Second-hand time travel: Liu Bei, the big-eared bandit

Chapter 356 Poisoning the World (5K chapter combined)

That night, Guo Jia and Lao Chen talked for a long time.

Old Chen recounted his experiences, his plans for the year, his expectations for the future, the peace of mind he found in farming and supporting his family, and Chen Dao's studies...

They talked about the trivial matters and everyday things in the hearts of ordinary farmers.

Guo Jia informed Lao Chen that there was fighting in Pingyu, fighting in Yingchuan, General Cao attacking Chenliu, King Chen attacking Qiaojun, and various counties in Yanzhou and Yuzhou were fighting each other...

They were talking about the situation and major events in the world that scholars were concerned about.

The two sides had different stories, and there was no wine to buy that night, but the two still got along very well.

We talked until all was quiet, except for the chirping of insects.

To avoid delaying Old Chen's farming work the next day, Guo Jia made a makeshift bed on the ground to rest.

The straw bedding that Old Chen brought was simple, but it was very warm and had the unique fragrance of dried grass.

But Guo Jia tossed and turned all night, unable to fall asleep.

Old Chen was just a simple middle-aged farmer, one of the millions of households in Guantun, Qingzhou, and not at all remarkable.

But Guo Jia could clearly see that there was a vibrant life force in Old Chen's eyes, a yearning for life, and a light that had never been seen in the eyes of farmers before.

This light concealed the bitterness of Old Chen's life, and also revealed a kind of determination that can only be seen in those who are determined to die.

Such a powerful force.

It is frightening.

……

The next day, Guo Jia bid farewell to Lao Chen early and went to the art academy.

Old Chen's wife was tidying up the bedding when she found a money bag wrapped inside.

Old Chen quickly sent Chen Dao to chase after them, but Guo Jia had already ridden far away and could not be caught up with.

Guo Jia rode his horse all the way to the outskirts of Dongpingling City, where someone greeted him at the city gate: "Is this Guo Fengxiao from Yingchuan?"

Guo Jia hesitated for a moment, then dismounted: "Did Brother Wenruo send you here?"

The man nodded and handed a bamboo slip to Guo Jia.

Guo Jia did not reach out to take it, but simply cupped his hands and said, "You should go back... Qingzhou is not worth taking."

The man looked at Guo Jia in disbelief.

Guo Jia shook his head and pointed to the fertile land behind him: "Tell Xun Wenruo about this place and this scene. Only someone who can govern a country like this can be called a king's advisor... Tell him that I, Guo, am going to travel to Qingzhou to learn the true way of governing a country and will not be going back."

……

May.

This is the stable growing season for crops, and there are relatively few things to do in the fields.

In previous years, May was the time for flood control and disaster relief.

However, due to the ongoing construction of dikes and roads, the flood control work this year has been much less, requiring only personnel to patrol the river embankments.

Therefore, Liu Bei designated the off-season for farming in May and November as the time for the strategy test.

During this period, many people from various colleges have passed the policy examinations and have begun to play a role in various places, and the number of grassroots officials has gradually increased.

These junior officials are extremely young, practical, and extremely proactive and loyal.

They may lack management experience, but most of them have achieved positive results locally.

Although the officials in various counties and prefectures have not yet been completely replaced, those who pass the imperial examinations have become the standard path in Qingzhou. Trainee officials and principal officials supervise each other, and the garrison troops, acting as agricultural colonists, conduct investigations everywhere, which makes corruption and malpractice rare in various counties.

The basic path is to first take exams on policy essays, then on practical skills, then serve as a subordinate official through internships and assessments, and finally become a principal official.

If one believes oneself to be exceptionally capable, after passing the policy examination, one can ask the deans of various colleges to write letters of recommendation and submit them to the East Pavilion to recommend oneself and request to participate in the 'Special Examination'.

However, this special test for self-recommendation is extremely rigorous.

Because these self-recommendations were usually personally assessed by Liu Bei, and the questions he posed were often practical difficulties that were currently faced, requiring a very high level of ability.

The advantage of this self-recommendation special test is that you can meet Liu Bei directly. If you can pass Liu Bei's personal assessment, you will usually be entrusted with important responsibilities. It is a direct recruitment channel and also prevents special talents from being buried at the grassroots level.

However, this is not the norm, and the success rate is very low; talking big won't work.

Mi Zhu had previously recommended someone, but Liu Bei dismissed him with just a currency issue, sending him back to continue his studies...

Liu Bei's methods of testing and evaluating talent were always direct and straightforward, without resorting to tricks.

This is actually a "do things first, then become an official" approach, just like Xu Shu and Xun You.

Now, Liu Bei has received another letter recommending himself to participate in a special test.

The recommender is Zhang Fei.

"...Guo Fengxiao from Yingchuan, Jinan Academy of Arts..."

Liu Bei's face contorted in shock: "Guo Jia... actually became Yide's student?"

This is a bit of a mess, we need to sort it out...

Xu Shu appeared quite calm: "The world is in chaos now, but Qingzhou is peaceful. Many extraordinary talents will surely come to Qingzhou. General Zhang is already an extraordinary talent of our time, so it is normal for people to seek his guidance..."

After several picture albums circulated throughout the land, Zhang Fei was indeed regarded by everyone as a peerless hero, a true scholar...

Moreover, Liu Bei was well aware that Zhang Fei's academy taught a wide variety of things.

Painting, sculpture, slaughtering, cooking, fighting, horsemanship, breaking through enemy lines, arson... the art of war is also art.

Zhang Fei is indeed skilled in these areas, and he is more than qualified to be the dean.

In fact, most of the students at Jinan Art Academy are burly and highly skilled in martial arts...

The teachers and students inside are best at murder and arson.

Because Jinan Academy of Arts was where Zhang Fei stationed his troops.

On the left side of the main gate hangs the plaque of the Art Academy, and on the right hangs the battalion name of "Wufeng Battalion," with the battle flag of the Emperor's personal guards flying.

Zhang Fei plans to start a new course this year, which will reportedly include "craftsmanship and art," supposedly in collaboration with Jian Yong and Zhuge Liang. This course will cover topics such as the construction of windmills and watermills, as well as the creation of special equipment.

Art is indeed all-encompassing...

Liu Bei could hardly imagine what kind of person Guo Jia would become after learning from him.

The two officials most closely related to the imperial examination system are Xu Shu, who has now been officially promoted to the position of Grand Master of the Eastern Pavilion, responsible for selecting officials.

The other is Xun You, who is currently acting as the Minister of Personnel, responsible for evaluating officials. He is still in his probationary period, but in reality, he is already capable of handling things independently.

Minister Jia Xu once again slacked off and went out to "inspect the four directions," only returning during court sessions... This guy works extremely hard when there are important matters, but when there are no important matters, he just slacks off, yet he has never neglected his duties. He manages to work while maintaining his health, which is truly astonishing.

Xun You was a diligent person who worked every day, often worked overtime, rarely had a day off, and had a strong sense of self-discipline like an ox or a horse.

"General Right, have you heard of Guo Fengxiao's reputation? Fengxiao and my cousin Xun Wenruo are quite close, and they used to associate with me often, but he didn't tell me he was coming to Qingzhou to study..."

Xun You looked at Liu Bei: "General of the Right, Fengxiao may have come here with some ulterior motive. But he knows I am here, yet he still asked to be put to a special test... That's rather strange."

Liu Bei thought for a moment and shook his head: "It doesn't matter why he came... We just need to think about how to test him."

"My lord, let's test his strategy without fighting... Recently, there has been an increasing amount of counterfeit money, and we are struggling to make ends meet."

Xu Shu and Guo Jia were not familiar with each other. Although they were both from Yingchuan, Xu Shu's social circle was different from that of Xun You and others.

Recently, a lot of inferior coins have been deposited in Qingzhou's treasury. Some are as thin as cicada wings, and some have had their inner holes removed.

Many coins were so light they were worth only two baht, yet they still circulated in the marketplace.

The good Wuzhu coins that Tian Yu had previously minted had all been used up, but most of the coins collected were inferior ones.

Xun You nodded in agreement: "Guo Fengxiao is a rare talent in the world. His thoughts are often unexpected, and he is well-versed in profit, righteousness, and human nature. Asking him will surely yield results."

"The dangers of counterfeit money... Jinlang, have Guo Jia wait for me at the treasury."

Liu Bei nodded, instructing Zhuge Jin, who was still serving as his secretary, to take Guo Jia to the East Pavilion. ...

……

East Pavilion Treasury.

Guo Jia was somewhat bewildered when Zhuge Jin brought him here.

Moreover, Zhuge Jin left after bringing him here.

There were many copper coins in the vault, but they were all inferior coins.

Guo Jia could tell that the money in the treasury was all privately minted.

The huge warehouse was piled with probably hundreds of millions of coins, but most of them were crudely made, as thin as cicada wings, and none of them weighed as much as a five-zhu coin.

Guo Jia took out a Wuzhu coin, a common coin in Qingzhou. It was a high-quality coin, heavy in his hand, and was minted by Liu Bei in Youzhou.

Of course, Qingzhou was also minting coins... Ever since Tian Yu took charge of military supplies, the machine-making workshop opened by Zhuge Liang was surrounded by high walls, and Tian Yu was inside minting coins according to the previous standards.

This is something that most people don't know, and even Guo Jia didn't know it.

However, Guo Jia knew that the coins in Qingzhou were not the Wuzhu coins minted by the imperial court, but rather those issued by Liu Bei himself, with their fine serrated edges and twelve dots being very obvious differences.

"Guo Fengxiao, when will you arrive in Qingzhou?"

Guo Jia looked around the treasury for a while, and then a gentle voice came from the entrance of the treasury.

"Jia came during the spring plowing season, intending to learn the art of painting beauties in Jinan... but Master Zhang said that Jia was not steady enough and his hands were not firm enough, and that he was not cut out for it, and that he would expel Jia from the school..."

Guo Jia turned and bowed: "I have no choice but to take the policy examination..."

"They expelled you from the sect, yet they wrote a letter of recommendation for you to take the special exam?"

Liu Bei shook his head and laughed: "It seems that Yide and you get along quite well. He just doesn't want to take advantage of you by becoming your mentor... This is the first time he has recommended someone to me."

"Ahem... Although Jia didn't learn how to paint portraits of beauties, she has benefited a lot. She is indeed a teacher."

Guo Jia cupped his hands and said, "I came to take the policy test in order to meet Lord Xuande... I wish to take Lord Xuande as my teacher, so I asked Master Zhang to write a letter of recommendation."

"Is he really here to pursue his studies?"

Liu Bei looked at Guo Jia and laughed, "Fengxiao, do you want to learn papermaking, engraving, and printing, or do you want to learn how to serve the emperor and command the disobedient?"

Guo Jia also laughed: "Originally, Xun Wenruo sent me here to teach Liu Bei to welcome the Emperor to Yingchuan, so that the world would not suffer the ravages of Liu Bei..."

"Hahahaha... Xun Wenruo really said that?"

Liu Bei burst into laughter: "Then... has Qingzhou, under Fengxiao Temple, suffered any harm at my hands?"

"From the perspective of prominent scholars, they have indeed suffered greatly... The majority of the Qingzhou gentry have been persecuted, and millions of people have been reduced to tenant farmers in government-run farms. Lord Xuande has used his private army as farm officials and has further disrupted the market by lowering rents, so that none of the Qingzhou scholars have benefited..."

Guo Jia counted on his fingers and said, "They select officials through examinations, choosing officials from among slaves, while ignoring renowned scholars and upright officials, thus ruining people's futures. This is truly a heinous crime... Hahaha..."

As he spoke, Guo Jia himself laughed: "And... Lord Xuande uses the people to investigate official farms, and then uses the farm officials to investigate counties, granting the benefits of cultivated land to officials, and returning all the wealth of corrupt officials to the people. This can be described as turning the world upside down, disregarding the law, and defying the principles of Heaven..."

"Haha... Now that you mention it, I really do seem to be a tyrannical and ruthless person?"

Liu Bei added, "Actually, I'm also competing with the people for profit... Nowadays, the grain shops, ironware shops, cattle and horse farms, workshops, shipping and storage facilities in Qingzhou are all government-run, and their demands are insatiable..."

"But... Qingzhou has had bumper harvests year after year, workshops are running at full capacity, the armies of the prefectures are well-equipped, the fields in the countryside are crisscrossed, peddlers are everywhere, and every household has a full granary... All industries are thriving and booming."

Guo Jia cupped his hands and looked sincerely at Liu Bei: "I have been traveling around Qingzhou for many days and have come to know what it means to spread benevolence widely... If such treatment of the people is poison, then I wish to join you, my lord, in bringing poison to the world."

"Whether or not they join me in ravaging the world is not important. Wherever they serve, they are still officials of the court. Even if they are my enemies, as long as they can strengthen the Han Dynasty and enrich the people, they are still my friends."

Liu Bei pointed to the inferior coins in the treasury: "Come on, let me give you a strategy question first."

"Lord Xuande possesses the aura to swallow the heavens and earth, and Jia respectfully admires him."

Guo Jia bowed with his hands clasped.

"As you can see, all industries in Qingzhou are thriving, and it seems to be booming."

Liu Bei's voice was low and calm: "However, Qingzhou has a major drawback. I issue good currency, but the people use inferior currency. Qingzhou uses good currency, but other provinces use inferior currency. I established caravan trade routes, but those returning from all directions bring back nothing but these inferior currencies..."

Liu Bei then pointed to the warehouse: "Useless items."

“Bad money is difficult to trade fairly. If bad money is rampant, everything will be difficult to prosper. But if we keep minting new money, it will inevitably lead to the devaluation of money and the decline of all industries.”

"To solve the problem of counterfeit currency, I must first abolish it. However, counterfeit currency is rampant in the market. If I were to buy it back at a discounted price, it would surely alienate the people... I wonder if Fengxiao has any solutions?"

This question was far beyond Guo Jia's expectations.

This is a problem that has plagued the Han Dynasty for hundreds of years.

Unauthorized minting of coins was a common practice, and many people, from officials to wealthy families, had done it.

Privately made versions of the Wuzhu coin existed in various prefectures, and Guo Jia had seen several different types in Yingchuan.

While Dong Zhuo and Yuan Shu were fighting fiercely near Nanyang, the Nanyang mint kept operating day and night without a break.

Without the supervision of the imperial court, all that was cast were crude and shoddy products, as thin as cicada wings.

Some coins had mixed iron, while others had more lead mixed in. Not only did they contain less copper, but they also had large holes and small rims. If a Wuzhu coin weighed two zhu, it was considered generous.

Prices are soaring in various states, not only because of natural disasters and man-made calamities leading to food shortages, but also because money is really worthless.

Gold, silver, and copper are still hard currencies, but there are far too many inferior coins; at least 90% of the world's currency is inferior...

However, other states were producing large amounts of inferior currency, which flowed into Qingzhou due to various large-scale transactions, resulting in countless amounts of inferior currency among the people of Qingzhou.

If the currency is devalued and recycled, for example, by weight in exchange for an equal amount of good currency, it would be tantamount to forcibly depriving people of their wealth, since the face value of both the inferior and superior currency is five zhu.

“I understand Lord Xuande’s meaning… The monetary system in various states has collapsed, and bad and private money is rampant in the market. Outside the state, inferior money is used in large quantities. If merchants from Qingzhou go out to do business, they can only bring back inferior money.”

Guo Jia took out a bad coin from the pile of money and pondered for a moment: "Even if merchants make a profit, they are exchanging good money for bad money... This will cause Qingzhou to be filled with bad money, and there will inevitably be people who seek personal gain from it."

"exactly."

Liu Bei nodded: "Fengxiao, do you have a brilliant plan to solve this?"

"People need to understand that bad money is not acceptable and only good money can buy things that can sustain life... What the world lacks most now is food. A bushel of millet costs tens of thousands of coins, but only the granaries in Qingzhou are full."

Guo Jia flicked the inferior coin: "Lord Xuande, are you willing to sell grain to other states?"

Liu Bei nodded: "Selling is certainly an option. But transporting grain is difficult; transporting grain over a thousand miles takes up nine-tenths of the journey and requires a large army for protection. There's no profit to be made."

"Currently, only Lord Xuande's family in the world dares to sell grain, so naturally there's no need for transportation..."

Guo Jia said, "Let those who want to buy come to Qingzhou to pick it up. Since eight or nine out of ten times the cost will be spent on the journey, we can just lower the price for them. The original price is 10,000 coins, but when they come to the Qingzhou official granary, they can pick up a bushel of grain for only 1,000 coins, or even just a few hundred coins... But they can only buy grain with good money. As long as we can set a standard for good money and let people know that only good money can buy grain, that will be enough. We don't even need to sell too much grain."

After saying this, Guo Jia took out a coin made by Liu Bei himself: "The coins made by Lord Xuande all have twelve dots and fine serrations. The mold for this coin is extremely difficult to imitate, so it is called 'large coin'. Only 'large coin' can be used to buy grain... The people of Qingzhou do not lack grain, and they can get good coins from Lord Xuande, so their ability to buy grain is not affected."

“If the outlying states want to get this money to buy grain, they should be made to exchange it for inferior currency. The inferior currency is weighed and exchanged, and one pound of inferior currency is only exchanged for twenty ‘large coins’. Then the inferior currency is melted down and large coins are minted, and a huge profit can be made.”

"In order to buy grain, they had to exchange... Once they exchanged, Lord Xuande could use policies that benefit the people to recover the inferior currency from the people of Qingzhou. For example, people with Qingzhou household registration could exchange one jin of inferior currency for fifty large coins, which would not hurt the people's hearts."

"Lord Xuande deliberately had Zhang Shi create such exquisite and complex coin molds, and intentionally informed him that the grain shops and shipping warehouses in Qingzhou were all state-run. He must have had this strategy planned long ago. This question was just a deliberate test for Jia..."

After answering the question, Guo Jia asked, "Was this Lord Xuande's original strategy?"

"My original plan was to start from the inside and sell goods from Qingzhou to the outside, but this method is time-consuming and laborious."

Liu Bei nodded and said, "Fengxiao is right. Why bother going out to trade? We can just wait for people to come to Qingzhou to buy... However, we can't just use grain, otherwise it will lead to people selling their stored grain and disrupting the market."

"Besides grain, we also need cattle and military equipment. I have already collected cattle from all over the country and distributed curved plows. Now the price of cattle in various states is extremely high, one head costs a million... Only Qingzhou has a large number of cattle and a large number of military equipment, all of which are government-run military supplies. No one else can sell them to us."

"Grain, cattle, and military equipment are all necessities for warlords throughout the land. Please, Fengxiao, take charge of this matter, contact all parties, and let the world know that only large sums of money can buy these necessities, so that 'large sums of money' can circulate throughout the land."

Guo Jia nodded in agreement, then asked, "What should we do if someone counterfeits large coins?"

"Let him imitate it. Whether the twelve o'clock and seventy-two teeth are even, and how much copper it contains, is obvious at a glance. As long as there are no inferior coins in the world, I'll accept any that looks exactly like mine..."

Liu Bei laughed and said, "When the world uses only large coins, the value of money will be determined by me. Why should I be afraid of others counterfeiting it?"

Guo Jia's eyes widened suddenly: "So that's how it is... I thought it was just about seizing the wealth of the world..."

(End of this chapter)