Chapter 291: Printing Technique
Such timid people will indeed be eliminated.
People like Wang Yun, who were able to realize that Qiao Yan's behavior was unusual at this time, probably cannot be classified as this type of people.
After all, even if Qiao Yan was put in Wang Yun's position, she might not be able to remain calm when faced with such a subversive thing.
Those who are truly afraid of this wave are those who cannot even see the signs of this new generation of things.
However, in the current situation, no matter whether they can see this thing or not, Qiao Yan must lay it out on the table.
Perhaps after her power transitions from a minister to a monarch, her voice will be further enhanced, but those who oppose this suggestion will not shut up just because she has become the emperor from a Grand Marshal.
On the contrary, with the external survival factors and enemy threats eliminated, they would only feel that they could negotiate with her more easily.
And now?
Under the indiscriminate attacks that were about to happen, if they wanted to maintain their current peaceful lives, and they also needed to rely on her ability to march and fight to pacify forces like Gongsun Zan in Youzhou and Yuan Shao in Jizhou, they could only grit their teeth and accept the rules she proposed.
What's more, what she is currently promoting with this new technology is only a method of preventing and controlling drought and locust plagues.
"Grandmaster De," Qiao Yan suddenly said, "ask Xun Wenruo and Chen Changwen to come see me and tell them that I have an important announcement to make at the court meeting in a few days. Tell them the truth first."
Regardless of whether this was like cutting meat with a blunt knife, she still had to observe proper etiquette.
Wang Yun has already set an example with his performance. Among the current primary and secondary contradictions, the disputes caused by the emergence of printing technology will never be at the forefront, so why not be bolder?
The accumulation of two years of silence was not just for her to try to accept more people in other people's disaster relief and widen the gap between the enemy and us. This natural disaster crisis was also the best springboard for her to completely stand out from the crowd of heroes in the world.
At the same time, it was also the beginning of her leaving a truly unforgettable impression on people all over the world.
From invincible to...
Speak for the people!
Spring has arrived, and the sky brightens much earlier than in winter.
But before the Chang'an court meeting began, the sky was still gloomy.
Today's situation seems a little special.
When the ministers who were attending the court meeting arrived, they found that there were several lamps lit outside the Purple Palace, and under the lamps were several tables.
There were actually a few more craftsmen in the Gui Palace, which had always been accessible only to the emperor's courtiers and guards. At this moment, they were concentrating on completing their work with the help of sunlight and candlelight.
I don’t know if it was intuition, but Wang Yun, who had just visited the Grand Marshal’s Mansion a few days ago, couldn’t help but twitch his eyelids.
Seeing that he looked different, Yang Zan, who was familiar with him, asked in a low voice: "Do you know what's going on?"
Wang Yun did not say anything, but walked towards the direction of the craftsmen.
After seeing that they were each carving something on a piece of pear wood board, Wang Yun's guess was immediately confirmed.
At this moment, what Qiao Yan had said to him that day flashed through his mind.
She said that producing those identical newspapers was like making coins, and now, she was showing all the officials in the Chang'an court how "same" it was!
But how dare she?
Wang Yun's heart was in a mess.
He originally thought that Qiao Yan at most intended to inform the other party of the situation when someone came to him to inquire, so that the voices opposing this matter would be cut off in the Grand Sima Mansion before they were transmitted to the outside world.
But he never expected that Qiao Yan was actually planning to make it public!
But listening to the noisy conversations of the crowd and the sounds made by the carving master with the carving knife and the wooden board, Wang Yun suddenly realized that this kind of internal disclosure was not a bad thing at all for Qiao Yan.
His visit that day was most likely just the beginning of the March issue of Leping Monthly.
Qiao Yan couldn't be sure whether there was anyone in Chang'an City who noticed the peculiarity of her behavior like Wang Yun did. However, due to her title as Grand Marshal, she didn't dare to come to her to verify it. In the end, she just kept her dissatisfaction in her heart.
This discontent is too dangerous.
Because no one can guarantee that this emotion will not break out at an inappropriate time, causing her actions to fail.
Since there are such risks, it is better to put the crisis directly on the table, at least you can die with understanding.
No, that's not right!
In Wang Yun's opinion, when she made this move, she must have already made a judgment in her mind as to who would die, her or them.
Thinking of this, Wang Yun's gaze subconsciously turned to the wooden boards, following the embers that were filed up and flying.
On these wooden boards, the craftsmen are writing a few lines of words in relief.
It is not known how long these craftsmen arranged by Qiao Yan have been engaged in this work. They have very sophisticated skills in carving the reversed characters. The carved eight-point official script characters are carved along the lines of the characters pasted on top, and some beauty is revealed in the strokes.
With the help of the surrounding light, it was not difficult for Wang Yun to recognize the words on the wooden boards.
"Oh, Lu Shi, I thought you looked so familiar." Wang Yun looked to the side and saw the head of the Painting Academy Director Zhao Qi leaning over.
What made Wang Yun feel somewhat relieved was that Zhao Qi's expression at this moment clearly showed his curiosity about new things. It was obvious that he didn't know about this before.
Although due to the nature of the art academy, the students there have some connection with the Leping Monthly in the past two years, but it seems that Zhao Qi and Qiao Yan are not "birds of a feather".
Zhao Qi narrowed his eyes and looked at the wooden board in front of him carefully for a moment.
Compared with Wang Yun's complicated mood at this time, Zhao Qi, as he got older, didn't like to make things difficult for himself. The eight-part official script plus Lu poetry quickly reminded him of something, which was the "Xiping Stone Classics" that Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty asked Cai Yong to write on stone and engrave on it.
It took a total of eight years to carve the forty-six stone tablets of the Xiping Stone Classics. It was obviously impossible for the craftsmen at that time to carve all the contents of Lu poetry in an instant. The stone tablet in front of him only had one poem, "Gantang", engraved on it.
Compared to the speed of writing, engraving is bound to have its disadvantages, but with only 36 words of poetry, plus the interpretation of Lu's poems, it didn't take very long from the beginning to the completion.
Not too long had passed from the time Zhao Qi began to look at the wooden board on which the writing was being written to the time the craftsman's carving knife stopped on the last character "说".
At almost the same time, several other craftsmen also stopped what they were doing.
These people quickly took the brushes handed to them, cleaned the wooden boards in their hands, and then handed them to the next person.
These wooden boards were not large, and only when they were fixed in a frame did they become the size of a banner.
Then someone brushed ink onto the raised positive text until the ink was evenly colored. Someone else spread a piece of white paper on top, and after it was properly covered, they used a brush to carefully and quickly brush the ink on the wooden board onto the white paper.
The reverse text when carving the wood block becomes the front side when it is printed on the white paper.
In just a short time of an incense stick, the long bamboo poles hanging outside the Zichen Hall were already filled with rubbings of Lu poetry.
When the spring breeze blowing through the city of Chang'an blows through, the white paper and ink words appear ostentatiously.
Just then the sunlight broke through the clouds in the east and shone onto the sheets of paper, clearly illuminating the original brushstrokes on each piece of paper.
After the text was changed from positive text to normal text, it became increasingly clear that it really looked like the Xiping Stone Classics of that year.
Written by Cai Yong.
It was once engraved on the Xiping Stone Classics as part of the Confucian classics of the Han Dynasty.
But what people care about most at this moment is obviously not who wrote these words or what they were written on.
What is even more noteworthy is that this process of applying ink, covering paper, and printing is completed at an astonishing speed, and the ink on the paper does not show any signs of smudging. When it is hung to dry, it looks even smoother.
Until a voice appeared, interrupting their concentration on watching the process.
"The lush green tang tree, do not cut it or chop it down, it is where the Duke of Zhao lives... Ye Shu, you deliberately had this poem carved on the green tang tree, it must not be a random choice, right?"
Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw that Liu Yu and Qiao Yan had appeared here at some point in time.
Liu Yu's eyes fell on the piece of bamboo paper, revealing a bit of surprise.
Even though he was well-read, he had never seen this peculiar way of copying text.
To be honest, when receiving the new issue of Leping Monthly Report, not only Wang Yun had this doubt, but Liu Yu also had it.
But after all, he was already the emperor at that time, and it was not appropriate for him to call Qiao Yan to question him just for such personal curiosity, especially when Qiao Yan was diligently preparing for prevention of locust plagues and droughts.
However, what he did not expect was that Qiao Yan would approach him a few days ago and ask for his permission to use this court meeting as a venue for exhibition.
So what appeared before them was a way of "writing" that seemed easy to come up with, but which they had never considered before.
Even though Qiao Yan had previously roughly introduced the logic of the operation to Liu Yu, when people officially saw this scene, they could not help but be dazzled. Especially at the moment when they saw the ink marks on the white paper, countless ways of applying it flashed through their minds subconsciously.
If Liu Yu were to speak, the first thing he would think of would be the "Book of Emergency Prescriptions".
In addition to the instructions on catching and killing locusts and curbing the occurrence of locust plagues, the most suitable book for large-scale spread is the medical book.
But just as he thought of this, he realized that although the latest version of the emergency prescription book has become simpler and easier to understand with the joint efforts of Chiyang Medical College and the Academy of Painting, it is still not a text that the general public can recognize. It is better to keep it in the state it is now handed over to the heads of each pavilion.
Unless, you use it to print a batch of literacy books first.
Wait...read?
Liu Yu's thoughts paused for a moment, and he suddenly understood why Qiao Yan insisted on saying these things here.
After this printing demonstration, even though everyone knew there was nothing puzzling about the technology involved, it did not prevent everyone from paying any extra attention to today's court meeting.
Fortunately, there is not much important work to do at today's court meeting, so it doesn't matter if it is delayed.
Everyone present heard Qiao Yan's reply: "In the past, there was a fellow descendant of King Wu of Zhou named Zhao Gongshi, who was granted the fief of Yan. However, he did not go there but stayed in Haojing to assist King Wu. King Wu then granted Fufeng to Zhao Gong as his fief."
"When Duke Zhao was governing Fufeng, he toured the villages and made decisions under the pear tree, handled government affairs, and made the people live in peace. As a result, the people loved the pear tree and took good care of it, neither cutting it nor chopping it down. This ballad was composed to show that they would always remember Duke Zhao's kindness."
This is the origin of the poem "Do not cut or chop down the lush sweet tangerine trees, for this is where Duke Zhao lived."
Liu Yu had studied the Book of Songs, so of course he knew the story behind it.
But Qiao Yan obviously did not tell this story for no reason.
The Yan land where Zhao Gong Ji Shi was originally enfeoffed is today's Youzhou, and the Haojing where he later assisted King Wu in governing the country is near today's Chang'an. This is undoubtedly somewhat similar to Liu Yu's resume.
Although Liu Yu was the king and Zhao Gong was the minister, they cannot be compared, but they have one thing in common.
Qiao Yan continued, "He showed kindness to the people and made them live and work in peace and contentment. Although there is not a single word in the ballad about what Zhao Gong did, every word is full of true feelings, which makes future generations feel moved when they read it. For example, Your Majesty has actually achieved the things of judging cases wisely and making government orders clear in the past two years. Why not go a step further?"
"If everyone can learn how to fight the locust plague, and the common people can be spared from disasters during this change in the weather, the ruler and his subjects in Chang'an and the common people can get along well with each other, then today when we are just beginning to learn, we will still be reciting the story of Duke Zhao, and tomorrow it will become a good reputation for you, especially Your Majesty."
Liu Yu shook his head and said with a smile: "How can one live in this world just for fame?"
Qiao Yan replied, "The cause and effect relationship is not like this. It's just like how people today interpret the Book of Songs, whether it's the Lu Poetry or Xun Gong's Poetry Commentary. Would anyone think that Duke Zhao was a person who sought fame and reputation? Probably not. It's just that from every word and sentence in Gan Tang's poem, one can read the scene of the upper class following the lower class and the people's livelihood being harmonious."
"If this was the case with Guanzhong during the Western Zhou Dynasty, what about Guanzhong during the Han Dynasty?"
Maybe you would also like to see such a scene.
By that time, no matter how powerful the court in the east was with Liu Bian, the eldest son of Emperor Ling of Han, it would never be a place of allegiance in the hearts of the people, and they would be more inclined to choose the court in Chang'an.
All they have to do is to do a little more for the people in the face of drought and locust plagues.
She continued, "There is another reason to use this poem as an example."
"In the past, Emperor Xiaoling inscribed the Xiping Stone Classics in Luoyang, regarding the Seven Confucian Classics as the orthodox Confucian classics of the Han Dynasty, and engraved it on stone to protect the Imperial College. Unfortunately, since the Dong Zhuo Rebellion, the Imperial College has been abandoned, and most of the Xiping Stone Classics have been destroyed. The rest remain in Luoyang, and it is difficult to move them to Chang'an. However, proofreading the classics of various schools is still a key issue for the dynasty."
"But from my point of view, there is no need to use the stone scriptures as a representative. In times of turmoil, there were no extra eight years to carve the stone scriptures."
When Qiao Yan said this, he sighed slightly, as if lamenting that the stone scripture no longer existed, but suddenly became resolute: "Why not let the court rectify the name, select the best books and works from various collections, and pass them down through rubbings. The family that provided the scripture will have their names forever on the block. One block can be passed on thousands of pieces of paper, and there is no possibility of discarding it. I wonder what your majesty and the others think?"
Record and print various classic books and works!
Once these words were spoken, they caused a much more shocking change in people's emotions than Qiao Yan's previous announcement that he would kill locusts and fight the drought.
This seems to still be about asking the gentry to give up their interests to the common people who have no chance to read and write, but a closer look reveals that it is not the case at all!
When the Xiping Stone Classics were erected in front of the Imperial College, there were thousands of people coming to view and copy them every day, and the number of vehicles alone even reached the point where the surrounding roads were blocked.
Does this mean that everyone in Luoyang will have the opportunity to read and write?
Obviously not.
Even though Luoyang’s Imperial College was located in Nanguo District and people could reach it at will, it was not the case!
Just like Song Lian in later generations, after copying books, he had to "study the classics and ask questions from the wise men in the village" before he could understand them.
Books and writings alone are far from enough.
As an official stone scripture, its greater significance lies in maintaining the unity of writing and politics, and also in correcting the far-fetched interpretations of the classics.
As a result, scholars who had learned different characters from various schools had to change their understanding and unify it with the Xiping Stone Classics.
So they had to come!
If it was so back then, why couldn’t it be so this year as well?
There are various annotations on the Book of Poetry, Book of History, Rites and the Book of Changes. The ministers and their families in the court are always thinking about promoting them further so that more people will recognize them as orthodox, and various texts and other creations of interpretation and explanation have been derived.
Printing one copy or a thousand copies of it would not lead to a breakthrough in class, it would only...
Let them squeeze out the cultural status of Hebei scholars.
The moment they realized what kind of vision Qiao Yan had drawn, they all vaguely realized that it would be a good thing if they could discuss and negotiate this matter.
Even Wang Yun, who was previously convinced by Qiao Yan's two reasons, felt that he should not have come to ask for accountability before. If it was really as Qiao Yan said, it was no wonder that Yang Xiu would stand on the position of supporting her.
However, the premise of all this is that the classics produced by printing technology remain in a controllable state, rather than being distributed to thousands of households in batches, or even accompanied by explanations, to become a tool for enlightening the people.
I think given Qiao Yan's position and identity, she would not do such a thing, right?
Wang Yun suppressed his worries, and saw Qiao Yan bowing to Liu Yu: "Your Majesty, please allow me to print the Leping Monthly Report in this way, and make it a regular practice until the disaster is over. I will also collect scriptures and books from all families and prepare them for the Imperial Academy to set the record straight."
Liu Yu's eyes swept across the faces of the people present. Seeing that although they were still hesitant, no one had clearly raised any objections, he replied, "Let's approve the monthly report first, and discuss the extras later. We have to come up with a more clear set of rules."
Otherwise, before targeting Yecheng, their different schools of thought would have started fighting over whose doctrine was to be printed as the official orthodox one.
This is not joy but sorrow.
Qiao Yan's expression remained unchanged, but after hearing Liu Yu's words, a sense of joy emerged in his heart.
As long as she can obtain the authority to seal the seal legitimately, her goal will be achieved!
That's enough!
This batch of extra copies of the March issue of Leping Monthly seemed to have been in preparation when Qiao Yan applied for permission from Liu Yu, so much so that shortly after the decision of the court council was made, everyone saw a large number of new March issues in the bookstores in Chang'an.
And that’s not all…
"You mean, every time you buy a bottle of soy sauce in Guanzhong, you get a newspaper like this for free?"
Yuan Shao looked at the things brought back by the spies, with an extremely interesting expression on his face.
Qiao Yan's move really accurately grasped the temperament of some people.
If they were asked to buy newspapers individually, even though the price of newspapers has been much lower than last year due to the advent of printing, since most people cannot read, some people still do not want to make such an expense.
But what if you buy condiments and get a newspaper for free?
In order to take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to set up a business, Qiao Yan could afford such an expense.
But the account cannot be simply calculated in this way. The person who bought the soy sauce got a gift, and the person who sold the soy sauce gained word of mouth. However, salt, one of the raw materials for soy sauce still has to be purchased from Qiao Yan, so in fact no one lost!
Only Yuan Shao, who did not know the details, fell into deep thought as he looked at the newspaper with detailed data.
This time he was in no hurry to speak.
He just wanted to know—
What is this bastard Qiao Yan up to?
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