Seeing that Li Zhi refused to accept his advice, Feng Bangning said helplessly: "Back then, I made a three-part agreement with my eldest brother. The first was not to attack the imperial court. The second was that after three years, I could speak my mind directly. I won't talk about that. The third was that I had the final review authority! Crazy He’s manuscript not only attacks the imperial court, it simply attacks—I want to use my final review authority!”
Hearing this, Li Zhi sneered and said, "Okay, okay! You said we had made a three-part agreement. That day I asked you who was standing behind you. What did you say? Who of us deceived first?"
Feng Bangning was speechless. He had no choice but to look at Wang Daokun with pleading eyes. Although Wang Daokun admired Li Zhi's character, this article was not trivial, so he had to hand it over and said: "If Zhuo Wu insists on publishing this article, I will not dare to play with you anymore. I will resign and return to my hometown."
After hearing this, Li Zhi said anxiously: "Brother, who told me at that time, 'Don't cover up evil, don't pretend to be beautiful, and aim to speak directly and accurately'?" Seeing that Wang Daokun turned away and didn't answer, Li Zhi actually shed tears and said, "Zhi Ruo If you give up today, don't think about it in the future. If you withdraw one article today, you will withdraw ten or a hundred articles in the future - how is it different from the Capital Daily?" After saying that, he sat slumped on the ground, covering his face with his sleeves and crying bitterly.
Wang Daokun sighed, bowed his hands to Li Zhi, and said nothing. Seeing that Li Zhi was so sad, Feng Bangning first patted his thigh several times, and then patted Li Zhi's shoulder and said, "Brother, please stop crying. You can do whatever you want."
When Li Zhi heard this, he immediately stopped crying. and Wang Daokun looked at Feng Bangning with doubtful eyes. Feng Bangning smiled bitterly and said to Li Zhi: "After reading my eldest brother's articles every day for these years, I have developed some integrity. My eldest brother is a madman deep in the white clouds. Why don't you allow me to break the rules and amaze the world today?"
Li Zhi wiped his tears and gave Feng Bangning a thumbs up. Feng Bangning said with a wry smile: "Besides, except for the fact that the current emperor killed many people in the early days of the Great Reform, he has not been convicted of any crime with his words in recent years - it's amazing that we shut them down. To be honest, I am tired of being worried these years."
Li Zhi took a deep look at Feng Bangning, stood up, straightened his clothes, and then bowed to the ground. Feng Bangning hurriedly got up from the floor and said, "Brother, what are you doing? Don't hurt me." Wang Daokun's eyes were red when he saw this scene.
Li Zhi turned around and said to Wang Daokun: "Brother, the emperor sent a letter last month asking me to recommend some newspaper experts. In recent years, there have only been three newspapers in the two capitals, which is too few. Depending on the emperor's wishes, we will issue one this year. A lot of permission.”
Wang Daokun's heart was pounding after hearing this. Li Zhi continued: "If the eldest brother is willing to spread the business, it is best to open another newspaper in Nanjing. If the eldest brother wants to return to his hometown, he can also open one in Huizhou. Now that Huizhou merchants are the best in the world, running a business newspaper will be more prosperous——"
When Wang Daokun heard this, his face showed anger and he said, "If I want to grow my hair, why should I resign?"
Li Zhi smiled narrowly and said: "Brother is willing to compete with me in Nanjing. That's the best. I'm afraid you will lose too miserably and look bad. Since eldest brother has decided to stay in Nanjing, I will recommend Hu Yinglin to the emperor - this little This guy keeps saying that I, Li Zhi, don’t have the courage, so let him edit one to see how courageous he is.”
Wang Daokun and Feng Bangning both laughed. Wang Daokun asked: "No wonder you are so brave. Looking at this, you really have some face with the emperor."
Li Zhi frowned when he heard this and said: "It is true that the Emperor and I have exchanged letters, but if we talk about friendship, it is very light - we have not even met each other, what kind of holy family are there? They are just mouthpieces. Now I am holding on to the tiger's skin. To act as a banner and publish He Xinyin’s article, good or bad fortunes are unpredictable, and it would be a lie to say that I am not afraid.”
After a pause, he continued: "The next step of the imperial court is to set up a publishing department under the Ministry of Household Affairs. It is said that Li Weizhen will be the minister in charge of this department. Li Weizhen and I have already communicated through letters before, and the emperor may not contact me directly in the future - this 'Holy There is no such thing as a shadow."
Feng Bangning sighed first when he heard this, and then stuck out his tongue and said: "Li Weizhen was a Jinshi in the second year of Longqing, right? Is he forty years old now? Is he now a minister?" Gu Min
Li Zhi heard this and sneered: "What's so strange about an official in the attendant's room being promoted so quickly?"
...
On April 28, the 14th year of Wanli, "Nanjing Daily" published the full text of He Xinyin's "Analysis of "Scholars and People". Although Li Zhi wrote an editor's note at the beginning and added the sentence "One family's words" at the end, as soon as the article was published, the world became furious. People blamed He Xinyin for "having no emperor and father", and also criticized the Nanjing Daily and Li Zhi. Among them, the article "Li Zhi, the Painter of Skin" in "Jingshi Daily" is the most typical:
"Li Zhi was quite talented. He served as an official and resigned in his prime, which shows that this talent was not used by the Heavenly Family, and it also shows how good his moral character was. As the editor-in-chief of "Nanjing Daily", heresies spread throughout the country, confusing people's hearts, and he prided himself on being a non-conformist. "
"Regarding Lu Buwei and Li Yuan as their wise counsels, Li Si as his talent, Feng Dao as his hidden official, Zhuo Wenjun as his good choice of spouse, Sima Guang's argument about Sang Hongyang and bullying Emperor Wu as ridiculous, Qin Shihuang as the one emperor through the ages, and Confucius's right and wrong opinions lack sufficient evidence, are wild and outrageous, and are difficult to enumerate. Most of them are absurd and unreasonable, and must be destroyed!"
"It is particularly hateful to have those who behave unethically. They roam the market with unscrupulous people, seduce prostitutes, and bathe with them during the day. They seduce the wives and daughters of scholars and work as newspaper servants... As for the rape of women, they are the same as animals, and they are killed immediately. Not enough..."
"As for why he wants to hide, he is a beast without a king and father! His words are dirty, his writing is dirty, his hands are dirty, this beast has not touched the hearts of the people, how can anyone with a little bit of shame be able to live with him for a day? He will be punished and thank the world!"
...
When people all over the world were shouting about fighting and killing, the sales volume of "Nanjing Daily" experienced a strange surge. The deviant words should certainly be criticized, but everyone found it very exciting - although this thing is not pornographic, it makes people's blood pump and their hearts pound, and it is very enjoyable.
In May of the 14th year of the Ming Dynasty, public opinion was in chaos. While He Xinyin and Li Zhi were on the hot searches, rumors spread from the capital that the emperor wanted to increase taxes on industry and commerce, causing panic in the world.
The common people in the capital love to say that the imperial court is playing a big game: "The timing of publishing this article is very lucky! If you want to say whether it is right or wrong, He Xinyin is definitely wrong, but if He Xinyin is wrong, then raising taxes on industry and commerce is right! You Is this the truth? That, all over the world, and the shore of the earth, right? You are right."
Some say that the emperor and the court are about to go bankrupt and cannot do it without raising taxes: "Now the Ming Dynasty is just a donkey dung egg with a shiny surface! It makes sense to attack the Northeast, but it will be impossible if the Jurchen barbarians are not reined in. We can barely fight Burma and Annan It is also a good thing. The land is good, there is plenty of food, and there are many women, which are perfect for us bachelors. Is it useful to hunt to the west, or to the north? If we expand the land by millions, there will be no birds. How many will we put in? The silver will flow into a big river. Humph. Huh, can we not increase the tax? I heard that the emperor reduced the meal to four dishes and two vegetarian dishes - tell me how poor he is!"
Others have a positive view on tax increases: "Let me tell you - these rich people should tax more! It's been so many years, and the money you have earned has already been spent. Why, do you want to make money and don't want to be beaten? What do you want me to say? They say that the emperor is a wise man and should tax them heavily. It would be better if he could give us some subsidies."
There are also those who are worried: "Hey. How many years has it been since the price of my small business has increased? Two big steamed buns are a penny, which has been the price since my grandfather's time! If the emperor raises taxes, I am really prepared to pay a penny a piece - —Tell me, would you still buy it if it was a penny each?"
"That's not possible. I definitely won't buy it. I'll buy noodles and meat and steam it myself."
