Chapter 407 Everyone's got brains now

The matter at the test site in the suburbs of Beijing is not completely over.

Those who went to the testing ground were either officials or ordinary people who loved to watch the excitement.

As soon as they returned from the outskirts of Beijing, the people told those who hadn't been there everything they had seen.

"The lightning was this big! But the crater it created was also this big!"

"That's incredible? Aren't they supposed to kill people with fire bombs? How can such a small bomb create such a huge crater?"

"Oh my, how could that be! Who told you that people were killed by smashing things?"

Let me tell you, when that fire bomb is thrown out, it makes a loud bang, the mountains collapse and the earth cracks, and there's fire too, enough to burn people to death!

It's a bit of a shame you didn't go see it!

"That's amazing? It's a real shame I didn't go."

When is the next experiment? I'll definitely go see it then.

"Next time? You just wait!"

Such powerful fire bombs should be left on the battlefield to kill the enemy!

You want to see it? You'll see it when you have the chance to go to the battlefield and fight the enemy.

......

Of course, ordinary people were interested in the new type of fire bomb.

The scholars preparing for the exams were furious.

They were already dissatisfied with the existence of the so-called royal merchants.

Now there are royal craftsmen, and those craftsmen have been given the official rank of seventh grade. Isn't this taking away their benefits as scholars?

This can't go on. If it continues like this, will the next step be that even merchants can obtain official positions...?

They thought about it and realized that the person currently in charge of trade between Dayu and the border city was none other than another cousin of the Tian family.

It seems like anything is possible!

As a result, the scholars in the capital city quickly took action.

They had to force the court to abandon its rewards for those artisans.

It doesn't matter if you reward them with gold or silver; you can reward them as much as you want.

But... an official position won't do!

In the eyes of those scholars, official positions could only belong to those of them who were scholars.

They study so hard, isn't it all for the sake of obtaining an official position so that they can bring glory to their ancestors in the future?

Now even blacksmiths and other handicraftsmen can get official positions. Isn't this forcing them to die?

Thus, the scholars in the capital first went to the Ministry of Rites to protest.

Then they sat quietly about a mile from the palace gate.

They dared not get too close, fearing they might anger the imperial authority and be stabbed to death by the imperial guards...

only......

The Ministry of Rites closed its doors and disappeared. The imperial guards, carrying long spears and riding warhorses, had just come out when they immediately dispersed.

They also knew that these things required resistance, and that bloodshed was necessary...

But I can't bleed myself...

Seeing that these two tactics were ineffective, they resorted to their old tricks again, spreading various rumors among the people.

Once such a wave of public opinion forms within the territory of Chongqing, the imperial family, in order to maintain the stability of the court, must listen to what everyone has to say.

only......

Ideals are beautiful, but reality is cruel!

In the past, in the Great Yu region, when scholars gathered together and talked, everyone would listen in.

At that time, the people all had the same idea in their hearts.

Scholars, of course, know more than they do, and what they say is bound to be true.

You can learn a lot from listening to these scholars.

But the current Chongqing...

Since Emperor Xiao Wu ascended the throne, his control and guidance of public opinion, though not yet at a level of perfection, has been quite effective.

But I can still do it with ease.

After returning from the test site in the suburbs of Beijing, Shangguan Jin realized that the scholars would definitely cause trouble.

Shen Qingyue also relayed the scholar's plan to cause trouble to Emperor Xiao Wu.

When Emperor Xiao Wu found out, he only wrote a few words to Lian Qianli.

"Make them realize their own limitations!"

Upon hearing this, Lian Qianli was overjoyed.

He'd be overjoyed to see these scholars punished!

Since Chunbuwan opened, what he disliked most was the influx of scholars into Chunbuwan.

They don't have much money, they don't even want to spend a penny, yet they're thinking of getting something for free.

He also wanted to seduce the tea lady and the zither lady in the teahouse.

He fantasizes about romantic encounters, like scholars and beauties on a wall, under the moonlit flowers, but he doesn't want to spend a single penny...

Some scholars even said this to certain wealthy courtesans who played the zither and served tea.

"With your help today, my wife, I will repay you tenfold in the future, and we will never be apart, even in life and death!"

"Pah!" Lian Qianli cursed immediately after learning what some scholars were thinking.

"Oh! Trying to live off a woman?"

Immediately, a tea lady asked what it meant to be a kept woman.

"They're just some shameless guys who spend your money and brainwash you, saying it's only right for you to spend money on them and that you'll get something in return."

That kind of person is not even as good as a male prostitute in a brothel.

The male prostitutes even know that they have to please, coax, and respect their patrons!

"Those guys are spending your money here, while bragging to others about how great they are, how they can get you to willingly part with your money," Lian Qianli said.

The tea ladies and zither ladies, who had already read through all the stories written by Lian Qianli, immediately understood upon hearing this.

That's pretty shameless.

They work so hard making tea and playing the piano! We can't let those guys fool us with the little money they earn through their hard work.

Therefore, all the women in Chunbuwan knew everything about it.

Spending money on men... hehehe!

That's a bit of a tangent. Let's get back to the scholars' plans!

The scholars knew that in order to create a public opinion trend in the capital, they needed a place where everyone could speak.

You can't just grab someone off the street and tell them your opinion!

Or perhaps they go to the market and share their theories with everyone.

Whether those people can understand them or not is another matter, they might even call them crazy behind their backs!

Therefore, the first step is to occupy the public opinion front regarding the Spring Festival Gala.

Why not go to another teahouse?

After several years of operation, people in Beijing have developed a habit of it.

If you want to hear accurate information from reliable sources, or to express your own opinions, then go to Chunbuwan.

With powerful connections, no matter what you say on the Spring Festival Gala, no one will arrest you.

But it's hard to say about other teahouses.

Of course, there is another reason.

Everyone knows that the Duke of Dingguo's mansion has a stake in the Spring Festival Gala.

This incident was also caused by the third young master of the Duke of Dingguo's mansion.

Once you secure the rights to "Spring Festival Gala," it's equivalent to taking over someone else's territory.

This will be a great encouragement to everyone.

So the scholars gathered at Chunbuwan.

When they arrived at the spring festival late and saw the seats packed with people, they were immediately invigorated.

This is a great opportunity! With such a large audience, I must perform well...