Chapter 1726 - 484: The Andes Family's Structure (Part 4)

The conference room fell into dead silence.

Everyone was stunned by Andes' gamble. He was using his family's centuries of accumulation to back up this "paper."

Even with Edward's support, the risk was too great.

If a bank run occurred, even the Andes Family would instantly go bankrupt!

The murmurs continued for some time, and some people shook their heads, stood up, and left the venue without any obstruction from the guards at the door.

Seeing no one stopping them, more people began to leave. Soon, there were very few people left at the long table, and people sighed at having come for nothing.

An old friend of Andes stopped in front of him after standing up. The old gentleman stared at him for a long while and finally sighed.

"Mr. Andes, your courage is commendable, and I understand you have no other choice. But forgive me, my family cannot participate in this gamble."

"Perhaps in a few years, when the time is ripe, we can talk again."

He didn't say it completely dead, but the wording of the refusal was not at all subtle.

Soon, the room was empty.

This pivotal meeting, concerning the economic lifeline of the Campbell Duchy and the future national fate, seemed to be heading towards failure due to no follow-up.

Andes remained alone in the empty conference room, looking at the "silver pounds" on the table that no one cared about, yet his face showed no sign of discouragement.

He picked up the long-cold tea, took a sip, and then picked up the feather pen to stylishly sign his name on the blank space of the issuance agreement.

There was only his name there.

In fact, Andes had long expected the unpleasant ending of this meeting.

Just as Prince Colin reminded him—

"'Credit' alone is not enough. The future for everyone is not enough to make them endure the pain of the present. You must give them an even more compelling 'reason.'"

This was the first thing the prince said.

And the source of his confidence mostly came from the second sentence that followed—

"...for Erin's sake, I can help you think of some ideas."

…

The next day, the front page headline of the Thunder City Daily was dominated by Andes Bank's significant announcement.

Andes Bank, backed by the family's reputation, formally announced the introduction of the "silver pound" and reiterated to the entire city in the boldest font that incredible promise—

"At any time, anyone can exchange a silver pound for the equivalent amount of silver coins at any bank under the Andes Group at a fixed ratio of 1:1, and vice versa."

Without any surprise.

This headline turned into Thunder City's joke of the day, with almost everyone in the taverns of the New Industrial Zone discussing it.

"Exchanging paper for silver? Has Mr. Andes gone mad?"

"Hahaha! If I cut out this picture from the newspaper, can I really exchange it for a real silver coin from him?"

"Don't even think about it; they have those anti-counterfeiting features."

"I think he's being self-indulgent! Nobody needs that thing!"

"No, you're thinking too small. I actually think this is a chance to get rich."

The drunkard sitting at the bar raised his eyebrows and pulled out a "1" denomination banknote from his pocket, flashing it proudly in front of everyone, "I got one early this morning. If Andes Bank goes bankrupt, this will be a rare collector's item!"

The patrons around him gasped, marveling at how this sharp-witted one had money to squander.

But the bartender, while polishing a glass, shook his head, offering a reminder to the dreamer.

"You're free to keep it as a collectible, but don't expect to exchange that scrap paper for even a single beer from me!"

"Hahaha!"

The tavern buzzed with merriment.

Everyone thought Yang Andes had become obsessed with money, fancying himself a king, assuming people would buy his bluff.

Thunder City's major shops openly refused to accept the so-called "silver pounds" unilaterally issued by Andes Bank.

At the entrance of a fur trading company.

The bespectacled owner preferred to arduously authenticate a tarnished "Laine Silver Coin" instead of touching that finely crafted piece of paper.

After all, the presence of silver was not as important as whether the Imperial authority recognized that "iron coin" as a silver coin.

"Sorry, sir." The store owner shook his head and pushed the silver pound back to the citizen selecting goods, "You'd better go to the bank next door and exchange it for a 'real' silver coin first."

The citizen left muttering curses but could only swallow the insult.

This is the "irrationality" of sovereign currency.

Even if the Imperial emblem was imprinted on a piece of marble, merchants would have to grudgingly acknowledge it as a gold coin, albeit with a slightly low gold content.

Of course, the empire has yet to do such a thing, since His Majesty the Emperor still maintains decorum and wouldn't be so brazenly shameless.

Everyone awaited the Andes Family's inevitable failure, especially the bankers seated at the conference table that day.

Yet no one expected that just as the "silver pound" was about to become the city's biggest joke on the third day, there was suddenly a turn of events.

Thunder City port buzzed with activity.

The envoy of the "Gutaf United Kingdom," Mr. Sak Jifeng, stood before a heap of newly unloaded goods, furiously berating the Campbell side officials.

"You've gone too far! I don't mind you mixing iron into the silver coins, but why are they rusted to this extent?!"

Sak's lizard-like face was filled with rage, and his tail thumped the floor repeatedly, scaring the port officials into silence.