"The newspaper is being re-formatted, and all the printed copies are discarded..."
"Tear down all the articles before the front page, and put the news of the birth of the Ling'an River stone turtle on the front page. Yes, the font must be large, especially the font on the back of the stone turtle, so that even a blind person can see it. Put the news out first, and the commentary articles can be put on later..."
"Extra edition..."
"This issue of the newspaper will be printed in 300,000 copies..."
"No one will rest tonight. Everyone will work overtime. Their wages will be five times higher. The transport team will have them wait outside the newspaper office. Once the newspapers are out, they will be delivered to Jinling and other cities first..."
Fang Beidou's throat was burning with anger and he was sweating profusely as he gave one order after another in the printing workshop of the newspaper. Everyone in the newspaper, from the woodblock carvers to the porters and copyists, were so busy that they wished they could split each person into two people to work with.
Under Fang Beidou's urging and supervision, the newspaper re-typeset, engraved, painted and printed the paper at the fastest speed. Soon, a reprinted latest "Han Empire Times" appeared in Fang Beidou's hands.
Fang Beidou didn't read any other parts of the newspaper except the front-page news: "The Birth of a Stone Turtle from Ling'an River Shocks the World"
Simple text introduction, clear and realistic stone turtle illustrations, and most importantly, the words on the stone turtle's back, all in large fonts, clearly visible, filling the entire front page.
—In May of the 16th year of Yuanping in the Han Dynasty, a solar eclipse occurred in Liuzhou…
—In August of the 16th year of Yuanping in the Han Dynasty, there was a severe drought in Zhuzhou…
—In January of the 17th year of the Yuanping reign of the Han Empire, a great earthquake occurred in Ganzhou…
—In April of the 17th year of Yuanping in the Han Empire, a landslide occurred in Luchuan…
—In September of the 17th year of Yuanping in the Han Empire, a catastrophe descended upon the world, thousands of stars fell, the capital and the imperial city became a dead place, thousands of miles became a desert, and the bones of the people were crushed and turned into ashes...
—Don’t say that the stone turtle doesn’t speak. Seeing this thing can give you a chance to survive. With a chance to survive, you can save all the people and escape a thousand miles away to survive!
The above content was shocking. Even Fang Beidou felt his heart trembling after reading it. Compared with others, his trembling was not only because of the shocking content, but also because he knew who wrote it.
This was the catastrophe of the empire. Thousands of stars fell and thousands of miles of land around the capital became a desert. If it weren't for that person, he didn't know how many people would die in such a catastrophe, and what kind of earth-shaking changes the Han Empire would usher in.
The reason why The Han Empire Times exists is for today!
"Boss, do you think this is okay?" An old craftsman from a printing workshop nearby asked Fang Beidou cautiously, looking at his face.
"Just press this, and it will start printing at full speed immediately..."
"Yes Yes… "
Everyone in the printing workshop quickly got busy. At dark, bundles of the latest issue of "The Han Empire Times" were carried out of the printing workshop and loaded one by one onto the convoy of four-wheeled carriages waiting outside the newspaper office.
After loading the newspapers, the carriages, escorted by their guards, had their drivers wave their whips, snapping them in the air, and then quickly pulled the newspapers to various places in the capital overnight.
The entire newspaper office was brightly lit, and everyone was working overtime, burning the midnight oil...
Not only the newspaper office, the entire Imperial Capital was already in an uproar today. At dinner time in the evening, in the restaurants in the Imperial Capital, in the halls of the wealthy and powerful families, and even in the homes of the common people in the countryside outside the city, almost everyone was talking about the stone turtle.
…
While people were working overtime at the newspaper office of The Han Empire Times, in the imperial palace, on the Golden Throne Hall, all the civil and military officials as well as the current Emperor of the Han Empire were looking solemnly at the stone turtle that was moved from the Ling'an River to the Golden Throne Hall. They were all silent, looking at each other, and the atmosphere in the whole hall was as if it was frozen.
The stone turtle was heavy, and the palace received the news a little late. In addition, there were countless people watching along the way as the stone turtle was being transported, so the journey was slow. Therefore, it was already dark when the stone turtle was transported to the palace.
"My dear ministers, the stone turtle is already here. Please tell us what you think!" The emperor, who was sitting on the throne, finally spoke after scanning the faces of the civil and military officials in the hall several times.
"Your Majesty, this is really strange. What was written on the back of the stone turtle is horrifying and disturbing. Now the whole imperial capital is in a panic. In my opinion, this matter is most likely man-made. The White Lotus Sect is best at this kind of trick. The most urgent task now is to immediately issue a gag order and not allow people to discuss this matter. Anyone who dares to discuss it will be severely punished to avoid trouble!" The Minister of Justice Gu Chunyi was the first to step out of the train and spoke loudly.
"Lord Gu is wrong. Let's not talk about whether the stone turtle incident was done by the White Lotus Sect or not. Even if it was, the current gag order will probably be of no help and will instead cause chaos. Today, the stone turtle was at the bank of the Ling'an River, and tens of thousands of people have seen it with their own eyes. It was transported from the Ling'an River to the imperial palace, and people along the way filled the streets, vying to witness it. There are probably no less than 100,000 or 200,000 people who saw it. If people are arrested for discussing it, then more than 100,000 people will have to be arrested. Even if all the cells in the Ministry of Justice are emptied, there will not be enough people to arrest. This will probably lead to a major incident!" Imperial Capital City Governor Yan Jingtian stood up and directly opposed the Minister of Justice Gu Chunyi.
"Lord Yan, do you mean to let rumors run rampant and the court will do nothing about it?" The Minister of Justice Gu Chunyi glanced at Yan Jingtian coldly and said in a cold voice.
"Of course not. If that were the case, His Majesty would not have urgently summoned us to discuss the matter. I think this is a serious matter, so we should be cautious. You gentlemen may express your opinions. In the end, it is His Majesty who will make the final decision!" Yan Jingtian, the governor of the Imperial Capital City, said calmly.
"Lord Yan is right. This matter is of great importance. The court must not panic, lest it give the villains an opportunity to take advantage. Your Majesty, please be cautious!" Another minister stood up and echoed Yan Jingtian's words.
Minister of Justice Gu Chunyi glanced at the man and felt secretly anxious. It was a coincidence that Lin Qingtian had just left Dijing City two days ago to inspect water conservancy and agriculture in Jinzhou, and it would take seven days for him to come back. Just as Lin Qingtian left, such a big event happened in Dijing City. Although he had sent a quick message to the Prime Minister as soon as he got the news, I am afraid that at this time, Lin Qingtian in Jinzhou had just learned the news. Even if he wanted to rush back, it would take at least three days.
At Gu Chunyi's signal, the Minister of Revenue stood up and coughed twice. "I think what this stone turtle said is incredible. It said that the capital will encounter a natural disaster in September next year, and thousands of miles will be turned into a desert. This is definitely a lie to confuse the people. There must be a conspiracy. The most urgent thing is to immediately let the Ministry of Justice dispatch elite troops to thoroughly investigate who is behind this and whether this matter has anything to do with the White Lotus Sect!"
"Yes, yes, that's what we should do!" A group of officials and cronies on the prime minister's side stood up one after another, supporting the Ministry of Justice to conduct a thorough investigation of the matter. Regardless of whether the stone turtle incident was true or false, as Prime Minister Lin Qingtian's party, the first thing they should do is to seize the initiative and control of the matter. With power they can seek profit. As for whether the White Lotus Sect was behind this, it is secondary.
As soon as the ministers on Lin Qingtian's side stood up, the ministers on the emperor's side immediately became dissatisfied, and the people on both sides started arguing in the court.
"Ahem..." An old minister stood up tremblingly, "I think you gentlemen don't need to argue about whether what the stone turtle said is true or false, and how the court should deal with it. In fact, there is no need to rush. In fact, we can just wait until May to see whether there is a solar eclipse in Liuzhou. If there is no solar eclipse in Liuzhou in May, what the stone turtle said is definitely a lie to confuse the public. By then, the rumors will be broken by themselves, and there will be no need for the court to make a big fuss. If there is really a solar eclipse in Liuzhou in May, I am afraid that no one will dare to stay in the capital. In the capital, big and small things will affect the whole body. If something big really happens, I advise you gentlemen and Your Majesty to make plans early..."
There was a sudden silence in the Jinluan Palace...
(End of this chapter)