Chapter 129: Currency (2)

“Currency is a measure used as an intermediary to assess the value of goods… Blah blah blah blah… Of course, the issuance of currency must comply with the law of conservation of matter… Otherwise, blah blah… the consequences…”

“…Now, why don’t you all share your opinions? This is of vital importance to the economy of the Block Kingdom!”

Given the importance of the economy to the Block Kingdom, Mo Fangyuan understood that he could not handle the matter alone. He therefore summoned all the kingdom’s senior officials for a special meeting on the economy.

The economy was simply too complicated for any one individual to manage alone.

Following the strategy of breaking the problem down piece by piece, Mo Fangyuan separated currency from the broader subject of economics and brought it up for discussion, hoping everyone present would put their heads together and come up with a good solution.

“…The economy?”

“Cur… currency?”

“…A measure?”

“Um… what exactly is the law of conservation of matter?”

“What in the world is that supposed to mean?”

It was obvious that the people in the conference room understood even less than Mo Fangyuan, the complete amateur. The moment they heard him talk about economics, their minds collectively short-circuited.

“Your Majesty, is this economy and currency you speak of… really important? Could it be that you are overthinking things?”

Even Old Fu, the cleverest of them all, found himself at a loss.

They had never imagined that the simple exchange of goods could lead to something so complicated.

Nor did they know what harm might arise if they failed to develop it.

“Can you eat economic development?”

The incongruous question reached Mo Fangyuan’s ears.

The person who had said it was not Zhang Lingyun, the innocent natural airhead, but the usually meticulous Minister of Agriculture.

This showed just how little the senior officials of the Block Kingdom understood the power of economics.

“The power of the economy exceeds anything any of us can imagine. I can state this formally: the Block Kingdom must establish an internal economic system of its own!”

Mo Fangyuan held his head and addressed everyone with solemn seriousness.

The economy was a blade, a driving force, an engine… The Block Kingdom could not do without it.

“Then, Your Majesty, how should we develop it?”

“His Majesty is brilliant beyond compare. He must already have a plan of his own…”

Mo Fangyuan cried out that they had asked an excellent question. He almost blurted out, “If I knew, would I have called this meeting to ask you?”

Instead, he said, “An excellent question. Therefore, our first step is currency. Currency is the foundation of the economy… I already have a preliminary plan…”

“But, my fellow countrymen! You are all members of the Block Kingdom as well. Put your wisdom to work and think of an even better approach!”

“At all times, the wisdom of the collective is infinite…”

Mo Fangyuan naturally could not admit that he had no idea how to improve the situation and wanted them to hurry up and think of a solution. Saying something like that would have completely ruined his dignity. He could only hint that he had a plan but wanted to hear their opinions, urging everyone present to get their brains moving.

“Your Majesty, as you know…”

Zhang Lingyun, who had once again been dragged in merely to make up the numbers, looked miserable. Why did she have to be summoned every time something like this happened? This was too hard!

“This…”

Old Duan, the Minister of Education, remained silent. Clearly, this had touched upon a blind spot in his knowledge.

“Great Your Majesty, I believe this matter requires careful consideration…”

Old Fu rambled on for quite some time without coming up with anything substantial. Clearly, he was in the same position as Old Duan, trapped within a blind spot of knowledge.

“…”

Yali, Fang Zhi, and the others were completely bewildered. They were of no use at all.

“Hmm… Your Majesty, I believe that establishing a monetary system requires properly handling the relationship between material goods and currency. We must neither issue too much nor too little…”

Lin Ye had also spent some time in the Trial Space, where she had passively picked up a certain amount of economic knowledge.

“When there are abundant supplies, currency production should be increased to prevent currency from exceeding the standards of its value-measuring function. When supplies are scarce, currency production should be reduced to prevent devaluation… We should stabilize the value of currency as much as possible, so that the people will be willing to use it…”

You may wonder why Lin Ye knew so much.

It was a long and painful story. Back then, the pure and ignorant Lin Ye had been exploited by capitalists again and again simply because she knew nothing about economics. She had nearly been exploited to the point of losing herself, and afterward she became withdrawn for a very long time.

“…Your Majesty, I believe the Block Kingdom could designate something recognized by all the people as currency and use it to measure the value of other goods…”

Emeralds!

For some reason, everyone present—including Mo Fangyuan—unconsciously thought of emeralds.

In the game, emeralds had almost no practical use aside from trading.

Yet whenever a block person saw an emerald, their heart would race and their eyes would become fixed upon it, entering a state resembling complete enthrallment.

Even they themselves did not know why block people loved emeralds… It was as though loving emeralds were only natural, an affection carved into their very bones.

“What if we use emeralds as currency to measure the value of other goods?”

Because of their innate love of emeralds, some people proposed using them as currency.

The suggestion received widespread approval from the other attendees.

“No!”

Mo Fangyuan immediately vetoed it.

Although he did not understand economics, he did know the most basic requirements for something to serve as currency.

Universal convertibility, relatively stable value, internal monetary stability, external exchange-rate stability, and widespread acceptance…

The requirement of external exchange-rate stability could be discarded. In this terrible age, surrounded by enemies on every side, there was no need for such a condition. Besides, would monsters even trade with block people?

Block people were naturally fond of emeralds, so emeralds satisfied the requirement of widespread acceptance.

But they failed to meet all three of the other basic requirements.

What was the prerequisite for universal convertibility? Free exchange between goods and currency reserves. In simple terms, currency had to function both as a medium of circulation and as a means of storing value.

But were emeralds plentiful? Were they easy to mine?

Emeralds were the rarest ore in Minecraft—rarer even than diamonds!

How could something so scarce and difficult to mine serve as currency for circulation?

As for relatively stable value and internal monetary stability, both of these also required a currency that could be produced steadily and in sufficient quantities.

Emeralds could never satisfy these three conditions.

“Emeralds are too scarce. They can only be used to trade luxury goods; they cannot become currency!”

After Mo Fangyuan said this, everyone began to find themselves at a loss.

“Actually, we could cast copper ingots into small pieces and use them as currency…”

Thinking of the copper coins that had served as currency in the Trial Space, Lin Ye offered another suggestion.

“Now that the Block Kingdom has entered the Iron Age, demand for copper ore is low. We could cast it into circulating currency… It would also count as putting waste to good use!”

At that moment, Lin Ye had already become a great economist in everyone’s eyes.

“Professional matters should be entrusted to professionals.”

This was an idea Mo Fangyuan had taught the people of the Block Kingdom, and everyone in the conference room had inherited his philosophy.

I do not understand economics. If I make careless remarks, something could easily go wrong and endanger all our fellow block people. Lin Ye understands economics and knows far more than I do, so her method must be more reliable than mine. Therefore, I support her!

With this reasoning in mind, Lin Ye’s proposal received everyone’s support.

Then Mo Fangyuan immediately vetoed it as well.

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