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“Prince, forgive my ignorance, but could you please explain what a newspaper agency is?”

Dongfang Longyue, a native of this world, had naturally never heard of a newspaper agency.

Lu Chen then explained, “Let me put it this way, in the future, whenever anything happens in this world or if there are any interesting pieces of news, you’ll compile them and then promptly write them all down on a sheet of paper. Have the printing factory of the North Prince Mansion print them, and finally, sell them at a fair price to those who can read, letting more people know about the news you’ve compiled. This type of paper that is printed with various news is called a newspaper, and the place where you distribute newspapers is known as a newspaper agency.”

Upon hearing this, Dongfang Longyue instantly grasped what Lu Chen meant by the term ‘commercial newspaper’.

It was something similar to announcements from the Prince’s Mansion, though naturally, those announcements were only about matters concerning the Prince’s Mansion, or about some reforms in the North Country, and didn’t involve any monetary transaction.

This so-called newspaper actually already had a prototype in this world. Some powers that specialized in gathering intelligence would sell their information to specific people, which was similar to newspapers.

However, the newspaper Lu Chen was talking about was intended for everyone, including the common populace, allowing the literate to quickly learn about events occurring in the world.

Once the newspapers were introduced, as long as the price was right, the literate would certainly be very interested.

But…

There was another issue with newspapers.

Dongfang Longyue immediately spotted a drawback of newspapers; if someone were to spread false news through them, it could incite public unrest.

Hearing this, Dongfang Longyue immediately spoke up, “Prince, we must be cautious. The matter of newspapers should be controlled by the North Prince Mansion. If they proliferate unchecked, some with ulterior motives will surely publish false news and cause unrest among the people.”

Seeing that Dongfang Longyue had identified the potential problems with newspapers in an instant made Lu Chen smile faintly, “Longyue, I’m pleased that you can see the downsides of newspapers. But rest assured, not just anyone can start a newspaper agency.”

“I plan to establish two types of newspaper agencies, one for the public and one for officials.”

“The official newspapers will naturally be created by the North Prince Mansion. However, the public newspapers cannot be organized by the North Prince Mansion. They need to document the happenings in the world through the eyes of the common people.”

“Whether it’s an official or a public newspaper, they both will need to be audited by the North Prince Mansion before any newspaper agency can be established. And currently, aside from the North Prince Mansion, no one else in the North Country has control over the technology for mass printing.”

Since acquiring the paper-making and printing techniques, Lu Chen had immediately had several paper-making workshops and printing factories built in the North Prince Mansion.

Before paper-making and printing technology becomes widespread among the populace, mass printing of newspapers isn’t an easy task unless they collaborate with the North Prince Mansion.

Having heard Lu Chen’s explanation, Dongfang Longyue thought it over and agreed that, given the current situation, only the North Prince Mansion could mass produce newspapers—none of the Ancient Families of the other great dynasties could manage that.

Furthermore, if the North Prince Mansion could control the newspaper agencies well, exploiting the newspapers to spread false news wouldn’t be such an easy feat.

At that moment, Dongfang Longyue also realized why Lu Chen differentiated between official and public newspapers instead of solely running official ones.

The so-called public newspapers at their core were still official. After all, the Dongfang Family was a vassal of the North Prince Mansion and would surely stand on Lu Chen’s side.

When the common people lost trust in the official newspapers, the public newspapers run by the Dongfang Family would still serve to guide public opinion in the direction the North Prince Mansion desired.

Having understood Lu Chen’s intentions, Dongfang Longyue said, “I understand the Prince’s meaning. As soon as I return, I will immediately start working on establishing a newspaper agency.”

“However, this will be my first time dealing with such matters. If there’s anything I don’t understand, I hope I can come to the North Prince Mansion to consult with the Prince whenever necessary. May I?”

Lu Chen replied, “Of course. I will teach you everything—what content to write, how to title it, and how to format it. If you have any questions, you can come straight to the North Prince Mansion to find me.”

With that said, Lu Chen emphasized, “The newspaper agency is extremely important to me, to the North Prince Mansion, and to the North Country. So, if you’re unsure about anything, you must ask me more questions and not hesitate.”

As his words concluded, Lu Chen glanced at the stunning beauty before him.

Dongfang Longyue said, “I will definitely seek the Prince’s guidance often.”

Lu Chen then spoke, “You may go back and begin preparations for today.”

“This humble girl takes her leave.”

After that, Dongfang Longyue turned and left the study.

Not long after Dongfang Longyue left, Lu Chen also rose from his seat, intending to leave the study, when suddenly he heard the voice of a maid at the door of the study, “Prince, Commander Bai is seeking an audience with you.”

Lu Chen said, “Let her in.”

Bai Qingqing entered the study, and Lu Chen, looking at her frigidly beautiful countenance, asked curiously, “Bai, what’s the matter?”

Bai Qingqing seldom sought him out on her own, generally only when there was some intelligence about the Capital City. However, recently the Shadow Guards in the Capital City had completely cut off contact with Bai Qingqing. It was apparent that her betrayal was now known to his father, the Emperor, who no longer trusted Bai Qingqing. Consequently, Bai Qingqing found it difficult to obtain intelligence about the Capital City through the Shadow Guards any longer.