The two victories around the New Year of 1777 greatly stimulated the United States.
When news of the victory reached Philadelphia, all Philadelphians visibly breathed a sigh of relief.
With Washington, a brilliant general, holding back the British army on the front lines, and Charles, a master strategist, defending Philadelphia, what did anyone have to worry about with these two skilled warriors leading the United States?
In the Continental Congress, John Hancock, as chairman, was nominally the first person, but as a good-natured individual, he had to balance the relationships between various factions and therefore did not gather personal confidants.
There were very few people who directly supported him.
Other Continental Congress Representatives, however, would never pursue their interests alone; they basically formed factions to unite and compete with each other.
Although so many representatives were divided into many factions, not many truly held absolute influence.
Only the three giants of the Continental Congress, namely Jefferson, Franklin, and Adams, and the factions they led, were the strongest forces in the Continental Congress.
A consequence of this was that the influence of these three giants, both at the time and later, far surpassed that of Hancock, the nominal first person of the Continental Congress.
As an institution formed by representatives elected from each of the Thirteen Colonies of America, the Continental Congress had many reasons for the formation of internal factions.
Franklin and Jefferson formed factions mainly based on differing political views or regions, which could be discerned from their names, such as the Democratic Faction, Radical Faction, Northern Faction, Virginia Faction, and so on.
Now Adams had returned to Virginia, Franklin was in France, and Jefferson was also away.
The true largest factional force in the Continental Congress was instead a newly emerging, cross-state, cross-political faction led by Charles, a Pittsburgh native.
This time, with the leaders of the three major factions absent, Charles seized the opportunity to win over a group of people, forming a new financial interest group.
Its main members were representatives of groups with various interests in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, primarily bankers and accountants like Morris, as well as a small number of local faction members.
The members of this financial interest group were not afraid of war; on the contrary, they loved it, because war meant business opportunities and profits.
However, they also strongly disagreed with having the war reach their doorstep, as that would disrupt normal business order.
Therefore, when Charles called on everyone to maintain the front line in New York State, everyone worked together, preparing various supplies and equipment, unconditionally supporting the Continental army.
When news of the victory arrived, everyone collectively breathed a sigh of relief.
Charles also felt much more at ease, feeling that he had at least a few more days to prepare.
Just then, various weapons and military supplies from Pittsburgh in the rear were continuously sent over.
Charles simultaneously used his Bank funds to fill accounts and sought reimbursement from the Continental Congress, receiving one mortgage after another.
At the same time, based on Bank capital, he continuously issued US dollars.
The more intense the war, the stronger Charles' capital became.
After several contracts and mortgages, Charles almost lost count of how much property he owned.
With external matters resolved, Charles immediately turned his attention inward.
The Continental Congress was not a pure social organization; its internal political struggles were definitely no less complex than those of any political institution.
Charles had just formed an interest group, which was not stable and required continuous benefits to solidify its members.
It wasn't that he didn't want to form a political party directly at the time, but forming a political party was far beyond what he could achieve at his current level.
The newly joined faction members were not consistently loyal, and without a strict political program, it would be better to maintain the current faction structure.
As for political programs, without a consistent consensus, not many people would accept them, so Charles decided to only maintain the faction for now, which would also reduce internal struggles within the Continental Congress.
To unite all the consortiums, bankers, and financial system members under his faction, and to strengthen the unity of this faction, as well as its influence within the entire Continental Congress and the United States, Charles, in the name of his faction, proposed several legislations to the Congress.
These included patent law, trademark law, industrial and commercial tax law, and more than a dozen regulations covering industries such as finance and commerce.
Furthermore, in response to the independent economic and industrial development of the various states in America, he called for strengthened cooperation and negotiation, the abolition of certain trade barriers, and the promotion of free trade.
Under the strong pressure of Charles, the Continental Congress worked very efficiently and immediately began discussions on these matters.
Originally, everything was fine; patent law, trademark law, and other laws and regulations were quickly passed.
However, when studying the financial system regulations, Hamilton, as the director of the central bank, suddenly raised an objection in the Continental Congress.
He believed that the current situation where Charles' three banks issued currency violated true fairness.
He argued that although they had reserve funds as guarantees and third-party supervision, the central bank's supervision was inefficient and easily exploited by issuers.
Therefore, he suggested that the deposit reserve funds be transferred to the central bank, and the central bank would determine the amount of US dollars to be issued based on these reserves.
"Sir, do you also think the issuance reserve funds should be transferred to the central bank?" Charles asked with a smile from his seat, his eyes sweeping over the Continental Congress Representatives.
He was now the leader of the largest faction in the Continental Congress, and his real authority was even stronger than Franklin's in the Continental Congress.
These representatives were indifferent to Hamilton's proposal; if these reserve funds were to be transferred to the Continental Congress, they might have some interest.
As for transferring them to the central bank, a department originally proposed by Charles and headed by Hamilton, a junior officer, they neither trusted it nor cared.
However, precisely because Hamilton was nominated by Charles, he was already labeled as Charles' man, and everyone directly assumed this proposal was authorized by Charles.
So, when they heard Charles' question, they just looked at each other, not wanting to express an opinion.
Morris, sitting next to Charles, was displeased.
Even if this proposal was authorized by Charles, he had to speak up, because his own Bank of America was issuing US dollars.
If these reserve funds had to be handed over to the central bank, not only would there be fewer potential loopholes to exploit, but the mere hassle of handing over the reserve funds was something he was unwilling to accept.
Morris repeatedly signaled Charles, asking for his opinion.
Charles pretended not to see and continued to observe the situation.
"Haha! Does Director Hamilton really think that our issuing banks would recklessly issue currency when you're not supervising? You're questioning my integrity and Councilor Charles'!" Morris finally couldn't help but speak.
"Your Excellency, my proposal to transfer the issuance reserve funds to the central bank is not directed at your bank or Councilor Charles' bank.
According to the current currency issuance mechanism, any bank can issue US dollars if it has sufficient reserve funds.
I absolutely trust that the banks of both Your Excellencies would not exploit the central bank's supervision loopholes, but it's hard to guarantee that other banks wouldn't do so.
My proposal is entirely for the benefit of the entire Continental Congress.
If everyone doesn't believe me, I can resign from my position as central bank director and merely act as an observer and supervisor," Hamilton respectfully said to Morris and Charles.
He was also quite frustrated as the central bank director.
Those Continental Congress Representatives didn't take him seriously, and even his usual responsibilities were pitifully few.
But he was indeed a brilliant economist; he quickly identified the loopholes in Charles' currency issuance mechanism and fearlessly brought them up.
His straightforward and simple nature was the main reason, but deep down, he might also have intended to use this loophole to showcase his talent.
This loophole, of course, was intentionally left by Charles.
However, because it was not rigorously designed, not only was it noticed by Hamilton, but it also indeed posed such a risk.
Therefore, when Hamilton made this suggestion, Charles did not find it particularly unacceptable.
—
It was just that Charles couldn't help but find it a bit amusing that Hamilton, who would become the Finance Minister in the future, was now displaying his talents like a child.
Great men are certainly respectable, but watching their experiences as they grow often makes one want to laugh.
If he hadn't known history and understood that he was a promising, talented economist, and cherished him as a talent, according to a normal person's temperament, knowing that a loophole he had intentionally left was exposed, he would definitely resent him.
Charles looked at Morris' unfriendly gaze beside him and knew that he already harbored resentment towards Hamilton.
He couldn't help but sigh, thinking, "This Hamilton is still young after all!"
Although Hamilton's proposal clearly harmed the interests of Charles and Morris, after a quiet discussion, the two ultimately agreed to the proposal.
However, the position of central bank director, which now had increased power, was transferred to Morris, while the young and brave sir Hamilton was nominated as the director of the newly established Internal Revenue Service.
Currently, the United States had very few unified taxes and revenues because each state had its own tax bureau, and the taxes of each state were independently managed by that state and not submitted to the central government.
His position as Director of the Internal Revenue Service could actually only control one specific tax category designated for him by each state, collecting a very small amount of money for the daily expenses of the Continental Congress.
The seasoned politicians in the Continental Congress all saw that Charles actually had no intention of commending Hamilton.
However, Hamilton himself was very fond of this position and immediately expressed that he would write a detailed tax and fee charter for the Continental Congress' approval.
Of course, Charles was very clear about his own calculations.
Ostensibly, there was no reward for Hamilton, but this opportunity for experience was definitely worth more than any reward.
Unless Hamilton openly opposed him, he would always remain within his faction.
Therefore, allowing him to gain experience in various aspects now would enable him to achieve more outstanding performance in the future.
He was the leader of the consortium, the big sir; if he focused on politics, he couldn't focus on the consortium, so it was best not to directly handle political matters himself, but to have a spokesperson responsible for them.
Choosing such a spokesperson was difficult, but the brilliant economist Hamilton, right before him, was a rare individual who met the criteria.
Charles believed that with proper training, he would surely become the spokesperson for his consortium, or even for the faction led by him.
Through the introductions of James, Biddle, and others, Charles' admiration for Hamilton's performance grew.
He had never believed that someone could be so talented as to review all national financial data in just a few days, but Hamilton did it.
He spent only a few days, using his position as central bank director, to review all American customs duties and various other taxes.
He listed all the positive effects of these taxes during the collection process and showed them to James and Biddle to prove his point about needing to strengthen tax collection, which he had made when Charles left Philadelphia last time.
Such a person, who thoroughly understood taxation, could definitely achieve results in this area, which was also why Charles dared to propose him for the position of Director of the Internal Revenue Service.
The brief economic working meeting concluded quickly because the latest news from the front lines indicated that the victory had not brought any real benefits.
In reality, Washington's two battle victories did not inflict as much damage on the British army as in actual history.
Although the British army was disoriented, its overall strength remained largely intact.
However, Washington's two attacks did indeed greatly surprise General Howe and Cornwallis.
At least until Washington's Continental army was dealt with, they no longer dared to directly cross the river to attack Philadelphia, otherwise their current base in New York would certainly fall, and with their retreat cut off, even if they could capture Philadelphia, it would be recaptured.
However, the biggest difference from this time in history was that originally, the British army, due to heavy losses, needed a long period of rest and recuperation, and would only launch another attack after six months, when they had recovered their strength and received new orders from England.
But this time, Washington's attack, due to a lack of coordination in various aspects, only caused the British army to make a fruitless journey and suffer minor personnel losses.
It was precisely in the state of having wounded the beast without killing it, which instead provoked its ferocity.
Therefore, the British army ultimately became eager for revenge and had no plans for a long rest.