Ming Dynasty: Ask Zhu Yuanzhang to abdicate at the beginning

Chapter 54 Success is just one step away!
Yang Shiqi spread out the paper, picked up the pen, and was about to start writing when he suddenly remembered something.

"I almost forgot. Your Highness should send someone to the Yingtian Prefecture government office and order Yingtian Prefecture to strengthen the curfew in Jinling City tonight to prevent any lawbreakers from committing crimes."

When Zhu Yunhuan heard this, he immediately understood.

"You mean those people will move around and connect with each other tonight?"

Yang Shiqi nodded and said, "Your Highness suddenly captured the Duke of Liang at lightning speed. This move was undoubtedly beyond everyone's expectations."

"Tonight, I'm afraid there are countless people in Jinling City who will have trouble sleeping all night."

"Although the officials of Yingtian Prefecture may not be able to control them, they can at least cause some trouble."

"We can't let them collude so easily."

Zhu Yunhuan said: "Okay, I will send someone to Yingtian Prefecture."

……

……

……

Three updates.

Yang Shiqi's article was finished.

Zhu Yunhuan read it carefully, but frowned and shook his head.

It’s not that his writing is bad, but his choice of words and sentences is a bit too flowery.

This is generally the case with the writings of writers of this era.

But Zhu Yunhuan was different.

After the vernacular movement in later generations, the form of writing has undergone fundamental changes.

Old Zhu has always liked to speak in plain language.

Zhu Yunhuan thought about it and simply revised Yang Shiqi's article.

With the manuscript, it was not difficult for him to make revisions.

After the revision, the entire writing style has changed drastically.

I am afraid that among the scholars of this era, there will be no other person who can write in this style.

In this way, the suspicion of someone "ghostwriting" can be completely eliminated.

Zhu Yunhuan gave the written article to Yang Shiqi for review again.

Yang Shiqi took a look and said with a smile: "Your Highness's writing style is quite interesting, sincere and touching, and it makes people cry. The writing style is unique, but it is a bit too plain."

Zhu Yunxun asked with a smile: "Besides Bai, there are no other problems, right?"

Yang Shiqi said: "Everything else is good, but it's too straightforward, a bit like the way rural people talk casually, but it's better in its sincerity!"

"Then use it!" Zhu Yunhuan picked up the pen and wrote the title of the article on it - My Father!
"Okay, let's print and distribute it."

Zhu Yunhuan threw the manuscript that Yang Shiqi had just started writing into the brazier and watched it turn into ashes, leaving no trace.

Yang Shiqi hesitated for a moment and said, "Do you really want to print this copy? Don't you need to polish it a little bit?"

Zhu Yunhuan asked: "Didn't you say that, apart from Taibai, there is nothing wrong with this article?"

Yang Shiqi laughed and said, "If you write too plainly, I'm afraid people will laugh at your highness for not being able to make sense."

The scholars of this era like to nitpick over words.

Zhu Yunhuan said: "Grandpa Emperor often uses plain language when writing imperial edicts. I just want to learn from him. If they want to laugh, let them laugh."

Yang Shiqi's expression became a little strange.

In fact, there are many scholars who secretly laugh at the current emperor for being a peasant with little culture, but no one dares to say it publicly.

Everyone is tacit.

"Your Majesty will only use plain language when issuing an ordinary imperial decree to a certain person."

Yang Shiqi continued to persuade him, “Your Majesty will still ask his close ministers to write the imperial edict for the official announcement to the world, and then polish it before officially issuing it.”

"We will have to print at least several thousand copies of this issue of the newspaper. If your Highness publishes this article, I'm afraid it will spread all over the world."

Zhu Yunhuan thought about it and said, "That's fine."

"I invented the drum mimeograph machine to promote knowledge and spread culture."

“We need to enable more people to receive education and to become literate.”

“Reading knowledge, the threshold for acquiring knowledge must be greatly lowered.”

"Everyone thinks that vernacular is too vulgar to be recorded in books or written down."

“I think this is the only way.”

Even in later generations, many people still believe that classical Chinese is more beautiful, more precise, and has many advantages.

But vernacular Chinese has at least one advantage that classical Chinese does not have: the difficulty of learning, especially the threshold for getting started.

It is easy to get started with vernacular Chinese, but getting started with classical Chinese requires long-term systematic training.

The simpler something is, the easier it is to promote.

Zhu Yunhuan was not against classical Chinese.

In fact, in his previous life, as a history amateur, he sometimes liked to read some original manuscripts of classical Chinese.

Compared with colloquial vernacular, the characteristic of classical Chinese is that the meaning of the language and characters changes very little.

For example, people in later generations probably can no longer understand the ancient vernacular spoken two thousand years ago.

But you can still understand the classical Chinese written by people two thousand years ago.

However, he was very clear that if knowledge and culture were to be popularized, they had to be simple.

It is necessary to enable the lower-class people who have only attended private schools for a few days and only know how to write their own names to be able to understand it.

"No one wants to write, so let me start." Zhu Yunxun said.

Yang Shiqi was in awe.

"Your Highness has such an ambition, and Yang admires it."

"Yang is a little possessed."

"Since we want to promote it, not only the article about Your Highness, but also the biography of His Majesty published in the first edition can be written in a more popular and understandable way."

He said to change it, so he changed it.

Soon, a new work was written by him.

After careful revision, it was printed immediately.

It was already four o'clock.

In the temporary printing room set up in the Prince of Wu's Palace, workers began printing quickly and intensively.

Zhu Yunhuan supervised it personally.

I saw the workers packing the printed newspapers.

He gave this newspaper a very resounding name - Da Ming Daily.

It was already five o'clock in the morning when everything was printed.

Immediately, we started preparing to send it.

"First, let's go to the palace. We must let Grandpa Huang see it."

"Next are the royal relatives, noble generals, and all officials above the sixth rank in Jinling City."

“For the first issue, all these people were given a free copy.”

"As for the rest, the newsboys sell them on the street at four cents a copy."

The price of paper in shops in Jinling City was about one penny per piece.

However, Zhu Yunhuan purchased the "Da Ming Daily" in bulk directly from the paper mill, so the price was naturally much cheaper.

According to the agreed price reached by both parties, 10,000 sheets of paper were imported every day, totaling 3,000 coins.

The cost is naturally greatly reduced.

The newly published newspapers were very simple, containing only one piece of paper.

Taking into account the cost of ink, printing and distribution, Zhu Yunhuan could earn two and a half cents from a copy of the Ming Daily, which cost four cents.

Of course, free gifts are not included.

But free gifts are just a strategy at the beginning, and there will be no more later.

Look at all the newspapers and send them all out.

The sky is already spitting out fish white.

The sound of roosters crowing could be heard from all over the streets.

After staying awake all night, Zhu Yunhuan stretched and let out a long breath.

Yang Shiqi handed him a letter of apology and request to take back the sword.

Zhu Yunhuan began the intensive copying and revision again.

These things must be written by him himself to show his sincerity.

If you delegate the task to someone else and let Mr. Zhu know about it, you will lose a lot of points.

There will definitely be a real fierce fight in the court today.

Success depends on this one move!
(End of this chapter)