Due to the habit of his previous life, Jiajing read the newspaper very quickly, almost to the point of reading ten lines at a glance. In a short while, Jiajing finished browsing the contents of the newspaper.
At this moment, Lu Fang's anxious voice sounded in Jiajing's ears.
"Your Majesty, what do you think?"
After Jiajing heard this, he put aside the newspaper in his hand, turned his gaze to Lu Fang, and spoke words of encouragement.
"At present, it seems that this newspaper is quite good, but I have to wait until I read this newspaper that is distributed to the people before I can give an evaluation."
After Jiajing finished speaking, he picked up the newspaper that was specially provided to the people.
As soon as Jiajing picked up the newspaper, he was keenly aware of the difference in material and smell between the two sides.
The newspaper in front of me, which was specially provided to the people, was made of inferior materials and gave off a pungent smell.
Jiajing turned his attention to the newspaper in front of him that was specially provided to the people. He saw that there was not much text on it. Except for the four big characters of Daming Daily at the top, the rest of the content was presented in the form of illustrations.
The characters drawn in the newspaper are also extremely crude. Apart from a few outlines, there is nothing else. The enemy can only be distinguished from the clothing and weapons and equipment of both sides.
But despite this, one can still guess what happened from the actions of both parties.
The newspaper in front of him reminded Jiajing of the comics he had read in his previous life. Just as Jiajing was associating the characters drawn in the newspaper with the actual characters, Lu Fang's uneasy voice sounded again.
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty, what do you think?"
When Jiajing heard this, he immediately came back to his senses, saw the expression on Lu Fang's face, and immediately spoke words of encouragement.
"Haha, Lu Fang, you did a good job in this matter, I want to reward you!"
"ah?"
When Lu Fang heard this, a look of confusion suddenly appeared on his face. He originally thought that the emperor would be angry because of this, but what he didn't expect was that the emperor not only did not become angry, but also said that he would reward himself.
Jiajing seemed to see the doubts in Lu Fang's heart, and turned to explain.
"Lu Fang, have you forgotten what I said before?"
"The most important thing about a newspaper for the common people is that it is cheap. Only when the common people can afford the price of the newspaper can the newspaper achieve the expected effect!"
When Jiajing said this, he paused for a moment and then continued to add: "Therefore, in order to save costs, the cheaper the materials used, the better!"
"By the way, what material is this newspaper for the common people made of?"
Lu Fang saw Jiajing asking her this question. After hesitating for a long time, she answered carefully.
"Your Majesty, the newspaper in front of you is made of raw materials for making papyrus. In addition, on average, the printing cost of this kind of newspaper is less than two cents, and the newspaper you saw first , but the printing cost is at least six cents.
After listening to Lu Fang's explanation, Jiajing immediately rubbed his chin and began to think about how to price. After thinking about it for a moment, Jiajing came back to his senses and gave instructions to Lu Fang.
"Let's do this. Newspapers for officials and gentry are temporarily priced at twenty cents, while newspapers for the common people are priced at two cents, or even free of charge. You can give them away for free."
After listening to Jiajing's instructions, Lu Fang immediately looked stern and responded respectfully.
"As you command, Your Majesty!"
Seeing that the matter had been settled, just when Lu Fang was about to leave, he was stopped by Jiajing.
"When you come down later, go to the warehouse and withdraw two thousand pieces of silk!"
When Lu Fang heard this, she paused in her steps. After being stunned for a moment, a look of gratitude appeared on her face and she responded respectfully.
"Slave, thank you for your grace!"
…
It was late at night, and the lights in Yan's study were still on, and in a daze, a figure could still be seen pacing.
Since Yan Song asked Yan Shifan to inquire about this news not long ago, Yan Shifan has not come back. Yan Song couldn't help but start to worry. Just when he was about to call the housekeeper, he heard a knock on the door.
"who?"
"Father, it's me!"
As soon as Yan Song finished speaking, Yan Shifan's voice came from outside the door.
Seeing this situation, the stone in Yan Song's heart finally fell to the ground safely, and the worried look on his face disappeared, and he immediately spoke.
"come in!"
Then, with a "squeak" sound, Yan Shifan entered the study.
Yan Song looked Yan Shifan up and down with his cloudy eyes before asking.
"How did you do what I asked you to do?"
Yan Shifan heard this and replied without thinking.
"Father, I have already investigated several provinces near Zhejiang. The only ones that still have excess food are Jiangxi and Fujian."
As soon as Yan Shifan finished speaking, Yan Song frowned and gave his opinion.
"Currently, the Fujian side is controlled by Tan Lun from Qingliu. It is impossible for us to mobilize food from Fujian. It seems that we can only start from Jiangxi."
After hearing Yan Song's views, Yan Shifan immediately expressed his agreement.
"Yes, father, we can't count on the Fujian side now."
"The only thing we can count on now is Jiangxi Governor Cao Shunhe!"
When Yan Shifan said this, he seemed to suddenly remember it, and immediately slapped his thigh and said excitedly.
"Yeah, how could I forget about this!"
After Yan Shifan finished speaking, he turned his gaze to Yan Song and spoke.
"Father, do you still remember that not long ago, Hu Zongxian personally led an army to Jiangxi to suppress the rebellion?"
As soon as Yan Shifan finished speaking, Yan Song was keenly aware of the meaning contained in Yan Shifan's words and immediately hesitated.
"You mean to ask Hu Zongxian to come forward and write a letter to Jiangxi Governor Cao Shunhe and ask him to distribute grain to Zhejiang?"
"Yes, father, that's what I think. This Cao Shunhe owes Hu Zongxian a huge favor. We can just take advantage of this opportunity..."
When Yan Song heard this, hesitation appeared on his face and he said slowly.
"I always feel that things are not that simple. Could Xu Jie not think of things that you can find out?"
"Perhaps before this, Xu Jie had already issued an order to Jiangxi Governor Cao Shunhe, telling him not to adjust grains without permission!"
At this moment, Yan Shifan's face was full of anxiety, and he urged: "Father, no matter what the result is, let's give it a try first. We can never just sit back and wait for death, and we can never fail in changing rice to mulberry!"
Yan Song seemed to be moved by Yan Shifan's words. After a long time, Yan Song looked away and said in a deep voice.
"Okay, I'll write a letter to Hu Zongxian right now, and you can grind the ink for me!"
"Yes, father!"
Seeing that Yan Song was willing to try, Yan Shifan breathed a sigh of relief and immediately responded in a deep voice.
After that, Yan Shifan quickly ground the ink for Yan Song. Yan Song spread out the paper, dipped his brush in ink, and then wrote the four characters "Ru Zhen personally opens the letter" on the letter raft.
"How is my beloved disciple's health lately? In addition to the daily greetings, this letter written by the teacher today also contains an extremely important thing that needs you to do. I hope you can come forward in person to tell Cao Shunhe, the governor of Jiangxi..."
When the last stroke was finished, Yan Song breathed a sigh of relief. He quickly put the brush in his hand back to its original place, checked it carefully again, and confirmed that there were no mistakes or omissions. After the ink was completely dry, he installed it. Put it in the envelope, and then gave instructions to Yan Shifan.
"Send someone to deliver this letter to Hu Zongxian immediately. We must do it quickly. We don't have much time!"
"Yes, father, let's do it now."
Yan Shifan took the envelope from Yan Song's hand solemnly, turned around and left the study without stopping at all.
…
Zhejiang, Zhejiang Governor's Mansion.
At this moment, Zheng Michang looked anxious and kept pacing in the room.
Not long ago, He Maocai, Gao Hanwen, Ma Ningyuan and others who were sent to investigate the specific situation all unanimously delivered the same news, which was: "A month ago, an unidentified person came forward and took these farmers into their hands. All the grain was purchased at a high price.”
When Zheng Michang heard the news, he was also very angry. What he didn't expect was that those Qingfang affairs would be so strict. Before that, he didn't even notice it at all.
"What should we do now? When the court investigates it, I, as the chief envoy of Zhejiang, will definitely not be able to escape the involvement!"
While Zheng Michang was still worried about his fate, guards soon came to report.
"Report... your Majesty the Chief Envoy, many mulberry farmers have gathered outside to cause trouble, demanding that the government distribute relief grains!"
"What!"
After listening to the guard's report, Zheng Michang's expression suddenly became gloomy, and he gritted his teeth and said: "These unruly people are really impatient. Who gave them the courage to come to the Governor's Mansion?" make trouble!"
After the words fell, Zheng Michang reacted quickly and said secretly: "Huh, it must be those Qingliu who are instigating it behind the scenes. Zheng Michang, you have to calm down. The most important thing you should do now is to stabilize the situation!"
Thinking of this, the gloomy look on Zheng Michang's face disappeared, replaced by his usual calm face.
Immediately, Zheng Mi Chang turned his eyes to the guard and gave instructions in a deep voice.
"Take me over there and I will explain to them personally!"
"Yes, Lord Chief Envoy!"
Later, under the leadership of the guards, Zheng Michang came to the outside of the Governor's Mansion and saw many sangong gathered outside the Governor's Mansion.
Before that, all the guards of the Governor's Mansion had been dispatched and stopped these Sannons on the road ten meters away from the Governor's Mansion.
Seeing Zheng Michang coming out of the Governor's Mansion, the farmers seemed to have seen their savior. They instantly became noisy and kept crowding and pushing in the direction of the Governor's Mansion.
"Sir, when will the government relief food be distributed?"
"Yes, sir, if relief food is not distributed, my family will soon be without food, and the whole family will be hungry by then!"
"I heard that there is not enough relief food in the government. Is this true?"
"Please, sir, have mercy on us!"
"If I had known, I shouldn't have listened to the government and changed rice into mulberry. Now I can't even fill my stomach!"
A middle-aged man with a dark and thin build and dressed in tattered coarse linen clothes said this.
When Zheng Michang heard this, his expression suddenly darkened, and he immediately pointed at the grumbling middle-aged man before and ordered in a deep voice.
"How dare you defy the government and let me arrest him!"
"Yes, sir!"
As soon as Zheng Michang finished speaking, the guards of the Governor's Mansion quickly arrested the grumbling middle-aged man just like a wolf among sheep. Seeing this, the remaining sangongs seemed to be extremely shocked. They were so frightened that they closed their mouths.
Then, Zheng Michang turned his gaze to the middle-aged man and said in a deep voice.
"Changing rice to mulberry is a national policy. As a citizen of the Ming Dynasty, you don't support the imperial court's national policy. Who ordered you to do this?"
"I see that you have received benefits from the Japanese pirates, and you have just spoken out to slander our national policy of the Ming Dynasty. Come on, please bring him down to me and interrogate him strictly. We must make him tell who is behind it!"
"Yes, Lord Chief Envoy!"
When the middle-aged man heard this, he immediately panicked and kowtowed to the ground, begging Zheng Michang for forgiveness.
"Sir... Sir, I am wronged. I just... uh uh..."
Before the middle-aged man could finish speaking, his mouth was blocked with a piece of cloth and he was immediately taken away.
Seeing that the situation was temporarily under control, Zheng Michang turned his attention to the remaining sangong, and his tone softened a lot: "I know that it will not be easy for you!"
"I can assure you that the relief food currently prepared in the granary is absolutely sufficient!"
"The reason why relief food has not been distributed for a long time is because the government is currently short of manpower, which has led to slow progress!"
When Zheng Michang said this, he paused for a moment and then continued to add.
"Do you know how many people in Zhejiang have converted from rice to mulberry? It's almost half the number. With so many people, the government has to count them one by one, and it has taken so much time."
"Please also understand the difficulties faced by the government. After the government has completed the statistics, relief grains will be distributed to you soon!"
Seeing that Zheng Michang had made a guarantee, the attitude of the farmers began to waver.
"Why don't we go back? After the government has finished counting, they will distribute the relief rations to us!"
"Yes, there is no benefit in continuing to stay here, and it will also delay the government's work!"
"That makes sense, let's go back!"
Soon, all the farmers who had gathered at the gate of the Governor's Mansion were persuaded by Zheng Michang to go back.
After all the farmers left, Zheng Michang breathed a sigh of relief and immediately returned to the meeting hall of the Governor's Mansion.
Zheng Michang sat down at the top and sighed helplessly: "Well, even so, it won't last too long. I hope Mr. Ge and the others will take action as soon as possible, otherwise, everything will be over!"
Immediately afterwards, Zheng Michang thought for a long time, called his subordinates, and gave instructions.
"Go to the granary right now and do some statistics to see how long it can last if the relief grains are distributed according to the minimum limit!"
When the subordinate heard this, he immediately responded respectfully.
"Yes, Lord Chief Envoy, I will definitely handle this matter well!"
One million words to commemorate! ! !
(End of chapter)
