Night-Blooming Jasmine of Black Stone Slope

Upon arriving at Black Stone Slope, the group disembarked from the train.

This was Li Banfeng's first time visiting Black Stone Slope. Not long after getting off the bus, he sensed the unique atmosphere of the city.

The atmosphere of Black Stone Slope is different from other places. Li Banfeng has the skill to Hundred Flavors Exquisite and can deeply feel this difference.

Belt Ridge has a smooth, sweet taste; Sea Eat Ridge has the aroma of food; Iron Gate Fort has a unique tranquility; and Green Water City has an irresistible air of luxury.

The smell of Black Stone Slope is stronger, and can be summarized into three main types: smoke, ash, and Machine Oil.

The sky here is noticeably darker than elsewhere, and as soon as you step out of the station, you see chimneys of all shapes and sizes.

In an era when electricity could not be used on a large scale, steam was utilized to its fullest potential, and coal was the most important "fuel" for steam engines.

Black Stone Slope has three major specialties: iron ore, stone, and coal.

Some of these three specialties were shipped to various parts of Pro State, while others were processed into commodities locally.

This determines the unique nature of Black Stone Slope, which is a purely industrial city.

Little Chuanzi arrived first and had already found accommodations for everyone. Li Banfeng was still looking for a car, but Little Chuanzi had already prepared one.

It wasn't a horse-drawn carriage or a rickshaw; it was a steam-powered vehicle.

A steam locomotive pulls two carriages along narrow tracks, weaving through streets and alleys.

Isn't this just a train?

The only difference between this train and a normal train is that this train is smaller, small enough to drive into alleyways.

Black Stone Slope is a city like this. Unlike the well-connected roads of Green Water City, all the roads here have been converted into railways. Although it is noisier and the air quality is worse, you can take a train right outside your door.

This reminded Li Banfeng of the light rail in Yuezhou, but the light rail was a tram, which always felt inferior to Steam Train.

Little Chuanzi said, "I heard from the workers here that Green Water City originally wanted to build a railway in the city, but those rich people disagreed. They thought it would be too noisy and too dirty. I don't think it's a big deal. It's just some coal dust and loose soil. How dirty can it be?"

Little Chuanzi is a craftsman, and Black Stone City is practically Holy Land for him to cultivate. Little Chuanzi gets very excited every time a location is introduced, even though the buildings look almost identical from the outside—dense, simple, and with rough lines.

The Small Train traveled for more than forty minutes before stopping at a station. Everyone got off and arrived at the house that Little Chuanzi had just bought.

Let's just call it the house for now...

This place is very big.

Upon entering the gate, there is a courtyard, inside which stands a colossal object over twenty meters tall.

This enormous thing is a grayish-white cube with pipes of various thicknesses distributed on its body, and there is a chimney that is even taller than it next to it.

Laymen might mistake this for a large building, but experts know that it is one of the core pieces of equipment in the steam age, technically called a steam generator, and commonly known as a boiler.

Walking further past the boiler, Li Banfeng saw machine tools with parts and semi-finished products scattered on the ground.

The parts and machine tools were covered in rust. Li Banfeng looked at Little Chuanzi and asked, "Is this a house?"

This is clearly an abandoned factory.

Little Chuanzi scratched his head and said, "Seventh Master, the house you want isn't easy to find in Black Stone Slope."

You said it needs to be able to accommodate more than thirty people, and it also needs to be secluded and not too conspicuous; only a place like this is suitable.

Li Banfeng frowned and asked, "Where will you live? In the factory?"

"No, there are buildings behind the factory."

The factory's backyard has a three-story building. The first floor has a canteen, bathroom and toilet, and the second and third floors each have more than a dozen rooms.

There are many factories like this in Black Stone Slope, and most of the residents of Black Stone Slope are workers.

The workers work in the factory during the day and sleep in the factory at night. After they get married, they bring their families to live in the factory and rarely leave the factory.

Aside from working, don't they have any entertainment or leisure activities of their own?

Have.

Go to the cinema to watch a movie.

Go to a small bar for a drink.

Buy a newspaper and take a short break.

When you have money, go to special places and find special people to have sex with.

When I'm short of money, I can buy a magazine and still come here once in a while.

The workers' time is very tight; dance halls, theaters, salons, banquets... these things are not suitable for them.

For entertainment suitable for workers, the first priority is to save time, and the second priority is to be economical. This is also the main reason why the book and newspaper industry in Black Stone Slope is particularly developed. These things are cheap, convenient, and easy to use.

Li Banfeng said to writers Bai Qiusheng and Yuwen Qi, "Both of you have been to Black Stone Slope and know the rules here. Go and complete the formalities tomorrow. First, open a newspaper office, then a magazine."

"The paperwork?" Bai Qiusheng shook his head and said, "No need for that. To open a newspaper in Black Stone Slope, a printing press is enough."

Yuwen Qi said, "Opening a magazine is a bit more complicated; you'll need cameras."

Li Banfeng asked in surprise, "You can open a newspaper with just a printing press?"

Bai Qiusheng said, "Yes! We'll write the article tonight and do the layout tomorrow. You can arrange for someone to buy the printing press, and it should be ready for tomorrow's evening paper."

Li Banfeng was stunned for a long time before saying, "The newspaper hasn't even opened yet, and you're already rushing to publish tomorrow evening's paper? Are you kidding me? What are you going to use to write the articles? Do you even have any news?"

Yuwen Qi said, "News is easy to find. Just find a few major newspapers, copy a couple of articles, and that'll be fine. Our newspaper mainly sells commentary and stories; we can read any news there. The key is that the writing has to be compelling!"

"Nonsense?" Li Banfeng still didn't understand. "Who would buy a newspaper written like that?"

The two writers were at a loss for words to explain, so Little Chuanzi said, "Seventh Master, I'll take you to the newspaper station, and you'll understand."

Little Chuanzi led Li Banfeng and others to the police station.

The so-called "newspaper cart" is a small building that sells newspapers and magazines. In Yuezhou, this thing is called a newspaper kiosk.

The newsstands in Black Stone Slope are a bit different; the small houses have wheels underneath—four wooden wheels and four iron wheels.

Normally, with the wooden wheels on the ground, the stall owner can pull the newsstand around.

Once pulled onto the railway, the pulleys in the control booth raise the wooden wheels and lower the iron wheels to the ground. There are hooks at the front of the train, allowing it to be attached to the back of the train and follow along.

Li Banfeng entered the pavilion and glanced at the newspaper.

Li Banfeng the newspapers from the Lu Family, but he didn't recognize most of them.

The name of a newspaper like "One Bright Rod) is quite distinctive.

Li Banfeng glanced at the headline. "Fake Acting Turns Real: How Deeply Involved is Song Queen Xiao Xiufēi?"

The first few sentences of the news article describe an interview with Song Queen Xiao Xiufēi before the release of the first installment of "Blood Blade Detective".

When was this news published? It's been about four months!

This even made it into the newspapers?

Li Banfeng was curious and picked up the newspaper to take a look, but the stall owner immediately stopped him. "One Bright Rod, eight cents. You can't read it unless you buy it."

Li Banfeng pointed to the newspapers belonging to the Lu Family: "How much are these newspapers?"

"The Morning News costs 30 cents, and the evening paper costs 50 cents."

"Then why are you selling your 'One Bright Rod' for 80 cents?"

"At this price, it's genuine, effective immediately, Honesty with Old and Young!"

What do you mean by "reporting and seeing results"? That's called "the medicine works instantly"!

Li Banfeng despised the stall owner and paid eight cents for a copy of "One Bright Rod".

Believe it or not, the report really worked. I just finished reading the front page and Li Banfeng's pole lit up.

The front-page news, from different angles, provided an in-depth account of Xiao Xiufēi's immersion in the role. The language was simple, but the content was detailed. The male lead's feelings, the female lead's experiences, the photographer's emotions, and the cleaning lady's memories were all described very well, making it even more exciting than the movie itself.

Before he could even look at the remaining editions, Li Banfeng noticed a magazine.

This magazine is called "Blood Spear Detective Five".

My movie is in its third installment, while his magazine is in its fifth?

The woman on the cover is very beautiful, with a distinctive figure and clothing.

She has a very graceful figure.

Regarding clothing, there was no clothing.

"How much does this magazine cost?"

"Five dollars and sixty cents."

"Isn't that going too far? A movie ticket is only five yuan."

The stall owner scoffed, "You just don't understand. You buy a movie ticket and you can watch it once. Besides, they don't even allow you to watch 'Blood Spear Detective' anymore."

"Buy this magazine, and you can read it as many times as you like. I'm even including a poster as a bonus."

The vendor had only shown half of the poster when Li Banfeng decided to buy it.

This poster is conscientious.

"I want that one, and that one too..."

In just a few minutes, Li Banfeng spent over a hundred yuan. The stall owner was so happy that he gave away more than twenty posters.

If Bai Qiusheng hadn't stopped him, Li Banfeng would have wanted to buy more.

When they returned to the factory, Ma Wu had already instructed someone to prepare a room for Li Banfeng. After studying the room for an hour, Li Banfeng figured out the book and newspaper industry in Black Stone Slope.

Newspapers are all made up.

The magazine wasn't made up randomly. They had to find a few local girls to be models, take photos, and then add background information about the girls, as well as their reflections on life and the future.

Li Banfeng exclaimed, "I must say, these girls are quite talented. Their writing is quite insightful, and they are all people with ideals."

Yuwen Qi shook his head and said, "Seventh Master, these girls can't even read many words, where would they get so many insights? These are all written by editors, they make their money from writing."

Li Banfeng nodded and said, "So, apart from the girl's name being real, everything else is fake."

"No, that's not it," Yuwen Qi shook her head and said, "The girls' names aren't real either."

Bai Qiusheng said, "In Black Stone Slope, if you want to make a living, you have to be a good writer. It's the same principle as performing on the street."

Whether you're a contemporary literary giant or a renowned author, if your writing is engaging, people will keep buying it; if it's unengaging, people might be fooled once, but they'll never buy a second copy.

Yuwen Qi said, "Seventh Master, you may think these things are not proper. But Black Stone Slope also has proper things. There are plenty of good stories. Black Stone Slope is never short of good books and newspapers."

"I think these things are very proper, they are all proper art. People who know how to make art are good people, and people who know how to appreciate art are also good people. This matter is not wrong, and this place is not wrong either."

Li Banfeng patted the books and newspapers in his hand, "We need to make newspapers and magazines too. We'll start working in a couple of days after Little Chuanzi buys the printing press."

"Why wait a couple of days?" Bai Qiusheng laughed. "Chuanzi has been gone for over an hour; he should be back by now."

"One hour to buy a printing press?"

A printing press is not a printing press. Li Banfeng had seen printing presses in Pro State, which were steam-powered and could not be filled in two rooms. Such a large item could not be bought in the blink of an eye.

Chuanzi really bought it and assembled it.

The printing press was small, about the size of two Willow Trunk.

Having tormented his Wife every day, Li Banfeng had some basic mechanical knowledge. "This isn't steam-powered; it's hand-cranked."

Chuanzi said, "The two writers said they'll buy this first and make do."

Bai Qiusheng said, "Seventh Master, this is Black Stone Slope, not Green Water City."

Printing presses in Green Water City cost several thousand dollars each; we don't need that.

In Black Stone Slope, you can buy any kind of printing press you want. This machine shouldn't cost more than sixty silver dollars, right?

Chuanzi nodded and said, "Fifty-seven."

"Okay, we didn't overpay, Seventh Master. Listen to us, let's use this for now. If business is good, we'll get a new one. If business is bad, we won't lose much."

Li Banfeng nodded and said, "I'm an amateur, so I'll listen to you both. I'll trouble you to get started right away. We'll start with the newspaper, then the magazine."

Yuwen Qi sighed, "Back then we made a living from this, and now we've become somewhat famous, but I never expected to go back to our old ways."

Li Banfeng laughed and said, "That's not a fair price. Based on your current worth, I'll give you three times the reward, plus double the Bonus Money. When it comes to money, I will definitely not shortchange you."

Bai Qiusheng praised, "Seventh Master is so efficient! What do you suggest we call this newspaper?"

After a moment's thought, Li Banfeng said, "Since it's an evening newspaper, let's call it 'Night Fragrance'."

Yuwen Qi said, "It's easy to understand and remember, so it's settled!"

Several writers immediately got to work and began writing about art.

The photographer that Ma Wu brought with him from the film crew wasn't idle either; he started looking for girls and taking artistic photos.

As for how the newspapers and magazines should handle the matter, Ma Wu and the two writers are experts, so Li Banfeng doesn't need to worry about it.

Li Banfeng went directly to Sanfu Cinema.

The boss is packing his things, preparing to move.

The cinema was vandalized, the staff were beaten, and the Qingshou Association sent people to issue orders that they should get out of Black Stone Slope within a month and never return.

Li Banfeng pulled out twenty silver dollars and stuffed them into the cinema owner's hand. "You tidy up the cinema and show another movie, 'Blood Spear Detective'."

"Release them again?" The shopkeeper shook his head. "Sir, if I dare to release them again, I'll lose my life. Please don't make things difficult for me."

Seeing that the boss really didn't have the guts, Li Banfeng didn't press him further. "Here's what we'll do, name your price and sell this cinema to me."

The shopkeeper was taken aback. "May I ask your name?"

P. S.: Night-blooming jasmine is not just the name of a newspaper.