The Republic of China: A Letter of Appointment Creates the Most Powerful Warlord

"Money is something outside of one's body. Don't look at things too one-sidedly."

Zhang Ye looked indifferent, indicating that he should not care about this matter.

It’s just a little money. As long as the plan can be successfully implemented, it’s worth spending any amount of money.

"Let me ask you a question. Do you know how many people there are in Donglu Province now?"

"Well...it should be around 30 or 40 million."

Fang Yu said uncertainly, he was not a demographer, so how could he know so clearly.

"Let's just say 30 million!" Zhang Ye returned to his desk and began to calculate on his fingers: "Let's assume the urban population is 20%, which is 6 million!"

"Let's open newspaper offices all over Donglu Province and distribute newspapers every day at a near-free price. With a population of six million, you'll give each person one point of public opinion per day. How many points does that give us? Can you calculate it?"

"Hiss..." Fang Yu took a breath after hearing his idea. He was surprised by the data, but when he thought about it carefully, he found that it would be extremely difficult to achieve this.

Not to mention how much money it would cost to establish connections with higher-ups, there are at least fifty or sixty counties and cities, big and small, in the entire Donglu Province. If we open a newspaper in each city, the investment would be at least hundreds of thousands.

What's more, you have to distribute newspapers for free every day. In this way, how much money can you spend? No matter how rich you are, it will all be wasted.

"Mr. County Governor, your idea does have potential, but the risks are too great." In order not to dampen his enthusiasm, Fang Yu decided to persuade him in a more tactful way: "Think about it, we're opening dozens of newspapers right away. The investment is not small."

"What if one day the boss above notices our little tricks and doesn't allow us to publicize our deeds? What will you do?"

"After all, for the current warlord government, beating up the local tyrants and dividing up their land is blatantly cutting into their flesh. They will definitely forbid the promotion of such an act that goes against their will."

"You're stupid! Who told you to promote this?" Zhang Ye rolled his eyes and tapped the table with his fingertips, reminding him, "You're just making it up, aren't you? Haven't you read the stories of ancient judges who solved cases?"

"When you go out, your status is given by yourself. If you don't fight the rich and divide the land, can't you design a persona for yourself that is a righteous master?"

"After the newspaper was established, I immediately recruited a group of novelists. Their daily task was to design new plots for 'Zhang Ye Solve Cases' and write it as a long story."

"But this is too fake, isn't it?" Fang Yu felt that this idea was still not mature enough. The fabricated plot could not be taken seriously. Even if people were willing to watch it, it was just for fun. What if it didn't contribute to public opinion?

Wouldn’t that be a waste of such a large sum of money?

"You don't understand shit. In today's society, the lower classes have been exploited to the point where they can't even lift their heads. They live in dire straits every day and desperately need someone who can bring them hope."

Zhang Ye rubbed his chin, his eyes gleaming with a different kind of brilliance, and said confidently.

"At this time, Zhang Ye, who enforces the law impartially and serves the people wholeheartedly, and bears the brunt of justice and fears no power, makes a strong appearance with his 'cool writing', publishing new and varied cases every day that slap the faces of the aristocracy and the powerful."

"Who wouldn't be intoxicated by this? Who wouldn't be tempted? Everyone would imagine themselves as Zhang Ye, or as one of Zhang Ye's subjects. If that were the case, wouldn't the public opinion score skyrocket?"

"Furthermore, the most crucial point of this model is that it can maximize public opinion without encroaching on the power of various parties."

Of course, the reason why Zhang Ye came up with this idea is related to the current situation, and choosing Donglu Province is the most important point.

According to the trajectory of events in the previous life, there are less than two years left before the war between the three warlords. At that time, the Duan faction will face a joint attack from the Zhang and Wu factions. Under the double blow, the Duan faction will not be able to hold on for long and will surely be defeated.

At that time, Zhang Ye could use the "honest official" persona created by the newspaper to take over Donglu Province in advance, successfully replace General Duan, and become the new warlord!

This is a risky move. If any unexpected event occurs within two years, all his investments may be wiped out.

Only if the situation develops as expected and the three-way battle reaches a stalemate, will he have the opportunity to take advantage of the situation, achieve overnight success, and complete his plan of swallowing up everything.

As long as he could control the entire East Lu Province, Zhang Ye would be able to maintain his position in this chaotic world and put an end to the chaotic Beiyang warlord era as soon as possible.

"Then... I'll prepare the funds right away, shall we start the operation?"

Fang Yu still felt that this idea was a bit risky, but as a subordinate, he had said everything he needed to say, and since the boss remained unmoved, he had no choice but to follow in his footsteps and stick to it.

"Don't worry, let me think about it. There are still some details that need to be improved."

Zhang Ye paced back and forth in the room, knowing that this matter could not be handled carelessly. If some details were not handled properly and someone caught him, it would be all over.

……

Time flies, and a week has passed in the blink of an eye.

Under Fang Yu's careful management, Fushui County has been rejuvenated with new vitality.

The shops on both sides of the street look brand new, clean and tidy, and the small vendors are all smiling and busy with joy.

The whole county is filled with an atmosphere of prosperity and joy.

After so many days of fermentation, the people have already known the origins of Fang Yu and others, and are also full of gratitude to Zhang Ye behind the scenes.

In particular, the tax reduction measure has given many businesses a sigh of relief.

For small-scale vendors, reducing their financial burden means they can use more income to improve their family's living conditions.

This deepened their gratitude towards Zhang Ye and also inspired them to have greater enthusiasm and initiative for entrepreneurship.

Moreover, the new patrol team has also received support and praise from the people.

These people never charge any extra fees, and even if vendors offer money to them, no one dares to accept it.

Moreover, the new team has strict discipline. Whether drinking or eating, everyone pays honestly. Even if they want to drink cold water, they will take the initiative to ask the price and never use their power to pressure others.

At first, some people did not believe this earth-shaking change and thought they were just acting to paralyze everyone.

It was not until a new round of policies was issued that the county government opened schools free of charge and all children of school age could register and attend school free of charge. Only then did the villagers dispel the last bit of doubt in their hearts.

I wholeheartedly support and love the new county magistrate.