My Portable Ming Dynasty

Chapter 372 Abandoning the Pen for the Railway?
Li Wenquan's words had already been discussed with many representatives of the Jiangnan gentry, and soon some representatives stood up to express their agreement.

With more representatives of the Jiangnan gentry agreeing, Gu Xiancheng knew that the tide had turned.

Following this, the representatives of the Ministry of Works also expressed their support. After all, railways were a highly technical matter in this era, and if an outsider was chosen to lead the Zhiwu Railway Company, then the Ministry of Works, which was responsible for building the railway, would also suffer.

The happiest person present was none other than Fan Baoxian, chairman of Fangshan Railway.

At present, the Fangshan Railway is the only railway in operation in the entire Ming Dynasty, and even in the entire world.

If the Zhiwu Railway wants to hire a professional manager, then it can only poach people from the Fangshan Railway.

For Fan Baoxian, regardless of who he poached, it signified that the Fangshan Railway faction had gained control over the Zhiwu Railway.

This is exactly what the Fan family has always been pursuing.

The gentry representatives in Jiangnan were also satisfied with this.

Operating a railway is quite different from collecting rent; it's definitely a tough job, and even the gentry representatives present might not be good at it.

However, if they are appointed as directors to supervise the work of external managers, then it is not difficult at all.

Isn't this just what upright officials who criticize the government do?

Among the officials and gentry representatives present were retired censors; wasn't this job easy?

This kind of oversight and checks and balances is their specialty!
They possess power (the supervisory and veto power of directors), do not need to personally handle various site affairs, and can receive stable dividends after the railway is completed, in addition to the social status brought by railway directors.

The gentry from Jiangnan present expressed their support. The negotiation began with heated debate but ended peacefully.

The Ministry of Works seized the opportunity and immediately submitted a report on the negotiations to the Emperor and the Cabinet.

This time, the emperor and the cabinet maintained the efficiency of the Longqing era's decision-making process, immediately approving the operating model of the Zhiwu Railway. Once a suitable "manager" was recruited, the Zhiwu Railway would immediately commence construction.
-
After negotiations by the Ministry of Works of Zhili-Wuzhou Railway, the Japanese Silver Company replaced the gentry of Jiangnan as the headline news in the capital.

The news that the Japanese Silver Company had obtained a huge amount of silver from Japan made those who had not subscribed to the company regret their decision.

Meanwhile, the shareholders of the Japanese silver company watched as the purchase price of the company's stock rose steadily, calculating the new value of their shares, and were all smiles.

November 25th.

The board of directors of Zhiwu Railway has been formed.

Li Wenquan was elected chairman, along with thirteen representatives of Jiangnan gentry and five representatives from the capital and Zhili.

Li Wenquan convened the first board meeting of the Zhiwu Railway and quickly passed a resolution to publicly recruit a "manager" suitable for the construction and operation of the Zhiwu Railway throughout the Ming Dynasty.

The second topic was where the headquarters of the Zhiwu Railway would be located.

When this issue was first raised, opinions were divided, with Jiangnan's shareholders all wanting to locate the headquarters of the Zhiwu Railway in their hometown.

Li Wenquan and the directors from the north remained silent. It wasn't until the directors from the south were arguing heatedly that they proposed setting up the headquarters of the Zhili-Wu Railway in the capital to facilitate communication with the Ministry of Works.

Li Wenquan's plan quickly gained the support of the northern shareholders, and several southern shareholders also voted in favor.

The other southern shareholders, whose votes were too scattered, failed to form a majority and were eventually forced to agree to the result by Li Wenquan's manipulation.

Thus, the second agenda item was also determined: the headquarters of the Zhili-Wu Railway would be located in the capital during the railway construction period, and the board of directors would discuss the location of the headquarters after the railway was officially put into operation.

Upon receiving news of the meeting, Gao Panlong rushed back to the Wuxi Guild Hall.

"Brother Shushi! You were right! These directors are all spineless; they all did what Li Wenquan wanted!"

After listening to Gao Panlong's words, Gu Xiancheng remained expressionless.

"Brother Shushi, why aren't you indignant?"

Gu Xiancheng said:
"Back then, the gentry of Jiangnan refused to join forces. Did you not foresee what would happen today, Brother Yuncong?"

Gao Panlong lowered his head. That's right, Gu Xiancheng had already scolded him.

This time, the gentry of Wuxi suffered heavy losses.

Gu Xiancheng originally wanted to gain influence and take the lead in the Zhiwu Railway, but because he was too high-profile, he aroused the suspicion of other gentry in Jiangnan.

As a result, Wuxi failed to secure a single board seat.

Gu Xiancheng remained quite calm about this, spending his days reading in the Wuxi Guild Hall and declining all social interactions.

"What other plans does Brother Shushi have?"

Gao Panlong looked at Gu Xiancheng. He knew that his friend was not one to give in easily.

Gu Xiancheng put down his book and said:

"I plan to go to Zhigu."

"To Zhigu?"

Gao Panlong was stunned for a moment, not understanding his friend's choice.

All that was heard was Gu Xiancheng saying:

"I'm going to apply to the railway college."

?

Gao Panlong was dumbfounded.

Both of them were scholars who had passed the provincial examination in Southern Zhili this year (correction in the previous chapter: Gu Xiancheng was a scholar). They had failed to gain prestige in the capital this time, and should have returned to their hometown to continue their studies and prepare for the provincial examination four years later.

What is a railway college?
Gao Panlong picked up the newspaper that Gu Xiancheng handed him. The news about the railway academy was published in the advertisement section of the Commercial Daily. The page was quite large, and it was probably an advertisement for the railway school to open soon, welcoming applicants.

The courses are advertised as follows: "Teached personally by senior craftsmen from Fangshan Railway," "Deep cooperation with Fangshan Railway, hands-on learning on-site," and "Outstanding graduates automatically receive jobs at Fangshan Railway, a one-stop service from enrollment to employment."

Gao Panlong knew that many similar schools had emerged in Jiangnan.

Textile schools and the like are all privately run schools, and many of them are scams.

"Brother Shushi, even if you've suffered a setback in your trip to the capital, there's no need to give up on yourself, is there?"

Gu Xiancheng said:
"I've already inquired. Although the railway school's advertisement is somewhat exaggerated, the Datong Fan family that runs the school is Fan Baoxian, the chairman of Fangshan Railway."

"The Commercial Daily is also owned by the Fan family, who have a huge influence in the north. This school is meant to teach real knowledge."

Gao Panlong said, "Brother Ke Shushi, the imperial examination is the right path!"

Gu Xiancheng stood up and said:

"The imperial examination can be taken at any time, but the opportunity for railway development is limited to these few years!"

"Li Wenquan is right about one thing: railways are a professional field. If you want to make a difference in the railway industry, you must understand railways!"

"If the gentry of Jiangnan don't understand railways, wouldn't they all be in the hands of the northerners?!"

Gao Panlong looked at his friend, wondering if he was discouraged by his trip to the capital or if he was obsessed with the railway, which led him to decide to suspend the imperial examinations and attend a railway school.

But he knew that once Gu Xiancheng made up his mind about something, he wouldn't turn back, so he could only let him be.
-
By the end of November, it was time for the Crown Prince's family to have their winter break.

The Imperial Household Department sealed its official seal, emptied its offices, and the Crown Prince's Palace suspended classes in preparation for the New Year.

After the Imperial Academy suspended classes, he could no longer see Su Ze as he pleased. Little Fatty Jun was a little reluctant to part with him, but the thought of not having to continue studying made him happy again.

But his smile soon faded as Consort Li sent a palace servant to deliver a message, ordering Little Fatty Jun to move back into the palace.

Upon receiving this news, Su Ze became even more worried.

"The Imperial Concubine has summoned the Crown Prince back to the palace. What is Brother Zilin worried about?" Luo Wanhua asked, seeing Su Ze's grim expression upon hearing the news.

Su Ze said:

“Recently, news about His Majesty’s illness has been circulating in the public, and the Consort has asked Your Highness to enter the palace to accompany him. These two things are combined.”

Su Ze stopped short of making a point, and Luo Wanhua, no novice in politics, immediately understood Su Ze's meaning.

Emperor Longqing was in poor health, which is why the Imperial Concubine summoned the Crown Prince to the palace. She hoped that seeing the Crown Prince would cheer the Emperor up and improve his condition.

If we were to speculate on the worst-case scenario, it would mean that the emperor's health was not good and he needed to spend more time with the crown prince.

Luo Wanhua murmured:

"how so."

Su Ze also sighed.

"Is even Doctor Li helpless?"

Su Ze said:

"I heard that since Physician Li entered the palace, he has not yet prescribed any medicine. I'm afraid His Majesty's illness is quite serious."

In fact, Su Ze already knew about Emperor Longqing's illness from Zhang Cheng, the eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial.

Excessive indulgence, coupled with chronic illnesses and the toxicity of the elixirs the emperor consumed, destroyed his health.

Moreover, once the emperor's health improved, he would immediately start tormenting himself again. Li Shizhen dared not prescribe any medicine for fear that the emperor would continue to abuse his body.

The only good news is that, perhaps because the illness was serious this time, the Longqing Emperor finally got scared and stopped taking those aphrodisiac pills.

However, according to Li Shizhen, the emperor was too deficient and needed to abstain from sexual activity and adjust his diet in order to gradually restore his health.

It seems that the Longqing Emperor is following the doctor's orders, but it is unknown how long he can hold on.

In the original timeline, Emperor Longqing also abused his health in the same way, intensifying his actions whenever he felt slightly better, ultimately leading to his own death.

Discussing the emperor's health was a taboo subject, and the two tacitly ended the topic.

Su Ze shifted the topic to the newspaper, asking:

"Brother Yifu, has the Yuefu Xinbao newspaper not had any suitable reports recently?"

At this point, Luo Wanhua sighed and said:

"I've rejected several topics. Could you, Brother Zilin, give me some feedback?"

After the Yuefu Xinbao newspaper launched its in-depth investigative news, other newspapers followed suit, reforming their layouts and introducing their own new columns.

The Xinyuefu Daily has created a debate section where many celebrities are invited to write articles and express their opinions on a particular topic.

This section was very effective, and coupled with He Xinyin's status in the field of Neo-Confucianism, several of the debate topics sparked widespread discussion in the capital.

The Business Daily launched a prize-winning quiz, publishing a set of riddles in each issue, and readers could submit their answers to the newspaper. Every month, the newspaper would announce a batch of winners.

The prizes aren't actually very valuable; they're usually just a few months of free newspapers or some small, inexpensive items.

However, the winners' names will be published in the newspaper, and readers who win multiple times will be listed at the top, along with the number of times they answered correctly.

This also sparked readers' enthusiasm, and each issue of the Business Daily was snapped up after its release.

The New Gentleman's Daily backed down during the last discussion on the Wusong Railway and was boycotted by scholars in Jiangnan. It is said that the editorial department receives long letters of abuse every day.

Chen Yubi, the editor of the newspaper, was probably driven to desperation by the criticism, so he added a new section to the "New Gentleman's Daily" to publish the romantic escapades of famous figures and writers.

For well-known reasons, there are many stories like this in Jiangnan.

Unexpectedly, this section on romantic affairs became popular with readers.

Chen Yubi finally figured it out and changed the newspaper's strategy, directly aligning with the Commercial Daily's style of writing in vernacular Chinese, instead of the original semi-classical style.

Despite offending its core supporters, The New Gentleman's newspaper unexpectedly saw a surge in sales.

Competitors are making progress, but new articles for the Yuefu Xinbao are still in limbo.

It's no wonder Luo Wanhua was anxious.

Su Ze glanced at Luo Wanhua's chosen topics, and indeed, none of these reports were satisfactory.

Investigative reports are very difficult to write.

Those investigative journalists in the original timeline might have spent months or even years going undercover to gather information before finally writing a substantial report.

As an official gazette, the Yuefu Xinbao was bound to align its stance with that of the imperial court, which further limited the topics it could write about.

Whether a news story goes viral is actually quite mysterious. Some news stories become topics of conversation over tea, while some in-depth news stories fail to generate widespread discussion.

Even if Su Ze is a time traveler and has a system at his disposal, he cannot guarantee which news story will go viral.

Su Ze put down the list of topics and said to Luo Wanhua:
"Brother Yifu, how about we organize an event in the newspaper?"

"Activity?"

Su Ze nodded and said:

"How about we hold an essay contest? The newspaper has some surplus at the end of the year, right? Let's organize a prize-winning event to attract readers to submit their work."

Luo Wanhua said:
"That's great! The newspaper has accumulated quite a few silver dollars in its accounts this year. Could it be that Brother Zilin is going to follow the example of the Commercial Daily and hold a quiz with prizes?"

Su Ze shook his head and said:

"The Commercial Daily is a people's newspaper, so it's perfectly fine for it to organize such activities. Besides, the Commercial Daily has already done it, so if the Yuefu Xinbao does it too, it's just copying what others have already done."

"What does Brother Zilin mean?"

Su Ze said:

How about we hold a vernacular writing competition?

A vernacular Chinese writing competition?
Su Ze said:

"Write articles in vernacular Chinese, with no restrictions on subject matter or style. Select the top ten articles before the New Year, and the Yuefu Xinbao will award them a prize. These articles will then be printed as a special Spring Festival issue."

"In this way, the newspaper will no longer have to worry about the layout issues during the Chinese New Year period."

Upon hearing this, Luo Wanhua immediately cheered!

Nowadays, newspaper competition is fierce, and newspapers cannot suspend publication for an extended period during the Chinese New Year. Luo Wanhua is also worried about the issue of publication space during the Chinese New Year.

If we follow Su Ze's method, the layout can be finalized before the New Year, allowing everyone at the newspaper to enjoy the holiday.

After making his suggestion, Su Ze suddenly remembered something and pulled out a blank memorial from the table.

"Brother Zilin, are you going to submit a memorial?"

Su Ze said:

"Yes, I just remembered something. Newspapers are already so developed, so we should start a postal service too."

(End of this chapter)