Chapter 711: Chapter 705, Chapter 706: Money Begets Money, Wealth Flows in Abundance_2

After a while, a tall and graceful woman cleared the way, followed by several Armored Warriors escorting a young man and an elder.

Everyone who had dealings with this woman knew she was the public Steward of Fu Ze Restaurant, named Qing Dance.

The young man, indeed, was none other than the currently prominent King Wei.

The elder was a clan elder dispatched by the Wu Family.

Chen Mo, dressed in a Python Robe, entered, and everyone tensed up at the sight of him, showing expressions of reverence and awe.

Although their families were wealthy and had officials as backing and even nurtured Martial Artists, they couldn’t compare to Chen Mo, a Prince with military power, let alone the fact that he was also an Upper Third-Grade Martial Artist himself.

Chen Mo smiled, gesturing with his hands, and said, "Please, gentlemen, be seated."

It wasn’t until Chen Mo sat down that the others slowly took their seats; this was a restaurant, after all, so there were plenty of tables and chairs.

"You may leave," Chen Mo instructed the Armored Warriors and then turned to Qing Dance, "Inform the kitchen, they may serve the dishes now."

"Yes."

The departure of the Armored Warriors significantly relieved everyone’s pressure.

...

Chen Mo didn’t speak immediately; he waited for the food and drinks to be served before saying, "I am grateful for all of you accepting my invitation to be here, and for that, I propose a toast to you all."

Chen Mo stood up and raised his glass.

The others quickly stood up, startled, even though it was Chen Mo toasting them; none dared to remain seated, hastily toasting Chen Mo in return, all while feeling a sense of foreboding.

The saying goes: ’If something is offered with excessive politeness without reason, it must be deceit or theft.’

King Wei’s toast at the beginning likely meant what was to follow would not be trivial.

After the toast, Chen Mo smilingly gestured for everyone to sit and then said with a smile, "Today, I invited you all because I have an important matter to discuss..."

"Just as expected." Everyone was mentally prepared for a significant financial contribution.

"You all are reputable merchants of our Great Song, arguably even more knowledgeable in commerce than myself. Since the founding of the preceding dynasty, several wealthy merchants in Jiangnan had united to establish a bank due to the inconvenience of heavy currency, issuing a type of paper currency to replace copper coins and silver taels.

But as you all know, the preceding court’s interference, coupled with unfavorable circumstances and a national financial strain, led to arbitrary printing, disrupting normal trade and causing the value of paper currency to depreciate until it became worthless," Chen Mo stated slowly.

Upon hearing this, the merchants weren’t fools; they realized that King Wei intended to establish a bank and wanted them to invest.

Fortunately, they were already prepared for a significant financial contribution and just waited for Chen Mo to finish speaking before expressing their stance.

After all, in such circumstances, leaving money unoffered wasn’t just embarrassing; more importantly, did they dare offend King Wei?

Chen Mo continued speaking, his gaze shifting to Qing Dance, "How many have responded to the invitation today?"

"Twenty-seven families, not one less," Qing Dance replied.

Chen Mo nodded, "With my family included, that’s twenty-eight families. Our combined strength surpasses those several wealthy merchants of Jiangnan by multiple folds. Hence, I won’t mince words. We can jointly establish banks in various provinces, issuing a paper currency to be called silver notes, to replace coins. This way, your business dealings become much more convenient and safe. What do you all think?"

"Indeed," the crowd thought to themselves. However, they also felt a bit more relieved, at least knowing the purpose makes it easier to deal with.

Just contributing money—the eventual success of the bank wasn’t their concern. They were already prepared to be taken for a sum by Chen Mo.

Of course, they didn’t speak first, instead turning their gaze to the Wu, Xiao, Yi, and Wang Families, as these families were deeply connected with Chen Mo—a proper example for leading this effort.

Simultaneously, they could gauge their contribution based on the amount those families put forth.

However, it was the Li, Xiao, and Gan Families that spoke first. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

They were the maternal families of Madam Hui, Madam Xiao, and Madam Gan.

They each expressed their willingness to invest two hundred thousand taels.

Everyone was astonished upon hearing this, not expecting these three families to act faster than the Wu and Xiao Families.

They also recalled the rumors circulating in the town, and their expressions turned slightly peculiar.

The Wu, Xiao, Yi, and Wang Families were also stunned. The Li Family was understandable due to Chu Juan being legitimate, but the Xiao and Gan Families, being from the status of an external chamber, were also this willing to invest...

After a brief moment of amazement, the clan elder of the Wu Family spoke, not with an offer of money but with an inquiry, "Establishing banks and issuing silver notes is indeed convenient and safe; however, the biggest issue is the unrestricted printing by the issuer. If they need money, they can print more, which will inevitably lead to depreciation over time. How does Your Highness intend to address this concern pertaining to the issuance of silver notes?"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone nodded repeatedly but quickly changed their expressions subtly, pondering strangely. Wasn’t the Wu Family, being the maternal family of Princess Consort Wei, supposed to be loyal supporters of King Wei? Why are they raising doubts now? Is this opposition?

However, shortly after, everyone came to an understanding.

Paper money wasn’t an invention of the preceding dynasty; it existed in the two dynasties before. It had always been a tool for courts to exploit merchants, causing many wealthy merchants to go bankrupt and countless common people to suffer, with the court taking all the money.

Those with shallow ties to Chen Mo could afford to take a hit this time, withdrawing midway without needing the bank’s silver notes. But the Wu Family, being deeply intertwined with Chen Mo, couldn’t easily withdraw midway. As long as the bank existed, the Wu Family couldn’t exit for a day, and it would be only a matter of time before their assets turned into mere bubbles.

Even among closest siblings, clear accounts are needed. Thus, careful planning was required for this matter.

Simultaneously, they held their breath, lowering their heads, fearing Chen Mo’s anger at this question.

Unbeknownst to them, it was part of a prearranged agreement between Chen Mo and the Wu Family for the clan elder to say this intentionally.

Chen Mo genuinely wanted to establish the bank correctly; if it were merely to exploit through the bank, he might as well resort to outright robbery since that would also be a one-time thing.

What he wanted was a steady and continuous flow.

Chen Mo smiled, "I can refrain from interference in this matter; you all can handle it while I act as a mere facilitator."

This notion was initially suggested to Chen Mo by Ning Wan.

Chen Mo had intended to handle it alone using the court’s power.

But Ning Wan advised him that a single person couldn’t manage the banking affair. Despite having the court’s backing, the bank would not flourish without the support of wealthy merchants and moguls, and it wouldn’t draw in funds.

She informed Chen Mo that the court could only serve as a vessel, while merchants were the water in the vessel.

She also told Chen Mo how it should be done.

The crowd showed signs of confusion.

Chen Mo smiled and said, "It’s quite simple, set up a chamber of commerce. I’ll provide the funds while you manage the printing, transferring the right of issuance to you, and I’ll only oversee the process."

These words brightened everyone’s eyes.

Previously, the court’s arbitrary printing of paper money harmed the common people and merchants, while the court incurred no loss, pocketing all the money—being beyond people’s reach for penalization, allowing the court to act without restraint.

But if they were given the issuing rights, they wouldn’t dare print capriciously because Chen Mo, acting as the overseer, could easily penalize them.

However, Chen Mo hadn’t finished speaking, and when he fully divulged his plan, everyone became completely excited.

"I plan to contribute three million taels to the chamber of commerce. The chamber of commerce will print three million taels’ worth of silver notes. You can then exchange the silver notes from the chamber’s bank. This way, if I interfere, it’s my own money at stake—you can simply withdraw."

The national treasury might be out of funds, but Chen Mo’s private residence wasn’t. He planned to use his wife’s dowry.

Doing this also facilitated accounting for Chen Mo—since he only provided three million taels, any additional excess printing, say four million taels, would undoubtedly hint at someone over-printing, making it easier to trace the incorrect issuer.

At that moment, everyone engaged in hushed discussions, whispering among themselves, thrilled by the promising prospects.

"Your Highness, how should the chamber of commerce you mentioned be established?" Qin Hao couldn’t help but ask.

"It will be organized by you. You will elect the heads of the chamber yourselves to manage operations, and I will refrain from interfering. Anyone joining the chamber of commerce can invest in maritime trade, and you’ll establish a share structure yourselves. Any profits from maritime trade will be distributed annually, divided by share ratio, and I’ll only take thirty percent from it."

Chen Mo solely wished to leverage their resources to get the bank up and running, achieving significant results.

Allowing them to invest in maritime trade was due to the upfront costs for overseas voyages being beyond the court’s reach initially.