A thin mist floated on the surface of the Qinhuai River on the Taoye Ferry. In the early morning, the birds were singing and the flowers were fragrant. The faint sound of the flute came from the window. Li Lihua turned around on the bed. She knew that it was Gu Mei who was practicing music by the river. She usually practiced
Half an hour.
The flute suddenly made a broken sound, then became silent, and then panicked shouts came from outside. Li Lihua turned over and sat up, frowning and listening to the movement outside.
There were thumping footsteps on the stairs, and a moment later Li Ping'er pushed open the door and came to the bed with a pale face.
"Mom, something happened outside."
"Why are you so panicked?"
Li Ping'er stammered, "There are dead people on the river bank."
Li Lihua said with a cold face, "It's not like people drowned in the Qinhuai River."
"Yes...it's the two internal agents from Baishun Hall."
Li Lihua's expression changed, and she hurriedly got up, packed her clothes, and went downstairs. On the way, she met Gu Mei, who was coming back from the river supported by a short maid. Her steps were a little erratic, and she was obviously frightened.
There were already many people standing on the river bank. She pushed aside the woman blocking her way and came to the river bank. She saw two corpses floating face up in the water. When she looked closely at their faces, they were the informants in Baishun Hall.
Li Ping'er's heart was beating hard, and her face became even paler. Her voice trembled as she said, "The nursing home didn't come out for inspection last night. It must have been transported by rowing boat in the middle of the night. Otherwise, it would have stopped just beside the Meilou. It was probably
That Pang Guerrilla did it."
"Don't panic." Li Lihua looked away from the corpse, "He killed these two people because he didn't have the courage to attack me, but he couldn't bear that tone. The matter is over, so he should rest assured."
Li Ping'er nodded, but her hands and feet kept shaking. What Li Lihua said made sense. If it was just about robbing Baishun Hall, she should be relieved for the time being. There were many prostitutes on the Qinhuai River, and it was not uncommon for prostitutes to kill each other.
, but such silent killing demonstrations are still very rare. It is obvious that the strength of this warrior is not comparable to those in the fighting industry. For Li Ping'er, if there is a handle in the hands of such people, the worry will only become more serious.
Li Lihua breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Report it to Jiangning County and ask them to take the body away. There is no need to say anything else."
"Would you like me to go to Shaojian Zhou so that he can know about this and ask the Army and Horse Department to send some soldiers to protect you?"
Li Lihua thought for a moment and said, "Just talk to Guo Zuoshan. Don't bother Young Supervisor Zhou with trivial matters. Sending soldiers will scare the guests."
Li Ping'er responded and said in a low voice with lingering fear, "Mother, let's not provoke these warriors. They have been fighting with bandits in Jiangbei for a long time, and their behavior is just like that of bandits. This time we are going to kill these two people."
People, next time..."
"That's scary." Li Lihua's eyes returned to the corpse, "He just wants you to think like this. I've seen a lot of evil people on the Qinhuai River, but if you know how to use such despicable methods, it's still the result of a reckless man.
, this time I relied on King Qin to please Mr. Liang, and made him proud for a while. When I find the opportunity, I will let Mr. Pang know that this Ming Dynasty does not belong to the military after all."
…
"Running a newspaper is a matter for literati. Lin Po, you are a scholar of society. You have done very well in the newspaper over the past few years."
In the newspaper office of Jiangnan Times, Pang Yu said gently, "This time I am planning to transfer Editor-in-Chief He back to Anqing, but the Times still has to continue. Editor-in-Chief He recommended you to me and asked you to stay in Nanjing.
Dealing with newspaper matters."
Lin Po was Liu Shenyan's cousin. After hearing this, he knelt down on the ground and said, "Young man with little talent and little knowledge. If he is not as good as Mr. He, I'm afraid he will be embarrassed in the important task."
"Lin Po doesn't have to be humble. You have been at the newspaper for a few months, and you are already responsible for selecting and typesetting articles. You are talented enough to be the editor-in-chief. I still have a good eye for people."
Liu Shenyan was stunned for a moment. According to Pang Yu's logic, if he refused again, it would mean that the boss was not good at judging people and was speechless for a moment.
"Then it's settled. Your monthly payment will be 10 taels first, and you will add it after one year. The rest of the staff in the company will remain unchanged. Editor-in-chief He will call everyone to announce the matter in the afternoon. You can get up first."
Liu Shenyan was stunned for a moment. He used to only receive three or two months of silver, but he didn't expect that the editor-in-chief could get such a high salary. He had no intention of refusing firmly, so he quickly said, "Thank you, sir, for the promotion."
Pang Yu asked him to stand up and walked a few steps in the room. "It's just that the newspaper office is not a literary office after all. After all, it is a business, and it is somewhat different from the loyalty of literary people. When the manuscripts from the Fushe office come over, which ones should be published?"
You shouldn't say it, Lin Po, you have to make some calculations in your mind first."
"All my subordinates will listen to you, sir." Liu Shenyan turned to He Xianya again, "I would also like to ask Chief Editor He to give me some advice."
He Xianya nodded and smiled. He would never hide his secrets on this point. He had long since stopped doing the newspaper business. If Liu Shenyan didn't explain things clearly, Pang Yu might let him come back in the future.
The reason why He Xianya was transferred back to Anqing was not because Pang Yu considered the personal opinions of his third brother, but because the resumption of society incident made Pang Yu worried about the prospects of resumption of society. Jiangnan Times has been relying on the resumption of society for its development, and the content published on the page has changed.
Most of them were articles about the restoration of society, and He Xianya's relationship with him was too close, and it was easy to implicate himself. Although Liu Shenyan was a scholar of the restoration of society, his family was ruined, so he could only rely on Pang Yu to make him the editor-in-chief of the newspaper. On the surface, the Times
It has little to do with Anqing, which can reduce the risks associated with Fushe.
Pang Yu stopped in front of the window. This courtyard is one mile outside Sanshan Gate. It is a very ordinary courtyard. It is better because of its wide space. It is the most inconspicuous of Pang Yu's many industries. It is the same as Dazhong Street where gambling stalls and banks are located.
In comparison, it is the urban-rural fringe area, because the rent here is cheap and there are rivers for delivering newspapers.
People coming and going in the small courtyard downstairs are mainly laborers. It seems to be a completely labor-intensive industry and has nothing to do with culture. These laborers are carrying paper, which is the largest item used by the newspaper. In addition, it is convenient.
It's copper type. Because of the timeliness of newspapers, it needs to be printed with movable type. Copper type was widely used in the Jiangnan area in the Ming Dynasty. There was no shortage of skilled workers. When it was published monthly, even pictures could be printed. It didn't require Pang Yu's skills.
The problem is that copper characters are expensive to make. Currently, we only have 2,000 commonly used characters. If we don’t have them, we have to rent them from other bookstores.
The current distribution situation is acceptable. It has been spread along the river. The number in the lower reaches of Nanjing is increasing every month. It is gradually penetrating into communities and towns. The reading group has expanded from the gentry to ordinary literate people. This is due to the high literacy rate in the Jiangnan area.
, there are already shops in Yangzhou and other places with signboards for fixed sales. The printing part in Anqing mainly targets the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. It has a certain influence on the cities along the river, but it has not yet been able to expand to ordinary towns.
People at this time did not pay much attention to the role of newspapers, and they had always lost money in publishing. Therefore, although they had been co-organized with Fushe for so long, no one had ever made any plans for the newspaper. For Pang Yu, if there was no bank,
Newspaper offices are also useless. They really want to lose money and make money. Under the current circumstances, newspaper companies can only focus on finance and distribution.
The other clerks, accountants, and labor leaders in the newspaper were all transferred from Anqing. In the past, they were all commanded by He Xianya. Now that Liu Shenyan is the editor-in-chief, the power given to him will not be so great. Liu Shenyan's family has been ruined, and even though he is a scholar of Fushe
, but the current loose organization of Fushe cannot be relied upon. Pang Yu is his only supporter, which is the reason for choosing him.
"I heard that Lin Po has settled down in Nanjing?"
Liu Shenyan raised his eyes and glanced at Pang Yu, "It is true that we have settled down. The humble wife also escaped from Hezhou. There are no relatives or friends left in the little man's family, so the marriage has been simplified and a few friends who have returned to the society have been invited...
If the editor-in-chief is there to witness it, then the marriage is consummated."
Pang Yu hummed and said, "That lady must be from Jiangbei, maybe she is used to living in Nanjing?"
Hearing these words, He Xianya glanced at Liu Shenyan. According to the rules of Dajiang Yinzhuang and Baishuntang, all those in charge must leave their families in Anqing, mainly the shopkeepers and accountants. Now there is a cashier. The same goes for keeping hostages.
The common practice at this time was to provide a mortgage to the employer, and He Xianya's family members stayed in Anqing Fucheng.
Liu Shenyan hesitated for a moment, then twisted his body unnaturally and said, "I'm really not used to this Nandu."
He Xianya quickly observed Pang Yu, then turned to Liu Shen and said, "Anqing and Hezhou are both in the north of the Yangtze River, and there are garrison camps guarding them. Linpo can be sent to Anqing, and maybe he will get used to it."
Just as Liu Shenyan was about to nod, Pang Yu interrupted, "Lin Po's family is in trouble, and we still need to carry on the family lineage, so there is no need to rush."
He Xianya didn't say anything after hearing this. Liu Shenyan met his wife when he was crossing the river with Hezhou. He Xianya also saw it before. There was a scar on her face. They lived together after arriving in Nanjing. Is this kind of marriage in troubled times reliable?
It’s hard to say, but what Pang Yu meant was that it would be easier to mortgage if he had children.
However, he made an exception for Liu Shenyan. He knelt down to thank him again, but Pang Yu waved his hand and asked him to leave.
He Xianya was the only one left in the room. Pang Yu sat down casually and said, "Third brother, you can leave Nanjing alone, are you satisfied with returning to Anqing this time?"
He Xianya bowed first, then found the next seat, "Second brother knows that I have been literate since I was a child but have no patience for learning. It is difficult to run this newspaper. I have to deal with the literati in Fushe and I can't remember much about my quarrel with Wu Yingji.
Now, Liu Shenyan is here, and they can talk easily. Besides, Nanjing is the capital of China, and there are officials and gentry everywhere. No one is easy to mess with, so be careful everywhere. I want to tell you, in the past, things were done in the county government office.
"Everyone is shameless, so it doesn't take much effort, but the officials and gentry in Nandu seem to be shameless, but they don't know how shameless they are. It's too complicated for my younger brother, so it's better to go back to Anqing."
Pang Yu pondered for a moment, "I thought the same thing before, the Baishun Hall thing was a mess, but Ruan Dacheng found the thread with his guidance, and the mess was solved."
He Xianya smiled and said, "Li Lihua just let the Baishuntang matter go?"
"Ruan Dacheng opened his mouth to plead for mercy. There is Shaojian Zhou behind Li Lihua, so I can only give a warning." Pang Yu sighed after saying, "According to my original idea, no matter how the matter ends, Li Lihua's life will be taken, but the situation is like this.
It’s really not that comfortable to do things.”
"If Li Lihua still doesn't know how to be interesting..."
Pang Yu shook his head, "Now that we have established a relationship with husband Liang, we have sent another three thousand taels separately. You know this. With his care, Li Lihua doesn't have the guts to come."
He Xianya licked his tongue. His position after returning to Anqing this time has not yet been decided, but it is roughly in the reception room and the Chinese military document. He felt that he should enter the role, and then said to Pang Yu, "Is this where husband Liang is?"
It’s too much to give. If you give three thousand at the beginning, you won’t be able to lose this amount when you move around later.”
"Silver is earned and used. I remember that during the civil unrest in Tongcheng two years ago, we risked our lives to win the thirty thousand taels of silver. Now we have long disappeared, but we earned a garrison camp." Pang Yu took a sip of tea and spoke again.
He said confidently, "Third brother believes in me on this matter. No matter how much Liang Hongtai gives, it will still be useful. As long as it is useful, don't say more. This is what I have learned from my recent experience."
"Second brother still understands. I will learn more from him in the future."
As soon as he said this, Pang Ding hurried into the room. He saw He Xianya there, but stopped talking. Seeing this, He Xianya quickly got up and left.
Pang Yu waved his hand, "Third brother is not an outsider. He will also participate in secrets in the garrison in the future. Let's hear what he has to say."
Pang Ding took two steps closer and whispered, "Mr. Ruan sent a servant to say that the imperial court has appointed a new Nanjing garrison, who will take office as soon as Jiannu comes out of seclusion. Please don't go anywhere with Liang Hongtai."
The room suddenly became quiet. Pang Ding looked at the two of them strangely and said, "According to Mr. Ruan, the new guard is the former household worker prime eunuch named Zhang Yixian. He was sent here this time because he was impeached too many times by the imperial court in Beijing."
Nanjing." (Note 1: In September of the ninth year of Chongzhen, Zhang Yixian was appointed as the garrison of Nanjing.)
"No one expected this." He Xianya said awkwardly after a moment. He looked out the window again, "The ink delivery person is here. I'll take Liu Shenyan to inspect the goods, so that he won't be unfamiliar with it in the future."
After saying that, he hurried downstairs, leaving behind a strange Pang Ding, who looked at Pang Yu in confusion.
Pang Yu wiped the sweat from his face and asked, "Is there anything else?"
"There is also news from Jiang Fan. Li Ping'er heard it in Meilou. The people in Fushe were pooling money to open up the joints. Jiang Chen told Wu Changshi that Master, you have money and want us to give you three thousand taels. Jiang Fan said please
Sir, please make preparations first."
Pang Yu picked up the tea cup and took another sip. He put it down for a moment and cursed, "These officials and gentry are really complicated. We can't wait any longer. We will go back to Anqing tomorrow."