Joy of Life: I am Li Chengze, and I have mastered the Eight Wonders

Chapter 44 Internal Treasury
Li Chengze asked in a deep voice:
"The princess has returned to the capital?"

"She gave you the accounting documents of the inner treasury?"

"I have asked someone to do a preliminary calculation."

"The inner treasury has a deficit of more than 20 million taels!"

"She's forcing me to give up control of the inner treasury!"

There was a hint of anxiety in Fan Xian's tone. He came here to seek a solution.

"Your Highness, do you have any good ideas to help me solve this situation?" Fan Xian asked.

This time he came to seek help.

"Reminder: Trigger the passive level quest 'Fortune'!"

As soon as Fan Xian finished speaking, a system prompt sounded in Li Chengze's mind.

This hint made Li Chengze secretly happy.

Li Yunrui was such a pleasant surprise. He brought two tasks as soon as he showed up. It was really a pleasant surprise.

"The gold-level passive quest 'Wealth' has been triggered!"

"Mission objective: to fill the huge deficit in the inner treasury."

"Reward for completing the mission: 1 gold-level treasure chest."

"Penalty for mission failure: Randomly deprive of one piece of knowledge, skill, item or bloodline."

"Choose to accept/decline."

As Fan Xian finished speaking, he triggered this passive task in a requesting manner. Li Chengze thought for a moment, then stretched out his finger and lightly touched it, accepting the task.

Li Chengze reviewed his task list and found that he had quite a lot of tasks on hand:-
The goal of the mission "War" is to resolve the conflict between Li Yunrui and Fan Xian.
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The passive mission "The End of the Crown Prince" aims to overthrow the crown prince's position.
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The passive mission "Wealth" aims to fill the shortfall of more than 20 million taels in the inner treasury.

"Your Highness, what do you think?" Seeing Li Chengze deep in thought, Fan Xian could not help but ask again.

"This deficit of more than 20 million taels is not a small amount. Do you have any plans?" Li Chengze asked Fan Xian.

In the original novel, Fan Xian had thought of raising funds by issuing bonds, and with the help of Emperor Qing in the flower viewing event at the Hanging Temple, he successfully completed the task. Li Chengze knew that solving this problem might require some innovative financial means and political wisdom.

"I have considered issuing bonds to attract private capital to fill this deficit," Fan Xian replied, "but such an approach requires the support of His Majesty, and also requires a sound plan to ensure the safety and return of the funds."

Li Chengze nodded in agreement: "This is indeed a feasible method. We need to formulate a detailed plan, including the bond issuance scale, interest rate, repayment plan, etc., and consider how to attract investors and how to ensure the long-term stability of the internal treasury."

The two began to discuss in depth to find the best solution to the problem. Li Chengze knew that this was not only a financial issue, but also a political issue, and that it was necessary to skillfully balance the interests of all parties to achieve the goal.

"Your Highness, what do you think?" Fan Xian asked anxiously, obviously very concerned about this issue.

Li Chengze pondered for a moment, then slowly said: "I do have a few options here, you can choose according to your own situation."

"Oh? Your Highness, please tell me about it." A hint of anticipation flashed in Fan Xian's eyes.

"I have three strategies: best, medium and worst. Which one do you want to hear first?" Li Chengze asked.

"Three strategies? Your Highness, I haven't even thought of one solution yet, and you already have three strategies?" Fan Xian's eyes widened in surprise. "Your Highness, please tell me the best strategy first." Fan Xian said impatiently.

"Okay, the best strategy is to issue treasury bonds," Li Chengze explained. "We can explain the concept of treasury bonds to the wealthy merchants in Kyoto and even the whole country, convert the 20 million taels of debt into bonds, and fill the deficit by selling these bonds."

"Treasury debt?" Fan Xian frowned, apparently unfamiliar with this concept.

"Treasury bonds, in simple terms, are a type of debt certificate issued by the government. Buyers are equivalent to lending money to the government, and the government will repay the principal and interest at a certain point in the future." Li Chengze continued to explain, "This method can immediately obtain a large amount of funds and alleviate the current fiscal pressure."

"It sounds good, but it may take some time for people to accept this concept." Fan Xian said thoughtfully.

"We need to use some methods to promote and explain this." Li Chengze nodded. "We can hold some lectures or publicize the benefits of treasury bonds through court announcements, so that people understand that buying treasury bonds can not only help the country solve the financial crisis, but also bring them stable income."

"What about the middle strategy?" Fan Xian asked curiously.

"The middle policy is to increase taxes," said Li Chengze. "By adjusting tax policies, we can increase the tax rates on luxury goods or high-income earners, thereby increasing the revenue of the treasury. Of course, this needs to be done with caution to avoid causing social dissatisfaction."

"What's the worst option?" Fan Xian asked.

"The next best option is to cut spending," Li Chengze explained. "By reviewing and cutting unnecessary spending, such as reducing the extravagant spending of the court and unnecessary military spending, we can reduce fiscal spending and thus ease fiscal pressure."

"These three options have their own advantages and disadvantages. The best option can solve the problem quickly, but it takes time for people to accept it; the middle option may cause some social conflicts; the worst option requires us to start from within, which may affect some vested interests." Li Chengze concluded.

Fan Xian pondered for a while, then said, "I will carefully consider these three options and see which one is more suitable for the current situation. Thank you for your advice, Your Highness."

Li Chengze smiled and nodded, showing his understanding. He knew that every decision needed to be carefully considered, especially in such a major matter concerning the national finances. Withdrawal, such convenience can attract a large number of businessmen. "

"Your Highness, your idea is very forward-looking." Fan Xian nodded in agreement. "The convenience of banks is indeed the key to attracting customers."

"Moreover, we can also provide some additional services, such as bills of exchange, letters of credit, etc., to further increase the attractiveness of the bank," Li Chengze added.

"Bills of exchange and letters of credit?" Fan Xian seemed a little curious about this concept.

"Yes, a bill of exchange is a payment tool that allows merchants to transfer funds between different places without having to carry large amounts of cash. It is safe and convenient. A letter of credit is a guarantee issued by a bank that proves that a merchant has sufficient funds to complete a transaction, which can increase the merchant's credibility," Li Chengze explained.

"These services sound useful, but to implement them, we need a complete system and reliable personnel." Fan Xian murmured.

"That's true. We need to establish a strict management system to ensure that the bank's operations are transparent and safe. At the same time, we also need to cultivate a group of professionals who understand financial knowledge and can operate these services," said Li Chengze.

"Then, do we still need to formulate some laws and regulations to regulate the operation of banks and protect the interests of depositors and borrowers?" Fan Xian raised another question.

"Of course, laws and regulations are indispensable. We need to cooperate with the court to formulate a complete set of banking regulations, including deposit insurance, loan approval process, risk control and other aspects." Li Chengze nodded.

"It seems that we still have a lot of work to do to run the bank well." Fan Xian sighed, but his eyes were shining with determination.

"Yes, but this is a long-term investment. Once successful, it will not only solve the current financial problems, but also bring lasting economic benefits to the country." Li Chengze encouraged.

"Okay, that's settled. We'll start from Kyoto and gradually expand to other cities." Fan Xian made up his mind.

"I will fully support you, and we will work together to run this bank well." Li Chengze also expressed his support.

The two reached a consensus and decided to work together to promote the establishment and development of the bank in order to solve the problem of treasury deficit and lay a solid foundation for the country's prosperity and stability.

(End of this chapter)