A fierce wife enters the house: She helps up a house full of spineless people.

Two months passed in the blink of an eye.

In the past two months, a secluded valley surrounded by mountains and with a fast-flowing stream on the outskirts of Beijing has undergone tremendous changes.

Under the secret coordination of Emperor Liang Song and the strict control of Neng Wen, the commander of the secret guards, a large-scale paper mill and printing workshop were built.

To ensure absolute safety, there were guards every three steps and sentries every five steps, and even the craftsmen who participated in the construction of the workshop were secretly transferred from various places under a sworn brotherhood, and the secrecy was taken to the extreme.

During these two months, Crown Prince Liang Heng, Vice Minister of Works Liu Qingfeng, and Assistant Minister of Works Chen Tianrun practically lived and worked on the construction site. From selecting the site, building waterwheels, and constructing drying rooms, to coordinating the craftsmen for movable type printing, they personally handled every detail.

When the first batch of large quantities of clean white paper and books exuding the fragrance of ink were produced, the three grown men were so excited that they almost shed tears.

The relentless work caused the three of them to visibly lose a lot of weight, and their originally fair faces became much darker from the sun, but their eyes were surprisingly bright.

Early that morning, an inconspicuous carriage stopped at the side gate of the Prince's Mansion on Changning Street.

"Madam Wang, His Highness requests your presence." The one driving the carriage was none other than the Crown Prince's trusted bodyguard.

Wang Jinzhu understood immediately, gave a few instructions to her family, and then boarded the carriage. The carriage wound its way out of the city and headed towards the secluded valley on the outskirts of the capital.

After passing through numerous guards, the carriage finally stopped in front of the workshop.

As soon as Wang Jinzhu lifted the car curtain, she heard a series of deep and rhythmic roars.

She looked up and saw the rushing river driving more than a dozen huge waterwheels to turn slowly. The power of the waterwheels was transmitted through ingenious gears and wooden axles, driving hundreds of heavy pounders in the workshop to rise and fall, crushing raw materials such as bamboo and wood into pulp day and night.

"Sister-in-law!" Chen Tianrun, with his sharp eyes, was the first to greet her. He was wearing a light blue casual suit, with some ink stains on the cuffs. He looked much thinner, but he was in high spirits.

"Tianrun, you've worked hard." Wang Jinzhu looked at her brother-in-law in this state, feeling both heartache and relief.

"Madam Wang." Liu Qingfeng also walked over quickly and greeted her with a cupped hand. Although he came from a prestigious family, he was completely unpretentious at the moment, and his face was full of undisguised excitement.

"Sister-in-law Wang, you've finally arrived!" Crown Prince Liang Heng strode out of the printing workshop, carrying a newly bound book in his hand. His eyes were slightly sunken, and there were even some bluish stubble on his chin, but he was laughing heartily.

"Your Highness, Lord Liu, Tianrun, your speed truly impresses me," Wang Jinzhu exclaimed sincerely.

"Without your hydraulic slurry blueprints and grand vision, we could never have built something of this scale, even if we ran ourselves ragged." Liang Heng smiled and handed the book in his hand to Wang Jinzhu. "Sister-in-law, take a look at this."

Wang Jinzhu took the book and glanced down; it was a copy of the Analects of Confucius. The paper was white and fine, of uniform thickness, with clear ink marks, neat layout, and a faint scent of pine and ink.

"Good paper, good printing." Wang Jinzhu flipped through a few pages and nodded in satisfaction. "This quality is comparable to the expensive Xuan paper sold in those prestigious bookstores on the market, and it is even more suitable for double-sided printing and binding."

"It's more than just comparable!" Liu Qingfeng excitedly chimed in. "Madam Wang, you don't know, with this water-powered pulping system and the newly improved drying room, our daily paper output is now equivalent to a month's worth of manual pulping! And the cost is ridiculously low!"

Liang Heng pointed to several large storerooms not far away, his voice trembling slightly: "Sister-in-law, those rooms are already piled high with printed copies of the Four Books and Five Classics, as well as various primers. The Royal Bookstore can open anytime Father gives the order!"

Following the direction he pointed, Wang Jinzhu looked through the half-open warehouse door and saw stacks of neatly piled books, like treasure troves containing boundless power.

"Your Highness," Wang Jinzhu turned to Liang Heng, a meaningful smile playing on her lips, "Everything is ready, except for the final touch. I wonder if the Royal Bookstore's premises are prepared?"

"It's all ready." Liang Heng's eyes flashed with a sharp light. "It's located in the most prosperous area of ​​the West Market. The signboard has already been personally inscribed by my father, the Emperor. It's called the Great Liang Bookstore. Not only in the capital, but also in Dongzhou, Nanzhou and other places, branches are being prepared in secret. As soon as the capital makes a move, the whole country will respond at the same time."

Wang Jinzhu nodded, her expression becoming serious: "Your Highness, now that the shop is ready, the daily operation of this bookstore cannot be like that of the old bookstores, where books are rigidly piled up behind the counter waiting for customers to come in. We need to use some new methods."

Upon hearing this, Liang Heng, Liu Qingfeng, and Chen Tianrun immediately composed themselves and held their breath, appearing to be listening attentively.

"Firstly, there's the aspect of zoning and allowing for trial reading." Wang Jinzhu explained the concept of a modern bookstore in a way that would be understandable to the ancients: "The shop should be spacious and bright, with rows of open bookshelves. Books should be categorized by subject, such as classics, history, philosophy, literature, agriculture, industry, crafts, primers, and even folk tales, with prominent signs indicating these categories. In addition, a quiet area must be set aside, furnished with tables, chairs, and tea, allowing students to take books and browse them for free. Don't worry about them reading for free; the longer they sit there, the more they will feel the emperor's favor."

Liang Heng nodded repeatedly, his eyes sparkling with admiration.

"Secondly, there's the student badge and points system," Wang Jinzhu continued. "On the opening day, Your Highness can request His Majesty to issue a public notice in the name of the royal family. All students of Daliang can obtain a Daliang student badge free of charge from the Royal Bookstore by presenting proof of their place of origin. With this badge, they can get discounts on books in the future. If they frequently come to buy or borrow books, the bookstore will record points for them. Once they accumulate a certain number of points, they can exchange them for limited-edition exquisite bookmarks or rubbings of calligraphy by famous scholars. At the same time, this will also be used to announce the plan to build libraries in various prefectures, allowing students throughout the land to borrow books for free with their badges."

"Brilliant!" Liu Qingfeng couldn't help but exclaim in admiration. "In this way, the hearts of scholars across the land will all be drawn to the Royal Bookstore!"

"Thirdly, there's the matter of bundled sales and literary gatherings." Wang Jinzhu smiled. "The bookstore shouldn't just sell books; we can also sell the writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones produced in our workshop, or paperweights engraved with poems encouraging learning, and exquisite book boxes. This is called peripheral income. The second floor of the bookstore can be set up as a private room, where we can regularly invite some famous scholars, or even high-ranking officials from the Hanlin Academy, to hold literary gatherings and lectures, making it a sacred place for scholars to exchange knowledge."

At this point, Liang Heng took a deep breath and bowed deeply to Wang Jinzhu: "Sister-in-law Wang, if this great undertaking succeeds, all the poor students in the world will be grateful for your kindness. Please accept my bow!"

"Your Highness is too kind." Wang Jinzhu stepped aside and offered a helping hand. "I only offered an idea. The ones who are truly shedding blood and sweat are Your Highness, His Majesty, and the adults and guards who work day and night in this workshop."

She paused, her gaze fixed on the distant capital, her tone radiating an undeniable domineering confidence: "We'll remain silent until the moment we do, and then we'll completely overturn the high and mighty tables of those aristocratic families! Once this batch of books floods the market, coupled with this brand-new method of operating bookstores, those high and mighty aristocratic families will probably lose sleep over it."

Upon hearing this, Liang Heng exchanged a glance with Liu Qingfeng and Chen Tianrun, and the three of them burst into laughter.

"Excellent! I'm going to give them a huge surprise!" Liang Heng clenched his fist, his heart brimming with pride. "Their days of monopolizing knowledge and controlling the court are over!"