Five Years After My Death, the Mad Emperor Still Summons My Spirit

Ming Lingyi motioned for Little Stone to continue.

Little Stone shared the information he had gathered.

"One is called Hongyun Bookstore. Their shop is huge, and they print a wide variety of things. A lot of the storybooks on the market are printed and published by them. For block carving, I heard it’s about three hundred wen per hundred characters. They also have different kinds of paper at different prices. You have to pay a deposit before they start working." Little Stone reported what he had found out over the past two days.

"There’s another one, but its shop is very small." Little Stone said he had even gone to see that printing shop today. He gestured with his hands—the shop was quite a bit smaller than their restaurant. "The shop is tiny, but their prices aren’t cheap at all."

This was what Little Stone couldn’t understand. ’That shop looks like it’s about to go out of business,’ he thought. ’Who would’ve guessed they’d ask for such a high price? How could they possibly get any customers!’

"What kind of paper and ink do they use? Are they expensive?" Ming Lingyi asked.

Little Stone’s eyes widened. "Boss! How did you know their printing prices are so much higher than the other one because their paper and ink are very expensive?!"

Little Stone thought Ming Lingyi was amazing; his boss seemed to know everything.

When he went to the shop and asked today, the owner hadn’t tried to fool him just because he was a kid. Instead, they told him a whole bunch of things he didn’t understand, something about Huizhou and pine smoke ink or some other ink. In the end, all he remembered was the price, which was a lot more expensive than the first shop.

Ming Lingyi smiled. For some reason, the second bookstore gave her the impression of being small but refined.

However, although she had some spare money on hand, she wasn’t considering creating a "premium product" right now.

What she wanted more was to promote it widely. She needed to build a reputation for the booklet compiling the outstanding works from Ming’s Restaurant’s poetry competition. Only then could she attract more contestants and renowned judges in the future.

If the booklet was priced too high, it would be difficult for common people to buy it.

Quality is one thing, but for something to find its way into most people’s homes, it needs to be both good and affordable.

Ming Lingyi said, "Then let’s go check out the first one tomorrow."

Only then did Xiao Chun realize that her miss had already made plans. Listening to the conversation between Little Stone and her miss, it dawned on her. "Miss, are we going to publish a book?"

Xiao Chun’s voice was filled with excitement. She had never imagined that they could publish a book! Though it didn’t seem to have much to do with her.

Ming Lingyi nodded and explained, "I have a plan for that, but it wouldn’t be considered a book. Initially, it would be more like a kind of folk ’official gazette’."

Ming Lingyi had seen them before when she was in the palace. This kind of publication usually circulated only among officials. The content was almost entirely official information, intended to inform local officials about appointments, transfers, and other news from the central government. To maintain the court’s operations, the content was mostly serious, with no entertainment, and certainly no romance or artistry.

The folk "official gazette" she envisioned, however, would have nothing serious in it—only romance and artistry.

The advantage was that something like this might only require a page or two, so neither the production cost nor the purchase price would be very high.

For Ming Lingyi, the pressure wouldn’t be too great either. Even if this idea didn’t turn out as well as she hoped, her losses would be minimal.

After explaining, Ming Lingyi added, "Isn’t the wall with the bookshelves still empty? We can clear it up and put a display board below them."

The bookshelf had been built against the wall above the long tables where people sat facing it. It was very convenient for diners who wanted to read while chatting instead of eating. Between the bookshelf and the tables, there was a section of blank wall about an arm’s width high, which was perfect for a bulletin board to post the excellent poems selected at the restaurant.

But that wasn’t all. Ming Lingyi felt it still wasn’t conspicuous enough.

The promotion of these poems shouldn’t just be seen by the diners in their restaurant; the people outside should see them too.

"Tomorrow, we’ll paint the outside wall of the restaurant as well."

Because the restaurant had been expanded by merging two spaces, there was a corner on the exterior.

The small charity stall Ming Lingyi had set up earlier was right on that side corner.

There was a large section of wall there.

"We’ll use that outer wall for public promotion," Ming Lingyi said.

When the time came, she would write the judges’ names and the top three poems on it. That should have a good promotional effect.

「The next day」

Ming Lingyi woke up early and went to the first bookstore Little Stone had mentioned.

"What? A restaurant like yours wants to get printing done?"

After hearing the reason for Ming Lingyi and her group’s visit, a strange expression appeared on the bookstore owner’s face. He shook his head. "No, we can’t do that."

Ming Lingyi asked, "Why not?"

She wanted to say that things like the per-character carving fee and the deposit were all negotiable; she wasn’t unwilling to accept them.

In her view, taking on her job was no different from printing a storybook. Moreover, her order was small, the work period was short, and the final payment would come quickly. She really couldn’t think of any reason for him to refuse.

Besides, hadn’t they not even gotten to the point of discussing the price yet?

The boss let out a sneering laugh and reached out to push Ming Lingyi away.

However, before his hand got halfway, Shi Mingyue, who was beside Ming Lingyi, swiftly intercepted it.

Seeing this, the bookstore owner’s fake smile vanished, replaced by open impatience. He tried to shoo them away. "Go on, get out! A restaurant wanting to do the business of scholars? You must be dreaming! And you, a young lady should stay at home where you belong. What are you doing out here trying to do business like a man? Doing business with a woman brings bad luck! Hurry up and go, go, go! So unlucky, first thing in the morning!"

Even with Ming Lingyi’s good temper, her expression turned grim upon hearing his words.

"How can you talk like that!" The plump girl beside Ming Lingyi couldn’t hold back. She was the first to jump out, pointing at the bookstore owner and starting an argument. "Our miss does business honorably and openly! What law in Shangjing City says a young lady can’t do business?"

The bookstore owner wasn’t having any of it. Finding fault with everything, he sneered, "The law might not forbid it, but here at Wang Dashan’s place, there’s no way!"

"You!" Xiao Chun wanted to step forward and argue further, but the bookstore’s apprentices were standing behind the owner, holding brooms as if ready to pounce and drive them out the moment she moved.

Ming Lingyi pulled back Xiao Chun, whose fighting spirit was already ignited. She could hold her own in a back-and-forth with Wangxian Building, but she couldn’t even be bothered to waste another word on this bookstore owner.

"Ming Yue," Ming Lingyi said suddenly.

Shi Mingyue looked at her.

"Go outside and borrow a brazier," Ming Lingyi said, a faint smile still on her face.

"Coming into this bookstore has brought us some bad luck. Let’s step over a brazier to cleanse ourselves of the filth."