In the afternoon, Li Yi finished writing the newspaper article and sent it to the typesetting department.
The typesetters were doing it for the first time. They picked the words according to the size of Li Yi's handwriting.
Copper was usually used to make currency and bronze wares. The production was low, but the demand was high.
Most people would not bear to use copper to make movable type, but Zhuangzi did not care. He had money.
Even if he lacked copper, how could he lack the copper that Zhuangzi used to make movable type?
The typesetters picked out the words one by one and fixed them in a template.
The template was fixed with buckles. There were special grooves on the movable type that could be fastened directly.
Otherwise, the wax would need to be melted and the words would be placed on top. The words would not fall off after the wax solidified.
When the wax was removed, the wax would be melted and the words would be removed.
Not only was it tiring, but it also used up a lot of wax.
When the movable type was made, there would be bumps on the reverse mold, and the words would have grooves on them.
There was only one big newspaper today, and it was printed on one side.
The typesetting was done on the same day, and the printing started at night. There was only one printing machine for 10,000 copies, and it would be printed until the next morning.
The people in the printing workshop did not care. It was finally time for them to perform.
The story in the newspaper was the first chapter of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Li Yi had spread it out, and many people were still copying it.
Now that it was printed in the newspaper, there were no mistakes, and it looked comfortable.
Also, Li Yi wanted to print the prevention of heatstroke and put it in the newspaper. The people would find it novel.
Even if they were illiterate and did not want to buy it, they would listen to others read it.
They would write it down, and when they felt that they had mastered something good, they would spread it out.
Early in the morning of April 20th, Song De looked for Li Yi again.
"Dongzhu, all 10,000 copies have been printed. Look."
Song De said as he took out a newspaper. The smell of ink wafted in the air.
Li Yi took the newspaper and read it from the beginning to the end. There was no problem with the typesetting, and the handwriting was clear.
"Very good. Sell it. One copy for 3 RMB." Li Yi returned the newspaper to Song De.
"Ah? 3 RMB? Owner, I'm afraid you don't know how much this newspaper costs, right? "
Song De was dumbfounded and looked at his Dongzhu in confusion.
"Of course I know. The paper is 10 RMB and the ink is 2 RMB. Excluding the copper and labor costs, the total is 12 RMB."
Li Yi nodded, indicating that he understood.
"Then …" Song De was at a loss. You know you're selling it for three cents for twelve cents?
"Sell it, you won't lose money. I've written a few notes for you. Keep them well. If you can't sell them, take them out and shout. "
Li Yi didn't want to say too much. He only gave the order and took out several folded pieces of paper from his pocket.
"Alright, Dongzhu, I'll arrange for someone to sell it." Song De clenched his teeth and listened to Dongzhu's words. He took the note and turned around to leave.
"In the first few days, we'll send our people to sell the goods. Once we're familiar with the people in Chang 'an, we'll see if there are any families with old illnesses who rely on their children to work hard to make ends meet.
In the future, let them sell the newspapers. Give them a penny for every five copies sold, or we can adjust their wages depending on the situation. "
Li Yi added.
Song De, who was walking to the door, paused. "Got it, Dongzhu."
Song De left sullenly. He wasn't angry with Li Yi, but with himself.
He knew that Dongzhu said he wouldn't lose money, and that meant he wouldn't lose money. But he couldn't figure out why he wouldn't lose money.
Three luxurious carriages were dispatched for 9,000 copies of newspapers, and a special one was sent to carry people.
There was also a truck filled with piles of starch jelly, seasonings, bowls and chopsticks.
Five carriages set off, followed by twenty Winged Knights.
Now Song De had guards in Zhuangzi. He was afraid that he would be taken away. He knew too much.
The Winged Knights received the order that if Song De was attacked, and the Winged Knights couldn't eliminate the enemy and rescue him, they were to shoot Song De.
Song De himself was also clear, so he only went to Chang 'an and didn't go anywhere else.
At the city gate, they unloaded the starch jelly and other things. The carriages went in, and the gatekeepers began to scrape the jelly and put it in bowls with seasonings.
The carriages went straight to the south of the imperial city and stopped at the Vermilion Bird Avenue. No stalls were allowed here, and no hawking was allowed.
Song De didn't care much. The Winged Knights were protecting him. Was he selling? He was giving it to them. The cost was twelve coins, and a newspaper was only three coins.
When they arrived, the carriages opened, and everyone stood in a row, shouting together.
"Look, look, three coins for selling things at a loss. This is a newspaper. There are stories and general knowledge in it."
"The cost of a newspaper is only three coins now. Buy it and you can learn."
"The newspaper is the court bulletin. You can't see the court bulletin, but you can see the newspaper."
Song De and the farmers were shouting very hard, but unfortunately, everyone was watching and didn't buy.
They knew who Song De was. They watched him shouting, pointing and talking to each other.
Song De: "…"
He had no choice. He reached into his pocket and took out a folded piece of paper. He unfolded it, read, and took a deep breath.
Then he accepted his fate and shouted: "Shocking! Three men sneaked into the peach garden and did such a thing."
"Oh ~ ~" The eyes of the onlookers lit up. They were surprised.
Someone immediately came forward: "Steward Song, what are you talking about?"
"It's written in the newspaper. This is the only copy for three coins." Song De was convinced. Dongzhu was still the best.
"It's written in the newspaper?" The other party was suspicious.
"Why would I lie to you? Are you buying or not? If not, get out of the way. There are people behind who want to buy." Song De didn't explain.
"Buy, give me one. This paper looks good. It's not a loss."
"I'll buy one too."
"I can read. Who bought it? Read it to me."
A group of people came forward to buy the newspaper. In a short time, more than four hundred copies were sold.
The people who got the newspaper avoided the others and ran to the corner to read it.
The others chased after them and left. The people in front of them had dispersed. Those who came after them didn't know what was going on. Why was the Li Family Zhuangzi here selling newspapers?
Song De took out another piece of paper and looked at it. He gritted his teeth, "What did a woman do to cause so many men to be entangled with her? If you want to know, buy the newspaper. Three coins, it's only three coins."
"Hua ~ ~" This time, there were more people. They all took out their money. Those who couldn't read bought the newspaper and were prepared to look for those who could read.
After some time, Song De took out a piece of paper, "When you do this, you'll be sweating profusely and gasping for breath. You'll also feel thirsty. There's a way to solve this problem. It's written in the newspaper. "
All of a sudden, everyone went crazy. Even the women ran over to buy newspapers.
At this point, the person who bought the newspaper ran over, "Steward Song, where are the three men you're talking about?"
"Why aren't they? Weren't they Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei sworn brothers in the peach garden?" Song De retorted.
The other party: "…"
Someone beside him said, "I know what a woman did to cause so many men to be entangled with her. The Empress Dowager meddled in politics."
"How come I don't see anything about men being able to last longer?" The person who bought the newspaper looked through it and couldn't find anything.
"To prevent heatstroke. Porters at the docks. Aren't they like this when they're working? Drinking a bowl of cold water with salt and carrying it around. Can't they last longer? "Song De questioned the other party.
"Alright, Steward Song. Good skills. I'm impressed." The other party cupped his fists and turned to leave.
After walking some distance, he picked up the newspaper again. If there wasn't anything, then there wasn't anything. At least the Romance of the Three Kingdoms and the prevention of heatstroke were good.
A woman who had bought the newspaper came over and spat before walking away.
Song De laughed. He had sold almost five thousand copies.
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