Ming Dynasty: I, Emperor Chongzhen, swear not to go to Meishan

Capital.

It stands to reason that the weather is freezing. If they are not forced to go out to work for a living, most people will hide at home and gather around the brazier to keep warm. If possible, they can warm up a pot of wine, chew a few green beans fried in oil, and drink them happily. Taking a sip of warm wine is so refreshing.

But today, many people braved the biting cold wind, hunched their heads, put their hands in their sleeves, and gathered on both sides of the street to watch the excitement.

Today is a good day for the opening of the Imperial Bank. In addition to the officials and gentry who came to cheer, there are also the people who come to watch the excitement. There are huge crowds of people, which makes it very lively.

The reason for such a sensation was that four Imperial Banks opened operations in the four urban areas of east, west, south and north at the same time. If you include the headquarters of the Imperial Bank, there are five.

This was sensational enough, but the key was that Emperor Chongzhen personally cut the ribbon and presided over the opening ceremony. This was unique in the Ming Dynasty, and it also made many people curious and pay attention to the Imperial Bank.

Of course, more people came to see the fun. If you can take a look at the real dragon emperor, you might be able to get some dragon energy and make a little fortune.

As for the Imperial Bank, in their eyes, it is nothing more than a bank that deposits money and lends money. It is no different from private banks such as Chase and Tongbao Bank. If there is a difference, it is that one is private and the other is the emperor's.

On the surface, the emperor's weight is very important, and those private banks are simply incomparable. But in terms of credibility, the emperor of the Ming Dynasty has Mao's credibility, and private banks such as Datong and Tongbao are more reliable.

Of course, for the poor people, no matter whether it is private banks or the Imperial Bank, they have nothing to do with them. They are too poor to afford rice porridge. How can they still have money to save in banks?

In their minds, the bank is a forbidden place for the poor and a place where only the rich can go.

Zhu Youjian spent some time and energy in order to mess with the Imperial Bank. Just choosing the bank's location gave him a headache. The capital is the capital, the center of politics, culture, and economy, and the most populous metropolis. The land is ridiculously expensive. It is not an exaggeration to say that every inch of land is valuable.

There were some properties under the royal family's name, and some prisoners' homes were confiscated. The properties under their names were not confiscated, but were swallowed up by the Jinyiwei who were ordered to confiscate their homes. The property deeds and land deeds were finally transferred to Zhu Youjian's hands.

However, these properties are not in the selected address area, and they need to discuss exchanges with some homeowners. It is impossible for Zhu Youjian to come forward, and it is difficult for Jin Yiwei to come forward. In the end, Ruan Dacheng, the deputy minister of the cabinet, has to be asked to come forward for help.

Merchants pursue profit, but it also depends on the situation. It seems that the emperor has taken a liking to their shop. If they are particularly flexible, they will give it away for free. If they are wealthy, they don't care about the money at all. If they can establish a relationship with the emperor, then That's the kingly way.

Zhu Youjian is not polite. If you dare to give it, I dare to ask for it. Anyway, many wealthy businessmen in the Ming Dynasty are bad guys who are unkind for getting rich. Some even dare to risk having their homes confiscated and beheaded, selling grain, iron ore and other prohibited items for profit. The Qing Empire in the north was even more exaggerated and directly regarded as traitors and traitors.

After solving the land problem, the next step is to knock down the building and build it according to the bank building he designed. Just finding masons and other workers is another headache. Fortunately, this matter only needs to be left to Shen Baichuan, the governor of Jinyiwei Town. That’s it.

The five buildings of the Imperial Bank are all epoch-making and advanced designs, using reinforced concrete building structures. In particular, the construction of the five large vaults is more complex. Many details require his supervision on site, and he patiently explains them to the masons again and again. , and didn’t let them start until they understood.

Five epoch-making bank buildings were built at the same time without any engineering machinery. Logically speaking, the construction time should be very long, but there are so many people. There are as many as 2,000 masons who know how to build. This is still counting bricks on the construction site. There are only temporary workers, and it is only a three-and-a-half-story office building. It is difficult to predict whether the project progress will be fast.

It is true that there is strength in numbers, but the cost is also high. Fortunately, Zhu Youjian is now very wealthy, and his small treasury is full. He makes a lot of money just by selling glass, and his hands twitch when he counts the money.

I don’t know since when, wealthy families quietly began to install glass windows. They are not only fashionable and provide good lighting, but more importantly, they are a symbol of status. A carved glass window is as high-end as you want. .

Because Zhu Youjian played the trick of hunger marketing, the output of glass was not high and the price was expensive, but there were many rich people who could not stand up to the Ming dynasty. Orders were scheduled until two years later, and there was no need to ship it to stores for sale.

Some rich people who have too much money to spend spend directly buy glass windows at high prices in order to be the first to use them. Some even go so far as to double the price. They are so arrogant that even Zhu Youjian gave them a thumbs up. Thumbs up.

Rich people who have installed glass windows frequently invite relatives and friends over for dinner, just for the purpose of showing off.