Chapter 204

Inside the grand hall of the Great Zhou court, silence reigned.

Everyone stared blankly at Yang Yi. None of them had expected him to actually have a solution.

Wu Zhao suddenly rose from her seat, eyes gleaming. Her gaze, sharp and clear as obsidian and snow, locked firmly on Yang Yi.

“Minister Yang, what strategy do you have? Speak.”

This time, the Ming Dynasty’s silver acquisition had struck directly at the Great Zhou’s core. If the Han and Tang joined in, the dynasty could truly collapse.

At the very least, the Great Zhou’s banknotes would become worthless. After all, neither the Han, Tang, nor Ming dynasties were weaker than the Zhou.

Yang Yi met their expectant eyes and offered a small, confident smile.

“Your humble servant believes that since the Ming has the boldness to acquire silver, we should release all the silver collected in our treasury into their market and exchange it for their gold.”

Everyone froze.

Why did that sound so familiar? Wasn’t that exactly what Xu Jingzong had just said?

Xu Jingzong stepped forward, baffled. “Minister Yang, I just proposed this strategy. The Ming court has stepped in directly. The total amount of silver held by a nation far exceeds what any group of merchants could muster. Our treasury may be large, but if the Tang and Han follow suit and purchase silver like the Ming, Great Zhou won’t last long…”

The ministers all nodded, casting puzzled glances at Yang Yi.

What was wrong with him today? Why repeat someone else’s words?

Even Wu Zhao paused, a flicker of confusion in her eyes.

Yang Yi smiled again, full of confidence.

“That’s precisely what I want—to draw the Tang and Han in as well, to have them all buying silver together. Right now, my only complaint is that they’re not buying enough.

“The Ming boldly bought 1.5 million jin of silver. How much have they purchased altogether? Maybe three or four million jin at most.

The hall was so quiet, a falling needle could have been heard.

Everyone stared at Yang Yi, stunned. Had he gone mad?

Complaining that the Tang and Han were buying too little? Was he upset that silver prices weren’t rising fast enough?

Xu Jingzong swallowed hard, his seasoned eyes wide with disbelief. “Minister Yang, what are you saying? How does this benefit our Great Zhou?”

More nods, more baffled looks from the ministers.

Yang Yi raised an eyebrow, his smile undeterred.

“If silver prices go up, we trade our reserves for gold. Isn’t that a great deal? Best case, we convert all of Great Zhou’s silver reserves into gold. Gold is the true strategic currency.”

The ministers exchanged nervous glances.

Had Yang Yi truly lost his mind? What good was gold at a time like this?

Xu Jingzong exhaled, his face tense. “Minister Yang, this does nothing to stop the devaluation of our banknotes.”

The others agreed quietly.

Yang Yi, still smiling faintly, replied, “You’re right. It does nothing.”

“But it can draw the Tang and Han into the fray. All we need is to leak news that Great Zhou is dumping silver to suppress prices. They’ll believe we’re running out of strength—and they’ll push even harder, buying up more silver to crush us.”

They understood his words even less now.

Xu Jingzong’s eyelid twitched. He looked tense. “Minister Yang, doing this will only increase the pressure on Great Zhou. There’s no benefit.”

Wu Zhao’s brows furrowed slightly. She pressed her lips together, restraining the urge to interrupt. She trusted Yang Yi must have a reason—though for now, it escaped her.

Yang Yi stroked his chin thoughtfully. “No benefit?”

“First, we convert our silver into gold.

“Second, we lure Tang and Han into the same trap—buying large quantities of silver at high prices. Once they’ve spent heavily, and the price of silver crashes, they’ll bleed losses.”

His firm voice echoed through the stone hall. The ministers stood frozen.

Was the Living Yama still half asleep this morning? A silver price crash? At a time like this?

Xu Jingzong shook his head grimly.

“Minister Yang, a collapse in silver prices is fantasy. If all three kingdoms join the high-price silver market, the price will only go up. How could it fall? If it could fall, we wouldn’t be so worried.”

The others chimed in.

“Yes, if it could fall, that’d be ideal.”

“Why is Minister Yang talking nonsense today? The Ming and the others clearly want to keep silver prices high. That’s why they issued that decree.”

“Exactly. Expecting a price drop is just unrealistic.”

“He’s not answering the real issue at all.”

Wu Zhao’s frown deepened. She glanced at the murmuring officials and said coolly,

“Silence.”

The room fell still at once. Wu Zhao turned back to Yang Yi, a hint of worry in her gaze.

“Minister Yang, how can you be so sure the silver price will fall?”

Everyone could see that, under the current conditions, it would only rise. All eyes were now locked on Yang Yi.

He remained calm, the faintest smile on his lips.

“Because, Your Majesty… I’ve discovered over thirty silver mines.”

Stillness. The air itself seemed to freeze in the Great Zhou court.

All eyes widened as they gawked at Yang Yi. Had they just heard correctly? Silver mines?

Wu Zhao’s pupils dilated. Her pale hand gripped the side of her throne.

“Over thirty silver mines? Minister Yang… are you being serious?”

Her voice trembled slightly.

The rest of the ministers had recovered by now—but their scalps tingled with unease.

None of them were fools. They understood what this meant. If it was true… silver prices would crash for real.

All eyes remained fixed on Yang Yi.

He nodded, still smiling.

“Yes, Your Majesty. I’ve already dispatched teams to investigate. Based on the timing, they should be reporting back soon.”

Wu Zhao froze. Then realization dawned in her widening eyes.

“The ships and troops you mobilized days ago… that was for these silver mines?”

Yang Yi gave a quiet nod.