Chapter 1115: Not Enough Money

"Zizhong, what brings you here?" Chen Xi asked as he entered the main hall, where Mi Zhu was calmly sipping tea. Seeing Mi Zhu's relaxed demeanor, Chen Xi felt reassured that the matter wasn’t urgent.

"It's like this," Mi Zhu said, pulling out a ledger from his sleeve. Unlike the accounting managed by Liu Ye, this was an internal account from the bank. By this point, Liu Ye and the others had come to view the bank as Chen Xi’s private endeavor, and Chen Xi had no way to change that perception.

Chen Xi glanced over the accounts and quickly calculated. Even without accounting for the minor details, expenditures had exceeded deposits by over a billion coins. Chen Xi was momentarily stunned.

"Was there a large withdrawal today?" Chen Xi asked calmly.

"I withdrew funds to pay the construction team led by Gong You, and to place orders for next year’s materials. This will set the tone for prosperity when the shops open at the beginning of the new year," Mi Zhu explained. His reasoning was sound.

At this time of year, they needed hard currency. On the fifth day of the first month, shops of all sizes would open for business. Large-scale orders placed at the end of the previous year ensured that every shop had business as soon as they opened. With this buffer and coordination, the entire year would see stable growth.

"Oh, how much do these orders total?" Chen Xi asked, already familiar with the process. He had, after all, assigned this task to Mi Zhu two years prior.

"The deposit is about seven billion coins. It's estimated that this will revitalize the industries across the five provinces under our control," Mi Zhu said with a bitter smile. He hadn’t anticipated needing so much. It was essentially the government placing orders to ensure businesses had work to do.

"Also, after calculating, we found that the official grain purchase price will need to rise to 170 coins per unit, which will inevitably drive up the price of all goods. Wages across the board will also need to be adjusted upward. It seems like there are many areas in need of funds this year," Mi Zhu said, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

"Go inform Wenru not to exchange it all for copper coins. Use banknotes instead. The seven billion you need will be allocated from Wenru’s reserves. We’ll also open up commercial loans," Chen Xi decided. Li You had apparently pulled ten billion in cash, which was an alarming move that could disrupt the credit system.

In fact, Chen Xi had completely forgotten that this ten billion was the amount he had originally set aside for Xu Shu to impress others. When Li You confiscated it, he had used the year-end accounts to quietly divert the funds for the upcoming year’s preparations.

To be honest, if it weren’t for the year-end settlements, the bank wouldn’t have had so much cash on hand. Most of the time, when Chen Xi needed funds, he avoided using hard currency unless absolutely necessary, relying instead on credit-backed currency.

However, Li You’s method of directly withdrawing physical currency had nearly broken Chen Xi’s financial flow. It was like juggling ten balls with two hands, and suddenly one was pulled out, disrupting the rhythm. If things fell apart, the entire credit system could collapse. If that happened, Chen Xi would have no choice but to resort to the extreme measures of an authoritarian ruler, seizing assets from the wealthy to stabilize the situation.

But such a move would send the entire economy into a deep freeze, wiping out all the prestige and momentum Chen Xi had built, which was the most terrifying consequence.

"Commercial loans?" Mi Zhu asked, confused.

"Yes, allow the people to deposit money into the bank, and also permit others to borrow money from the bank for business ventures. The bank will operate in two ways: one as a partnership where people invest, and the other as low-interest loans, with only one percent interest," Chen Xi explained slowly.

"At the same time, we’ll offer interest to depositors," Chen Xi, now feeling the pressure from the lack of cash, planned to attract public deposits by offering interest. With over twenty million citizens, if each person deposited just 100 coins, they’d have two billion coins in circulation. That would be enough to fund many projects.

By the way, Chen Xi also realized that as the economy improved, inflation seemed to be rising too fast. Grain prices during a good harvest had already climbed to 170 coins per unit. It was time to rein in the inflation and ensure the value of money remained stable.

"Of course, this benefit will only apply to ordinary citizens. Any registered citizen can apply for loans and deposit money, but noble families are excluded," Chen Xi added, waving his hand dismissively. It was better to have the aristocratic families deposit money without withdrawing it, especially since they wouldn’t understand the full implications yet.

"This..." Mi Zhu was stunned. Something about this plan didn’t seem quite right.

First of all, offering interest on deposits to the common people while excluding the aristocratic families was bound to cause dissatisfaction. Even though the amounts were small, the sheer number of people made it significant. And one day, if the funds ran dry, the public, used to these benefits, might revolt.

The people wouldn’t care if there was money or not. Once they had enjoyed something for a long time, it would become an expectation. When the government stopped providing it, they would not accept it easily.

Chen Xi noticed Mi Zhu’s uneasy expression but didn’t take it to heart. He was simply collecting funds. As long as the money earned more than it paid out each year, there would always be a surplus. Besides, by adjusting interest rates annually, and ensuring they were always lower than the previous year, the system would guarantee a profit.

"I think we need to discuss this further," Mi Zhu said, wiping the sweat from his brow.

"Don’t worry about the aristocrats. We can’t allow them to take loans yet, and we certainly won’t be paying them interest. If we did, they might realize this is just a money-shuffling scheme, borrowing from one source to pay off another," Chen Xi said, unconcerned.

"Won’t that cause dissatisfaction?" Mi Zhu asked, worried. This kind of thing would inevitably fall on him to announce, and explaining it would be no easy task.

"Don’t mind them. They may grumble, but they won’t act. If inequality truly bothered them, they would have overthrown us long ago. This is still within their tolerance range," Chen Xi replied dismissively. "Just tell them directly that I’m handing out money."

Cough "Alright, I’ll make sure to pass that along," Mi Zhu said helplessly. If Chen Xi insisted, there wasn’t much he could do.

"Are you distributing the orders across the subordinate businesses, who will then pass them down to the major merchants, and they, in turn, distribute them further down?" Chen Xi asked, paying little attention to Mi Zhu’s concerns. The noble families weren’t at the point of rebellion yet.

Chen Xi had provided the aristocracy with what he believed was a fair path forward, and as long as they continued down that path, everything would be fine. It was in neither party’s interest to sever ties over something so small.

Mi Zhu took the note from Chen Xi and headed off to ask Li You for the funds. Meanwhile, Chen Xi furrowed his brow, thinking about how he might offer the noble families a reward. After all, anyone could talk tough, but he still needed the aristocracy to work alongside him in the long run.

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