Did You Pay the Difference?

He stood up and, as he walked, instructed the middle-aged man, "Wang Kun, if she wants it printed, give her a receipt."

"I know, Father," Wang Kun replied, glancing at Madam Cui before standing there without saying a word.

The lady gritted her teeth and said, "Alright, print it."

One hundred coins was nothing to her. She usually gave more than that to little beggars. As for the newspaper, she had two templates. Even if she cheated, she wouldn't lose much.

The old woman behind her stepped forward, counted out one hundred coins, and received a slip of paper written by Wang Kun indicating how much money he had received, how much was left, and the number of copies printed. It was also stamped with the seal of "Wang Printing House".

"Come pick up the goods in ten days," Wang Kun said.

"Ten days?" Madam Cui exclaimed in surprise.

That speed is incredible.

Ordinary printing shops, whether using woodblock printing or movable type, spend a lot of time and effort before printing because they need to carve the printing blocks or do the typesetting. Her newspaper simply wouldn't be ready in less than twenty days. And that's assuming there are no customers queuing up.

If there's a queue, it will take even longer.

Wang Kun saw his guest off expressionlessly. "Goodbye."

Madam Cui left the house in a daze.

As the courtyard gate closed behind them, the old woman asked worriedly, "Madam, is this reliable?"

Looking at the rather formal slip of paper, and considering that it was a place recommended by Zhao Ruxi, Madam Cui composed herself and said, "It should be fine, right?"

A hundred coins isn't worth swindling, is it? If someone were a conman, they would definitely try to get information out of her first, to see if she has any connections or influence.

Madam Cui was from a prominent family, and the family she married into was also prominent. Although she lived a simple life, the jewelry she wore was of high quality, and her clothing and appearance reflected the refinement of her family. Even her carriage bore the insignia of her husband's family.

The capital city is teeming with powerful and influential figures, whose relationships are deeply entrenched. Unless one is a complete naive fool, no one dares to offend anyone easily. Even the princes' mansions act with caution.

Therefore, it's impossible for this family to cheat her for a hundred coins.

Back at the academy, Madam Cui wanted to tell Zhao Ruxi about the matter. However, doing so would make it seem like she didn't trust the printing shop Zhao Ruxi had recommended. So she kept quiet and waited for the results in ten days.

Ten days later, Madam Cui went to pick up the newspapers again. The same middle-aged man named Wang Kun opened the door and pointed to a stack of newspapers on a table against the wall, saying, "They're all here. Have someone come in and move them."

Madam Cui walked over, picked up one of the sheets, and examined it. It was indeed the same as the template she had submitted. The only difference was that the paper was larger, the characters were larger, the paper was slightly stiffer, and the handwriting was neat and rigid, clearly printed. When she got close, she could even smell the ink.

She was shocked and looked up at Wang Kun, but he had already walked to the table and sat down, continuing to write, seemingly not caring about them at all.

However, he did speak up, "There's a balance of 2,900 cash left. Could you please pay that?"

Madam Cui then came to her senses, immediately signaling the old woman to pay, and then turning to instruct the servants to move the newspapers out.

Paper in those days was easily torn and wrinkled, and books were extremely valuable, so they had to be handled with extra care when moving them.

Madam Cui's servants were all experienced in carrying books and exam papers for the academy.

They rolled up the newspapers, tied them with rope, and then packed them into the wooden crates they had brought. Once one crate was full, they would pack another.

Madam Cui watched them roll up the newspaper and noticed that no matter which page the servants rolled up, the newspaper underneath was always the same as the one she was holding, and the same was true for the back side of the rolled-up newspaper. Only then did she feel relieved.

She turned to Wang Kun and said, "If I want to print another three hundred copies in a while, is that alright?"

Wang Kun was writing something in an account book when he heard this. Without stopping, he casually replied, "No problem, the price is the same as now."

Madam Cui brought two extra male servants and a mule cart today, and because there were so many people, the three hundred newspapers were moved in no time.

Seeing that Wang Kun had no intention of entertaining her, not even offering to sit down or pour her a cup of tea, and now that the newspapers were all moved, she had no choice but to take her leave.

"Goodbye and don't bother seeing me off." Wang Kun then stood up and casually cupped his hands in greeting. Once they had left, he closed the door.

"Let's go." Madam Cui boarded the carriage and instructed, "Go directly to the Eldest Princess."

Ten days ago, she was afraid the matter was unreliable and didn't want to tell the Princess. But the Princess was concerned about the newspaper and sent someone to ask her if she had consulted Zhao Ruxi, so she told her about it.

Perhaps even the eldest princess is thinking about this matter at home right now.

Sure enough, as soon as her carriage stopped in front of the princess's house, the princess personally came out to greet her and asked, "How did things go?"

"It's done," said Madam Cui. "The man did indeed print the newspaper, and it's even better than what most printing shops do, without charging extra. I asked him if he could print another three hundred copies, and he said yes."

When she spoke, she showed no joy; her expression was rather solemn. Upon hearing this, the princess's face also showed no delight; instead, her brows furrowed.

Madam Cui got out of the carriage and had her servants unload a box from the mule cart, which she then opened for Grand Princess Shangde to see.

Grand Princess Shangde didn't instruct the servants; instead, she stepped forward, pulled the rope, and personally unwrapped a roll of newspaper. She picked up a sheet, looked at it, then at the back, and asked Madam Cui, "Are they all the same?"

"They're all the same," Madam Cui nodded.

"Let's go inside and talk." Grand Princess Shangde took the newspaper and went straight to the hall.

The two sat down, one as host and the other as guest.

Grand Princess Shangde asked Madam Cui, "What do you think?"

"I always felt that Zhiwei had lent us the money," Madam Cui said.

Otherwise, there's no way to explain this.

Grand Princess Shangde nodded. "That's what I think too."

Zhao Ruxi either felt bad about accepting the estate from her and wanted to give back, or she wanted to contribute to what they were doing, so she secretly paid for the printing. When Madam Cui came to her door, the printing shop only accepted a token amount of money.

"Go and explain to her clearly, this is not a child's play." Grand Princess Shangde's expression was not good. "She can get away with this for a while, but not forever. We have no way to explain this to the Emperor."

"Yes." Madam Cui took her leave and hurriedly returned to the academy.

She sent someone to find Zhao Ruxi and explained the importance of the newspaper's success to her, saying, "We are very grateful for your financial assistance, but things cannot be done this way."

Zhao Ruxi opened her mouth several times but was interrupted by Madam Cui's long-winded speech, and only now did she have a chance to speak.

She shook her head. "I swear to God, I really didn't pay any money for you. It was my idea to start a newspaper, and I know better than anyone its significance and importance. Even if I had the intention, I would only donate money to you, not secretly do something so foolish."

Madam Cui was bewildered. "Then what's going on?"