Chapter 51: Planning to Publish a Newspaper

Early the next morning, Su Ze stepped into the Peach Blossom Spring.

The three mu of farmland were heavy with drooping rice ears, and Ah Nong was leading two farming spirits in harvesting the grain.

A small granary had already been built, and the spiritual spirits, including the guide spirit, were all helping to transport the harvested rice into the granary.

A month had finally passed, and the day of harvest had arrived.

Su Ze walked over to the granary and looked at the plump grains of rice, feeling a great deal of peace in his heart.

With this Peach Blossom Spring, he would surely be able to live out his days in leisurely comfort no matter what.

Su Ze called the guide spirit over and asked:

"A month has passed. How do I pay the vital breath of literature for hiring the spiritual spirits?"

The guide spirit shook the radish sprout on top of its head and replied to Su Ze:

[As long as you unfold the long scroll and agree to the payment, it will be automatically deducted.]

Su Ze unfolded the long scroll, and after confirming the payment, the vital breath of literature was indeed automatically deducted.

Currently, in the Peach Blossom Spring, including Ah Nong, there were five farming spirits (three for farmland, one for flower fields, and one for the chicken coop), along with Ah Zhi the craft spirit, Ah Yuan the roaming spirit, and one woodcutting spirit.

The guide spirit required no payment, meaning Su Ze's fixed monthly expenses for the spiritual spirits alone amounted to forty points of the vital breath of literature.

Su Ze originally had seventy-five points remaining (minus five for building the granary), plus ten points obtained from Cai Xiang's calligraphy. Now, after deducting the wages, he was left with forty-five points of the vital breath of literature.

It was a painful loss.

Su Ze looked toward the printing workshop. He needed to open up new sources of income as soon as possible to increase his fixed revenue of the vital breath of literature.

The method Su Ze came up with was to run a tabloid.

Just like the tabloids previously run by Zhang Yaozuo, with the development of a commodity economy and the popularization of literacy, running a tabloid in Bianjing City was actually a profitable venture.

On the streets, there were quite a few professional newsboys making a living by selling tabloids.

Aside from specialized tabloids that pirated government gazettes to publish news and court affairs, there were also entertainment tabloids featuring novel stories and folk tales.

What Su Ze hoped for was to establish a tabloid capable of attracting literati contributors, which would allow him to collect the vital breath of literature through submissions.

This was also why he had spent his capital to build the printing workshop within the Peach Blossom Spring.

However, publishing tabloids was a grey area in the Great Song Dynasty.

Zhang Yaozuo had secretly run a tabloid, but upon being discovered, he immediately surrendered to the Emperor and personally disbanded the printing workshop he had operated.

To run a tabloid, one had to do it in secret, and in this regard, Su Ze possessed a natural advantage with the Peach Blossom Spring.

However, there were numerous tabloids within Bianjing City. To build a reputation that would make scholars vie with one another to submit articles was a matter that required long-term planning.

As Su Ze deducted the vital breath of literature, spheres of light flew out from the long scroll. These spheres orbited around the spiritual spirits before being absorbed into their bodies.

Su Ze noticed that the radish sprouts on the heads of these little radish people looked somewhat greener. It seemed that the vital breath of literature was indeed the food of these spiritual spirits.

The guide spirit spoke:

[Congratulations to the Master of Peach Blossom Spring for successfully spending one month in the Peach Blossom Spring! The spiritual spirits feed on the vital breath of literature. If their wages are delayed, their work enthusiasm will decline; if delayed for a long time, they will leave the Peach Blossom Spring. Please make sure to diligently collect the vital breath of literature, Master!]

Su Ze nodded. He saw that after harvesting the Champa rice, Ah Nong began to till the soil once again, planting sprouted sugarcane cuttings into the earth.

The remaining two plots of farmland were also prepared for the continued sowing of Champa rice.

The sugarcane would be ready for harvest next month.

Looking at the chickens in the coop, they had begun to lay eggs steadily, and several hens were already ready for consumption if needed.

If the vital breath of literature in his hands were more abundant, Su Ze would also have liked to grow some vegetables.

Moreover, he wondered if upgrading the Peach Blossom Spring would unlock buildings like restaurants. Being able to craft fine cuisine within the Peach Blossom Spring would be simply wonderful.

He still needed to gather the vital breath of literature as quickly as possible.

Su Ze exited the Peach Blossom Spring. He adjusted his attire; today was the day he had arranged to gather with Wang Anshi and Zeng Gong, so he absolutely had to harvest a good amount of the vital breath of literature!

Su Ze did not wear his official robes. Today was not a day of rest, and wandering the streets in official attire might attract the attention of censors and lead to impeachment.

Furthermore, given that Zeng Gong had failed the imperial examinations this time, Su Ze did not wish to rub salt in the wound. Changing into his ordinary scholarly robes, Su Ze retrieved a bundle of spring bamboo shoots from the Peach Blossom Spring and headed to Zhang Yaozuo's stable.

Zhang Yaozuo's residence was still somewhat distant from Wang Anshi's home. The stable hand, knowing that Su Ze was a junior highly regarded by Zhang Yaozuo, selected a gentle pony from the stables.

Horses were an essential means of transportation in this era, and Su Ze had practiced riding over the past few days. In any case, galloping was not permitted within Bianjing City, and using a horse merely as a substitute for walking did not require advanced riding skills. Su Ze mounted the horse and rode toward Wang Anshi's residence.

Wang Anshi's courtyard was originally located in a rather secluded alley, but before Su Ze even reached the entrance, the alley was already packed with carriages.

Su Ze had no choice but to dismount, and he quickly realized that all these carriages were directed toward Wang Anshi's home.

As he moved closer to the courtyard gate of Wang Anshi's house, it became impossible even to walk while leading a horse. At that exact moment, the front gate of Wang Anshi's residence creaked open, and Wang Anshi, dressed in coarse scholarly robes, stepped out from the doorway and addressed the crowd gathered outside:

"I have long since been betrothed to a woman of my maternal clan, and I shall soon return to my ancestral home to marry. Please return, everyone."

Ah, so it was bride-snatching under the announcement of the successful examination list.

Su Ze suddenly understood.

Wang Anshi was, after all, a metropolitan graduate of the first class who placed fourth, securing a boundless future. Naturally, no one dared to pull the stunt of dragging him off by force to be married.

However, upon learning that Wang Anshi was unmarried, matchmakers came in an endless stream to propose.

Wang Anshi had clarified more than once that he was already betrothed, but the crowd of matchmakers still filled the alley every day.

Su Ze recalled that Wang Anshi's fiancée, Lady Wu, shared the same lineage as his mother, Madam Wu, hailing from the Wu family of Jinxi in Jiangxi province—she was, in fact, Wang Anshi's maternal cousin.

When Wang Anshi was thirteen years old, his grandfather passed away, and he had observed a period of mourning with his father in their ancestral home of Linchuan. During that time, he frequently played with his maternal cousins from the Wu family in the neighboring county. He and his fiancée must have been childhood sweethearts, having settled their marriage long ago.

The Wu family of Jinxi was also a prominent household, producing a greater number of metropolitan graduates than the Wang family. Such marriages between close relatives were entirely normal during the Song Dynasty.

Su Ze could not help but sigh with emotion that Wang Anshi truly held the script of a life winner.

Passing the imperial examinations with high honors in his youth, enjoying a smooth official career, and constantly having people recommend him.

Coupled with a childhood sweetheart for a cousin, if this wasn't the protagonist of a triumphant tale, what was?

Hearing this, the people waiting to propose marriages in the alley gradually dispersed, and only then was Su Ze able to squeeze his way to the entrance of Wang Anshi's home.

Upon seeing Su Ze, Wang Anshi beamed with delight and hurriedly said:

"When did Brother Su arrive?"

"Right when Brother Jiefu said he was getting married."

Wang Anshi rarely showed much expression, though his complexion was too dark to tell easily, and he said to Su Ze:

"Zeng Zigufu has already arrived, and today there are several new friends I wish to introduce to Brother Su! Come inside quickly!"