Dad, don't be greedy! My brother climbed into the emperor's bed, and I became famous overn

afternoon.

The sun was setting in the west, and the heat had not yet dissipated.

A blue cloth carriage turned out of the palace and headed east of the city.

Erhe Lane in the east of the city is a narrow bluestone path lined with modest houses of ordinary people, and occasionally the sound of reading can be heard from two academies.

The carriage stopped deep in the alley.

Gu Mingli jumped out of the car and looked at the building in front of him.

The storefront is small, with an old wooden door half-closed.

A yellowed plaque hung above the door, bearing the four characters "Qingfeng Chess Club".

The handwriting is mediocre, not the work of a famous calligrapher, and its style is unremarkable.

There were no staff members at the entrance, and the ground was swept very clean.

The air smelled of books.

"Let's go in and take a look."

Xiao Ye stepped across the threshold, and Gu Mingli followed him inside.

Liu An and Geng Zhi followed behind.

There were seven or eight chess tables in the front hall, and several of them were occupied by players.

The sound of a piece being placed echoed, and people discussed the strategy in hushed tones.

An elderly man with half-gray hair emerged from behind the counter.

The old man was not tall and wore an indigo robe. When he saw Xiao Ye, he paused for a moment, then quickly cupped his hands in greeting and put on a smile.

"Oh, our distinguished guests have arrived! Tea has been prepared in the private room upstairs. Please come up and have a seat."

As the old man led the guests upstairs, he instructed his young apprentice to serve tea.

Xiao Ye said, "Call Song Huaijin, Chen Wangshu, and Lin Zhixing here."

The old man cupped his hands in greeting and smiled in agreement.

Gu Mingli followed Xiao Ye up to the second floor.

The private room was small, with a square table and two chairs, and a chessboard on the table.

The window was half open, and you could see the persimmon tree in the yard below.

The young boy brought out the tea tray, and the old man and Xiao Ye exchanged a glance. Xiao Ye then waved his hand.

The old man bowed, closed the door, and left.

Eunuch Liu and Commander Geng stood at the door.

Gu Mingli asked curiously, "Your Majesty, who are the three people you just mentioned?"

Xiao Ye smiled as he picked up a cup of hot tea.

"They are the people I took in."

"They were all scholars from humble backgrounds whose names were secretly taken by powerful families and who stole their academic achievements during the annual imperial examinations."

Gu Mingli paused, somewhat surprised, as he held the teacup.

"To replace one's official rank?!"

"That's right."

Xiao Ye nodded slightly.

Every three years during the spring imperial examinations, the four major clans would secretly alter the exam papers and change the rankings.

"Using their own faction's children, they forcibly robbed poor students of the future they had worked so hard to achieve over ten years of study."

"These scholars, full of knowledge, had no way to seek justice, and some were even intercepted and killed on the way to silence them."

Gu Mingli's knuckles tightened slightly; as a fellow scholar, he felt the same way.

Xiao Ye looked out the window, his gaze distant.

"When I was still the Crown Prince, I secretly gathered these wronged scholars together."

"Using the chess club as a cover, we can protect their lives and evade the pursuit of powerful clans."

Gu Mingli suddenly remembered the terrain of the place and suddenly realized something.

"No wonder this place is so peaceful and safe! It's because the patrol battalion's headquarters is right next door!"

"Yes, just a wall away."

Xiao Ye had a gentle demeanor, yet the strategic acumen of a monarch was subtly revealed.

"If there is even the slightest disturbance in Erhe Lane, the elite patrol battalion can surround and rush to the rescue within half a cup of tea."

"These learned scholars usually spend their days here studying the imperial gazette, analyzing the memorials of officials, dissecting the advantages and disadvantages of the country, and reviewing the trends of the court."

"Many of my decisions since my ascension to the throne have been based on their considerations and support."

At this point, Xiao Ye looked at Gu Mingli seriously.

"As long as I am here, they will not be buried in obscurity, but will lie low and wait for their time."

Gu Mingli felt a deep sense of respect.

Everyone knows that the new emperor is ruthless and cunning.

Little did they know that even when he was still lurking in the abyss, he had already been carefully planning his next move.

Before my thoughts could settle, I heard soft footsteps coming from the stairs.

The old shopkeeper led the three of them slowly upstairs to a private room, where they all bowed in greeting.

Gu Mingli raised his eyes and carefully examined the three of them.

The man on the left is about thirty years old, with calm and composed features.

The man in the middle was about twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, with a slender and thin build. He wore a simple blue robe and had sharp, concealing features.

The young man on the right is no more than twenty-two or twenty-three years old, with youthful vigor, a straight back, and clear, firm eyes.

Xiao Ye raised his hand to signal the three of them to stand up, then looked at Gu Mingli and introduced him in a deep voice:

"Of these three, one is Song Huaijin, who was replaced as the runner-up in the imperial examination six years ago."

"The man in the middle is Chen Wangshu, who was eliminated in the imperial examination three years ago."

"On the far right is Lin Zhixing, the newly appointed top scholar in this year's imperial examination, who should have been famous throughout the country."

Gu Mingli's pupils trembled slightly.

Although he had seen "examination cheating" in TV dramas, he had never seen a case where the top three in each examination were replaced!

The valve operation is outrageous!

Xiao Ye picked up his teacup, took a sip, and looked up at Gu Mingli.

"Mingli, from today onwards, these three will be under your command."

"I hope that you will take charge of the Da Yong People's Daily, using your pen as a weapon and factual records as evidence to dispel rumors from aristocratic families and set the record straight for the world."

"Let's use this newspaper to restore a bright and just world!"

……

The following day, in the newspaper office's backyard.

Gu Mingli stood in front of the newly assembled printing press, patted the iron frame, and looked very pleased with himself.

"Everyone! From today onwards, we officially enter the era of Dayong Media!"

Song Huaijin, Chen Wangshu, Lin Zhixing, and ten undercover agents borrowed from the Control Yuan stood in the courtyard awaiting work assignments.

In the papermaking and printing workshop, a doctor from the Ministry of Works was teaching more than thirty newly recruited workers how to use the equipment.

Gu Mingli clapped his hands and assigned tasks.

"The reporter team is out on the streets today to cover some everyday gossip and local topics."

"Each of the three chief writers will try to write an article today, on any topic, with a word count of no more than 300."

"There's only one requirement: that the illiterate elderly people on the street would slap their thighs and cheer after hearing it."

The three exchanged a glance, then confidently bowed and accepted the order.

They each found a table, sat down, and dipped their brushes in ink.

Gu Mingli then turned his attention to the debugging of the printing press, working on it for most of the hour.

When he returned, wiping the ink off his hands, the three manuscripts were neatly arranged on the table in front of him.

Gu Mingli was very pleased.

Pick up the first one.

"On the Deep-seated Problems of the Current Government's Official System and Twelve Strategies for Improvement"

"...The deep-seated problems of official corruption cannot be solved overnight. Tracing their origins, they are truly due to the lack of sound systems and the collapse of discipline..."

The second piece, "Ode to the Autumn Wind: A Letter of Concern for the Times and the World"

"...The wind howls, all trees wither. Floating clouds obscure the sun, what have the common people done wrong? Alas..."

The third article is titled "Refuting the Fallacies of False Learning".

"...Established for a century, it has in reality become a tool for private gain. Under the guise of education, it secretly monopolizes power, usurps the court, and usurps the throne..."

Gu Mingli: "..."

Is this the start of preparing for a retake of the exam?

Gu Mingli put down the article, his temples throbbing.

"Three people."

He rested his hands on the table, his expression very sincere.

"I can't find fault with your writing."

"But no more than five hundred people in the city can understand what you write."

The three looked at each other in bewilderment.

Song Huaijin looked puzzled: "Then what does Lord Gu mean...?"

Gu Mingli sighed inwardly.

"Come, everyone, sit down."

"Today I'm going to teach you a lesson and show you what 'shocking headlines' and 'clickbait' really mean!"

"They don't leak information, manipulate public opinion, write gossip that ordinary people like to read, and yet they're talking about a media revolution!"