Daming: I can’t kill such a greedy prince-in-law?

Chapter 476 Sister, let’s shut down the newspaper (please subscribe!!)
"Since no one is coming out to cause trouble, let's just start. Do you think there are too many of us Huaixi disciples?"

Li Shanchang said in a deep voice.

"This..." Feng Sheng looked embarrassed.

"Old Prime Minister, it's easy to cause trouble. We have a lot of retainers, servants, and even assassins. Isn't it easy to let them go out and make some trouble?" Lan Yu said coldly, "Those people are stupid. As long as someone takes the lead, they will follow. This matter will soon become a big deal. We will have an excuse to report Ouyang Lun to His Majesty. I want to see if Ouyang Lun can still hold the position of Minister of Revenue!"

"Old Prime Minister, I think Lan Yu's method is worth using. Ever since Ouyang Lun took office as the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, the reforms seem to be bold and sweeping, but the funds are used very cautiously. It is not easy for us to get the funds. We are not seeking to defeat Ouyang Lun this time. If we can get Ouyang Lun to give up the post of Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, we can also breathe a sigh of relief." Feng Sheng said after serious thought.

After listening to what Feng Sheng and Lan Yu said, Li Shanchang frowned and fell into deep thought.

"Ah..." Li Shanchang shook his head, "You still don't understand what I mean! You also don't understand the true power of this newspaper!"

"We must deal with Ouyang Lun, but now is not the time!"

"If it was in the past when there were no newspapers, Lan Yu's method might have worked, but with the advent of newspapers, your little tricks are no longer useful. Turn the newspaper to the back and take a look!"

Hearing this, Feng Sheng and Lan Yu obediently turned to the other side of the newspaper. When they saw the content on the back page, they were completely dumbfounded.

"This newspaper has actually predicted that someone will take advantage of the opportunity to cause chaos!"

"Moreover, the newspaper also called on the people to report to the government immediately if they found anyone causing trouble. A reward of 100 taels will be offered for every person caught."

After reading the entire content, Feng Sheng and Lan Yu both broke out in cold sweat.

Fortunately, nothing really happened. If it had been arranged, their subordinates, retainers, and servants would have been wiped out.

"Old Prime Minister, this..."

"You are shocked, right? I am shocked too. People have already figured this out. You think you have a perfect solution, but in fact, they are just waiting for you to come to their door!" Li Shanchang said in a deep voice: "The power of newspapers is terrible. It is like a link between the court and the people. It controls public opinion at all times. We can no longer mislead people whenever we want. If we do not handle it properly, it may even backfire!"

"Old Prime Minister, what should we do now? Are we just going to let Ouyang Lun and the Prince Consort's party erode our Huaixi party step by step?" Feng Sheng asked worriedly.

"This doesn't work, and that doesn't work either. It's so frustrating!" Lan Yu said unwillingly.

"Of course not. Now that I have returned to the court, I will not let Ouyang Lun win alone!" Li Shanchang smiled coldly, "Isn't there a saying? Sit back and watch him build a tall building, sit back and watch him collapse!"

"After Feng Sheng and Lan Yu went down, they all told us Huaixi disciples that we must all learn to read newspapers. If anyone doesn't read newspapers, he is not a Huaixi disciple!"

"We must keep up with the enemy and understand the enemy, so that we can find opportunities to defeat the enemy!"

After hearing this, Feng Sheng and Lan Yu's expressions looked much better.

at the same time.

The Imperial Palace, inside the Kunning Palace.

Queen Ma was sitting in a chair, reading the newspaper in her hand intently.

At this moment, Zhu Yuanzhang walked in slowly with his hands behind his back.

Seeing Empress Ma reading a newspaper, he said with some disdain: "Sister, you are a woman, what's the point of reading this newspaper?"

Hearing this, Empress Ma immediately looked up and glared at Zhu Yuanzhang, "Zhongba, what are you talking about? Which law stipulates that women cannot read newspapers?"

"Does a woman reading a newspaper bother you in some way?"

Seeing Empress Ma's intense reaction, Zhu Yuanzhang quickly said, "Sister, that's not what I meant. I meant that the contents of the newspaper are all about national affairs, and you women can't use them after reading them!"

Empress Ma immediately rolled her eyes at Zhu Yuanzhang and said, "Chongba, you read the newspaper too?"

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded, "Of course, the content of newspapers is much more interesting than official reports and memorials. The first thing we do every day is to read the newspaper. After we finish reading the newspaper, we will go to the morning court and review the memorials!"

"Can you recognize all the words on it?" Queen Ma retorted.

"Sister, what you said is a bit too much!" Zhu Yuanzhang looked a little embarrassed. Empress Ma was right. There were many words in the newspaper that he, Zhu Yuanzhang, did not recognize. But he, Zhu Yuanzhang, was the emperor. How could he admit such a problem!

"I'm going too far? Isn't it not too much for you to discriminate against and belittle women?" Queen Ma asked back.

"Eh? Did we discriminate against and belittle women when we were up there? And what about discrimination and belittlement? Who taught you these words? Why do they sound so awkward?" Zhu Yuanzhang said unhappily, "Is it that Ouyang Lun who is gossiping in your ears again? These words must have been said by Ouyang Lun!"

"Hmph! You said you read every newspaper, then why didn't you see this article?" As she said that, Empress Ma handed the newspaper in her hand to Zhu Yuanzhang.

Zhu Yuanzhang took the newspaper and looked at it, his face becoming even uglier.

This Ming People's Daily published a signed article entitled "Ming Women Should Be Self-reliant", the content of which roughly said that women are not vassals of men, they can also have their own careers and jobs, etc., and women are no worse than men!
"The article also said that women can also go to school and study." Queen Ma said, "I think the article is right. Who says women are inferior to men? We just have different divisions of labor in society!"

Zhu Yuanzhang said helplessly: "Sister, my Ming Dynasty has not banned women from studying, right?"

"How can it be the same?" Empress Ma shook her head. "When I say that girls can go to school and study, I mean they can go to school just like boys. Isn't the court promoting compulsory education recently? From now on, elementary and middle school education will be free for school-age children in the Ming Dynasty. So can girls also go to school?"

"This..." Zhu Yuanzhang was stunned when he heard what Empress Ma said.

"Wouldn't it be too chaotic to let girls go to school?" Zhu Yuanzhang frowned.

"Is it a mess? I don't think it's a mess! I even think that women can be officials and generals in the future and contribute to the Ming Dynasty. They don't have to hide behind men. They can also govern the country, fight on the battlefield, and defend their country!"

"Stop!" Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand quickly, "We need to discuss this matter further."

After saying that, Zhu Yuanzhang quickly picked up the newspaper article and looked at the signature. I want to see who wrote this article! !

"Anonymous?"

"Who is this guy?" Seeing the word "Anonymous", Zhu Yuanzhang was stunned. He thought about it for a while, but he couldn't figure out who this "Anonymous" was. He had never heard of this person before.

"I don't know who he is either. But I often see this name in newspapers. He has written many meaningful articles. If I knew who he is, I would definitely meet him. He is definitely a great talent!"

"Hmph, just trying to be mysterious. In my opinion, this guy is just another name for Ouyang Lun!" Zhu Yuanzhang said unhappily.

"Sister, do you think it's good or bad to promote this newspaper nationwide?"

When Empress Ma heard Zhu Yuanzhang ask this question, she said firmly: "Of course this is a good thing!"

"As far as I know, the people are very welcoming of this newspaper. Many people, even those who are in their 40s and 50s, will learn Chinese characters just to read the newspaper. The court's decrees can also be delivered to the people immediately through the newspaper!"

"You know how difficult it was to get the word out before there were newspapers."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded, "That's true, but recently many officials have reported that newspapers have made the people more knowledgeable and it will be more and more difficult to manage in the future. They want us to order the closure of newspapers. I'm sure their analysis makes sense."

"Shut down the newspapers? Chongba, you are so confused!" Queen Ma said angrily, "Have you forgotten that it was precisely because of the newspapers that the court was able to resolve the Confucianism chaos so easily and made all the people stand on your side!"

"Since the advent of newspapers, the imperial court's policies have been more widely disseminated, and the people are more supportive of the Ming Dynasty!"

"You want to shut down the newspaper. Isn't that cutting off your own arm? It's the same as asking you to disband the army that helped you build your kingdom!"

Hearing what Empress Ma said, Zhu Yuanzhang muttered, "Sister, we haven't made a decision yet! I'm discussing this with you!"

"Zhu Chongba, I don't know you yet. When you said this to me, I'm afraid you already had the idea of ​​shutting down the newspaper!" Empress Ma directly exposed Zhu Yuanzhang.

"Ahem." Zhu Yuanzhang was quite embarrassed when he heard this.

"Zhongba, the newspaper must be kept. Why did Confucianism dominate in the past? It was because they were closer to the people. They became the 'bridge' between you and the people. You believed that what they said was what the people thought, and the people believed that what they said was what the court thought. There was nothing wrong with this, but when some Confucianists had other ideas, there would be a big problem. There would be a Confucian chaos!"

"Using newspapers to replace Confucianism and become a bridge of communication between the court and the people is undoubtedly more reliable!"

"As long as there are newspapers, no one can influence public opinion!"

After hearing what Empress Ma said, Zhu Yuanzhang's expression gradually became firm, and he nodded slowly, "Sister, you are right, this newspaper really can't be stopped!"

"But after all, this newspaper was made by that kid Ouyang Lun, so we are worried."

"What are you worried about? If I understand correctly, now from the People's Daily of the Ming Dynasty to the newspapers of various provinces, prefectures and counties, they are all controlled by government offices at all levels and are managed by the Ministry of Rites. They are not controlled by Ouyang, and Biao'er is also involved in the whole process!" Queen Ma continued, "You can't be worried about Ouyang."

"This..." Zhu Yuanzhang was speechless after being rebuked by Empress Ma. "Okay, okay, sister, I can't beat you. What you said is right."

"What I said was right."

"Sister, I'm actually still thinking about something." Zhu Yuanzhang frowned.

"You are even more troubled by the newspaper issue. Tell me about it." Empress Ma was a little curious. "But let me make it clear first. You took the initiative to tell me this. It is not my harem interfering in politics."

"Sister, although Ouyang Lun has not done anything serious during this period, he was the one who solved the problem of Confucianism, and he also proposed educational reform and imperial examination reform. He has made great contributions. How should we reward him now?"

Zhu Yuanzhang directly expressed his concerns.

Hearing this, Empress Ma suddenly realized, "Chongba, I was wondering why you came to see me at this time, it turns out it's because of this!"

"That's right. Ouyang has made many contributions and has been promoted quickly. He is now the Minister of Revenue. If he takes one step forward, he will enter the cabinet. There is no more room for promotion. Now the people and officials are watching. If you don't promote Ouyang, others will scold you, Zhu Yuanzhang, for being stingy and not treating your meritorious officials well. You are not a wise ruler! If you promote Ouyang, it will be even more difficult if Ouyang makes great contributions later."

Listening to Empress Ma's analysis, Zhu Yuanzhang nodded repeatedly, "Sister, you still understand me, that's the problem!"

"What do you think we should do about this? Promote or not? Reward or not?"

After saying this, Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Queen Ma with anticipation, expecting to get a perfect solution from her.

However, Empress Ma just glanced at Zhu Yuanzhang, then shook her head and said, "Chongba, you are the emperor, you have to decide this matter yourself. After all, the harem cannot interfere in politics."

After saying this, Queen Ma paused for a moment, then added, "But Chongba, I have to remind you, don't let Ouyang feel cold."

"Uh..." Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang's face turned black.

About half an hour later, Zhu Yuanzhang walked out of Kunning Palace with a frown on his face.

"Your Majesty, Commander Ji has returned and is waiting in the Hall of Supreme Harmony." Wang Zhong walked closer and said.

"Well, let's go back to the Hall of Supreme Harmony." Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and sat back on the imperial sedan chair silently.

"Get started!"

Soon, Zhu Yuanzhang returned to the Hall of Supreme Harmony.

"General Ji Gang pays homage to His Majesty!"

"No need to be polite. Tell me, what news did you get from your investigation outside the palace this time?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked in a deep voice.

"Your Majesty, I have been traveling to several provinces with the Imperial Guards these days. I have found that although the public has reacted strongly to the promulgation of the 'Detailed Explanation of the Civil Service Examination of the Ming Dynasty', there is no dissatisfaction with the court. Not only that, many scholars have begun to prepare according to the 'Detailed Explanation of the Civil Service Examination of the Ming Dynasty', even those who study Confucianism do the same!"

Ji Gang clasped his fists and spoke.

"Oh! You mean even the Confucianists have surrendered and stopped making trouble?!" Zhu Yuanzhang was slightly surprised.

You have to know that even though Confucianism was suppressed and almost disappeared because of the Confucian Rebellion, Confucianism is a school of thought that has been passed down for many years. How could it disappear so easily? It still hides great power.
(End of this chapter)