Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 171 Expectation
After the middle-aged man finished speaking, the steward beside him immediately poured him tea.

“You’re right,” the manager said, “it’s all just a business deal after all.”

Master Wen sat there for more than an hour, listening to the scholars talking outside. When the scholars were arguing about the manuscript, he would stroke his beard and nod gently.

After his mother passed away, he returned to his hometown to observe the mourning period, keeping his door tightly closed and rarely going out. He paid no attention to what was happening outside, not because he was too extreme, but because he did not want to let those things disturb his peace of mind. He just wanted to quietly fulfill his filial duty to his mother.

After the three-year mourning period ended, he was not in a hurry, nor did he intend to travel around in order to return to the court as soon as possible.

He suddenly received an official document from the court half a month ago, ordering him to return to the capital after the New Year. His former colleagues and friends wrote to him one after another, hoping that he would take up his post as soon as possible.

After leaving his thatched cottage, he went straight to Daming Prefecture. Firstly, to avoid frequent visits from people, and secondly, because it was the place where he had lived before. Moreover, Daming Prefecture was the secondary capital, so he could hear some news from the court here without being too close to it.

He didn't inform anyone, only accompanied by an old servant, and headed towards Daming Prefecture, inquiring about some news along the way.

Rather than listening to others, it's better to see for yourself what changes have taken place in the Liang Dynasty over the past three years.

Although the war in the north had ended, many places were still sparsely populated and the fields were barren. He had been stationed in the north for six or seven years. Seeing this scene, he was filled with emotion and only hoped to return to his old post to serve as an official and do something for the people of the north.

His gloomy mood only eased somewhat when he arrived in Daming Prefecture. Daming Prefecture was more prosperous than he had imagined. The city's wards and markets were open, and people were coming and going, creating a lively scene that gave the impression of national peace and prosperity.

Especially in the early morning, people would walk through the streets and alleys selling water, and the rising steam and the sounds of their hawking added a touch of liveliness to the city.

Master Wen even specially ordered a facial cleansing soup, and learned from the hot soup vendor that a small newspaper had appeared in Daming Prefecture.

After receiving the tabloid, he couldn't wait to start reading it.

First, I saw a line of somewhat familiar handwriting, which looked like the handwriting of the eldest son of the King.

Without regard for anything else, he immediately sent the steward out to inquire.

They learned that Wang Xianggong's eldest son was not in Daming Prefecture, but He Tan and Tong Zixu, who were close to Wang Yan, had both stayed here.

Although it was unclear whether the Wang family had intervened in the tabloid, they had already begun to take it more seriously.

After reading the tabloid several times, Mr. Wen felt that it was indeed something of substance, rather than just something to amuse himself.

With just a piece of paper, he knew almost everything that had happened in Daming Prefecture recently. In particular, the cheap Buddhist charcoal deserved credit to Baode Temple.

And then there's Madam Xie, who spends money to print tabloids; she's also a thoughtful woman.

He had the idea of ​​bringing tabloids into the capital. Perhaps others thought that folk prints were not worthy of high society, but they were extremely useful to the common people.

It wasn't a government gazette, but it interpreted the decrees issued by the imperial court. Most of the articles were about things related to Daming Prefecture and its people, and the language used was not complicated, making it easy to spread by word of mouth.

This is good stuff.

Originally, Mr. Wen had high hopes for the tabloids, but upon hearing about the Yang family's affairs today, he was immediately disappointed. He forgot one thing: some things are not as they seem... Tabloids are written by people, so they are bound to be biased, and it's inevitable that some people will use them for personal gain.

If not handled properly, the consequences could outweigh the benefits once word gets out.

As Master Wen was pondering this, he heard a sound coming from outside.

"Madam Xie has arrived."

Master Wen immediately put down his teacup.

Both the charcoal and the tabloids are related to Madam Xie, and the case involving her is particularly bizarre. A woman who was almost murdered has stirred up such a commotion in Daming Prefecture.

Mr. Wen was eager to find out more, so he stood up, walked to the door, lifted the curtain, and looked outside.

He had heard about Madam Xie's age before, but seeing such a young and beautiful face still surprised Master Wen. The girl looked to be only sixteen or seventeen years old, dressed in ordinary clothes, but her expression was dignified and solemn, and her eyes were exceptionally bright.

The scholars present all rose and greeted each other.

Xie Yuyan looked at Zuo Shangying: "Something happened at home, that's why I'm late."

“We arrived too early,” Zuo Shangying said. “My lady, please don’t mind.”

Standing next to Zuo Shangying, Liu Erlang was still in a daze, his gaze fixed on Xie Yuyan's face for a long time. He was only brought back to his senses when Zuo Shangying nudged him, but he forgot to speak and just bowed again.

This made Zuo Shangying laugh; he had never seen Liu Erlang like this before.

Mother Yu brought over a stool for Xie Yuyan to sit down.

Xie Yuyan didn't say a word, and sat down in a generous manner, looking at everyone as if he was very used to talking to men like this.

"We're here to discuss the tabloid issue."

Everyone nodded.

Xie Yuyan said, "The bookstore said that everyone suggested raising the price of the tabloids?"

Several scholars nodded.

Zuo Shangying said, "Six coins a serving is really too little. We lose at least ten coins a serving, and the more we sell, the more we lose. We all think that if you raise the price, Madam, we can at least recoup our costs, if not make a profit."

“It will rise a bit,” Xie Yuyan said, “but we’ll have to wait for the right time, not now.”

Everyone looked at Xie Yuyan, waiting for her to continue.

Xie Yuyan continued, "Tabloids are a relatively new thing, and selling them at too high a price will hinder their spread. What we need to do now is to get more people to read the newspapers, rather than using them to make money."

Liu Erlang pursed his lips and looked up at Madam Xie: "Then... when would be a suitable time?"

Perhaps realizing he had spoken too bluntly, Liu Erlang hurriedly explained, "What I meant was... we need to prepare earlier."

Xie Yuyan didn't care. His brows relaxed, and he nodded to Liu Erlang: "For example, now everyone is used to using hot water and drinking boiled water in the morning. When everyone wants to read the Daming Prefecture Gazette every day, that will be about right."

"What we want is not just a fleeting moment of excitement."

“That would be a huge loss of money,” said Scholar Yan. He was just thinking about how to express his thoughts when he heard Madam Xie’s voice again.

"Are you worried that I won't have enough money and that the tabloid will have to go out of business one day?"

Having their thoughts revealed, everyone nodded in agreement.

Xie Yuyan smiled slightly, "Don't worry about that. I've put some money in the bookstore. No matter what happens, there's enough money there for at least three months."

"Besides, tabloids make money, so they don't necessarily have to sell at a higher price."

This puzzled everyone.

"As long as more people read it, we won't have to worry about money to print it," Xie Yuyan said. "There's no use talking about this now. Everyone just needs to remember one thing: write good articles for the tabloids, and especially, don't make any inaccuracies."

At this point, Xie Yuyan paused slightly: "Just like the matter concerning the Yang family this time, everyone should write it truthfully, without any bias."

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent, and even Master Wen showed a surprised expression.

"What?" Xie Yuyan looked around at everyone. "Do you all think I would use my status as the owner of a tabloid to let you fabricate articles?"