Man Tang Huacai

Chapter 197 Newspaper Academy

On the fourth day of April, it was sunny after the rain.

Everything is wonderful in spring in Chang'an City, except that there are too many catkins dancing in the air, which is very annoying. Now the catkins have stopped, the sunflowers have just begun to bloom, and the weather has not started to get hot yet. It is a beautiful day.

Du Wulang hummed a little tune and led his horse through the imperial city. When he arrived near the cross street, he saw that the west side was very busy, with officials and craftsmen walking in a hurry.

Others said that this was a prosperous era of prosperous literary style, but he felt tired just looking at it.

"May I ask where Xue Bai, the school secretary, is? I'm afraid you don't recognize him because he just joined the secretarial department. He is a young man, half a head taller than me..."

"Over there, over there."

Du Wulang then walked into the government office along Huangcheng Street and walked to the innermost courtyard. The ceremonial door was tightly closed. He sniffed and smelled the fragrance of wood mixed with the smell of ink.

"Tuk-tuk-tuk."

"I'm Du Li, is Xue Bai here?"

After waiting for a while, he was led into the courtyard and saw Xue Bai checking a piece of paper, still wearing the light blue official robe and looking serious.

"Wow, there are so many people. You are not a big official, but you manage a lot of people."

"They are all considered masters. They are all literate and have good craftsmanship. Only the Imperial City can recruit such talents."

"What is this doing?"

Xue Bai is preparing to publish the Di newspaper.

Although Li Longji said that he would gather some literati for a while to praise the prosperous times, Xue Bai did not intend to just publish those dry contents. He planned to arrange the layout of Di Bao and add some current affairs articles. This part can be started now. Made engravings.

He tried to combine woodblock printing with movable type printing. A Di newspaper could be divided into several pages, which were carved by different craftsmen at the same time, and finally printed together.

Mistakes were made all the time, many ideas were wrong, many detours were taken, and the operation of fonts, inks, plates, etc. was extremely troublesome... But there are always more solutions than difficulties, and progress is the process of overcoming difficulties.

There was no need to talk about this with Du Wulang. Xue Bai took him into the meeting hall at the back.

Nowadays, there is not enough space in the secretary's office, and the official residence is full of messy things, including hundreds of piles of paper of various materials, boxes of ink blocks, wood for engraving, and rabbit skins for making brushes.

There was actually a roll of quilt, so some officials must be staying here at night.

"You don't care about the dignity of an official?" Du Wulang didn't mind being dirty and sat down directly on a box.

"It's not easy to live in Chang'an. There are part-time jobs and tuition fees. It would be good for everyone to earn more salary."

Xue Bai said, and handed over two pieces of paper. They were less than a foot wide and a foot and a half long, and were full of dense text.

"what is this?"

"Di Bao, let's call it Di Bao for now." Xue Bai said: "Did you know that Chang'an once had a 'Kaiyuan Miscellaneous News'?"

"You know, the military governors from all over the world sent people to the capital to guard outside the palace gate every day, copying the government affairs and then sending them out. I have only heard of it from my grandfather, but I have never seen it."

"Then this is Tianbao Official News." Xue Bai said: "Compared to copying, the circulation of printing is not the same."

"Publish?"

Du Wulang glanced at the handwriting on the paper and recognized that part of it was written by Xue Bai, and said, "I think you copied this by hand."

"First write a few layouts to make the style and determine the font size. Just take a look at it." Xue Bai said, "You first go to Fengwei Building to make arrangements, and say hello to the restaurants, teahouses and food stalls we are familiar with, and wait until the imperial court officially publishes it. Now, arrange for someone to read the newspaper."

"Aren't you an official? Why do you still ask me to do these things?"

"For a small matter, it may not be good for the government to intervene because it will disturb the people. We can just handle it ourselves."

"Why don't you tell my sisters?"

"I've been busy lately. I'll see them later."

"Oh."

Du Wulang then lowered his head and looked at it. The short stories on several of the pages were quite interesting. Two of the pages were about farming tips, preventing diseases and pests in April, and teaching people how to fertilize.

Not long after, another petty official came over to inquire about official business.

Xue Bai then led Du Wulang through Zhuque Street to the government office where the left-leading military guard was originally located.

Du Wulang was surprised when he saw it from a distance and asked, "Is this now the location of the Secretariat Department?"

"Well, it is now also called the Secretary's Provincial East Hospital." Xue Bai said: "We will select some copies of books and set up a library here for students from all over the world to read and copy."

"Wouldn't that be troublesome?"

"It's troublesome, but it's meaningful. Students copied the book a lot, so it naturally spread widely."

With that said, he entered the East Courtyard library, where the bookshelves had just been set up. The books had not yet been put in. Several officials were busy arranging them. When they saw Xue Bai, they immediately stepped forward to report.

"Xue Zhuangyuan is here. Please take a look at the arrangement of the books. We have also divided them into four parts of the "Jingshi Ziji" and arranged them according to rhyme."

"Thank you, how about adding a reading hall here? It can also be copied."

"Yes, I'm just worried that if they are copied too much, some books will no longer be rare books."

"A saint is a wise king in a prosperous age. What he wants is not just a few volumes of rare books, but a country of etiquette where everyone knows how to read and understand..."

Xue Bai was still busy here, and there were clerks over there who came to inquire about chores. Du Wulang had no choice but to help out.

Although he had only been in the secretary's office for an hour, he had a good time and was fulfilled. He was even asked if he was an official who had just been seconded.

"No, no, I have just graduated from the Ming Dynasty in Jinke, and I have not yet been appointed to an official position. Xue Zhuangyuan and I are good friends. Have you ever heard of the Five Chunwei Masters?"

At this time, a woman in Taoist robes came over and asked without saying hello: "Where is Xue Baibai?"

When Du Wulang first saw the Taoist robe, he felt it was elegant. He turned around and recognized who it was. He was startled and took two steps back unconsciously.

"He...ah, long time no see."

Jiaonu's face was as cold as frost, and there was murderous intent in his eyes. He asked, "Where are the people?"

Du Wulang didn't dare to answer and quickly pointed to the secretary to the west.

Jiao Nu was not easy to be deceived, and immediately entered the east courtyard where Xue Bai was. After a while, he came out angrily and shouted: "Tell him to come to Yuzhen Temple and give me an explanation."

After that, she went straight to look elsewhere.

Du Wulang was stunned, and then looked around the east courtyard, but Xue Bai was nowhere to be seen.

It wasn't until Jiao Nu walked far away that he saw Xue Bai coming out of the Ministry of War Selection House in the north and talking to Wang Wei.

"Did you just see Sha Maid?" Du Wulang took the opportunity to step forward and asked in a low voice.

"I am busy with official duties and have no time to pay attention to these little ladies." Xue Bai waved his hand and said: "Let's go and have dinner together. The food prepared by the secretary is good. Mr. Mojie also serves as an official in the Ministry of War, but he comes here every time to eat."

This is just an exaggerated joke. Wang Wei is a simple person and does not explain it.

~~

The banquet was arranged by Guanglu Temple, and there were actually standards. The important ministers in purple robes must eat differently from ordinary officials.

Du Wulang originally thought that he had a tricky taste and was used to the stir-fries at Fengweilou, so how could he fancy the gourmet food at the Yamen Office? But he didn't know that what he ate with Xue Bai was the dishes that Jipinguan should eat, but the taste turned out to be unexpectedly good.

"This...meat is firm, evenly fat and thin, and the skin is soft and waxy. It also has a fragrance, which is...pepper! I'm so grateful that I know how to use pepper!"

Xue Baizheng was discussing poetry and books with Wang Wei and others, and had no time to pay attention to him.

Du Wulang was alone there thinking about it, sighing with emotion every time he tasted a dish.

"Hey, he is the youngest son in Mr. Du's family? His knowledge is extraordinary."

"I am Fengwei..."

Halfway through Du Wulang's words, he turned around and saw an old man in purple robes standing not far away. Everyone around him called him "Zuo Xiang". He quickly kept silent. Unexpectedly, the other party attacked him.

"Look, this is the famous Du Wulang in Chang'an City."

Du Wulang didn't know what Chen Xilie wanted to see, so he responded: "I've seen the left prime minister."

"I heard that you are getting married soon, why don't you send me a message?" Chen Xilie was very approachable.

"This……"

Du Wulang thought to himself, the bride's uncle like Xue Hui refused to come because he did not want to associate with Xue Ling. Why did the left prime minister, who had no relatives and no reason, come?

Chen Xilie seemed to understand his thoughts and said: "Your grandfather works with me in the official department. I am going to your wedding."

"Then... April 18th, I wonder if the Prime Minister can spare some time? If he is busy with official duties..."

"If you're not busy, if you're not busy, you will definitely go." Chen Xilie stroked his beard and smiled.

~~

"On the fifteenth day of this month, it is rare for a saint to attend court in the Daming Palace early in the morning. Is it related to the current book repair matter?"

"I guess Mr. Mojie is going to compose a poem."

"It seems that Xue Lang knows something?"

Xue Bai smiled and said nothing. With Wang Wei's intelligence, this reminder was enough. After the meal, Wang Wei, Li Mi and others followed Xue Bai to a veranda room. They discussed in a low voice and went about their business.

In the afternoon, Xue Bai went to see Yang Zheng, and the conversation was still about the publication of the Di newspaper.

"No one in the court has realized that it is this newspaper that can really bring real power to my brother." Xue Bai said: "If the sage's edict reaches the subjects directly, it is equivalent to gathering the power of the Imperial Academy to wait for the edict and the Zhongshu to give people the power. .”

"Really?" Yang Wei was overjoyed and clapped his knees and said, "Okay, no wonder Abai asked me to promise Ge Nu not to go to Zhongmen Province to fight for power with him. It turns out I'm waiting here."

Xue Bai smelled a medicinal smell in the hall, and first reminded him, "Brother, you should also pay attention to your health, and don't work too hard." Then he continued: "Secretary, these craftsmen are great treasures, and we must win over them at any cost. In this way, no matter how others try to imitate me, they will never be able to shake my brother."

"Don't worry, Abai, I have plenty of money, and I will bribe these talents with all my heart!"

"The general supervisor is already casting movable type copper plates. Brother should have complete control over these craftsmen so that Li Xiu doesn't know the progress." Xue Bai said: "When the report comes out, people will be confused."

Yang Qi asked curiously: "What does it mean to be confused?"

"We will be very efficient." Xue Bai mused: "Others couldn't figure out why we could do it, so they thought the reason was this movable type copper plate, and this copper plate has tens of thousands of words. It is definitely not something ordinary people have the ability to cast, so they can only look at it and sigh. , believes that only the Ministry of Secretaries has the ability to publish Di Bao."

"What about the reality?"

Xue Bai smiled mysteriously and said, "It's actually very simple. Brother, I will know when the time comes."

Yang Wei was very curious, but out of trust in Xue Bai, he refrained from asking.

Xue Bai asked again: "Of course, technical barriers can't stop others from grabbing the right to publish the Di newspaper. It doesn't matter. We are scheming. What we are robbing is this initial reputation. The more prosperous the articles and academics are, the more they will sink, and the poor will be poor." Students will naturally follow our lead, this is the general trend..."

There were so many new words in these words that Yang Hao often had to think carefully before he could react. It was very difficult to listen and he was a little confused. However, he knew that the mastermind was very capable and just listened to him.

~~

In the next few days, Xue Bai called the remote courtyard in the Secretary's Department the "Newspaper Courtyard". The craftsmen in the courtyard received generous monthly salaries and rewards, and worked day and night.

At the same time, several workshops that made bamboo paper, ink, and copper plates in the prison were completely controlled by Yang Hao's people.

As promised to Li Linfu, Yang Dang never went to fight for power under Zhongshu's sect, and concentrated on the popularization of cheap paper... only seeking this little political achievement.

As the moon sets and the sun rises, copper juice is poured into the character mold and placed in water to create smoke; the paper pulp is slowly dried on the table to form bamboo paper; sawdust is flying, and the carving knife is carving out each piece of wood. Small regular script; the ink stone was hammered, glued, pounded with a pestle, and ground carefully, leaving thick ink flowing.

Afterwards, with a "pop" sound, the arranged carvings were dipped in ink and printed on bamboo paper...

Finally, on April 15th, the saint made an early appearance in the Daming Palace.

When the rooster crows, officials of the fifth rank and above in the capital and special officials get up early, carry lanterns, and ride horses to go to court. It is exactly like "recognizing the fire from afar and entering the morning fire slightly, and a star constellating five gates to the west."

Xue Bai's official position was too small and he was not included in the early dynasty. Instead, they waited in the Taipu Temple Car Workshop outside the Jianfu Gate of Daming Palace.

When all the officials retired, eunuchs came to issue edicts.

"Call Cheng Wu Lang, Tai Le Cheng, School Secretary Xue Bai, and Dongyuan to accompany you."

"The minister obeys the order."

All the way to the East Garden, I saw the palace surrounded by jade railings, golden animal faces, the spring grass in the Phoenix Pond, and the gentle breeze. Li Longji was taking a group of ministers to enjoy the beautiful scenery, and the atmosphere was just right.

Those officials mainly wear purple robes or red robes, but there are also some green robes. Xue Bai is the only one wearing green robes.

Before he could step forward, he heard someone reciting poetry.

"The garden is filled with green leaves and thick red leaves, and the blue sky is rolling in the clear sky. It is the same place of literature and history. I hope the grass will be sealed."

"Okay! This poem by Xu Yushi is great."

"Prime Minister Zuo, please sing a song."

"Then the old minister will show his embarrassment." Chen Xilie also opened his mouth and recited a quite good poem. He was full of emotion at the end, "There is nothing wrong with the wild old song, and the courtiers drink the fragrance of the year. The emperor's love is surrounded by others, and the favor between China and foreign countries is good." .”

At this time, Xue Bai stepped forward to salute, and Li Longji was in a good mood. He waved him forward, but instead of asking him to compose poems, he pointed at the eunuch who was copying poems and said with a smile: "The new champion is here, let's take a look. The atmosphere of the prosperous Tang Dynasty..."

~~

After the morning court, as usual, officials would have a meal in the corridor of the court hall, which was called "corridor meal." However, Xue Bai had no time to eat in the palace that day, so he left the Daming Palace and went straight to the newspaper publishing house.

"Xue Lang is here!"

"Open the door quickly."

The two courtyard doors were opened, and Xue Bai strode in. He saw two rows of craftsmen waiting in formation with the carvings in hand.

"There are eight new poems to be engraved! Huang Jiugong, you engraved the left prime minister's poems."

Xue Bai directly handed a piece of paper to an old craftsman. When he looked at it, he saw that the other man had already carved the four words "Fenghe Sacred System", which can be said to be a bold man of skill.

"Liu Shigong, you carve Cui Hao's poems."

"Cui Hao has returned to Chang'an?"

"Yes, he was transferred to the post of Si Xun Yuan Wai Lang. My news was too late. He composed the poem on the spot. You can write it quickly."

"Here."

The eight pieces of paper were distributed to more than a dozen craftsmen. Xue Bai walked quickly inside, and then passed through a more secret courtyard door, only to see that it was in full swing... The craftsmen were printing the newspaper and had already printed it. Half of it.

"went well?"

"It didn't go well. The engraving was soaked in ink, and many strokes were accidentally knocked off..."

"Don't panic, we have already bought a lot of time."

Xue Bai comforted the craftsman and at the same time picked up a newspaper and read it.

Because it was not easy to print on both sides, he planned to print both sides of each Di newspaper, and the first side was already printed.

The front page talks about the preparation of the "Tianbao Dadian"; the next page talks about the Secretariat's East Branch library being opened to students.

The third page talks about looking at the sun in April, when saints hold court in the morning, and famous writers write poems to praise the prosperous age of the Tang Dynasty.

The poems written by famous writers have just been written, and the ink has not yet dried. In this newspaper, thousands of copies of their newly written poems have been printed.

The first poem is Wei Shu's "Feng He Sheng Zhi Xiu Da Da Can Ying Zhi", "It is forbidden to revise the text, change the characters, and add the name. The pedestal is for outstanding people, and the bookstore should be for Guohua."

Then there is Wang Wei's "Fenghe Shengzhi ascends to the imperial garden and supervises the repairs to look at Yingzhi". "The good atmosphere contains the scenery, and the praises are overflowing with songs. The Duan Gong can appoint the virtuous, and it highlights the sage and the sage."

Li Mi and Wang Wei are one and the same Buddha. They usually look indifferent, and they write poems in the same way. This time they write: "The emperor's kindness comes from heaven, and he feels the spring when he tastes things. His kindness spreads all over the world, and he sings about the same emperor and his ministers."

The poems of Su Mingyuan, Xiao Yingshi, Li Hua and others were also printed in newspapers early... This was something they had colluded with several days ago.

Xue Bai asked Wang Wei to help write a poem. He used to copy poems without telling him, but this time he asked the original poet to give him a poem directly.

In this way, this side of the newspaper has been printed, and it is only necessary to print the poems and articles that were published today on the back page. If it can be printed within two or three days and spread throughout Chang'an within two or three days, then he can establish his reputation in one fell swoop. The status and reputation of "the first person to publish the Di newspaper".

This is what he and Yang said, "It's actually very simple."

~~

"Xue Lang, there is a problem."

"what happened?"

"Among these eight poems, there is a seven-character rhyme poem that does not match our prearranged layout."

"Take it off and I'll change it."

"I'm afraid... no, it's King Si Qi's poem, which should be on the second page at the back."

Xue Bai really didn't expect Li Zhen to compose a seven-character poem. He couldn't help but frown and thought for a while, and said, "Let's carve it first, and I'll see how to rearrange it."

"Xue Lang, maybe you can change the size of the characters?"

"No, the size cannot be changed so that others can see it."

Xue Bai arranged the newspapers and engravings for a long time, but he still couldn't find a suitable method, because he did not use movable type printing, but an entire poem on one engraving. At this time, it was too late to make changes.

If the size of the characters is not changed, Li Zhen's seven-character poem can only be replaced with a larger layout, and other poems will not fit in it. Finally, Xue Bai simply removed Liu Yushi's poem.

But in this way, a small space was left open in the end. It was not enough to put the entire rhythmic poem, and it seemed empty if it was not placed.

Xue Bai thought about it for a while, then simply wrote a few sentences and handed it to the craftsman.

"Carve this, and be quick. We'll start printing it at dawn."

"Here."

~~

"Ok?"

"All right."

The next day, several blocks of engravings were put together, a brush dipped in ink applied the ink, and then covered with white paper...

The craftsmen have begun printing newspapers in an orderly manner.

One, two... the original and duplicate copies were bound together and placed in wooden boxes. There were only a few copies at first, but by sunset, the first box was full.

The first box was carried onto the carriage and sent to Miyagi City; then, the second box was sent to Fengwei Tower.

In this way, the first batch of mass-printed Di newspapers came into being...

　Chapter 2 still has to wait until morning, don’t wait~~

　　

　

(End of this chapter)