Can't a princess ascend the throne?

Chapter 447 Preferences
The next morning, the streets were filled with children running around excitedly, spreading a piece of news. No, strictly speaking, it was two pieces of news. Not only had the bookstore that had closed a few days earlier reopened, but other bookstores in the capital would also be selling morning newspapers that day.

"The Wang and Xie families became enemies because of marriage. The Wang family's daughter had been married into the Xie family for more than 20 years and suffered a lot of mistreatment. She asked for a divorce, but the head of the Xie family refused!"

"Everyone, come and see! Come and see! On the day of his wedding, the Xie family head actually married another woman from a humble family. And he has two children with her, both of whom are older than the Wang family woman's legitimate son. This is an unlawful marriage!"

"The Xie family head has suddenly repented and wants to reconcile with the Wang family daughter! What will become of the Xie family head's position?"

"After much painful reflection, the Xie family patriarch has printed the entire story in his family's morning newspaper and is willing to sell it cheaply to the people of the capital. Everyone, come and see! Come and see!"

"..."

The morning was already bustling with activity. Lately, the people of Beijing had almost grown accustomed to sudden new developments, but upon hearing this exciting news, they still couldn't suppress their gossip-loving hearts. Following the directions given by the children, they each went to buy a newspaper. Some who couldn't read simply pulled over a simply dressed student from the roadside and asked them to read it for them.

Most of these students were short of money, and although the newspaper wasn't expensive, it was still a considerable expense for them. They were naturally happy to be able to read it for free.

However, after reading the two completely different newspapers, the student couldn't help but hiss and exhale a cold breath.

"Scholar, what exactly is written on this paper? Why are you gasping for breath like that?"

"That's right! Tell me quickly, I'm so anxious!"

"Don't worry, everyone."

The scholar cleared his throat and vividly described the two different newspapers.

The crowd only heard that the Wang family girl in the bookstore was pitiful. Not only had she encountered the wrong people, but her husband had also humiliated her so much, and even her own family didn't support her, forcing her to continue being Xie Kun's wife. Most of the people were simple and honest, and seeing the weak and miserable in such a state, they couldn't help but feel indignant.

"Isn't the Wang family supposed to be a prominent family? How come they don't even protect their own daughter? Even I, an old woman, know that if my daughter were wronged in her husband's family, I would definitely stand up for her. This Wang family's daughter doesn't act like a daughter at all; she's more like an enemy. Even if she were a complete stranger, I wouldn't advise her to continue living that wretched life. It's not like the old days anymore, where marrying someone meant you had to live a miserable life forever. Sigh, look what they've done to our good daughter."

"The Xie family isn't any better. The Xie family head is the clan leader, yet he did such a beastly thing. Since he likes that concubine, why doesn't he marry her properly? He must want a noble wife to uphold the family's reputation, and also want a gentle and affectionate concubine to keep him company. Bah! He's enjoying the blessings of family while having two wives, yet he's still not satisfied and mistreats his own wife. He's truly a scoundrel."

This person was probably educated; he spoke in a refined, scholarly manner. Meanwhile, the illiterate old men and women nearby had already started swearing.

These people had always been at the bottom of society, and thus were accustomed to seeing themselves as the weak. At this moment, just thinking about how their daughters, granddaughters, and great-granddaughters had been treated this way made them absolutely furious. They hurled all sorts of incoherent curses, which garnered them many compliments. The scholar reading the newspaper actually quite agreed. If he had a wife of noble birth, beauty, elegance, and exceptional literary talent, he would certainly respect and love her. Perhaps due to his own bias, he first read the ten-day newspaper from the Minshuo Bookstore.

When he picked up the second newspaper from another book, the scholar couldn't help but frown.

Putting aside the content, the quality of this newspaper was clearly inferior to the previous one. Looking at the printed text, there were even areas where the writing was blurry and illegible, and the ink smelled extremely unpleasant. This scholar's family was poor, so the writing materials they bought were naturally of the lowest quality. He could easily tell that this newspaper not only used the worst paper but also the worst ink—it was extremely low-quality.

Based on this impression alone, the other major bookstores have already fallen behind.

Upon inquiring about the prices, I found that Minshuo Bookstore's ten-day newspaper still cost only 10 copper coins per large sheet, while other bookstores charged 20 copper coins. The price was higher, but the quality wasn't as good. Looking at the content, unlike the almost plain-speaking articles about the Wang and Xie families in Minshuo Bookstore's newspaper, this newspaper was filled with articles using classical allusions and quotations.

The surrounding people felt dizzy, as if a thousand flies were buzzing around in their heads. After exchanging bewildered glances, they cautiously inquired.

"What... what does this mean? Did you understand?"

Others couldn't help but shake their heads. These articles contained far too much archaic language; they simply couldn't understand them.

This is the shortsightedness of the Five Families and Seven Clans. They wanted to tell the whole world about the affairs of the Wang and Xie families, but in their eyes, the whole world did not include the common people at the bottom of society. Therefore, when they printed their articles, they never considered printing anything too explicit, because to them, that would be an insult to civility.

The common people, too, had their own preferences. After hearing one article that was easy to understand and another that was completely incomprehensible, they subconsciously chose to believe the first. Plus, the first newspaper was cheaper, making it the obvious first choice for everyone. Furthermore, when everyone rushed to buy this newspaper, the stock at other major bookstores quickly sold out. But then, they turned back to the people's newspaper, saying that not only were the newspapers cheap, but all sorts of books on Confucian classics and the imperial examinations were also cheap, and even many brightly colored and inexpensive picture books were available. These picture books not only had vibrant and beautiful illustrations, but also many simple and easy-to-understand short stories that taught people certain principles, making them perfect for children.

To be honest, if these are intended as primers, the illustrated ones are far better than the lengthy Four Books and Five Classics. While it's true that reading a book a hundred times will reveal its meaning, it's far too difficult for children who know nothing to understand the meaning of these words through repeated reading.

Many people recognized the merits of these picture books, and as word spread, more and more people went to Minshuo to buy books and paintings.

At first, the members of the major families maintained their composure, but when they discovered that their own stock was completely sold out while Min Shuo was still able to continuously entertain guests, they could no longer sit still.

This is impossible! How could Prince Chen possibly print so many books and newspapers in such a short time? Unless she has mastered a new, faster, and more efficient printing method…

Now that things have come to this, what else don't they understand? They've been trapped from the very beginning!