Travel back in time and become Chongzhen, watch me turn the tide

Hou Fangyu wandered outside the door for a long time, struggling internally. After hesitating for a long time, he finally mustered up all his courage and stepped into the house.

He could never have imagined that this Mr. Zhu was actually Emperor Chongzhen. Thinking of the incident with Wang Cong, he beat his chest with regret. That was a perfect opportunity to show off, but he had missed it. Furthermore, in the eyes of the emperor, his performance at the time was truly unsatisfactory.

"Your Majesty, your servant, Hou Fangyu..." Hou Fangyu followed Wang Chengen cautiously into the study. He saw Chongzhen writing intently behind his desk. He hurried forward and fell to his knees with a plop, his voice trembling with nervousness.

"Zhaozong, there's no need to be so polite," Chongzhen heard the voice and looked up to see it was Hou Fangyu. He immediately stopped writing, a warm smile appeared on his face, and he said gently, "There's no need for us, the emperor and his subject, to be so restrained. Let's just continue as before."

"Your Majesty, I dare not." Hou Fangyu responded hurriedly, lowering his head even lower, his forehead almost touching the ground.

"My dear companion, please take a seat!" Chongzhen turned to Wang Chengen and ordered.

Wang Chengen brought a chair, but Hou Fangyu just slightly leaned his butt against the edge of the chair, his body still tense and looking stiff.

Seeing this, Chongzhen shook his head helplessly. He knew very well that in this era, the majesty of imperial power was deeply imprinted in everyone's soul. This concept was deeply rooted and could not be easily changed by him.

"I heard that you drafted this edict?" Chongzhen spoke first, breaking the silence.

"I am not talented and knowledgeable enough, and I am deeply afraid that I will fail to live up to Your Majesty's expectations." Upon hearing this, Hou Fangyu hurriedly stood up and said with a frightened face. His body trembled slightly due to nervousness, and his eyes were full of anxiety.

"Chaozong, don't be so reserved in front of me," Chongzhen waved his hand, motioning him to sit down, and said in a friendly tone, "I am well aware of Chaozong's literary talent. There is no need for you to be so modest. I summoned you this time because there is something I hope you will take the lead in doing."

"I will obey your majesty's orders." Hou Fangyu's spirits suddenly perked up upon hearing this. A glimmer of anticipation flashed in his eyes, and he hurriedly said, "Please give your instructions, Your Majesty!"

"Hmm." Chongzhen pondered for a moment, then slowly asked, "Do you know the court bulletin?"

"The court report?" Hou Fangyu was stunned at first. Although he didn't understand why Chongzhen suddenly asked this, he immediately replied, "Of course I know that."

For scholars like Hou Fangyu, the official gazette was something very familiar.

The Dibao, also known as the Dichao (驚詩), Dichao (驚報), Chaobao (朝报), Tiaobao (条报), and Zabao (杂报), is considered the world's earliest newspaper, with its origins dating back to the Han and Tang dynasties.

Initially, it was copied and circulated within the court, and then posted at the palace gate for everyone to copy, so it was also called Palace Gate Copy or Yuanmen Copy. It was a news copy of documents specially used by the court to convey court information and political intelligence.

The Ming Dynasty's court bulletins were sponsored by the Tongzhengsi, an important agency responsible for managing internal and external memorials.

The main contents of the imperial gazette included imperial edicts, orders, personnel changes of government officials, government decrees, communiqués, and memorials from ministers. They did not include general news or opinions. At the time, the gazettes were widely known and became a forum for internal factional struggles within the Ming court. For example, when Chongzhen and the Minister of War, Chen Xinjia, were secretly discussing peace with the Qing army, Ma Shaoyou, the Minister of Military Affairs, sent back a secret letter from the border with the terms of the peace agreement. Chen Xinjia placed the letter on his desk. However, a servant mistook it for a tangbao and published it in the gazette. The entire court was shocked, public opinion was outraged, and Chen Xinjia ultimately lost his life as a result of the incident.

As a man from a later era, Chongzhen understood the importance of propaganda better than anyone else. Propaganda is an incredibly powerful weapon. If harnessed effectively, it plays an irreplaceable and crucial role in rallying people, boosting morale, stabilizing military resolve, gaining support, consolidating rule, establishing authority, and guiding public opinion.

"The court bulletin was originally managed by the Tongzhengsi. This time, I plan to set up the Propaganda and Cleaning Officials Department under the Ministry of Rites. This department will be mainly responsible for ideological guidance, public opinion guidance, cultural construction and other work. The court bulletin will be an important part of propaganda work and will be managed uniformly by the Propaganda and Cleaning Officials Department." Chongzhen said in detail while thinking.

"This..." In later generations, propaganda is a concept that everyone knows, but in the minds of people in this era, it has not yet formed a systematic cognition, so Hou Fangyu listened a little bewildered, with confusion in his eyes.

"It's actually very simple. We just need to use the court bulletins to publicize the court's favorable policies so that the people, especially those at the bottom of society, can know about them," Chongzhen explained patiently. "The country is in chaos right now, and people are panicking. We can soothe the people and build their confidence and hope by promoting positive response strategies, the interim results we've achieved, and the bright future. We can also publicize the court's unwavering support and subsequent strategic deployments, so that the soldiers can firmly believe that victory is within reach, thereby boosting morale and stabilizing the military..."

"Next, the court gazette will be divided into public and private publications. Public publication, as the name suggests, is run by the government. I intend to call this gazette the Ming Pao, sponsored by the Propaganda and Clean Personnel Department. It will be personally reviewed by me before publication. The Ming Pao's main content includes non-confidential palace reports (i.e., palace news, such as important appointments), imperial edicts, public announcements, and memorials from ministers. It may also publish important social news such as disasters and rumors. Ming Pao will be published daily, and you will be responsible for the specific layout design. The other option is private publication. Next, I will allow private publication of the court gazette, but the publication process will be supervised and reviewed by the Propaganda and Clean Personnel Department. The content of privately published court gazettes will no longer be limited to Ming Pao content. Articles, poems, songs, as well as knowledge in astronomy, geography, science, and other fields, and even the views of your various parties and current affairs commentary, can be published..."

"Is it really possible?" Hou Fangyu couldn't help but gasp when he heard this, and was shocked.

As a man of letters, he naturally understood the seriousness of the situation. Back then, Wu Yingji had written a large-character poster titled "Public Proclamation to Prevent Chaos in the Capital," which pointed the finger directly at Ruan Dacheng, claiming it was intended to "eliminate traitors for the country" and "to embolden traitors and rebels throughout the world."

It was this big-character poster that completely ruined Ruan Dacheng's official career. The reason why he hid in Shi Kefa's army was because he was retaliated by Ruan Dacheng for this incident.

A big-character poster has such a huge influence. If the control over the court newspapers is really relaxed, wouldn’t the impact be even more difficult to estimate?

Moreover, the contents of the court gazette were far more than that. If someone's poems and songs were published on it, wouldn't that person quickly become well-known to the public? Moreover, it could also express their own opinions and ideas. Wouldn't some of the Fushe's ideas be spread through the court gazette?

Thinking of this, Hou Fangyu couldn't help but blush with excitement, and his heart beat faster involuntarily.

"Of course you can," Chongzhen said with a smile. "Of course, these speeches will be supervised by the Propaganda and Justice Department. At the very least, content that attempts to overthrow the Ming Dynasty's rule or spreads false information will absolutely not be allowed to appear!"

"That's right, that's right!" Hou Fangyu was so frightened after hearing Chongzhen's words that a layer of cold sweat broke out on his forehead, and he responded quickly.

"Chao Zong's writing style is well-known throughout the world. Someone once commented on your article: it is swift and fierce, like thunder, lightning, rain and hail, suddenly and violently, terrifying and shocking, and stops abruptly, leaving the sky blue for thousands of miles. So I would like to invite you to participate in this matter, what do you think?" Chongzhen said with a smile.

"Your Majesty's praise fills me with awe." Hou Fangyu quickly knelt again and said earnestly, "I will do my utmost to live up to your grace."

"Good! I've been waiting for you to say that." Chongzhen laughed heartily. "I've heard for a long time that your Fushe Society has four young masters. Can you invite them to come out with you this time?"

"I will contact them right away and ask them to come here as soon as possible." Hou Fangyu said excitedly, with excitement flashing in his eyes.

"Okay!" Chongzhen nodded with satisfaction and said, "In addition to distributing the Ming Pao newspaper within the imperial court, we can also accept pre-orders. As for issues such as cost and price, you can ask Zhu Ge to help you contact Wang Zhiren. This time, in addition to Ming Pao, you will also prepare to publish a private newspaper for the general public. I will discuss the specific details with you later..."

In Chongzhen's plan, the public opinion front must be firmly in his own hands, so whether it is the Ming Pao as an official newspaper or the newspaper for the people, he must control and guide them. Moreover, the newspaper for the people has another important function, which is profit!

"Yes!" Hou Fangyu accepted the order.