Chapter 49 Extra! Extra! Read All About It!

"This old subject thanks Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince for the tea!"

Xue Guoguan hurriedly expressed his gratitude.

Before long, Xue Guoguan left carrying a package of imperial-grade tea leaves.

Although he had been busier than a top spinning over the past two days, sleeping only two or three hours a day, Xue Guoguan did not mind it in the least.

Because this represented the trust of both the Emperor and the Crown Prince.

After Xue Guoguan left, Zhu Cilang glanced through the Great Ming Daily in his hand before drifting off to sleep.

The next morning, the bell for the imperial court audience rang as usual. The ministers filed in sequentially, only to be surprised to find that the Crown Prince, who should have been overseeing state affairs, was nowhere to be seen.

Just as the civil and military officials were feeling somewhat perplexed, Wang Chengen, standing beside the dragon throne, stepped forward to explain:

"My lords, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is feeling suddenly indisposed today and will not hold court. Please handle state affairs yourselves, my lords!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yanru immediately stepped out and asked:

"Eunuch Wang, wasn't His Royal Highness perfectly well yesterday? Why has he fallen ill today? Has a pulse been taken by the imperial physicians?"

Hearing this, other officials also hurried to ask:

"Eunuch, how is His Royal Highness the Crown Prince actually doing? Might this official be permitted to pay a visit?"

"Eunuch, what does the Imperial Hospital say? Is the Crown Prince's illness serious?"

.........

First the Emperor fell gravely ill, and now the Crown Prince had fallen sick as well, leaving the civil and military officials momentarily at a loss.

If anything were to happen to both the Emperor and the Crown Prince simultaneously, the Great Ming Dynasty would be teetering on the brink of collapse.

Looking at the anxious crowd of officials before him, Wang Chengen could not tell whether their concern was genuine or merely an act.

Nevertheless, following Zhu Cilang's prior instructions, he replied:

"My lords, please rest assured. His Royal Highness simply caught a chill last night. He was examined by the imperial physicians this morning and has already taken his medicine."

"Barring any unforeseen circumstances, after a good day of rest, he will be fully recovered by tomorrow!"

"There is no need for concern, my lords. Please go about your respective duties!"

Hearing this, the civil and military officials could say nothing further and scattered accordingly.

Meanwhile, on the bustling streets of the capital, Zhu Cilang, now changed into commoner's clothing, was strolling leisurely.

He was accompanied by Ma Bao, Li Hu, Li Ruolian, and Fang Zhenghua.

Of course, these were merely the ones visible to the eye.

Secretly, hundreds of embroidered uniform guards disguised in plain clothes followed closely behind Zhu Cilang, blending into the surrounding crowds and constantly monitoring the environment.

Should any emergency arise, they would rush forth at a moment's notice to protect the Imperial person!

Upon waking up in the morning, for reasons unknown, Zhu Cilang suddenly felt disinclined to attend the morning audience.

He wanted to witness firsthand the genuine reactions of the common people upon encountering the Great Ming Daily.

Therefore, he had Wang Chengen tell a lie that he was too ill to attend court.

Then, he took a few men and went out.

In Zhu Cilang's view, slacking off occasionally did not matter much; after all, he was not yet the Emperor.

It was early morning, and the sunlight filtered through the sparse trees, casting mottled light and shadow onto the bluestone-paved road.

The streets were bustling with heavy traffic and weaving crowds of all kinds of people.

Hawkers shouting, people bargaining, and idle chatter wove together into a vibrant marketplace atmosphere.

Though merely three years remained before the destined fall of the Great Ming, the capital at this moment felt none of the impending turbulence and decay.

Street corners and alleys still maintained an air of prosperity.

Suddenly, Li Ruolian leaned close to Zhu Cilang and whispered in a low voice:

"Your Royal Highness, the Great Ming Press Office is just ahead!"

The Great Ming Press Office was none other than the office of the Great Ming Daily!

Zhu Cilang raised his gaze and saw a rather imposing government office that resembled a palace.

Four bold characters were inscribed on the plaque directly in the center:

Great Ming Press Office!

Today was the official release day of the Great Ming Daily. Even if the Donglin Faction found out, it would be too late to stop it, so there was no further need for concealment.

At the entrance, a crowd had also gathered, curiously examining this brand-new official establishment.

Just a few days prior, this place had been nothing more than an ordinary residence. How had it suddenly transformed into the so-called 'Great Ming Press Office'? Furthermore, two squads of soldiers stood at the gate, clearly distinguishing it from a routine yamen.

Just as the onlookers wore suspicious expressions,

a group of children dressed in gray tunics, with the four characters 'Great Ming Daily' printed across their chests, suddenly rushed out like a flock of newly fledged birds, chattering noisily.

Each of them wore a cross-body satchel stuffed full of copies of the Great Ming Daily, their faces beaming with excitement and anticipation.

The officials had previously told them that for every copy of the Great Ming Daily sold, they would earn one cash coin.

Each of them now carried thirty copies; if they sold them all, each child could earn thirty cash coins!

To them, this was by no means a small sum of money!

"Extra! Extra! Read all about it! Two cash coins a copy, national affairs at your fingertips!"

The moment they rushed out of the press office, the children's crisp voices rang out.

It was currently the liveliest hour of the morning, with people coming and going and merchants shouting competing bids, yet these sounds could not drown out the children's calls.

Moreover, a crowd had already gathered outside the gate of the press office, so instantly, one of the paper-selling boys was surrounded by a group of people.

People began asking questions all at once:

"Little one, what is this thing?"

"Is it really two cash coins a copy?"

"What is written on here?"

Faced with the barrage of inquiries, the boy patiently explained:

"This is the Great Ming Daily, published by the imperial court! It even contains the Emperor's imperial edict! It costs only two cash coins a copy!"

Hearing this, the onlookers were startled.

An imperial edict?

Weren't such things only meant for high-ranking officials to see?

If they were to look at it, would they be beheaded?

Sensing their shock, the boy smiled and explained:

"What are you afraid of? The imperial court told us to sell these!"

"This newspaper not only has imperial edicts, but also the court's latest policies, official appointments and transfers, poetry collections—in short, whatever you want to know is in here!"

Hearing this, the crowd finally felt reassured.

After all, they had seen it clearly just now: these paper-selling children had run straight out of the Great Ming Press Office. If they hadn't received permission from the officials, how could they openly enter and exit a government office?

Yet, on second thought, although two cash coins weren't much and they could all afford it, the problem was that none of them knew how to read. Even if they bought it, they wouldn't understand it!

Seeing that no one in the surrounding crowd was reaching for their money, the boy grew a little impatient.

"Are you buying or not? If not, I'm leaving!"

With that, the boy turned as if to depart.

"Wait!"

Accompanied by a shout, a poor scholar clad in a tattered long gown pushed his way into the crowd. He first touched his empty, withered pouch, hesitated for a moment, but ultimately pulled out two cash coins and purchased a copy of the Great Ming Daily.

The boy happily accepted the money, handed a copy of the newspaper to the scholar,

and then scurried off, seeing that no one else was buying.

Holding the Great Ming Daily, the scholar was just about to find a quiet place to sit down and read slowly when he was immediately surrounded by the group of onlookers from earlier.