Chang 'an District Magistrate's Office
Chang 'an District Magistrate Su Luosheng was very decisive. That afternoon, he publicly announced the Han Family's daughter's case.
"I declare that Han Laitou, Hu Zhongding, and Matchmaker Zhu disregarded the imperial court's repeated orders and openly engaged in marriage. They forced the Han Family's daughter to her death. They have a bad influence and trampled on ethics. Their crimes are unforgivable," Su Luosheng shouted angrily.
In the hall, the three people kneeling on the ground were dazed. Matchmaker Zhu almost collapsed on the ground. They already knew that this matter had reached the Throne Room and there was no turning back.
"Good!"
The onlookers immediately cheered. As long as they were normal people, they would hate the three of them and grit their teeth.
"I hereby declare that Han Laitou and Hu Zhongding, the two of you sold people as your wives and concubines. You will be apprentices for three years and will be punished with 30 paddles and paraded through the streets for three days as a warning to the world. Matchmaker Zhu is an accomplice. You will be apprenticed for one year and will be punished with 20 paddles and paraded through the streets for three days. You will never be a matchmaker again," Su Luosheng shouted angrily as he slammed the gavel.
Mo Jiazi sounded the drum and alerted the Emperor. Naturally, he had to complete this matter beautifully.
Han Laitou, Old Master Hu, and Matchmaker Zhu wailed and begged for mercy. However, they could not change the outcome. Soon, they were dragged out by six yamen runners.
"Pa, pa, pa!"
The sound of the paddles was mixed with the three people's cries. However, the crowd did not have the slightest sympathy for the three people. Compared to the crimes they committed, this punishment was insignificant.
Thirty paddles were not easy to endure. If the paddles were too heavy, it was common for people to be beaten to death. If Su Luosheng had not ordered the three of them to be paraded through the streets as a warning to the world, the three of them would not have been spared.
Even so, the three of them were on the verge of death after the paddles.
"Sir, the punishment has been carried out!" After the paddles, the yamen runner reported.
"Take them away and watch them closely. After tomorrow, they will be paraded through the streets," Su Luosheng said coldly.
After Han Laitou and the other two people were escorted back, the crowd left. Soon, the results of Han Laitou and the other two people's punishment spread throughout Chang 'an City.
"How satisfying!"
"The three of them have already benefited from this outcome!"
"Now that His Majesty has ordered that the marriage contract must be signed in the county office, and both the man and the woman must be willing, I hope that the tragedy of the Han family's daughter will be put to an end!"
"Hmph! If anyone dares to commit a crime again, the fate of Matchmaker Zhu and the other two will be their lesson. "
…
The people of Chang 'an City immediately discussed and applauded.
The matchmakers in Chang 'an City were all shocked. Some of the greedy matchmakers often dealt with such marriages. They were just lucky that they did not meet the hot-tempered daughter of the Hu family, nor did they meet the righteous and outspoken Mo Jiazi.
If another matchmaker was involved in this matter, he was afraid that he would not be so lucky. In the future, the marriage contract would be signed in the county office. If the woman were to report the marriage on the spot, everyone would have to bear the consequences.
Of course, no one forgot about Mo Jiazi's contributions. All along, all the important officials in the Imperial Court were old, and no one had ever spoken up for the youth. But now, there was finally a spokesperson for the youth in the Imperial Court, and that was Mo Jiazi.
…
"You want to compete with Mo Jiazi with this level of skill? Mo Jiazi entered the Imperial Court alone and dared to argue with the imperial censor, and returned with a great victory. What about you? All day long, you do nothing but stir up trouble, and even implicate the entire family."
In the House of Wei, Master Wei pointed at Wei Sian's nose and scolded. Comparisons were odious. Usually, he valued his third son more, but compared to Mo Jiazi, the difference was like the difference between heaven and earth.
Wei Sian's scolding was not undeserved at all. This time, the Lantern Festival was the fuse of the dispute between Confucianism and Mo. It could be said that Wei Sian had started it. At first, Wei Sian only wanted to suppress Mo Jiazi and propose to Princess Changle. What was originally a melodramatic love triangle turned into a change in the marriage system of the Tang dynasty. The impact was widespread, and it had long since broken away from House Wei's original plan.
Not to mention, House Wei had suffered even greater losses due to Morton's vengeance. The family's main business, the cloth business, had suffered a great blow. In just a few days, the fabrics printed and dyed by the major cloth merchants were already on the market ahead of time. The new fabrics were superior to House Wei's in terms of quality and color. More importantly, the new printing and dyeing technique did not fade easily. Even after washing the cloth a dozen times, the water in the basin would still be crystal clear.
As soon as it was launched, it was immediately welcomed by Chang 'an City. House Wei's cloth business was defeated and suffered heavy losses.
"I am useless! Please punish me, father. " Wei Sian said dejectedly. His complacency from scheming against Meton on the Lantern Festival had disappeared without a trace. All that was left was a deep sense of powerlessness.
"But I'm not willing to accept this. The son of the Mo Family has caused our Wei Family to be in such a miserable state, yet he's still unscathed. Is our Wei Family supposed to swallow this insult?" Wei Sian gritted his teeth.
Master Wei snorted coldly and said, "Of course not!"
Wei Sian looked at his father with a glimmer of hope in his eyes and said excitedly, "Father, do you have any ideas?"
Master Wei sneered and said, "In this dispute between Confucianism and Mo, the biggest contributor to Meton's comeback was Mo Magazine!"
"Mo Magazine?" Wei Sian asked, puzzled.
"Yes, it's Mo Magazine. As the saying goes, three people make a tiger, and public opinion can confound gold. In the past, who dared to face the censors of the imperial court directly? At that time, the whole of Chang 'an City was criticizing Mo Jiazi. Even I thought that Mo Jiazi's reputation would be ruined and that he would have no power to fight back. Who would have thought that just one Mo Magazine would change the direction of Chang' an City in an instant?" Master Wei's eyes flashed with a hint of fear.
With one word, the whole world knew!
This was the most powerful aspect of Mo Magazine. Before this, the power of public opinion could be said to be firmly in the hands of the censors and literati. However, Meton's counterattack showed them the power of Mo Magazine. The power of public opinion that was originally exclusive to the censors and literati became vulnerable in an instant.
Moreover, public opinion in the past would often be brewed after a certain amount of practice before erupting. However, Mo Magazine was directly sent to thousands of households, and the whole world knew about it. It was incomparably fast. With such a sharp weapon of public opinion in the hands of Mo Jiazi, how could they not be shocked?
"Father, you mean that our Wei family will also be involved in the newspaper!" Wei Sian's eyes lit up.
Master Wei nodded and said, "Since Mo Jiazi has caused our Wei family to suffer heavy losses, how can we just sit and wait for death? How can we not fight back?"
Wei Sian said worriedly, "But we don't have the channels that the Mo Family's village has all over Guanzhong!"
It was easy to get started with Mo Magazine. There was no technical content in engraving printing. As long as one looked carefully, there were many talents among the major booksellers in Chang 'an who knew how to engrave. In fact, the most important thing was a fast news channel. Although the Wei family had a large business, it was only in Chang' an. How could it be as widespread and fast as the Mo Family's village?
"Of course, the Wei family alone can't do it. But this time, the Wei family is not the only one involved. There are many people in the Tang dynasty who don't like the Mo family." Master Wei said with a sinister smile.
Wei Sian's eyes lit up and he said in surprise, "Father, are you talking about the Confucians?"
Patriarch Wei nodded and said, "That's right. Lord Quan has already contacted me. In the future, there will definitely be someone who will publish the articles for Clan Wei. Even some Confucian scholars will personally write the articles. We just need to name the newspaper 'Confucian Magazine'! "
"'Confucian Magazine'!" Wei Sian's eyes lit up. In this way, there was no need to worry about the sales of the Confucian magazine. There were so many Confucian scholars in the world. If each of them had a copy, it would be enough to crush the Mo Magazine.
Master Wei looked at Wei Sian solemnly and said, "Now that your official career has been cut off, I will entrust the matter of the Confucian magazine to you. It can be considered as finding a way out for you. I hope you won't let me down."
"Thank you, father!" Wei Sian said excitedly.
If he could control a newspaper and often deal with some literary scholars, he might be able to change his situation in the future.
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