Fortunate Young Gentleman

"Shopkeeper Peng, "The West Chamber" has been released, and you still haven't released the last three volumes. This is a bit too much!"

"Just tell me how much you want, don't beat around the bush like that!"

"It's just, don't you see there are so many people waiting!"

…

In Songzhuzhai, shopkeeper Peng was blocked outside as soon as he walked out of the shop.

He looked at the crowd gathered around him and said loudly: "Everyone, listen to me. The manuscripts of "The West Chamber" and "The Peony" have been searched and destroyed by the officials. I am trying my best to contact Mr. Li Qing. Don't worry, everyone. As soon as there is any news, I will inform everyone immediately! ”

He was anxious and helpless. Mr. Li Qing always wore a cloak every time he met him. He only knew that he was a man and he was not very old. Other than that, he knew nothing else. .

If the other party doesn't come to him, he is determined not to find the other party.

Just when he was anxious, a child ran over with a candied haws in his hand, handed him a bundle, and said, "Uncle, this is what a big brother asked me to give to you!"

After saying that, he held up the candied haws and ran away quickly.

Shopkeeper Peng took the bundle in a daze, opened it, with a look of ecstasy on his face, and strode into the bookstore.

Not long after, a sign was hung outside Songzhuzhai.

From now on, Songzhuzhai will continue to publish the follow-up content of "The Romance of the West Chamber" and "The Peony Pavilion". The quantity is limited and first come first served. If you want to order, hurry up...

In a bookstore opposite Songzhu Zhai, two people saw the content on the wooden sign, their expressions changed, and they quickly walked into Songzhu Zhai. After a while, they walked out again and stared blankly at the people walking on the street.

"Then Li Qing didn't come?"

"Then where did their stuff come from?"

"No matter what, go back and report first!"

…

The last volume of "The Romance of the West Chamber" was printed yesterday, which undoubtedly triggered another wave of craze in the capital.

It is said that the clerks and craftsmen of Songzhuzhai have been working non-stop for the past few days to add more issues and prints. Even so, the supply is still in short supply.

Tang Ning could understand why Shopkeeper Peng was so desperate. There was no copyright law in Chen State, and there was no concept of genuine piracy. The advantage of Songzhuzhai over other bookshops was the three to five days of first-mover advantage.

Once other bookstores react and print the same content, Songzhuzhai will lose its first-mover advantage and will not be able to monopolize the market. The profits will naturally be shared by others.

Especially those powerful big bookstores, after launching the illustrated edition and hardcover edition as quickly as possible, Songzhuzhai has lost even the last bit of advantage.

Tang Ning went out less often these days. After all, the days for the provincial examination were numbered. Even if he didn't feel any pressure, he couldn't act too dissolute at home.

After dinner, he used the excuse of digestion to go out with Peng Chen.

Shopkeeper Peng had just returned home from Songzhuzhai, and after dinner, he was going to stare at the bookstore for a while.

Although those guys would not be lazy at ten times the salary, but seeing them work with his own eyes made him feel more at ease.

As soon as he entered the courtyard, he saw a figure wearing a bamboo hat sitting on the wall.

He was startled at first, but after he came to his senses, he said in surprise: "Master Li, why are you here!"

Tangning jumped down from the wall, and Shopkeeper Peng immediately said, "This is not the place to talk, come in and talk, come in and talk!"

After entering the room, he looked at Tang Ning and reminded, "Young master, you must be careful these days and never approach Songzhuzhai. There are people there looking for you. I'm worried that they will be harmful to you."

Tangning nodded, looked at him and said, "This is the last time I come to see you."

Shopkeeper Peng was startled, and immediately said: "I will prepare a banknote for you immediately. We will also publish a hardcover version of "The West Chamber" in the future, and we should make more money, so this time, I should give you twice as much." "The Peony Pavilion" has not yet finished printing. Otherwise, I will leave the banknote in the same place next time, and you can ask someone to pick it up..."

Tangning waved her hand and said, "There is no need for the hardcover version. You can keep it. These two books have also caused you some trouble..."

"Young master, what are you talking about!" Shopkeeper Peng shook his head and said, "This is what we have discussed before. When we do business, what we say is what we say. Even if you don't want it, I have to give it to you..."

He took out a big box from under the bed and said, "If it weren't for those bookstores, we could make more money. Those shameless ones like Wanjuanlou Shuxiangge would just print our books and have people write erotic versions. , built a black workshop in the backyard and secretly published it. On the surface, he looked like a dog, but secretly he was very evil..."

The sales volume of banned books is actually the best. Major bookstores in the capital will secretly publish some banned books. Although they cannot be sold openly, there are some black markets that only insiders know about.

As for medium-sized bookshops like Songzhuzhai, they do not yet have the strength to open black workshops.

The cooperation with Songzhuzhai has almost come to an end. He has taken some risks in the process, but the rewards are also amazing.

After the imperial examination is completed, Tang Ning plans to open a bookstore by herself. Of course, with her fame and fame, it is not easy to do business directly. When the time comes, she can persuade Tang Yaoying to open a bookstore in the capital. Everyone will discuss how to share the accounts, so that the money will not go to outsiders.

While eating breakfast, Zhong Mingli put down his chopsticks, looked at Tang Ning, and said, "There are only a few days left for the provincial exam. In the next few days, don't read anything new. Just check for any omissions and fill in the gaps."

Tang Ning couldn't miss or miss out on anything he had read, but he still nodded.

Zhong Mingli stood up and said, "You guys eat first tonight, don't wait for me."

His mother-in-law helped him and Zhong Yi pick up some food, then looked at Zhong Mingli and asked, "Are you going to run another errand?"

Zhong Mingli nodded and said, "Although the court lifted the ban on some books a few days ago, it has become more strict with other banned books. It has ordered all the county offices to thoroughly investigate the bookshops that publish banned books, but these black workshops are hidden deep and difficult to find."

It is true that the black workshops are hidden deep and difficult to find, but I'm afraid there is another reason related to the county office runners.

These people were born and raised in the capital, and they are familiar with everything here. How could they not find a few black workshops?

First, his father-in-law was a new official, and his prestige was insufficient. I'm afraid his prestige in the county office is not as good as that of Ping'an County Magistrate. The runners were passive and lazy, just coping with the errands.

Secondly, those bookstores were able to operate in the capital and secretly print banned books without any problems for so long, which naturally had something to do with some people in the government office, and some yamen runners also received benefits from it.

Tang Ning sighed in his heart. Even this small matter could not be implemented. It would not be so easy for his father-in-law to sit firmly in the position of Ping'an County Magistrate...

He thought about it and said, "I heard that some large bookstores would build a black workshop in the backyard to print banned books and sell them on the black market, such as Wanjuanlou and Shuxiangge. When the court searched, they often only searched their workshops in front of people, not the backyard..."

Zhong Mingli was stunned for a moment and asked, "Is there such a thing?"

...

In early March, the new Ping'an County Magistrate sent people to seal up five bookstores including Wanjuanlou and Shuxiangge, and found a large number of banned books from the backyard. For a time, there were fewer sneaky figures on the street with their hands in their arms.

The court had searched for banned books several times, but to no avail. The closure of Wanjuanlou and Shuxiangge bookshops caused some ripples in a small area, and this was the first time that the new Ping'an County Magistrate came into the public eye.

From the beginning of "The Romance of the West Chamber" to the closure of these large bookshops, the court's ban on books has come to an end, and people have begun to pay more attention to the upcoming provincial examination.

When Tang Ning found that Zhong Yi and Su Ru had become nervous, and even Tang Yaojing was not in front of him, it was already the sixth day of March.

At this time, there were only three days left before the provincial examination.