Actually, this is imitating the story of a certain martial arts novelist from back then. When that writer founded Ming Pao, he increased circulation by serializing his novels.
Today, Lin Yang has simply replaced his novels with stories told by folk storytellers, so there's not much difference. In fact, because it's closer to the times, it's even more popular with the people.
"Alright, considering the average person, the content of this section is indeed very good," Cai Yan said after thinking for a moment. After all, not everyone is like her, having read countless books. She's just doing it for fun.
Immediately afterward, Cai Yan opened the newspaper and looked at the next page. At the very top were two large characters: "Current Affairs." Next to them was a line of smaller print explaining the topic. In essence, it said that the content consisted of current popular events.
Upon closer inspection, the words "Chosen One" were prominently displayed at the very top!
To date, our world has experienced three cycles of rebirth. The curtain has been raised once more on a great era. So, the question arises: what exactly are the Chosen Ones? And what does the beginning of this cycle mean?
Chapter 45: Yuan Benchu, the Modern-Day Shennong
Soon, many secrets, not exactly secrets, such as the Chosen Ones and reincarnation, were written down directly.
It's considered a secret because ordinary people don't know much about it. It's not considered a secret because basically everyone with the skills, or those who should know, already knows.
However, even Cai Yan had to admit that the people still liked these things. As long as this principle was firmly grasped and political correctness was maintained, Lin Yang's plan was still very likely to be realized.
Thinking of this, Cai Yan couldn't wait to read on. She was now extremely curious about what Lin Yang would write next.
...
Having said all that and carefully explained the definition of the Chosen Ones, let's now begin to introduce them in detail.
This man's name is Lin Yang, courtesy name Feipeng. He is male and has a preference for women. He was born in Huang County, Donglai Prefecture, Qingzhou, in Dafeng Township. Both his parents are deceased, and his family is poor.
He was intelligent and studious from a young age. It is said that he had a predestined encounter with immortals in his childhood. Of course, this is just hearsay.
Later, this person became a chosen one. Now, after presenting the "Detailed Explanation of Divine Paths," he has been granted the title of Duke of Wu. The entire Jiangnan region, except for the six prefectures, is his fiefdom, and his future seems incredibly bright.
Moreover, the book "A Detailed Explanation of Shinto" can be considered the essence of hundreds of thousands of years of knowledge from another world. With this book, this person became the most powerful contender for the title of the progenitor of Shinto.
Furthermore, this man is exceptionally intelligent and responsible, a rare and virtuous man indeed. He can share not only joys and sorrows, but also hardships. Therefore, all ambitious individuals are warmly welcome to come and join him.
Furthermore, this person is generous and possesses extremely strong personal charisma. In addition, he is optimistic, confident, and positive, making him an excellent lord, plus… (hundreds of words omitted here, but all are positive).
"Cough cough cough, Feipeng, is this really okay?" Upon reading this, Shi A choked a little. He really didn't expect that it could be done like this.
“Yes, Feipeng, you’re not describing yourself, you’re describing a saint! You’ve said every good thing about him.” Cai Yan said, letting out a silvery laugh.
"Ahem, I'm just telling the truth. In this degenerate age, where people's hearts are no longer what they used to be, honest and reliable young men like me are becoming increasingly rare," Lin Yang said with a sigh, shaking his head.
Upon hearing this, Cai Yan was speechless. However, Lin Yang was the editor-in-chief, so naturally he could write whatever he wanted. She then shook her head and continued reading.
Yuan Shao, courtesy name Benchu, was the eldest son of a concubine in the Yuan family. His father was Yuan Feng, the current Grand Secretary, also known as the Prime Minister. His family was known as having produced four generations of high-ranking officials.
This man once presented the imperial court with a book called "Agricultural Classics," whose full name is the Encyclopedia of Agriculture. Its contents were incredibly comprehensive, covering everything imaginable. Furthermore, it formally recognized farming as a discipline.
It is conceivable that in the future, this book will surely become a super classic like the Four Books and Five Classics, and will be praised by people all over the world.
When the book is disseminated, the name Yuan Benchu will surely become an immortal existence, just like Shennong.
For this reason, he was granted the title of Marquis. His fiefdom was located north of Ji City, encompassing an entire prefecture. At the same time, the imperial court dispatched a battalion of Northern Army soldiers specifically to protect him.
It can be said that as long as he doesn't die, this boy will definitely become one of the most outstanding figures of this era.
Furthermore, this young man has now left the Yuan residence for some reason and is living alone in a pavilion in the west of the city. Therefore, those aspiring to achieve great things may wish to seek refuge with him and give it a try.
"Huh, why are you suddenly being so kind, describing Yuan Benchu in such a positive light?" Cai Yan asked, somewhat puzzled.
Upon hearing this, Lin Yang smiled wryly and said, "This person was originally one of the most famous young talents in the capital. In terms of background, he was of very high rank. In terms of ability, he was also among the top in the younger generation."
"More importantly, he had a falling out with his father, Yuan Feng, not long ago. This makes him a hot topic. Putting everything else aside, the name Yuan Benchu alone can attract many young men and women to read the newspaper. It can be considered a little trick to attract the public's interest."
Upon hearing this, Shi A nodded in agreement. He truly hadn't expected such a small newspaper to have so many intricacies. He had learned so much! He then continued reading, aloud as he went.
Liu Bei, courtesy name Xuande, was from Zhuojun, Youzhou. It is said that he was a descendant of Liu Sheng, the Prince of Zhongshan, but the family had declined significantly by Liu Bei's generation. Nominally a member of the imperial clan, he was practically no different from someone from a poor family.
However, this person had great ambitions from a young age. The hardships of his childhood, on the contrary, acted as a whetstone, relentlessly sharpening this peerless weapon.
Now, after all the hardships, he has become one of the chosen ones. Later, he was granted the title of Earl, with a fief in Liangzhou, roughly the size of a county.
Note: Due to space limitations, this article will only introduce these three outstanding young talents.
"Phew, not bad. No matter what others think, I'm very interested. The content of just these two sections is worth it. I'd be willing to spend money to buy them," Shi A nodded.
At the same time, he looked at Lin Yang with great admiration. Although he had long known that Lin Yang was smarter than him, he had not expected that Lin Yang would accomplish such a great feat.
"By the way, this is a daily newspaper, so there will be another one tomorrow, which will introduce the two of you. Will you write it yourselves, or should I help you write a copy?" Lin Yang said with a smile.
“Write it yourselves!” they both said in unison.
After saying that, Cai Yan smiled and said, "By the way, you haven't said what kind of help you need? I think the newspaper itself is already quite good, is there a problem?"
"I plan to dedicate one of the remaining two pages to showcasing the scenery of Jiangnan, in order to attract more attention. As for the last page, I'd like to write some articles, and it would be even better if they were insights from great Confucian scholars," Lin Yang said.
“No problem, I’ll bring a newspaper back with me in a bit. I think my father will be very interested, and he might even write it himself. After all, this is a way of educating the people.” Cai Yan said with a smile.
"As for the printing and distribution, I'll leave that to Brother Shi. Tonight, I plan to print ten million copies. Three million in the capital and seven million outside the capital. They will be distributed free of charge first thing tomorrow morning. After seven days, once everyone understands the situation, we can discuss how to make money from the newspaper," Lin Yang continued.
“It’s alright. Even if Master doesn’t help, I can handle this myself,” Shi A said decisively.
Chapter 46: Ten Million Copies
It was early morning, before the morning star had appeared and a crescent moon still hung in the sky. Old Zhang had arrived early to set up the shed and prepare various materials. He even started a fire nearby.