.

The five major families in the North are indeed causing hatred, but everyone is more worried about the royal family's twelve provinces being connected together.

Out of the need to limit the royal power, everyone tacitly chose to pretend to be deaf and mute, turning a blind eye to the serious crimes committed by the Northland nobles before.

Even though it was brought up in court, it was still rejected. The reason is very simple: the first five Dukes committed suicide out of fear of crime, and the kingdom has already dealt with it.

These are all facts. The dirty information about the Northland nobles in the hands of the royal family is basically the fault of the previous five Dukes.

The five great Dukes of Northland now have a lot of hatred, but they have never committed any serious crime that makes people angry.

It's useless to seize the clues. Some crimes are just scratching the itch for the nobles.

The final result was: fines were imposed on the Northland nobles.

Of course, as a price for escaping punishment, the five major families paid a lot in private.

The impact on the development progress of the royal family is nothing more than a matter of time. Caesar IV was still young and had plenty of time to spend on it.

But the sharp decline in fiscal revenue is an urgent problem that needs to be solved.

…

"asshole!

What do these nobles do for food?

They made good promises when they paid taxes, but now they suddenly play this trick on me. What do they want? "

Caesar IV's question embarrassed the officials.

The biggest feature of the tax farming system is its stability. Regardless of how taxes are levied or profits and losses, the share paid to the kingdom must not be less.

Now everyone is crying and shouting for tax cuts. In the eyes of Caesar IV, this is a provocation to the royal government.

After all, when they first made money, these people never paid a penny more.

It's a business, so you have to be responsible for your own profits and losses. If you make money, you cannot keep it to yourself, and if you lose money, the kingdom will take care of it.

If this kind of precedent is set, the kingdom will not be able to survive in the future.

“Your Majesty, those who are asking for tax deferrals and reductions are all small and medium-sized nobles.

The kingdom has been fighting for many years, and now it is facing a money shortage. A large number of goods cannot be sold, and their finances are indeed in trouble.

Affected by the money shortage, prices across the kingdom generally fell. Even if the kingdom accepts physical payment, they will need to come up with more things than before.

Including the losses during transportation, the burden is indeed a bit heavy. Forcible expropriation may lead to their bankruptcy. "

The Prime Minister, the Grand Duke of Newfoundland, said objectively.

The small and medium-sized nobles are an important part of the royal family's checks and balances on the large nobles. Although with the advent of the era of great mergers, the effect they can exert is getting smaller and smaller, it is still better than nothing.

Without the restraints of these people, the great nobles' control over the local area would definitely increase to a higher level. At that time, it will truly become a country within a country, and it will become extremely difficult for the kingdom to interfere in local affairs.

Taking history as a guide, the collapse of several empires in history all started with the expansion of local nobles.

In order to suppress the great nobles, the royal family was also worried.

It needs to be reused and guarded against, but it is a test of tactics.

"Prime Minister, you have been deceived by the people below. There are indeed difficulties, but it is not a case of bankruptcy.

In order to collect the autumn tax smoothly, our Ministry of Finance specially sent people to conduct in-depth investigations in various places.

The weather has been good this year, and the kingdom has welcomed a bumper harvest, and the autumn grain will be put into storage soon.

The taxes collected by the kingdom were, at most, only one-tenth of the output. What is really affected is the commercial taxes in various places, but they can also levy physical goods, which will lead to bankruptcy.

It was probably the big local nobles who had become restless again and deliberately set out to test us.

Since everyone is in a money shortage everywhere, let them choose how to pay taxes. Whether they use autumn grain, cloth and other materials to pay taxes, or directly send gold coins, our Ministry of Finance will accept it.

These supplies do not need to be transported to the royal capital, but can be sent directly to the front lines in the Near East. It is just used to repair the defense line, saving the kingdom from having to invest in purchasing it! "

Marquis Delgado retorted hastily.

As a hard-working finance minister, careful calculation is an essential skill.

Given the current financial situation of the Kingdom, tax reduction is a precedent that must not be adopted due to a "money shortage".

Otherwise, the "money shortage" crisis in various places will be magnified tenfold immediately. In the face of interests, it is difficult for people to remain rational.

Under normal circumstances, "money shortage" crises can be restored slowly by relying on market self-regulation.

If man-made disasters are superimposed, everything becomes different. No one knows what nobles can do when they are stupid.

"The issue of autumn taxes must not be ignored. However, it is time to solve the problem of money shortage.

If all the great nobles of the kingdom work together and put a batch of currency on the market, is it possible to calm this crisis? "

Caesar IV asked with concern.

Fortunately, the Alpha Kingdom is a traditional agricultural country, and industry and commerce are not very developed, otherwise the "money shortage" would be even more destructive.

In this regard, Caesar IV was still very pragmatic. When a problem is discovered, it must be solved.

"Your Majesty, there is no successful precedent before. Theoretically, as long as enough currency is invested, the crisis can be overcome.

But the problem is that no one knows how big the currency gap will be.

Among the great nobles in the kingdom, except for a few who have invested heavily in the development of Northern Xinjiang and the Near East and have the need to purchase materials, others do not know what to buy even if they are willing to invest money.

If it has money financially, the government can use the method of purchasing and storing strategic materials to put currency on the market.

Unfortunately, the kingdom's financial resources are limited and it cannot purchase supplies on a large scale. Now we can only wait for the money shortage crisis to further expand and drive down prices in the kingdom.

When prices fall to a certain level, those large chambers of commerce will take action to sweep goods out of the market.

During this process, incremental money flowed into the market, and the money shortage crisis slowly passed. "

The Prime Minister, the Grand Duke of Newfoundland, replied helplessly.

No matter which world, the crisis is the arrival of a new round of harvest. It seems to be an economic law, but in fact it is more of a man-made disaster.

International capital is sharpening its knives, and domestic aristocrats are also ready to take action. Everyone wants to make a big profit in the "money shortage" crisis.

If the Royal Government takes strong measures to intervene, it will cut off these people's financial resources, as well as their own financial resources. In essence, everyone present is also a member of a vested interest group.

After getting the exact answer, Caesar IV sighed. Obviously, it is impossible to expect the great nobles to work together to quell the money crisis.

No matter how many measures are introduced, it will be useless. After all, government orders need people to implement them. Government orders that touch the interests of interest groups cannot leave the Jade Palace.

Caesar IV could find no collaborators on this issue. Even within the royal family, there are many people gearing up to participate in this feast.

Within a short period of time, the money shortage affected the development of the royal family. But when deflation occurs and prices fall, the cost of developing their territory will also decrease.

What does the shrinking market and depressed business and trade have to do with them?

The real victims are nothing more than the harvested small and medium-sized nobles, the nascent industrial and commercial manufacturing industry, and craftsmen.

…

Time passes day by day, and with the beginning of the autumn harvest, the money shortage crisis in the market becomes more and more serious.

Southeast Province.

Blessed by the Lord of the Morning, we have had more than a dozen sunny days in a row, and the autumn harvest has been successfully completed.

Looking at the grain drying ground full of grain, Baron Ezekiel, as the owner of the grain, couldn't be happy at this moment.

There was a bumper harvest, but the food was also unsaleable. At this time of year in previous years, grain merchants would have rushed over to buy.

Unfortunately, the situation was different this year. Baron Ezekiel contacted several familiar grain merchants, but none of them were willing to purchase it.

It’s not that no one wants the food, it’s that those who want it don’t have enough cash in their pockets.

You can sell food, but you must accept barter.

This is a hardship for Baron Ezekiel. The territory is basically self-sufficient. So much food is bartered. What can he exchange for it?

What's more, even if there is something you want to exchange for, it still needs to happen to be short of food. The biggest disadvantage of bartering is that everyone's needs must complement each other in order to make a deal.

"The steward ordered us to go down and build five more large granaries. If no one comes to buy them, just store them for me!"

Baron Ezekiel said cruelly.

"Master, it's easy to build a granary. But if all the grain is stored, the price will be greatly reduced later."

The old housekeeper reminded.

It’s also grain. Old grain is not as valuable as new grain. Even if it is just piled in the warehouse for a few months, when it is sold to a grain merchant, it will be discounted by 10% or 20%.

Even if the grain is sold later, the territory's income will be significantly reduced this year. Some unnecessary expenses may have to be cut down.

After gritting his teeth and stamping his feet, Baron Ezekiel added: "You should prepare like this first!

I'll go to a few nearby cities to see if I can find new buyers. Even if the price is lower, we still have to sell it.

According to the current market conditions, food prices are likely to continue to fall! "

…

Similar scenes continued to play out in different areas of the Alpha Kingdom. Countless noble lords suffered from "melancholy" during this harvest season.

Emotional conduction is usually amplified. Affected by the "money shortage" crisis, many people holding cash are becoming more cautious now.

Especially businessmen who are keen on the market reacted the most intensely. Everyone tacitly chose to hold the currency and wait and see. Even though the prices of many commodities have begun to fall, everyone is still unmoved.

The Shandi Ling branch suddenly became lively. The market lacked cash flow, and the bank's loan business suddenly improved.

Faced with the surge in business volume, Rudolf rushed back from Xueyue Leader and took charge of the overall situation personally.