"Boss, do you still consider the current money to be real money?", Does Yu Zecheng's salary also get paid in Gold Yuan notes?

In “Hidden Agenda,” Yu Zecheng indeed used gold yuan notes, but at that time, these were essentially worthless paper. His real income came from gray income sources—gold bars, US dollars, antiques—while his salary was just “for show.”

1. Nominal Salary: Paid in Gold Yuan Notes

• What kind of money: In the show, Yu Zecheng (Lieutenant Colonel)’s monthly salary was officially 175 silver dollars, but in reality, he received gold yuan notes.

• Why it was worthless: The gold yuan was issued in 1948 and depreciated 5 million times in just 10 months. In the show, Yu Zecheng bets and loses “2 million,” but the actual value might be less than one silver dollar, which is why people say “Is money still money nowadays?”

2. Actual Income: Relying on “scavenging,” not “paychecks”

• Gray income: Yu Zecheng and station chief Wu Jingzhong didn’t rely on their salaries at all. They mainly made money through extortion (like the Mu Liancheng case), confiscation of enemy assets (like the Ji Weimin case), and rent-seeking from power.

• Hard currency: What they truly valued were gold bars, US dollars, and antiques. The Rolls-Royce given to the station chief, the jade throne, and the golden Buddha were the real “hard currency.”

3. Historical Context: Money was worth less than paper

• Currency collapse: At that time, both fiat currency and gold yuan notes were rapidly devaluing. Ordinary people carried money in sacks to buy rice, and some even used gold yuan notes to paste walls.

• Special privileges for spies: Personnel from the Military Statistics Office and the Secret Service had special treatment. Besides their salaries, they received activity funds, allowances, and could even get double pay. But even so, they preferred to exchange paper money for tangible goods.