After hearing these words, Liu Zhisheng smiled slightly and said: "Back to the topic, after this expedition to South Africa and the capture of Cape Town, you must not only establish a firm foothold, but also quickly open up the situation. In one year, not only must you control the Cape Peninsula , and must extend inland, find out the situation in South Africa, and report to the emperor in time, West Africa, you really don¡¯t have time to go.¡±
Fu Han nodded solemnly. Since Zhenwu valued South Africa so much, and it was impossible to conquer West Africa in a short period of time, he expected to go all out and attack West Africa first, and then attack South Africa later. It was indeed not suitable for him to go to West Africa. After pondering for a while, he asked: "For the second expedition to Africa, the emperor mobilized 5,000 new troops of the Imperial Guard. I wonder if there are horses in Africa?"
"Yes." Liu Zhisheng affirmed: "There are pastures in West Africa and South Africa. There are definitely horses, but it is not clear whether there are many."
"As long as the horses are suitable for survival, there will be no problem." Fu Han grinned and said: "There is a huge merchant fleet, but are you worried about not having horses? As long as the new guard army has horses, South Africa is simply not enough to see. I would like to ask Chen Pengnian to prepare a ship of horses first to see if they can carry a large number of horses."
Liu Zhisheng couldn't help but smile when he heard this, and said: "Transporting horses from Garopa? You can't imagine that Arabian horses are famous in China, and the distance is much closer. Why choose the distance instead of the near? After going to South Africa, we will consider the situation. It depends.¡±
Although Fuhan is a navy man, he has loved horses since he was a child. When he heard about Alabama, his eyes immediately lit up. Alabama is of little value in the capital, and it is expensive but has no market. It is difficult to find a horse, and South Africa and Arabia It's true that they are not far apart, so why didn't you think of this?
With the order, everyone in the Garopa army began to be busy around the navy. Various supplies began to be loaded onto the ship in a steady stream. The new naval guards and the soldiers who accompanied the army on the expedition also became busy.
Three days passed in a blink of an eye. On the morning of September 12th, the Royal Navy of the Qing Dynasty paid homage to the commander-in-chief at the port of Garopa, and set off for the expedition. Amidst the rumbling sound of cannons, the fleet set sail, kicking off the process of colonizing Africa. prelude.
After sending the navy off for the expedition, Yinzhen breathed a sigh of relief. However, he could not leave Garopa and return to the capital. He had to arrange the merchant ships that came after hearing the news, so that he could return to the capital with confidence, and gave Zhenwu a discount. After that, he took a few of his guards around to check on people's conditions. Of course, Garopa's military workshops, regiment training, Australian immigration, port construction, etc. were also included in his inspections.
The capital, Changchun Garden, Danning lives in the front hall.
After receiving the news that the navy had set sail for the expedition, Zhenwu also relaxed. Africa, like Europe, is far away from the emperor. Even if he wants to control it, it is beyond his reach. Moreover, he has no control over the situation in Europe, Africa, and America. What we know is extremely limited, so we might as well let them go completely and let them do whatever they want.
Zhenwu's knowledge of West Africa and South Africa came entirely from the European missionaries in the capital, and these missionaries often spent several years in the Qing Dynasty before entering the capital. Their information was not as well-informed as those European merchants and European missionaries in Guangzhou. This is why he did not give specific instructions for the expedition to Africa.
In this expedition to Africa, although there are not many warships, there are many merchant ships and many troops. As long as there are no accidents, there is no doubt about victory. Compared with European trade, Africa's gold and slave trade are huge profits. The income was enough for him to survive the most difficult transition period in the Qing Dynasty in recent years.
Bao Fuquan bowed in at this time and reported: "Your Majesty, Zheng Shichang is outside asking for an audience."
Zheng Shichang? Why did he ask for an audience? Zhenwu was stunned for a moment, then asked: "Is he alone?"
"Go back to the emperor." Bao Fuquan bowed and said, "He is the only one holding a small box and saying that he is donating new money."
"Let him come in." Zhenwu hurriedly ordered. After the new year, he ordered the "Four Constants" to mint silver coins. He had forgotten about this matter. Normally, when a new king ascends the throne, he must issue new coins. Zhang Pengye , and Ga Mintu have all received discounts, but he did not win because he did not want to issue copper coins, and the issuance of silver coins was the top priority.
Although he has always planned to issue banknotes, he knew that this matter should not be done too hastily. The banknotes issued by the previous dynasties were worth too fast, and Shang Ru was resistant to it. After all, there was no real gold or silver in the banknotes. He has real money in hand, and besides, he plans to adopt the gold standard system for the paper currency he introduces, so that it can be circulated around the world.
There is still a long way to go to reach this point. The Qing Dynasty is now on the silver standard. It must gradually transition to a gold and silver mixed bimetallic system, then to the gold standard, and finally the introduction of banknotes. All of this is inseparable from gold. Without sufficient gold reserves, everything is a luxury. The Qing's gold reserves will require at least several decades of plundering.
In this way, the circulation of silver coins becomes more significant. Today, there are no silver coins in the Qing Dynasty on the market. What is in circulation are silver ingots and broken coins.Silver is very inconvenient to use, but European silver coins are very popular in Jiangnan, Guangdong. This is the fundamental reason that prompted Zhenwu to issue an order to mint Qing silver coins.
Zheng Shichang came very quickly. When he came in, he knelt down neatly and said, "My humble minister Zheng Shichang respectfully wishes your Majesty's peace."
Zhenwu glanced at him, who was already a bit old, and said with a smile: "Is your body still strong now?"
"Your Majesty inquires, but I really don't dare to serve as a minister." Zheng Shichang kowtowed again and replied: "Now that the minister is eating well and sleeping peacefully, he can still serve the emperor for a few years."
"Okay." Zhenwu smiled and nodded: "No courtesy, please sit down."
"I thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace." Zheng Shichang kowtowed again before standing up. He cautiously sat down halfway on the small stool in front of Zhenwu, then bowed and said, "Your Majesty, the 'Four Great Constants' have been ordered to be The silver dollar has been made, and I sincerely invite the emperor to inspect it."
Zhenwu smiled slightly and said: "Send it up."
Bao Fuquan, who was waiting outside the door, hurriedly brought up the tray with silver coins with both hands. Zhenwu took a look. On the tray, from large to small, there were four types of silver coins in denominations, namely one yuan, medium yuan ( Five jiao), two jiao, one jiao.
He stretched out his hand and picked up a one-yuan silver coin, but he saw that the color was white and soft. The obverse was a Zhenwu Yuanbao, and the reverse was a dragon pattern. The handwriting and patterns were quite clear. Although the edges and teeth were neat, they were slightly rough. This It was not made by machine, so he was quite satisfied if it could reach this level.
After playing with it for a while, he pinched the center of the silver dollar with his fingernails, put it to his mouth and blew it lightly, then quickly put it to his ear. Sure enough, he heard a clear and long tail sound. He couldn't help but smile and said: "This silver dollar, How much money does it cost in the Netherlands?"
"It's a little worse to return to the emperor." Zheng Shichang hurriedly bowed and replied.