Courtyard House: Passing through the Silly Pillar, Activating the Blessed Cave Heaven

9

"When it was first issued, a thousand legal tender could buy ten cows, but now it can't even buy a chicken, at most it can be exchanged for five eggs." He Daqing shook his head, his face full of sighs.

These words reminded He Yuzhu of what he had read in his textbooks in his previous life: the Nationalist government had over-issued banknotes in order to fight the internal war, which led to a sharp devaluation of the legal tender.

Later on, everyone became a trillionaire, but the money in their hands became less and less valuable.

Thinking about this, he started to get a headache again—this time-traveling start was just too awful.

After the meal, He Daqing handed his son 1,000 yuan in legal tender, then went out to work with Yushui in his arms.

He Yuzhu washed the dishes and sat on the wooden stool, carefully examining the ten legal tender bills in his hand.

The text on the banknote is arranged from right to left. The words "Central Bank" are printed in the center, "100 Yuan" is marked in the lower left corner, there is a portrait of Dr. Sun Yat-sen on the right side, and "Republic of China Year 33" is printed at the bottom.

The back of the banknote only has the denomination number and simple patterns.

The paper was rough and far less refined than the banknotes of later generations.

The more he thought about it, the more suspicious it seemed—at a time when the legal tender was about to depreciate wildly, the fact that he could receive counterfeit money while selling steamed buns must mean there was more to the story.

He Yuzhu wrapped three cold cornbread buns in oil paper, stuffed them into his pocket, put on his old hat, locked the door, hung the key around his neck, and went out.

The Beijing of later generations has long lost the appearance of the ancient capital. Now, these ancient buildings that have survived the Ming and Qing dynasties are worth his careful observation.

Following his memories, he walked towards Wangfujing Street. Like Grandma Liu entering the Grand View Garden for the first time, he was filled with curiosity about everything on the street.

He secretly resolved that once he had saved enough money, he would definitely buy a camera and record the appearance of this ancient city before the city walls were demolished.

As we passed a grain store, the shop assistant greeted us warmly: "Sir, what would you like? We have a full range of grains, and we guarantee they're fresh."

He Yuzhu looked around the store: "Do you have corn kernels, rice, and wheat?"

The man led him to several open burlap sacks.

He Yuzhu grabbed a handful of grains, rubbed them between his fingers, and asked, "What's the price?"

"Right now, the currency is depreciating every day. Wheat is 300 yuan per jin, rice is 350 yuan per jin, the newly arrived Jingxi rice is 500 yuan per jin, and corn kernels are 250 yuan per jin," the waiter explained briskly.

"Why is Jingxi rice so precious?" He Yuzhu asked curiously.

"You don't know this! This is imperial rice personally selected by Emperor Kangxi! It used to be exclusively for the royal family. If the Qing Dynasty hadn't fallen, how could ordinary people have eaten such good rice?" the waiter explained proudly.

He Yuzhu was secretly delighted and counted his only thousand yuan: "Half a jin each of wheat and corn, and half a jin of Jingxi rice as well."

"Alright! Sir, where would you like it?" The waiter deftly took out the scale and prepared to weigh it.

He Yuzhu then remembered that unlike in later generations when supermarkets had readily available plastic bags, plastic hadn't even been invented yet in this era.

"I was in a rush to leave and forgot to bring my rice bag."

"Do you have any bags here that can hold things? Please help me think of something. If you really can't, I'll come back another day to buy some," He Yuzhu said helplessly.

"Sir, you haven't bought a large quantity, and the rice bags in the store are too big, so they are not suitable."

"How about this—I'll wrap it in two layers of kraft paper for you, and then tie it tightly with hemp rope. I guarantee it won't come apart along the way," the waiter suggested enthusiastically.

"Thank you so much! Where can I pay?"

"Come with me to the counter." The clerk led him to the counter and told the shopkeeper what he wanted.