My hotel is full of emperors throughout history.

Ming Dynasty, Yongle Emperor's Eastern Palace

Zhu Gaochi was engrossed in the mountain of Ministry of Revenue account books and memorials requesting funds from various regions. The abacus beads clicked loudly, his brows furrowed, and he kept muttering to himself.

"River works cost money, the northern expeditionary force needs money, shipbuilding for the voyages to the West costs even more... and the old man still wants to fight the Japanese pirates! The national treasury is overflowing with rats, and the imperial treasury is barely enough to starve mosquitoes..."

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the hall.

Zhu Gaochi's heart skipped a beat, and his scalp tingled.

He knew those footsteps all too well—his father always came by like that, and every time he came, it was to ask for money.

Sure enough, as soon as the curtain was lifted, Zhu Di strode in, his face glowing.

What's even more striking is that he was carrying a large bundle wrapped tightly in bright yellow brocade.

Zhu Gaochi practically jumped up, forgetting all manners, and blurted out.

"Father! We're really out of money! Look at these account books! We have to guard against the Tartars in the north, and suppress Annam in the south... and we still haven't found the money for the canal dredging..."

"Even if you skinned me alive and sold me by weight, you still wouldn't make much money, Father!"

Zhu Di's smile froze for a moment.

Then, with a "thud," he slammed the large bundle down on Zhu Gaochi's desk, which was piled high with account books.

"What? In your eyes, all your father wants from you is money? Huh?"

Zhu Di's face was stern, and his tone was unfriendly.

"...Isn't that right?"

Zhu Gaochi shrank back under his father's glare, but still muttered something under his breath.

"you!"

Zhu Di was so speechless that his beard twitched, but surprisingly he didn't get angry. Instead, he snorted.

With an expression that seemed to say, "Let me show you something amazing," he began to untie the bright yellow brocade bundle.

In an instant, the East Palace was filled with golden light.

Inside the bundle were a collection of sparkling, shimmering objects—including a flawless glass mirror that reflected a trembling image.

There are crystal-clear glass cups, as thin as eggshells, with intricately carved lotus scroll patterns.

There is a glass sphere inside that seems to contain starlight.

There are also ingeniously designed small clocks that produce pleasant musical sounds when their mechanisms are turned...

Zhu Gaochi's lamentations of poverty abruptly ceased, his eyes widening in disbelief.

He glanced at the items, his expression saying, "The old man is finally bringing money home."

"This...this is..."

"Never seen this before, have you?"

Zhu Di proudly picked up the palm-sized glass mirror and shoved it directly in front of Zhu Gaochi.

"Look! Look at this color!"

He then held up a glass bottle that was as blue as the sea.

"Could the palace produce something like this? Do Western products have this quality?"

Zhu Gaochi subconsciously took the mirror and touched the smooth, cool glass bottle. The abacus beads in his mind started moving uncontrollably, but he still habitually remained cautious with his words.

"Father, these... these rare treasures are indeed extremely rare, but... they must be priceless and incredibly expensive, right? Where did you obtain them? Could it be that...?"

"Wasteful? Foolish!"

Zhu Di tapped the table with his knuckles in exasperation.

"This is a hen that lays golden eggs! No, it's a phoenix that lays mountains of gold and silver!"

He pointed to the things on the table.

"These things would fetch at most ten thousand coins in later generations, but guess how much they'd sell for here?"

"The future?"

Zhu Gaochi was slightly taken aback, then suddenly remembered what had happened before.

"Did you buy this from the future?"

Then, he immediately howled.

"Dad!!! Why didn't you give it to me sooner! Do you know how much I've worried about money lately?"

Zhu Gaochi complained, counting on his fingers.

"I can't even eat properly every day because I'm trying to raise money! Even my great-grandson Sun Zhanji said I've lost weight."

Zhu Di's ears trembled from his howling, and he reached out and pressed down on his shoulder, saying irritably.

"What are you howling about? It's like you've suffered some great injustice!"

He glanced at Zhu Gaochi's round face, his tone full of disdain.

"With a face like yours, who would believe you've lost weight? That Zhanji kid is just trying to make you happy!"

Zhu Gaochi stamped his foot in frustration, slapping the table with his thick palm.

"It's true! I tossed and turned all night thinking about the account books, and I couldn't even eat two pieces of Dongpo pork!"

He grabbed Zhu Di's arm, his eyes shining brightly.

"Father, can you buy more of these things from the future? The more the better!"

"I didn't spend much money, but I can't buy too much."

Why?

Zhu Gaochi immediately became anxious.

Zhu Di glanced at him.

"Don't you think about it? If there were too much of this stuff, would it still be worth anything?"

"Old man, you've really lost your mind!"

Zhu Di was so choked by his words "you've lost your mind" that he almost couldn't catch his breath. Just as he was about to retort, he heard Zhu Gaochi say something else.

"Just buy more and take them outside. You're planning a voyage to the West anyway, right? This will do the trick!"

"Our Ming Dynasty's porcelain and silk can be exchanged for ten or even a hundred times more when shipped to the West."

"These glass mirrors and clocks are rare items, not only in the Ming Dynasty, but even in the West!"

He became more and more excited as he spoke, and his spittle almost splashed onto Zhu Di's face.

"Just imagine, if Zheng He's fleet carried these things and set them out in the Western countries, wouldn't those kings and nobles go crazy for them?"

"Not only can we exchange them for their spices, ivory, and gems, but we can also get them to pay with grain and copper ore. Wouldn't that cover the military expenses for the northern expedition and the silver for the river works?"

"We'll control the quantity! Domestically, we'll only supply a limited number to princes and nobles, with a maximum of two pieces per prince. Scarcity drives up the price, so domestic prices won't drop."

"They only bring one batch at a time from the West, sell it all, and leave, leaving them to look forward to the next fleet's arrival, which will also drive up the price!"

Zhu Gaochi patted his chest, a smug look on his face that said, "My son had already thought of everything."

"Won't the money just flow in like water then?"

Zhu Gaochi looked at him with a disappointed expression.

"Old man, you've never managed money! You have no idea how hard it is to make money!"

Zhu Di was moved by his words, but he remained defiant and snorted.

"You're not entirely stupid, kid. You haven't been in charge of the Ministry of Revenue for nothing all these years."

He paused, then lowered his voice.

"Alright! I'll try to get more next time, but you have to keep a close eye on things—domestic pricing can't be arbitrary, and trade with the West can only be supervised by Zheng He personally. Anyone who leaks information will be executed!"

Zhu Gaochi nodded vigorously.

"Father, don't worry! Your son will go and tell Zheng He right away to prepare the cargo hold in advance, specifically for storing these treasures!"

At this point, Zhu Gaochi glanced casually at the account books on the table and asked cautiously.

"By the way, Father, could you please provide some accounting methods from later generations? The Ministry of Revenue's account books are piled up like mountains; it's too much work to calculate!"

"That's easy. I'll ask Chen later and have him print out a copy."

"Print?"

Zhu Gaochi was somewhat puzzled.

"It's similar to printing, but much more convenient than here. I'll take you to see it when I have the chance."

Zhu Di muttered something to himself, as if he had suddenly thought of something.

"Speaking of making money, Chen also mentioned two things to me—paper money and banks."

"Paper money?"

Zhu Gaochi's face fell, and he slammed his thick hand on the table.

"Father! Our Ming Dynasty's paper money is almost worthless!"

He poured out all his grievances.

"During the Hongwu era, one string of paper money could be exchanged for one thousand copper coins. Now, one string of paper money can't even be exchanged for thirty copper coins. People treat the paper money like the plague. Merchants would rather accept Song coins or broken silver than accept the paper money issued by our imperial court!"

"Have you forgotten? Last year, when taxes were levied in Jiangnan, the people brought paper money to pay, but the tax officials refused to accept it. This caused a great uproar among the people. It was only after I had someone accept the paper money at a discounted price that the trouble was calmed down."

Zhu Di gave him a disdainful look.

"What's your hurry? I'm not talking about our rampant issuance of paper money!"

He leaned forward and lowered his voice.

"Young Chen said that the paper money of later generations cannot be printed casually. There must be reserves. Just like you need capital to do business, paper money must be backed by real gold, silver and copper mines. The amount of money printed must be backed by the amount of reserves that the people dare to use."

"Reserves?"

Zhu Gaochi's eyes lit up, and he instantly grasped the key point.

"You mean, using the gems and copper ore brought back from the West, along with the silver from the imperial treasury, as a base to print new banknotes?"

"good."

Zhu Di nodded.

"That's why I'm going to fight Japan, boss, you know that...?"

Zhu Di chuckled.

"There's a huge silver mine in Japan!"

"What?!!"

Zhu Gaochi suddenly jumped up from his chair, his voice cracking.

"Japan has a huge silver mine?! Father, why didn't you tell me sooner!"