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Chapter 160 Weapon of Public Opinion
At the beginning of July, the court, which had been quiet for only a month, was once again in turmoil. In the case of the Engineering Department, Zhong Zhaodou and Wang Yuanhan jointly impeached Nanjing Internal Guard Zhou Gui and the Shrine Superintendent Du Xue for spending extravagantly, cutting down tombs and destroying dragon veins.

The emperor's attitude was naturally to protect his shortcomings and not to make any mistakes.A few days later, Hu Jiadong and Wu Liangsi from the Military Department, and Qiao Bixing, the censor of the Youqian capital, also went to Shu to talk about the matter, but the emperor still ignored them.

But the next day, Li Kezhuo, Zhou Yongchun, Wang Ruolin, and Yang Lian were involved in the matter, and Gu Dazhang, the official officer, continued to follow up. They launched successive attacks on Zhou Gui and Du Xue, and they vowed not to give up until they achieved their goals. the meaning of.

Originally a small matter, the person involved was not very prominent, let alone a key minister, but it actually triggered a turbulent impeachment, causing several factions to share the same hatred. It surprised most people and made the emperor a little bit agitated. Caught off guard.

Helplessly, in the face of so many impeachments, the cabinet can only be convened to discuss countermeasures.The result was still unsatisfactory. Under the leadership of Chief Assistant Shen Li, bachelors Li Dai, Li Tingji, and Weng Zhengchun all expressed that legal action should be taken.

Fortunately, the academician Ye Xianggao spoke frankly and took out two memorials from the Nanjing Ministry of War and the Nanjing Internal Guard some time ago, so that he could find a way out for the emperor.But who to believe is still undecided.

In the end, in order to show justice, the emperor did not believe anyone he chose. He ordered the Nanjing garrison of Funing, Zhu Jixun, to investigate the matter. With the assistance of the Nanjing Jinyi Guards, he also sent the Royal Horse Supervisor Wang Guotai to rush south with the order to supervise all parties.

It seems that there should be no problem in handling it this way. Civil servants and eunuchs impeach each other, and the nobles are responsible for investigating the truth. Neither side is biased.Nanjing Jinyiwei only does specific work, but he is also afraid that it will be difficult to choose sides due to the sophistication of people.Wang Guotai sat in place of the emperor to prevent anyone from relying on his status and refusing to accept the assignment.

But some people were still unhappy. A few days later, a newspaper called "Donglin Xunjiao" suddenly appeared on the market, using Spring and Autumn style to make the matter public.It focuses on the eunuch status of Zhou Gui and Du Xue, and highlights the fact that they are morally corrupt and greedy by taking quotes out of context and making false claims.

The central idea is that eunuchs not only disrupted the government, but also used various methods to compete with the people for profit.For example, the extremely high-priced self-ringing bells, glassware, and four-wheeled carriages were all made by eunuchs, and all of them were enough for the common people to eat and drink.

At first glance, this article doesn't say a single bad word about the emperor, but how can it trigger endless associations?If eunuchs are vicious dogs, then the dog owners are probably not good people either, or at least have to bear the responsibility for lax control.

Who wrote this disclosure?There is indeed a signature, called Guishan layman.But if you write it, it means you haven’t written it. Only the devil knows who Guishan layman is.People in the Ming Dynasty, not just scholars, but anyone who had read a few books, liked to give themselves a nickname, and even used several nicknames together.

"Hehehe, it's interesting. They learn quite quickly! It's a pity that they can't learn well enough. The engraving is too slow, the effect is poor and the cost is high. I'm afraid it will cost a lot of money in the long run."

The newspaper was quickly placed on the emperor's desk. Hong Tao didn't read the content carefully, but he turned it over and over for a long time to consider the material of the paper and smelled it with his nose, his face full of disdain.

"Long live my lord, this thing is misleading the public. I have sent people to find it. The newspaper comes from No. 21 Shop, No. [-], Huanghuafang. The owner's surname is Ye, who is from Wuxi County." "Donglin Xun Lecture" was brought by Chen Ju himself. In my eyes, this thing is similar to the demon book case of previous years, and must be severely cracked down on.

"Should we arrest him?" The emperor seemed to have just woken up from sleep, and his thoughts were very slow.

"...How about we stop watching for a few more days and try to lure the person behind it to come forward in the long term?" But Chen Ju really didn't think so, and quickly thought about it in his mind, and it seemed that he could still handle the matter more perfectly. "If we catch it, within ten days, scientific scholars will flock to the book and compare it with "Ban Yue Tan". Should we catch it then? Let them say, someone will stand up for me. At the beginning You don’t quite understand my protection of Ma Jinglun, do you understand now?”

The biggest eunuch under his command, when he encountered a problem, he came up with two ideas in a row without getting to the point, which seemed to be a bit derelict in his duties.But Hong Tao doesn't see it that way. The ancients are indeed not as clear-minded as modern people in terms of ways to seize the commanding heights of public opinion.

When emperors of the past dynasties competed for power and profit with the civil servant group, their inability to take advantage of public opinion was also an important factor in their failure. It has to be admitted that the civil servant group has a unique advantage in propaganda.

Establishing colleges and lecturing, writing books, making friends, and writing poems and songs are all effective ways to spread opinions and gain recognition.However, the emperor could only issue orders and edicts while trapped in the imperial city, which he said were announced to the world, but in fact, except for officials, most people could not see them.

But with the emergence of newspapers, the huge gap in public opinion was quickly flattened, and even dominated by foreigners.If the emperor wants to open up the channels of speech, he can allow private newspapers to be published.If you don’t want to open up anymore, just say that the newspapers are deceiving the public.Between retraction and release, the speed is infinitely variable and can be adjusted at will without any sense of frustration.

Technology is a productive force, and at the same time, technology is also a great weapon of the ruling class.The more advanced technology becomes, the more effective the ruling class’s methods of controlling public opinion become, and the less likely it is that most people will know the truth.Technology is a double-edged sword, it depends on who holds it and how to use it.

Now Hong Tao will use newspapers to confuse the public and start a public opinion war with the official group.You accuse me of using Huangzhuang's industry to plunder people's wealth and support, but I will clearly describe Huangzhuang's operating model and the whereabouts of funds. I will also publish the details of officials and gentry's occupation of land, monopoly of industries, and plundering without naming names.

Let the people do their own calculations and see who is taking the money by force.Even if we fail to win the war of words in the end, everyone will be disgraced. No one can take advantage of others and pretend to be saints, while accusing others of being moths.

""Half Moon Talk"...Long live the Lord's foresight and foresight, and the servant is convinced! But in this way, the important affairs of the imperial court will be discussed by the villagers in the streets and alleys, which is unseemly, and I am even more afraid of the public speaking."

If the emperor didn't mention "Ban Yue Tan", Chen Ju couldn't remember it at all. At this time, he suddenly became enlightened, and then felt chilled.The emperor had already started planning the plan a full year ago. To say it was an unintentional move would be an insult to his intelligence.

But besides being convinced, there is also something to worry about.Since ancient times, the imperial court has been aloof, and the common people can only listen to any decisions made, with no possibility of participating.

If "Ban Yue Tan" and "Dong Lin Xun Leo" attack each other with pens and swords, then not all important affairs of the imperial court will be made public. It will be awkward no matter how you think about it. Once civil strife is triggered, the consequences will be unimaginable.

"Hey, your reading of the sages' books was in vain. Mencius said that the people are the most important, the country is the second most important, and the king is the least. The ancients also said that if there is pain, there will be no understanding, and if there is generalization, there will be no pain. As long as it is not a major military matter, it doesn't hurt to talk about it. "

"...What Long Live the Lord said is absolutely true. I'm so shallow." Come on, you've already brought out the sages' books, so shut up.However, Chen Ju thought hard and couldn't find out which ancient person said "pain means it doesn't make sense" and "general means it doesn't hurt" came from it, but it does make sense.

(End of this chapter)