Chu Guang could understand Old Charlie's complaints.
The more exciting his little players were on the front line, the more tense the situation was in the rear.
It is no exaggeration to say that in the past few months, almost all the money-related units in the entire alliance, from the central bank to the Ministry of Finance to the Merchants' Union, have been cleaning up the alliance's army. So far, there have been no major problems in production and economy, which is inseparable from the cooperation between various departments.
Of course, the most important thing is that he fulfilled the promise he made at the beginning and ended the war before the end of the year.
"Let's talk about the first question first."
Speaking, Chu Guang looked at Minister Sun Ruicai, who was sitting at the other end of the conference table with a nervous face, and continued in a gentle tone.
"Do you still remember the last question on that test paper?"
Sun Ruicai was stunned for a moment, and quickly realized what the test paper Chu Guang was talking about, and said immediately.
"Remember! I remember the question was...if we borrowed money from the predators, should we pay it back?"
Chu Guang: "What's your answer?"
"I wrote 'yes' at the time..." Sun Ruicai said nervously, "I think it would be better to pay the money back first and then take it back than to just default on it. Otherwise, others would worry that they would be labeled predators because they borrowed money from us."
Chu Guang nodded approvingly, then looked at Old Charlie.
"Unfortunately, he was the only one who answered this question to my satisfaction. Some candidates were arguing, saying that the alliance would never trade with the predators, so the question was invalid. Others thought that we could just steal the money, since no one would sympathize with the predators anyway. However, if things were really that simple, we wouldn't need to have a Ministry of Finance, and we could just hire a 'steward' to get everything done."
Predators are different from mutants, and this is not something that can be distinguished at a glance. On the contrary, it can also be a pocket that can hold anything.
Confiscating the property of the plunderer and declaring the creditor a plunderer have completely different consequences.
Of course, the reason why Chu Guang said he was half satisfied was because there was actually a better way.
It is more clever to make the creditor's IOU worthless by appropriate means than to use force to snatch the IOU from the creditor.
Old Charlie coughed lightly.
"I didn't say you would default on the money... That was just an exaggeration. The original intention was to hope that you could understand how serious our current financial situation is."
Chu Guang smiled and nodded.
"I can understand your feelings. We must pay back the money. We can't default on the debt. So now it involves the second question... How to pay back the money."
As he said, he looked at Sun Ruicai.
"How much do we have to pay back by the end of the year?"
Sun Ruicai said immediately.
"The total debt scale is 510 million chips, the loan period ranges from 20 to 50 years, and the principal and interest total 10.17 million chips!"
Chu Guang nodded, and suddenly sighed.
"Too little."
Both the debt scale and the principal and interest to be repaid are too little!
If the repayment at the end of the year is 100 million, I'm afraid that before he gets off the airship, President Melvin of Boulder City Bank will be waiting for him under the airship.
How could he wait for Avni and Boss Xia after standing for a long time?
Sun Rui was stunned for a moment, and Old Charlie was also stunned for half a second.
"Too little..."
"Well," Chu Guang nodded, looking at them distressedly, "During the time I was on the front line, you have been too wronged. Minister Sun Ruicai just said that the deficit contributed by military expenditure accounts for 76.9% of the total deficit of the alliance. Even if the proportion of military industry in our current total industrial output value is relatively high, this financial report is still quite unhealthy."
You also know that this is unhealthy!
Old Charlie couldn't help but say.
"This is the result of the logistics department being as frugal as possible..."
Chu Guang looked at the old man and continued.
"That's the problem. The deficit contributed by military expenditure has reached 900 million. If our investment in infrastructure has also reached 900 million, wouldn't this ratio drop from 76.9% to 50%?"
After hearing Chu Guang's words, Old Charlie was completely dumbfounded. Sun Ruicai, who was sitting next to him, was also stunned.
What kind of logical genius is this?
And aren't they discussing how to pay back the money?
Why do you think they spend too little?
"It was just a joke to lighten the mood, but the logic is still the same."
Looking at the speechless old Charlie and Minister Sun, Chu Guang put away his joking expression, looked at the two of them seriously and continued.
"I went to the trouble to help you borrow money so that the residents of the alliance can live a good life, not to make you tighten your belt to pay off your debts. So when you told me that you would adopt a more conservative economic strategy in the next three years, and that you would lead everyone to suffer, first reduce the scale of debt and then expand our business, I was very heartbroken... If the final result is like this, why should I fight this war?"
"Individuals can reduce the scale of debt by tightening their belts, but the collective must never do so. Debt is a rope. Once we are trapped by it, we will become slaves of the creditors. If the problem is solved by shrinking the balance sheet, do you know what it means? It means that the entire alliance will have to work for Boulder City in the next three or even five years! Is this what a victorious country should do? We owe money, and we are their fathers!"
Old Charlie looked at Chu Guang blankly, confused by this tortuous logic.
One second ago, he said that debt is a rope to tie up slaves, but the next second, he said that the debtor is the father of the creditor?
Minister Sun Ruicai was also stunned, but he did understand the manager's thinking in another sense.
"...You mean, debt is a rope, the creditor can use it to tie us, but conversely, we can also use this rope to pull...them?"
Chu Guang picked up the cup and drank a sip of water, moistening his throat while calming his tone a little.
"That's right."
"So before discussing how to pay back the money, I must first change your mindset and tell you that shrinking the balance sheet to pay back the debt is 'absolutely' not feasible, at least not for us. If you want to pay back the debt and guarantee the credit of the Alliance Government, you can't shrink the balance sheet, but should continue to increase spending and spend more money!"
"But how to spend money is a science. We can't learn from the nobles of Giant Stone City, nor can we copy the experience of Ideal City. I have to use our own model."
After a pause, Chu Guang continued.
"This time when I come back from the front line, what I have to do can be summarized as one thing."
Old Charlie swallowed his saliva.
"...What?"
Chu Guang said with a smile.
"Share the spoils with the citizens of the Alliance!"
Sun Rui was stunned for a moment and didn't react.
"Share... the spoils?"
"That's right," Chu Guang nodded, "The victory of the alliance is inseparable from the support of all citizens. Our army can't just use fists to defeat those jackals. We have gained two vassal states and two trading partners. Our residents can clearly feel that food has become cheaper. Before, one hour of work could exchange for less than a pound of corn, but now it can be exchanged for one kilogram... But this is not enough, it is far from enough for the winner!"
As he spoke, he raised his voice.
"The residents of the Alliance should not only have corn and potatoes on their tables. Only pigs, cattle and sheep eat corn cobs and nutritional paste every day. They should also have meat, eggs and milk on their tables. We should make it affordable for them and allow them to buy it. Then they can eat whatever they want and make as much as they want!"
"Not only food, but also clothes! Last winter, we stuffed the pre-war banknotes into the quilt as cotton wool. I promised that it was the last time, and now I will fulfill this promise. This winter, everyone will cover themselves with real quilts, wear clean and warm cotton clothes and leather boots, and live in airtight houses-"
"And it's far more than that!"
The resounding voice echoed in the conference room.
After hearing these words, Sun Ruicai felt a burst of heat in his heart, and couldn't help but quietly applaud under the table.
Speaking of which, wasn't it because the man in front of him promised to let everyone live a good life that he ended his wandering life and chose to stay?
He felt ashamed that he had the idea of asking everyone to tighten their belts and pay off their debts for a moment.
It is natural to pay back debts.
But he is the Minister of Finance of the Alliance, and he has the obligation to come up with a better solution for the Alliance!
Unlike Sun Ruicai, who was excited, Old Charlie did not react much, but just stared at Chu Guang.
He admitted.
This man's words have a kind of bewitching magic.
If this was a speech in public, not an internal discussion, the applause on the scene would probably open the ceiling.
People would stand up and cheer for him, shout his name, and even regard him as a living god, willing to sacrifice their lives for him... In fact, many people have already done so. Becoming a member of the Guards is almost the dream of all the young men in the Alliance.
In the wasteland, what is more attractive than having enough food and clothing?
And he promised not only to feed and clothe the residents of the Alliance, but also to let them live with dignity... Let everyone live with dignity, this is a big talk that even the Lord of Boulder City dare not say.
Rather, the only people who can really do it in the entire wasteland are probably the people in the Ideal City.
But after thinking about it, Old Cha felt relieved.
This is actually not the biggest pie that the administrator has drawn.
Compared with "building a new ideal city on the ruins" and "returning to the era of prosperity", this boast is actually small.
Chu Guang smiled at Sun Ruicai, and seeing that he had something to say, he raised his hand slightly, indicating that he had not finished speaking.
After a pause, Chu Guang changed to a relaxed tone and continued.
"I occasionally entrust my assistants to observe how our residents live... Of course, this does not include their personal privacy."
"For example, a girl working at a trading post has to work six days a week, from 7 am to 7 pm, with only an hour of lunch break in between. She can only go back to the village beside Linghu Lake to reunite with her family on Saturday night, and then go back to work on Monday morning."
"In the past, we were short of people, so we had to ask our workers to work a little longer, but now we have passed the most difficult period, and I think we should give them back the time that originally belonged to them."
"So when I was still on the front line, I called the head of the trading post and asked him to increase the number of employees by 50%, adjust the average daily working hours of each person from 12 hours to 8 hours, and adopt a more flexible schedule."
"This set of rules has been running for half a month, and it turns out that it works completely!"
"The employees of the trade station will be more enthusiastic about their work and treat every customer with more patience. Not only will those merchants who travel all over the country leave a good impression on us, but our employees will also be able to live a better life. After get off work, they don't have to lie in the dormitory in a daze as if they have drained all their energy. They can go out more often, whether it's to study in the library, go to the snack street, or socialize with friends, do what young people should do."
"Of course, we have to solve not only one person's problem, but everyone's problem. The trade station is just a pilot. From now on, all factories, institutions, and facilities in the alliance, whether they belong to collectives or individuals, should do the same! I plan to write it into the law, and I am ready to double the budget for this."
After a pause, Chu Guang looked at Old Charlie and Minister Sun Ruicai and expressed his thoughts.
"We not only want to give the residents of the alliance time, we also want to make them rich. Our current minimum hourly wage is 1 silver coin, which can no longer keep up with the economic growth of the alliance. I plan to increase the minimum hourly wage of the alliance to 3 silver coins at the beginning of next year, and gradually increase the median to 5 silver coins."
"When the residents of the alliance have both money and time, they will have consumption power and more demands. As long as we can keep inflation within a reasonable range, a market with amazing growth and business opportunities will be formed here."
"And in order to earn more interest, the nobles of Boulder City will not only not urge us to repay our debts, but will also try their best to send the chips they have saved to us. After all, we will soon use these chips to buy their things and let them earn their chips back. In this way, even if Boulder City Bank does not print a penny, the chips in their pockets can double, or even more than double!"
Sun Ruicai held his breath.
Old Charlie also looked at Chu Guang in surprise.
By now, he basically understood Chu Guang's idea.
This guy not only did not plan to reduce the scale of debt, but instead planned to borrow more money.
Use the borrowed money to develop the economy, invest in infrastructure, improve the lives of residents, and further expand the economic scale of the alliance, and then attract more hot money to come in.
But there is still a loophole in this...
Old Charlie said cautiously.
"But we have to use the chips we earned from them to repay the debt of Giant Stone City. It is impossible to pay them back with silver coins."
Sun Ruicai also calmed down after hearing this.
"...Indeed, their residents had consumption power before, but now they have to save even the nutritional paste."
Looking at the two worried people, Chu Guang nodded approvingly.
"Being able to observe this shows that you are attentive, and it also shows that our plan has successfully entered the second stage. A large number of chips are concentrated in the pockets of the nobles of Giant Stone City, indirectly pushing up the inflation of Giant Stone City. If you are a noble in Giant Stone City, watching the people around you getting richer and richer, with more and more chips in your pocket, but less and less money, what would you do?"
Sun Ruicai thought for a moment, suddenly showed a look of realization, and said excitedly.
"Preserve value! I have to buy something or an industry that can increase in value before the chips depreciate!"
Chu Guang smiled and nodded.
"Correct, although not comprehensive."
Blind investment is one of the complications of economic overheating. People will lose their minds in the frenzy and invest blindly in order to make the money in their pockets outperform inflation.
Because the money comes too easily.
It seems that you can make money with your eyes closed.
Gradually, people will be more worried about missing the opportunity to get on the train than losing money.
"...In the entire southern part of the Valley Province, there will be no market more worthy of investment than the Alliance. Anyway, they are probably not interested in wasting money on those poor people who can't even afford the nutritional cream, and I don't expect to earn their money to pay off my debts."
"In addition to investment, the nobles in the inner city will become more extravagant in their consumption habits than before. We only need to give them a little chance and encourage them to expand their horizons, and they will send money themselves. For example... develop tourism and entertainment industries, let them compete with the people in Ideal City to see who can waste more money. Another example is to issue more bonds to attract hot money that they can't find investment opportunities in their hands."
"As for the residents of Boulder City... although it is sympathetic, it is something that Boulder City should worry about. If they can't even afford the nutritional cream, those people will naturally come to the Alliance to eat corn."
Chu Guang sympathized with their plight.
Those survivors were also suffering people in the wasteland.
But he also said that he would prioritize the interests of the Alliance and would never sacrifice the interests of his own people for others.
And if they are willing to come, he doesn't mind giving them a share of the leeks cut from the inner city nobles and helping them start a new life.
Anyway, that was originally the result of their labor.
"... In order to unify the management of the alliance's foreign debts and to enable our creditors to exercise their debts more conveniently and efficiently, I plan to let the alliance central bank and Boulder City Bank issue a "bond" denominated in chips."
"It can replace chips to a certain extent. Regardless of whether Boulder City Bank recognizes its currency status, we will redeem it according to the face interest rate when it matures. If the nobles of Boulder City don't mind, it's okay to take this IOU as money."
Old Charlie hesitated.
"Will Boulder City Bank agree?"
This is obviously a big pit...
Chu Guang smiled and said.
"Believe me, even if I don't mention it, they will take the initiative to ask me to come up with a similar plan so that their debts can circulate like banknotes."
Old Charlie was silent for a while, suddenly sighed, and said with emotion.
"It seems that I am really old."
Chu Guang shook his head.
"No, I can only provide macro-strategies. The details still need you to study and discuss and improve them."
"I will try my best to keep up with your pace." Old Charlie glanced at Sun Ruicai and then said, "Today's meeting... I suggest keeping it confidential."
In a sense, what they discussed was not how to repay the debt, but how to cut more leeks from the neighbors.
If this gets out, it may not boost the confidence of the creditors, but the creditors may even think about jumping off the building.
Sun Ruicai nodded seriously and held the meeting notes on the table tightly.
"Understood!"
Chu Guang said nothing and acquiesced to Old Charlie's suggestion to keep the content of the meeting confidential, even though he felt that it didn't matter whether it was confidential or not.
Many things are obvious.
Someone must have noticed that the asset bubble in Boulder City is constantly piling up, and the risks hidden in the bubble.
For example, the president of Boulder City Bank.
If the person only takes a little time to check the account book, he will find that the chips circulating in Boulder City are even more than the total chips issued by Boulder City.
However, the person who finds the problem will definitely not take the initiative to burst the bubble, because doing so will not benefit him at all, but will cause him trouble.
It is the "smart" way to make enough money before the bubble bursts.
If the last stop is a cliff, then get off before the penultimate stop...
The closed-door meeting lasted only one hour and ended.
Although many people heard that the manager held such a meeting to solve the debt problem after returning, no one except the three people who attended the meeting knew what was discussed at the meeting, and no one knew what instructions the alliance manager gave to the Merchants' Union and the Ministry of Finance.
Just when the merchants from Boulder City were speculating whether the alliance had no money to repay its debts, the next day after the meeting, an announcement issued by the Dawn City Hall slapped everyone in the face.
The entire announcement is probably tens of thousands of words, but it can be summarized in two words -
That is bidding!
And it is a bidding for multiple fields at the same time!
First of all, it is about travel.
The Shuguang City Hall will bid for 50 electric buses at a price of 5 million silver coins, and put them into the existing 6 public transportation routes and 4 new ones, replacing the trucks originally used to transport goods and troops, striving to reduce the commuting cost of residents to less than 1 silver coin, and they can "sit" on the bus decently without getting their pants dirty.
Not only buses, but also related supporting facilities.
The Shuguang City Hall's bidding plan also includes a total of 50 kilometers of concrete roads and four new charging stations.
And this is not the most eye-catching!
The most eye-catching announcement has become the headline of the "Survivor Daily" that day...
Early morning.
A single-family house in Linghu Wetland Park.
Looking at the newly published "Survivor Daily" in his hand, Fang Chang, who was sitting at the dining table, had a surprised expression on his face.
"Wow... this is a lot of silver coins."
Luca, the lord of Dawn City, announced that in order to accommodate the survivors who continued to pour into Dawn City and to improve the living environment of the residents in the city, the City Hall planned to bid for the construction of 1,000 new apartment buildings on the wasteland in the northeast of Qingquan City, requiring the average area of the unit to be more than 40 square meters, and each building can accommodate at least 48 households, and no more than 60 households.
According to past practice, players can also participate in the design and bidding.
He dared to bet.
With the enthusiasm of those professional life players for making money, this matter will definitely replace the hot search of "B6 layer" and become the hottest topic on the front page of today's dominating forum!
The newspaper also has a picture, which almost encloses the vacant land on the east side of the Embassy Street in Dawn City, and two of the newly planned bus routes are also in it.
But then again, this is both road construction and house construction.
Where does the money come from?
It was agreed that the economic system was almost completely real, but why do these NPCs not play by the rules?
No.
Fang Chang thought about it and found that he had been brought into the real world by inertia.
In fact, the situation in the wasteland is completely different from reality.
What is the most valuable thing here?
Black box?
Technology?
None of them!
But people!
People do research, people do design, people screw and farm, and people go to mine and explore ruins.
Only with people can we have the ability to excavate ruins and recover the treasures of pre-war civilization. Without enough manpower, let alone fleecing neighbors, even selling hyena meat will be slaughtered.
As long as the alliance can continuously siphon their manpower and wealth from the surrounding survivor settlements, then this set of quantitative easing operations is actually completely feasible.
If you want to find a reference in reality, you can't look for it in the 21st century, but should go back to the 19th century...
Just as Fang Chang was concentrating on the newspaper, Dolly quietly walked to his side, leaned over and pecked his cheek, and put the freshly bought steamed buns on the table.
"Someone is looking for you outside."
Fang Chang closed the newspaper in his hand, raised his head and smiled.
"Who?"
Dolly wrinkled her nose.
"His name is Ji Xiu, and he also said that he is the son of the president of Boulder City Bank... But I don't think he is a good person, and he gives people a strange feeling."
She didn't like the guy's frivolous eyes, but she still politely asked him to wait at the door for a while.
Ji Xiu?
Hearing this name, Fang Chang's eyes suddenly lit up, and he smiled and pushed the chair away and stood up.
"You're right, dear, that guy is not a good person, but... that doesn't stop him from doing good things."
"Do good things?" Dolly tilted her head, looking confused.
She didn't think that guy who looked down on people was a good person.
"Yes, people have to do one or two good things in their lives, otherwise it would be too pitiful. I can help..." Fang Chang smiled and gently touched her hair, "I'll go meet him."