Da Ming: Father, step aside, I'll be the prime minister!

Chapter 12 Hot
The audience's expectations had been raised to a peak.

But then, Mr. Liu gave a sly smile and slammed his gavel.

"Dear readers, how did Judge Dee solve the mystery? Do ghosts and gods exist in this world? Why did the magistrate die? To find out what happens next, please listen to the next chapter!"

"????"

The tea drinkers in the hall were stunned, as were the distinguished guests on the second floor. Zhu Yinghuai almost jumped off the second floor to slap the shameless storyteller twice.

"That's it? What happened next?!"

"Why aren't you continuing?! I'll give you a tip, hurry up and keep going!"

"You are not worthy of being called a son! How can you end things here?"

"Ouch~ It hurts~ It feels like ants are crawling all over my body~"

The room erupted in chaos, but Mr. Liu seemed to have been prepared. Despite his age, he was still agile and immediately jumped off the stage.

"I apologize, everyone. Please come back tomorrow if you want to hear the rest."

After saying this, Mr. Liu ran towards the back room like a whirlwind, leaving almost only a fleeting afterimage.

The teahouse immediately erupted in chaos.

"You scoundrel! Come back here right now! If you don't hand over the rest of the storybook, Grandpa will never let you off the hook!"

"I'll add more money! I'll add more money!"

"Hey! I've been listening to storytelling for years, and I've never seen such a shameless person!"

Mr. Liu ran fast, but he couldn't outrun the crowd. Several skilled men pounced on him and caught him in no time.

Mr. Liu, his clothes disheveled and with a bruise near his eye, was once again carried onto the stage, where he repeatedly bowed and spoke.

"I'm so sorry everyone, I'm so sorry everyone, it's not that this old man doesn't want to talk about it~"

A burly man in the audience said irritably, "You storytellers, which one of you doesn't have a prepared script? You're heartless! We're not paying you, are we? Hurry up and tell us what happens next!"

Mr. Liu said with a pained expression, "This..."

"That's right! Tell me quickly! Otherwise, you won't be leaving this teahouse today!"

Clearly, Mr. Liu's "despicable" behavior has aroused public outrage.

Seeing this trend, Liu Jingting could only sigh, "You guys are really taking away my livelihood!"

Even so, as if it were premeditated, he took out a newspaper from his pocket and waved it in front of everyone.

He seemed deeply distressed: "This old man was out of his mind, trying to make more money with this stuff. I didn't expect you all to like it so much. Oh well, I'll tell you all now."

He slowly unfolded the newspaper, showing everyone the headline.

"This is a newspaper modeled after the Imperial Gazette, made specifically for the common people. It contains everything from local news and celestial phenomena to anecdotes about the imperial examinations and auspicious days. The sequel to 'The Legend of Judge Dee of the Tang Dynasty,' which you all requested, will also be published in this newspaper. This newspaper is published every three days. I don't need to read the stories of Judge Dee's cases aloud; you can read them yourselves."

"Such a wonderful object exists?"

The burly man tried to come up and take the newspaper, but Liu Jingting shielded him behind him.

"Hey, everyone, don't get excited. This isn't the only copy of this newspaper. This one is mine. If you want it, you can buy it at the bookstores in Jianyang Bookstore. I've also heard there are some stalls on the street."

"No! We want yours, so we can see how Judge Dee solves cases!"

"I want it! I'll pay five hundred coins. Sell it to me!"

"No! I'll pay one tael of silver, just let me take a look!"

Having finally gotten rid of the onlookers in the teahouse, Liu Jingting covered his bruised eyes, hissing in cold air, and walked towards the back hall while cursing angrily.

"These uncouth people only know how to resort to violence; they even ripped off my old eyebrows."

Liu Jingting had never seen such a crazy tea drinker. He turned to look at the torn newspaper in his hand, now only tattered fragments remained.

He was so heartbroken!

"That's fifty taels of silver!"

Just now, the price had been set at fifty taels, and Liu Jingting was about to make a move when it unexpectedly triggered a scramble.

"So, Mr. Liu, you don't want this hundred taels of silver?"

A voice came from the corner, and Liu Jingting jumped, immediately rushing over to greet it in a fawning manner.

"Oh dear~ Vice Commander Zhang~ I've done exactly as you instructed~"

Zhang Jianxiu, dressed in casual clothes, nodded slightly and said, "You did a good job."

He took out a one-hundred-tael silver note from his pocket.

"This is the agreed-upon payment."

"Oh! I dare not accept this. It is my honor to be able to help you, sir." Liu Jingting quickly declined.

As a famous storyteller in the capital, one hundred taels of silver was a lot of money, but it wasn't something Liu Jingting couldn't earn. However, compared to one hundred taels, whether he could establish a connection with the Zhang family was the most important thing.

Zhang Jianxiu glared at him: "Just take it. Why all the nonsense?"

Liu Jingting shuddered before accepting the silver note.

"Then I shall accept it without being impolite," Zhang Jianxiu said casually, imitating his younger brother by pressing his elbow against the other's shoulder.

“My brother specifically asked you to do this job, and he wasn’t wrong about you. So do a good job from now on, and you’ll get your share of the benefits.”

"Don't worry, sir!" Liu Jingting smiled like a chrysanthemum and then asked.

"May I ask, sir, what should we do next?"

Zhang Jianxiu thought for a moment and then said what his younger brother meant.

"In the next few days, don't just stay in Thirty-Nine Shops. Go to other places and use the same tricks as today to make our newspaper's name known far and wide!"

Liu Jingting was stunned for a moment, feeling a pain in her eye socket again, but she still gritted her teeth.

"Rest assured, sir! I will do my utmost!"

"The untold secret between Yang Guifei and Emperor Xuanzong of Tang?"

"The land survey method has yielded remarkable results, which is fundamental to the benefit of the country and the people, and the granaries are gradually becoming more abundant!"

"Saltwater ice-making method: Saltwater dissolves in water and absorbs heat, which can be used to make iced drinks in the hot summer."

"Diseases are common in late spring. You can take chalk ash and sprinkle it in your home, and wash the utensils with boiling water to avoid miasma."

"The secret to the success of Shen Rumo, the top scholar in the imperial examination."

"Today is an auspicious day for opening a business."

Readers who were initially drawn to the Wanli Xinbao newspaper by the novel "The Legend of Judge Dee of the Tang Dynasty" found it to be incredibly strange after reading the follow-up cases.

Compared to traditional storybooks, his work contains many more miscellaneous elements, and it is far more detailed and meticulous than ordinary folk newspapers.

It contains a variety of life hacks, covering topics such as politics, folk customs, casual conversations, medicine, and even tips for scientific expeditions.

Even the imperial calendar, which was based on the "Datongli" calendar, recorded auspicious days for seeking medical treatment, praying for blessings, crossing water, climbing mountains, and so on.

In folk customs, people usually need to consult the almanac to determine which day is "auspicious" and which day is "inauspicious".

The Datong Calendar was originally promulgated by the Imperial Astronomical Bureau and was used exclusively by the imperial court. However, after the Chenghua era, this calendar began to circulate among the common people.

Even if it were circulated, ordinary people couldn't obtain the imperial calendar without connections and money.

And now it only costs five coins!

How could the Wanli Xinbao not be popular?

In just one day, the capital city witnessed the extraordinary phenomenon of "paper becoming scarce in Luoyang," with the first edition of 5,000 newspapers from Jianyang Bookstore being completely sold out!
"Hey! This newspaper is really interesting. Look, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang is clearly having an affair! And the method of making ice is so simple. The ice factory collects so much money every year. It's outrageous!"

There's even a secret about Grand Secretary Shen? It turns out he was originally adopted by his maternal uncle's family, and only returned to his ancestral home after becoming the top scholar in the imperial examination.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yinghuai curled his lip and said, "Zhang Yuanhao, you don't know? Everyone in the court knows about Vice Minister Shen's story, only the common people don't."

At this moment, the two lay on an embroidered bed in a brothel, each holding a newly printed copy of the "Wanli Xinbao" newspaper.

The newspaper paper was rough, the printing ink was of poor quality, and it even had a foul smell.

Such paper would be considered too dirty even to wipe Zhu Yinghuai's bottom on ordinary days.

But then he held it up close to his eyes, examining it closely, as if afraid of missing a single word.

The modern form of newspapers was still too novel for people in ancient times.

"Young master, wouldn't you like to keep me company?"

The courtesan beside him was alluring and practically glued to Zhu Yinghuai, but he ignored her and pushed her away.

"Get out of the way, don't disturb Grandpa's reading of the newspaper!"

"Oh dear~ Young master, how could you be so heartless?"

The young woman was pushed aside, pretending to be delicate and pitiful with tears in her eyes, but no one paid any attention to her.

Even Zhang Yuanhao, who is usually a lecherous man, could only be restless with his hands at this moment, but his eyes never left the newspaper.

The two young ladies looked at each other, suddenly doubting their own charm.

Zhu Yinghuai read it over and over again. After finishing "The Legend of Di Renjie of the Tang Dynasty", he turned his attention to the secrets of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, and looked at many life tips. There was even a price list of the capital city recently, a general forecast of the weather, and some jokes.

"What a novel thing!" Zhang Yuanhao exclaimed after reading the newspaper. "I heard that it was written by Zhang Yunxiu, the youngest son of the Grand Secretary Zhang Juzheng, and is published every three days. I want to see what happens next and see how he came up with these ideas."

“It’s only because Zhang Yunxiu dared to publish this newspaper.” Zhu Yinghuai seemed absurd, but he actually knew a lot about court affairs. He pointed to the headline with his finger. “Just for this headline alone, if he weren’t the youngest son of the Grand Secretary, the Embroidered Uniform Guard would have already shut down these newspapers.”

"And the contents of these newspapers are so taboo. Zhang Yunxiu is truly a daring fellow." Zhu Yinghuai clicked his tongue. "It seems the court will become even more interesting in the future."

As a powerful and idle nobleman who did nothing but live a life of leisure, Zhu Yinghuai always remained a spectator when it came to matters of state.

Zhang Yuanhao, who was standing to the side, could no longer restrain himself and had already begun to grope the young lady. He spoke in a lazy voice.

"I don't care about all that, I just want to know what happens next in 'The Legend of Judge Dee of the Tang Dynasty'."

"You're nothing but a good-for-nothing playboy who just loafs around and waits to die!"

Zhu Yinghuai spat and cursed irritably.

But then I thought, did I also insult myself?
　Note 1: Volume 93 of the *Veritable Records of Emperor Xianzong of Ming*, Autumn, July, Year 7, entry for the day of Ji-Mao: ​​"The Great Unified Calendar is the official calendar of our nation. Recently, officials in the two provincial offices have treated it as a private collection, using it excessively for private gifts. The paper cost is in the tens of thousands, and the shipping costs are like mountains. All this is to curry favor with powerful figures, seek fame, and advance their careers. This is one aspect of the decline in the moral character of scholars. I request that the Ministry of Rites be ordered to draft regulations to ensure that henceforth, the amount of paper used is fixed, the printing quota is set, and those who use it for private gifts are punished."
　　
　
(End of this chapter)