Golden melon seeds are an ancient name for broken gold, which was originally circulated among the people as money, just like a golden shovel. The scattered silver that was not marked with public comments later lost the so-called "silver melon seeds", which reflected the ancient people's treasure of this precious metal currency. Golden melon seeds are famous for their appearance and smelting technology. There are no fixed molds, no specific weight requirements, or even two golden melon seeds with the same shape, which makes the smelting of these broken gold follow its nature, simple and lovely, and natural.
The weight of a golden melon seed is between 20 grams and 30 grams, which is about one or two according to the standards of ancient gold and silver ingots. From ancient times to the present, the exchange standard of gold and silver has been fluctuating around 1: 10. From the end of Ming Dynasty to the middle of Qing Dynasty, the proportion increased continuously, and even reached 1: 20 in the late Qing Dynasty. Of course, ordinary people trade with money, and the exchange of money and silver ingots is a huge proportion of "zero to the whole". The exact value of one or two ounces of gold, if converted into current standards, is about 200,000 RMB. Therefore, there is no doubt that holding a golden melon seed and carrying a huge sum of money.
These characteristics make the people who use and own golden melon seeds necessarily princes, nobles and celebrities. In the early Ming dynasty, the court stipulated that people could not circulate gold and silver. Although it was relaxed later, the rulers of past dynasties did not give up the means of making money and accumulating wealth. In fact, by the Qing Dynasty, the golden melon seeds had become the emperor's own imperial possessions, and the emperor naturally didn't buy anything, which was specially used to reward the harem and ministers. Golden melon seeds are closely related to the emperor.
Although the emperor generously gave golden melon seeds, it was more of an honor and a manifestation of "the emperor's kindness", which was not necessarily worth much. Although the specific reward standard is based on the merits and demerits of courtiers and the mood of the emperor's old son, it is only a few or even a dozen pieces at most. After all, the emperor wouldn't have a bag full of golden melon seeds all day. Zhang, who was called "the first propagandist of ministers" by Yongzheng, went through three dynasties and worshipped officials. The highest reward for him is only twenty-two thousand silver. According to the standard of golden melon seeds, a handful of golden melon seeds were just packed without cans. Therefore, the emperor rewarded the detained golden melon seeds as a sign of "imperial kindness."