The Ming Dynasty: Starting with the border troops, it was overthrown and the Qing Dynasty was destro

Chapter 327: Are they going to implement a commutation system again?
Throughout history, the salaries of Ming Dynasty officials were notoriously low.

Because Emperor Taizu was born in the chaotic period at the end of the Yuan Dynasty and witnessed the corruption of Yuan officials firsthand, he set a standard of meager salaries to restrain officials at all levels.

Old Zhu believed that officials had land and salaries, enough to support their families, and should not pursue a luxurious lifestyle.

According to the regulations established in the 25th year of the Hongwu reign, the annual salary of a first-rank official was 1044 shi of rice, a seventh-rank official was 90 shi, and a ninth-rank official was 60 shi.

This benchmark referenced the lower limit of "official land plus rice" in the Tang Dynasty and "regular salary plus official allowance" in the Song Dynasty, and nominally could basically meet the basic household expenses of officials.

The problem is, this is only in name.

Starting from the Yongle reign, the imperial court began to implement the "conversion of rice" system, which involved converting a portion of the stipend into other goods or paper money for distribution.

As is well known, the Yongle era was a time when the Ming Dynasty's maritime technology was unparalleled in the world.

Zheng He's fleet made seven voyages to the Western Ocean, bringing back huge quantities of spices such as pepper, sappanwood, and sandalwood from the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean.

The imperial court converted these spices into cash and distributed them to officials, which both helped to reduce inventory and saved on government spending.

While this saved the imperial court money, it caused hardship for the officials below.

The spice market was mainly in Europe, and the Ming Dynasty's demand for spices was not actually that great.

The sudden influx of spices far exceeded the normal demand in the domestic market, causing spice prices to plummet.

Once officials received the spices, they could not easily sell them on the market like rice and cloth, nor could they use them directly in their daily lives.

Needless to say, paper money was basically worthless.

This has resulted in a significant reduction in the actual income of officials.

In the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty, due to the Single Whip Law reform and the cessation of external silver imports, prices in the Ming Dynasty soared.

Taking a county magistrate of the seventh rank as an example, his nominal annual salary, when converted, was only a few dozen taels of silver, and it was often delayed.

With such a meager salary, it would be difficult enough to support a large family, let alone the clerks in the government office.

The county magistrate, also known as the Marquis of a Hundred Miles, was the local official in charge of governing the area. He had to support at least a hundred or so grassroots staff members to ensure the smooth operation of basic government affairs.

How can you support so many people without a salary?

The only option left is corruption.

Many officials who originally had integrity were forced to go with the flow and try every means to gain benefits under the pressure of reality.

The seeds of corruption in officialdom were sown as early as the initial design of the system.

In order to reverse this situation, after Jiang Han occupied Sichuan, he used iron-fisted methods to severely crack down on corruption and killed a number of corrupt officials.
On the other hand, he also initially raised the salaries of officials at all levels, but only abolished the system of paying in kind and instead issued full salaries in rice.

From then on, the atmosphere of officialdom in Sichuan began to change.

However, the overall income of civil officials is still significantly lower than that of military officers.

After all, living in a chaotic world, Jiang Han was well aware that only his soldiers and generals were his core strength, so he was never stingy with rewards.

For some official families who originally owned large amounts of farmland and shops, their assets had already shrunk significantly after Jiang Han implemented policies such as "land surveying and land redistribution".

The most typical examples are the Wang family and the Xue family of Long'an Prefecture.

Don't be fooled by the fact that the heads of these two families now hold important positions; the Wang and Xue families were once thoroughly tormented by Jiang Han.

Not only did they hand over most of their wealth, but their most valuable land assets were also confiscated by the government.

Although they were allocated a considerable amount of land according to policy, it was a world of difference compared to the days when they could just lie around collecting rent.

For the Xue and Wang families, their current salaries are barely enough to get by.

Therefore, when they heard the King of Han personally announce that salaries would be increased, all the civil officials present were excited and full of anticipation.

Looking at the expressions of everyone in the hall, Jiang Han smiled slightly and gave a signal to the two eunuchs standing to the side.

The two men understood each other, bowed and stepped down from the steps, and each carried a tray from one side of the hall, walking steadily to the center of the hall.

Those present, both civil and military, were somewhat surprised upon seeing this.

What's going on here? Wasn't it supposed to be a salary increase?

Before they could ask any questions, the eunuch unveiled the red cloth covering the tray.

Everyone stood on tiptoe and craned their necks to look ahead, and saw a neat stack of brand-new coins and tickets on the tray.

These are samples of the latest copper and silver coins produced by the Iron and Steel Bureau, as well as grain and cloth coupons printed by the Quanzhou Bureau.

Upon seeing the novel coins and tickets before them, the hall fell silent instantly, everyone staring wide-eyed as they examined them closely.

Seeing this, Jiang Han spoke up to explain:

"Gentlemen, what you see now are the new coins and official notes that I ordered the Ministry of Works to produce."

"I intend to use this new currency to gradually replace the chaotic and inferior old currency in the market."

"Everyone may wish to pass it around and take a look, to witness the craftsmanship of the master craftsmen of the Ministry of Works."

"Those present are all pillars of the nation. Please feel free to express any opinions or insights you may have."

After saying this, he waved his hand, signaling the eunuch to step forward and distribute the new money on the tray.

Two eunuchs, arranged in the civil and military ranks, one on the left and one on the right, presented complete sets of new coins and tickets for everyone to examine closely.

The officials, according to their rank, carefully accepted the new money and examined it closely in their hands.

At the same time, Jiang Han enthusiastically introduced:

"As you can see, the new coins are mainly divided into copper coins and silver coins, with face values ​​ranging from one coin to ten taels."

"These were all made by the Ministry of Works' Iron and Steel Department using the latest technology. They are well-proportioned, with clear graphics and text, and are dignified and elegant."

"Moreover, the new banknotes also use the latest anti-counterfeiting technology."

"Please look, everyone. There is a fine and even serration around the edge of all the coins."

"This is not only extremely difficult to imitate, but it can also effectively prevent people from cutting off the edges and melting and refining it privately."

As Jiang Han explained, everyone raised their coins and began to rub the fine, serrated edges of the coins.

Feeling the unique tactile sensation in their hands and looking at the clean and crisp text on the coin, everyone present nodded in approval and praised it.

"Excellent! This coin is of superior quality, far surpassing the coins issued by the imperial court!"

"Your Majesty is wise! With this serrated edge, it will indeed be difficult for small workshops to counterfeit, and counterfeit and inferior coins will be greatly reduced!"

"That's exactly right! Small workshops don't have the ability to imitate, and large workshops don't dare to make them, so this will definitely curb the trend of private minting."

"Strict control over copper materials, coupled with severe punishments, is all that is needed. Anyone who dares to privately mint copper will have their entire family wiped out!"

"Let's see who dares to take the risk now!"

Hearing the discussions coming from inside the hall, Jiang Han raised his hand in a gesture of pressing down and continued his explanation:
"As for matters such as the recycling of old money, the exchange of new money, and the management of future currency circulation, I intend to establish a special agency to manage them."

"This department is temporarily named 'Quantong Division' and is headed by Xue Zhiheng, the chief clerk of the Ministry of Justice, who is fully responsible for it."

These words startled the assembled civil and military officials, who all turned to look at Xue Zhiheng in the ranks. This Xue, usually so unassuming, how had he suddenly caught the king's eye and been given such an important position?
Feeling the gazes of everyone, Xue Zhiheng straightened his back, secretly pleased.

A bunch of bumpkins who know nothing about business, Quantongsi will definitely be of great use in the future.

The king only announced the currency; he hasn't mentioned grain coupons or cloth coupons yet!

Sure enough, after introducing the new currency, Jiang Han changed the subject:
"In addition, please take a look at the other two coupons, namely cloth coupons and grain coupons."

"It is also a masterpiece of the Ministry of Works, and even surpasses it!"

Upon hearing this, everyone put down their copper and silver coins and picked up the two banknotes on the tray to examine them carefully.

The banknote paper is thick and tough to the touch, with vibrant printing colors and intricate, gorgeous dragon and water ripple patterns.
The civil and military officials present were somewhat surprised, as the two tickets were indeed exquisite in appearance.

But compared to the coins next to it, it can hardly be called a masterpiece, let alone superior.

Just as everyone was wondering, a sharp-eyed official discovered the secret.

The first to discover it was Zhao Sheng, the head of the Ministry of Revenue. He picked up a grain coupon, intending to examine the colorful cotton thread sandwiched between the pieces of paper.

But the moment he slightly raised the banknote in his hand, he inadvertently discovered that there was a faint outline of the Chinese character "汉" on the originally blank banknote!

Zhao Sheng thought he was seeing things, so he rubbed his eyes and quickly turned around, holding the paper ticket up to the sunlight streaming in from outside the hall, and examined it carefully from all angles.

"This...this is?!"

He couldn't help but gasp, his face filled with astonishment.

Seeing Zhao Sheng's behavior, the surrounding officials were also attracted and followed his example, pointing their paper tickets at the sunlight.

"Huh? I have one too!"

The adjutant beside Zhao Sheng carefully examined the watermark in the blank area, gently stroking it back and forth with his fingers:
"Subtle yet not scattered, hidden within the paper... leaving no trace to the touch, yet tangible to the eye!"

"How...how did they do that?!"

"Wonderful! Truly a masterpiece!"

As more and more civil and military officials discovered the watermark, a continuous stream of astonishment and praise filled the hall.

They had never seen such amazing technology.

Jiang Han smiled slightly upon seeing this, thinking, "I love seeing how naive you all are."

He nodded in satisfaction and explained:

"Indeed, the text you see is the latest anti-counterfeiting technology that the Ministry of Works has overcome."

"The font appears faintly, as if it were naturally formed within the paper, so I named it 'watermark'."

"The cotton threads dyed in indigo and vermilion, which are sandwiched in the middle of the paper, are the 'anti-counterfeiting threads'."

"These are all masterpieces by the artisans of my Ministry of Works, designed to leave counterfeiters with no way to work with them."

Upon hearing this, all the civil and military officials present turned their gazes to Zhuang Qirong, the head of the Ministry of Works, and praised him highly.

But Zhuang Qirong's mind went completely blank when he heard this.

What new technology?
When was it breached? How come I didn't hear a thing?

That's not entirely his fault. Jiang Han had bypassed him and directly issued orders for the previous coin and banknote production work.

Due to the extremely high level of secrecy, Zhuang Qirong, the official in charge, was kept completely in the dark from beginning to end and knew nothing about it.

Jiang Han didn't need to explain, he simply added:
"I plan to issue a batch of grain coupons and cloth coupons first, and then implement them on a small scale to gradually accumulate management experience."

"As everyone knows, there is a shortage of currency in circulation in the public. In many places, due to a lack of money, they have even degenerated into barter transactions."

"As long as the grain coupons and cloth coupons are implemented without error, I intend to gradually begin to promote paper money in order to solve the problem of the people's money shortage."

But as soon as he finished speaking, two officials stepped forward from the civil service line. They appeared to be officials from the Ministry of Revenue.

The two bowed deeply to Jiang Han, their faces filled with worry, and offered their advice:

"Your Majesty, please reconsider!"

"The scourge of paper money is a stark reminder of the dangers of the Yuan and Ming dynasties; its ills lie in..."

But before they could finish speaking, Jiang Han waved his hand, interrupting them:

"Please don't rush to object. Let me finish speaking first."

"I am aware of your concerns."

"The root cause of the problems with the Ming Dynasty's paper money lies in its excessive issuance. How can I repeat the same mistake?"

He looked around at everyone and explained:
"The paper notes I am showing you today are not the fully circulating banknotes."

"It's currently just a trial run, limited to a specific scope and purpose, and very small in scale, making it easy to adjust and regulate."

"This move aims to accumulate management experience, improve anti-counterfeiting technology, and establish initial credibility."

"When the time is right, I will gradually expand the distribution scope. You can rest assured."

After hearing Jiang Han's explanation, everyone in the hall breathed a sigh of relief.

They are still acceptable as long as the paper currency is not forcibly promoted immediately, but instead a gradual approach is adopted.

With their hearts finally at ease, everyone bowed deeply and shouted in unison:
"Your Majesty has given this matter considerable thought; we are utterly convinced!"

Jiang Han nodded slightly, then changed the subject:
"Alright, the matter of paper tickets is settled for now."

"Now let's get back to the main topic. As I just mentioned, we're going to increase everyone's salaries."

He paused, then announced the specific plan:

"Effective immediately, the salaries of all civil and military officials will be increased by half from their original standards!"

"This is as a reward for your hard work!"

Just as everyone was about to cheer and express their gratitude, Jiang Han's next words left them stunned.

"As for the additional half of the salary, it will be issued in the form of paper coupons, namely the grain coupons and cloth coupons that you just saw."

"With this ticket, you can directly exchange for the corresponding grain and cloth at the Quantongsi official granary in Chengdu."

"This measure is also intended to promote the circulation of paper tickets."

The assembled civil and military officials were dumbfounded upon hearing this. Wasn't this "Zhese"?

Why has the commutation system, which was abolished just a few years ago, made a comeback?

The civil officials, who had just been shouting "Your Majesty has given this matter careful consideration," looked at each other in bewilderment, speechless.

Good grief, so when you announced the salary increase, you were actually using us as guinea pigs?

So here's the question: there are at least two or three hundred officials at various levels in Chengdu.

With so many people wanting to exchange for grain and cloth, is the Quanzhou General Store's treasury sufficient? Will there be another delay in payment?
(End of this chapter)