Chapter 1476
Support with Real Money
Chapter 1476 Support with Real Money
The reason why his army was so powerful was because he personally distributed military pay to the soldiers, making everyone loyal to him.
Even if other generals had rebellious intentions, they were powerless to do anything about it and could instead work together to overcome the difficulties.
The army's combat effectiveness has declined because he doesn't personally distribute military pay; instead, the soldiers' salaries are distributed on his behalf by the mountain strongholds below, which gradually weakens his control over the army.
The President looked intently at Lin Hao and said, "Continue!"
"The third step is to wait until the central government has established its authority before implementing a unified national tax and currency reform. By then..."
Lin Hao raised his head and looked directly into the President's eyes.
"The President is the true supreme leader who will complete the unification of the Republic of China."
The last sentence struck like a hammer blow into the silence of the reception room.
The President stood up, turned his back to Lin Hao, walked to the window, and took a deep breath after a long while.
The president's back looked somewhat hunched, but his shoulders were broad, like someone carrying a heavy burden that he never put down.
Lin Hao sat upright without urging him. He didn't need to be urged because he knew there was no better option than his method.
The Beiyang warlords' game has reached a dead end.
Local warlords refused to obey orders or commands, the central treasury was depleted, and the army was in arrears with its pay.
If things continue like this, it won't be a question of who becomes president, but whether the Beiyang government can even survive.
Lin Hao brought not money, but his last chance to turn things around.
"Good!" The President turned around abruptly and said firmly:
"Based on your words and your attitude of serving the country and the people, I will give you the position of Vice Minister of Finance, and concurrently the position of Vice President of the Central Bank."
"The deputy minister is in charge of the fiscal budget and military pay, while the vice president is in charge of the banking system and currency issuance. Only by combining these two positions can the reforms be carried out."
"The future of Beiyang is entrusted to you!" the President said solemnly.
Lin Hao didn't mince words and replied without hesitation, "I will follow the President's will in everything. Your will is the direction in which I will strive!"
The president looked at Lin Hao and suddenly smiled, a smile that contained a hint of bitterness and a touch of emotion.
He was moved to have met someone like Lin Hao in his later years, but also bitter about his deteriorating health.
The president chuckled and shook his head, saying, "You certainly don't hold back!"
“If I, a junior, were to be polite, I would be jeopardizing the future of Beiyang,” Lin Hao said firmly.
Looking at Lin Hao, this idealist, but no matter what Lin Hao's ideology is, as long as it helps him, it's a good ideology!
The President paused for a moment, then said:
"Then, send thirty tons of your gold to Beijing first, to be used as an advance payment for the military pay for the first three months. As for the rest, proceed according to your plan."
Lin Hao stood up, bowed deeply, and said, "Thank you, President."
The president waved his hand, turned, and walked away. As he reached the door, he suddenly stopped, without turning back, and uttered only one sentence:
"Young man, the waters of Beiyang are very deep. Be careful not to drown. You must protect yourself."
"I am not afraid. All those who obstruct the unification of the Beiyang government will eventually be crushed by the tide of history!"
The president smiled and walked away happily, feeling as if he had been reborn, bathed in sunlight.
The door closed gently behind him, and Lu Xiaowen walked over from the other end of the corridor, his expression changing from respectful to friendly.
After all, we'll all be in the same boat from now on.
"Deputy Minister Lin, congratulations."
"Thank you very much, Secretary Lu."
Lu Xiaowen lowered his voice and said, "Old Hu doesn't speak up easily. The fact that he's willing to introduce you means you're someone important to him."
Lin Hao smiled and said, "It's Principal Hu who's too kind."
Lu Xiaowen gave him a meaningful look and continued:
"The President hasn't been this happy in a long time. Since taking office, he hasn't granted anyone official titles or made any promises!"
“Especially since you were directly granted an official position, you are the first person to do so in the past two years.”
"Thank you very much, Secretary Lu. Let's support each other from now on!"
After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Lin Hao came out of the official residence. It was already evening, and that night Lin Hao went to Tianjing.
After all, the president had given the order to transfer gold, so it was not appropriate to simply produce it out of thin air. He still made a trip to the Citibank in Tianjing.
However, it wouldn't be easy to bring all of it back. After all, if all 200 tons of gold were to be brought back, and each box weighed 100 jin (50 catties), it would require 4000 boxes.
Transporting by car would require over a hundred trucks, which is clearly impractical; even transporting by train wouldn't be reliable.
So Lin Hao symbolically took out 50 tons and, under the protection of a team of soldiers, drove 25 trucks to transport them back to Beiping.
Upon learning that Lin Hao had returned with the gold, the President immediately dispatched troops to welcome him.
When the convoy entered Beijing, the streets of Qianmen were lined with onlookers, and thousands of soldiers stood guard along the way.
The news spread faster than the convoy arrived: the newly appointed Vice Minister of Finance, Lin Hao, returned to China with 200 tons of gold, and the first batch of 30 tons had already arrived in Beijing.
This news was like a bomb, exploding throughout the entire Beiyang government.
When Minister of State Kim Jong-un heard the news, he was holding a teacup and looking at documents.
His hand trembled, and tea spilled onto the table, soaking a newly signed official document.
He didn't wipe it, but instead raised his head and looked through his glasses at the person delivering the message for a full five seconds.
Two hundred tons of gold.
He served as an official for so many years and handled millions of taels of silver, but two hundred tons of gold.
He mentally calculated the number and came to a conclusion that made him gasp in horror.
When Bai Xiongqi of the Army Department heard the news, he was studying the deployment map of the troops stationed in North China with several subordinates.
He secretly resolved to find an opportunity to bring this person into his camp.
The news even reached foreign embassies and consulates, and the British Minister to China sent a telegram back to London that same day:
"A new financial figure has emerged in the Beiyang government, who is said to possess a huge gold reserve. The authenticity and source of this reserve need to be verified, but we suggest paying attention to it."
On that day, Xiao Rizi sent a telegram to Dong Jing:
"The newly appointed Vice Minister of Finance, Lin Hao, is about thirty years old and holds a doctorate from the United States. He has brought two hundred tons of gold back to China. The first batch of fifty tons has already arrived in Beijing. He plans to intercept the next batch of gold en route."
The news of two hundred tons of gold spread throughout Beiping, and the number was being discussed everywhere.
What does two hundred tons of gold mean?
The rickshaw puller didn't know this, but he did know that one silver dollar could buy thirty catties of rice, and one ton of gold could be exchanged for forty thousand silver dollars.
Forget it, I can't figure it out, but I estimate it's enough to feed all the people in Beiping for several years.
The storyteller in the teahouse had already turned this story into a tale, embellishing it with extravagance, saying that Vice Minister Lin was the descendant of a wealthy overseas Chinese who gave away his entire fortune to save the country, a truly moving story.
Officials, businessmen, and even foreign journalists were all trying to find out about Lin Hao's background. This was also Lin Hao's objective, and he even proactively released this information.
There was no other way; in this era, he desperately needed fame. A person with fame, in any era, is essentially a get-out-of-jail-free card.
Those who are extremely wealthy but have no reputation may disappear quietly one day, without anyone even caring.
With a reputation, you can do anything with ease, and even hostile forces will look at you with more respect and dare not act rashly.
For example, right now, Jin Quan remained silent for a long time after listening to his subordinate's report.
He then picked up the pen and paper on the table, wrote an invitation to Lin Hao, and then instructed his subordinates:
"Tomorrow night, there will be a small banquet at the Jin residence. You must personally deliver the food there and hand it over to Vice Minister Lin!"
The subordinate took the invitation and cautiously asked, "Chief, what's the background of this Deputy Minister Lin?"
Jin Quan took off his glasses, wiped them, and slowly said something that stunned the other person.
"His background is not important; what matters is this person. No one can afford to offend him."
After Lin Hao delivered the gold to the Central Bank, the President personally inspected it before pulling Lin Hao aside to meet with his colleagues.
Upon arriving at the palace and passing through the front hall, Lin Hao noticed that several people were already seated in the living room.
The men were dressed in military uniforms, long gowns, and Western suits—a motley crew, but fortunately, they were all prominent figures in the Beiyang government.
One of them was a man in his fifties, with a round, slightly chubby face and wearing gold-rimmed glasses. He was holding a teacup and talking to the person next to him. His voice wasn't loud, but everyone around him nodded at every word he spoke.
Lin Hao recognized him at a glance: Lu Zhenhua, uh, no, this should be Jin Quan.
The man in "The Story of a Noble Family" who holds a high position and is the head of the Jin family is Jin Yanxi's father.
According to the original story, after he abdicated and handed over the reins to a more capable person, the Jin family quickly declined. As soon as he fell from power, the entire Jin family collapsed like dominoes.
Lin Hao didn't sit down immediately. He slowly looked around and naturally swept his gaze over the people.
"Is this General Lin, who has returned from studying in the United States?" a voice rang out from beside him.
Lin Hao turned his head and saw that Jin Quan had walked up to him at some point and was looking him up and down with a smile.
The eyes behind those gold-rimmed glasses weren't particularly sharp, but they possessed a composure unique to old bureaucrats—they saw everything but said nothing.
"Commander-in-Chief Kim, I've heard so much about you." Lin Hao bowed slightly, neither humble nor arrogant.
"Oh? You know me?" Jin Quan raised an eyebrow.
"In the entire Beiyang government, who doesn't know Chief of Staff Jin?" Lin Hao said with a smile.
Jin Quan laughed heartily, then said politely:
"General Lin, you have excellent eyesight! Excellent eyesight! No wonder your plan can analyze the financial accounts of each province so thoroughly, even the President praised it highly!"
Lin Hao humbly shook his head and said, "It's just theoretical talk. If it really needs to be implemented, we'll have to rely on your support, Chief of Staff Kim."
As the two were talking, a tall man in military uniform strode over.
The man looked to be in his mid-thirties, with a square face, thick eyebrows, and big eyes. He exuded a heroic air about him, a man of military background.
"Chief Minister Kim, is this the newly appointed Vice Minister of Finance, Mr. Lim?" The man's voice was quite loud, and he called out from three steps away.
Jin Quan introduced with a smile: "Chief of Staff Lin, this is Bai Xiongqi, who serves as the Vice Minister of the Interior!"
Lin Hao's heart skipped a beat. It seemed that he was Bai Xiuzhu's older brother, Bai Xiongqi, who had married a woman named Xiao Rizi.
The ambitious "villain" in the original work who eventually replaced Jin Quan as Minister of State.
At this time, Bai Xiongqi was just a junior official in the Ministry of the Interior, not even a deputy minister, let alone a replacement for Jin Quan.
"Deputy Director Bai, I've heard so much about you!" Lin Hao extended his hand.
Bai Xiongqi grasped his hand, surprised by Lin Hao's youth and even more impressed by Lin Hao's courage.
Not everyone has the courage to donate 200 tons of gold to support the president.
"I admire Vice Minister Lin for being so highly regarded by the President at such a young age. May I ask what subject Vice Minister Lin majored in overseas?"
"Primarily finance, with international relations as a secondary focus," Lin Hao said without changing his expression.
"I had heard about Vice Minister Bai's actions in the Ministry of the Interior before."
I've heard that Vice Minister Bai has recently been supporting the younger generation of officers in reorganizing the Zhili garrison, reducing redundant personnel, and streamlining the organization, with remarkable results.
Bai Xiongqi was taken aback for a moment, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. "Deputy Minister Lin even knows this?"
"Finance and military affairs have never been separate!" Lin Hao said with a slight smile.
"Deputy Minister Bai has streamlined administration and reduced personnel; the money saved will need to be allocated from the overall budget. We'll be dealing with each other a lot in the future!"
This couldn't be clearer: you manage the troops, I manage the finances, and we'll cooperate happily.
Bai Xiongqi was very astute and immediately understood the implied meaning. His smile became even more genuine than before.
"Deputy Minister Lin is right. We should get closer to him in the future."
As the three people were talking, they heard footsteps coming from inside.
Everyone in the living room stood up at the same time, even the big shots who were chatting with someone immediately stopped talking and straightened their backs.
The president came out. Although he was in his sixties, he was stocky and wore a dark blue Zhongshan suit. The wrinkles on his face were as deep as if they had been carved by a knife.
He walks slowly, but each step is steady, exuding an aura of quiet authority.
"Gentlemen, please sit down." The President gestured, his gaze sweeping across the living room before finally settling on Lin Hao, pausing for two seconds.
Lin Hao felt that gaze, calmly returned it, and nodded slightly, saying:
"As you all probably know, this is General Lin, who returned from studying in the United States and donated 200 tons of gold to support our cause of reunification!"
He then praised Lin Hao, who stepped forward and replied neither humbly nor arrogantly:
"President, you flatter me. It's just theory on paper. If it really needs to be implemented, the President will have to make the final decision."
"No need for formalities. Everyone knows your fervent patriotism. Today, we've specially prepared this celebration banquet for you..."
"Everyone, eat and drink well. We can continue our conversation while we eat," the President waved his hand and led the way to the restaurant.
The banquet was a blend of Chinese and Western styles, with a snow-white tablecloth covering the long table and silver cutlery gleaming in the candlelight.
The dishes, however, are authentic Beijing and Shandong cuisine, including braised shark fin, braised sea cucumber with scallions, and roast duck rolls, interspersed with a few French cold dishes.
Lin Hao was assigned to the second position to the right of the President, with Jin Quan to his left.
This seating arrangement is quite subtle. Lin Hao is ranked higher than Bai Xiongqi, who is diagonally opposite him, and is placed right next to him. This shows how much the President values Lin Hao.
After a few rounds of drinks, the atmosphere became lively.
The President, holding his wine glass, suddenly turned to Lin Hao and said:
"Chief of Staff Lin, your plan mentions 'controlling the military with finances.' Could you explain this to everyone here in detail?"
The moment those words were spoken, the entire restaurant fell silent.