My younger sister insisted on marrying me and made me the Marquis' wife.

Chapter 325: Setting up the Arena

Naturally, everyone obeyed.

Qin Jijiu said: "Since we are going to print and sell it, we must naturally select the best. If we find a good sentence, we can modify it before printing."

Qin Siyuan expressed his agreement.

Qin Heng had no objection and just listened with his head tilted.

Master Gu Liu said happily, "That's right. I thought about it all night last night and came up with a better one."

Qin Yuan said, "Why don't we have breakfast first? When Shen Changle comes, we can ask him in detail. I vaguely heard him mention before that the poetry collection is selling well, and he made no loss or profit even if he sold it for free. Because the poems of the two adults are included, Shen Changle is planning to sell it to other provinces."

Qin Siyuan's cheeks turned slightly red with excitement.

The more he sold, the more widely his reputation became.

Mr. Gu Liu was even more overjoyed, but he also knew that he was just a bystander, so he suppressed his joy deep in his heart.

Everyone had a happy breakfast and sat for a while before hearing Gu Shiliu say outside: "My Lord, Madam, Shen Changle is here."

Gu Jinghui said: "Let him come in and talk."

Shen Changle came in tiptoe, bowed and greeted, then stood aside with his hands hanging, waiting for his master to ask questions.

Qin Yuan asked: "How is the sales of the poetry collection now?"

Looking at the people in the room, Shen Changle started to think, "The poetry collection is selling well. The first 500 copies have all been sold out. The second batch of 1,500 copies were printed, all of which were used to finance the capital. Now the account book is empty."

Mr. Songshan said, “Not bad.”

If the collection of poems about visiting Yuyuantan Lake sold well, this one should be even better.

Master Gu Liu said happily: "So many have been printed. Are you optimistic about it, Shen Changle?"

Shen Changle's face was full of smiles, and he immediately replied, "Sixth Master, that's natural. At first, the Marquis said to print 500 copies, and the owner of Shuhai Pavilion mocked the sixteen brothers. I was also trembling when I took over. After all, it was my first time, and I was afraid that I would lose the job. Fortunately, the poems are good, so I didn't lose money. Students from other places heard that the poems of the academician and the minister were included, and said they would take them back to their hometown to read. I quickly printed more copies and collected a lot of deposits."

Gu Liuye was even happier. "Did you receive a deposit?"

"Of course," Shen Changle said solemnly, "You have to be careful when doing business."

Master Gu Liu said happily, "Well, well, well, you are great, Shen Changle. I trust you the most when you do things. There are no weak soldiers under the command of the Third Sister-in-law. This matter will surely be accomplished if you take action. We plan to print another collection of poems. What do you think?"

Shen Changle glanced at the expressions on everyone's faces and said with a simple smile, "I am the Madam's chambermaid. I was originally a servant in the Jijiu Mansion. I have been here for a long time, so I naturally know more than other servants. It can be said that the sixteen brothers have helped a lot here. I have an idea in my heart. If we can do it so well that the owner of the Book Sea Pavilion will come to beg us, that would be great."

Suddenly, the faces of Gu Shiliu who was standing outside, and Lord Gu and Qin Jijiu who were sitting inside all lit up.

After hearing this, the usually romantic and prudent Gu Liuye slammed his folding fan on the table and said with great pride, "You are right. We should do it well and make it a big deal so that the owner of Shuhai Pavilion will take a good look at us and beg us for mercy."

Mr. Songshan asked why, and Shen Changle exaggerated the story, making everyone in the room angry for Master Gu Liu and Gu Shiliu. Shen Changle finally sighed, "I am now running this small shop under the name of my wife, and I thought that if I could print more good books, spread the reputation, and invite more talented people to write poems and essays, it would also make the owner of the Book Sea Pavilion regret looking down on others."

Gu Liuye hurriedly said, "Speaking of this, what do you think we want you to do? We want you to print a new collection of poems, which is better than the last one. The poets include the Lord Jijiu, Mr. Qin, and the extremely talented Mr. Songshan. There is also a strange man named Mr. Nantang, who is also a great poet."

Shen Changle was delighted when he heard this and said, "That's great. I'll just take care of the arrangements."

Mr. Songshan frowned and said, "I suddenly thought of something. Fireflies are poetic insects. They have a unique artistic conception of desolation, loneliness, moisture, coolness, and beauty. Many people have written poems about them throughout history, and many of them are excellent. Although we have done a good job, we cannot be considered the only one. We must think of a way to attract people to buy them."

Qin Jijiu nodded: "Mr. Songshan is very concerned."

Qin Siyuan pondered for a moment and said, "If the poems about fireflies from ancient times to the present are compiled into a book, how about compiling our poems into a separate book and calling it a new compilation?"

Qin Jijiu said: "If we divide it into two volumes, one thick and the other thin, with the excellent works in front, who would be willing to buy our works? Besides, scholars have always looked down on each other and valued the past over the present, which would easily make people laugh. If we combine it into one volume, people will say that we are raising our status."

The crowd was helpless.

Qin Yuan suddenly smiled and said, "I have a plan."

Everyone said, "Don't keep us in suspense, just tell us directly."

Qin Yuan had originally mentioned some of this to Shen Changle. After listening to what everyone said, an idea suddenly occurred to him and he came up with a solution.

"I have always had an idea to invite talented people from all over the world to write poems and essays, so that the poems and essays engraved by my shop will be more famous all over the world, and then the Shuhai Pavilion will not be worth mentioning."

Gu Jinghui clapped his hands and praised, “Excellent, that’s exactly what should be done.”

Mr. Gu Liu also nodded in agreement.

Mr. Songshan frowned and asked, "How should we do it specifically?"

Qin Yuan smiled and said, "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Let's start with this firefly poem today. My father is the chief academic officer of the Imperial College. I believe it should not be difficult for him to collect the best poems about fireflies from ancient times to the present. If the doctors and others in the Imperial College are willing to help, Shen Changle can offer the money for writing. The sooner the better."

Qin Jijiu thought for a moment and said, "That's not difficult. There are many books in the prison, and there are also many in my study."

Qin Yuan added: "We will set up poetry competitions in the Imperial College and the shops, and hang our poems on them. If anyone is willing to compete, they can leave their names, identities, and poems for everyone to judge. The best works will be included in the poetry collection."

Shen Changle's round face was full of smiles, like Maitreya Buddha, and he shouted: "Master, this is a really good idea. In this way, this collection of poems has already gained fame before it is even released, and there will be many visitors."

He had already seen the white silver all over the ground.

Qin Siyuan nodded and praised, saying, "That's really great. This way, Uncle won't have to worry about others saying that we are self-aggrandizing and laughing at us. The excellent works produced by so many people competing can be regarded as a culmination. If they are printed together with the ancient poetry collections, students can compare the two. It's a good idea, a good idea."

As he spoke, he bowed to Qin Yuan and said, "My cousin is truly my master."

Qin Jijiu hurriedly said: "What are you doing? If others see this, they will definitely say that your sister is frivolous."

Qin Siyuan said: "I worship Master Nantang, what's wrong with that? Master Nantang will have to go out and fight in the arena frequently in the future."