Chapter 321

Lin Ziyuan has completely tied himself down; he hasn't left himself any way out!

Just as Zhou Yu was complaining internally, Cheng Yu, who was standing to the side, had already opened one of the wooden crates!

As soon as he opened it, Cheng Yu saw pieces of hard wooden boards, and on the boards, characters had been carved with a chisel!

"What is this?"

Everyone looked at these woodblocks, and one by one, they were stunned!

During the Eastern Han Dynasty era, most scholars and literati were still using bamboo slips!

Although Cai Lun's papermaking technique had appeared, the paper quality was too poor!

It could not be used for writing!

Things like books were basically all carved on bamboo slips!

For example, the household of the great Confucian Cai Yong had a collection of ten thousand scrolls!

When Lin Yang helped him move previously, just those ten thousand books required dozens of carriages to transport!

There was no help for it; books at this time were extremely precious!

Except for some rare editions among the nobility, which used silk, sheepskin, and other better materials!

Most books were bamboo slips!

And as for these things, ordinary people could not see them at all!

These book collections were the foundation of the noble families!

As long as there were books, even if a noble family fell into decline, they could still produce scholars who could read and write!

In this late Eastern Han Dynasty era, where ninety-nine percent of the population were illiterate, literate scholars could directly become officials!

At worst, they would be a minor clerk holding a brush!

If their talent was outstanding, they could be recommended as a 'Cultivated Talent' and hold higher positions!

"This object is called a woodblock!"

Slowly withdrawing his focus, Lin Yang, sensing the lack of understanding from Guo Jia and the others, spoke up to explain at this moment!

Woodblock printing first appeared in the Sui Dynasty!

In an era like the Eastern Han where even paper could not be used for writing, this thing would never have appeared!

"Woodblock? What is the use of this thing?"

Looking at the characters on it, Guo Jia and the others all frowned slightly!

The orientation of these characters seemed to be reversed!

And!

Even with this thing, what could be done!

"On this, is this ink?"

Mi Zhu, who was to the side, smelled the scent on it, touched the black part, and recognized the ink marks!

During the late Eastern Han Dynasty era, although paper was not used on a large scale!

The use of ink, however, had already reached a certain level!

"Hmm? My lord wants to use ink to print this onto silk?"

Zhou Yu picked up a woodblock, tried it in reverse, and indeed, marks were left on his robe!

But Zhou Yu tried this thing and gave up immediately!

Don't be ridiculous!

Everyone knew how expensive silk was!

Even noble families wouldn't dare to use silk to print books!

Because they really couldn't afford it!

Cai Yong, a great Confucian of his generation, used bamboo slips, which showed the general situation!

"It is not silk, but paper!"

Correcting Zhou Yu's statement, Lin Yang knew very well that silk was expensive!

Why was the ancient road to the Western Regions called the Silk Road? It was because silk in ancient times could be used as currency!

"Paper?!"

Guo Jia, Gu Yong, Mi Zhu, and the others looked at each other and all shook their heads!

They had all used the paper of the Eastern Han Dynasty era!

The paper quality was extremely poor, and ink easily spread on it, making the writing unclear!

Plus, the poor quality of the paper meant it easily became damp and ruined!

This group of literati mostly wrote on bamboo slips!

"Haha, see for yourselves!"

Since Guo Jia and the others couldn't understand, Lin Yang didn't keep them in suspense and directly opened the wooden crate to the side!

As the wooden crate opened, the next moment, bright, gleaming white paper appeared before everyone's eyes!

"This, this is?"

In an instant, the expressions of Guo Jia, Zhou Yu, Gu Yong, Mi Zhu, and the others changed!

"Paper, this is paper?!"

Picking up a sheet of paper with characters already printed on it, Guo Jia was stunned!

Touching the texture of the modern A4 paper, and the smooth, pure white surface!

Guo Jia's eyes were shining!

"The characters on this are actually so clear!"

Looking at the text on the white paper, Gu Yong was completely immersed in it!

Such text, so clean and tidy, so clear—it was simply a treasure!

"My lord, you are wasting a heavenly treasure; how can such paper be used so casually!"

Mi Zhu looked at the paper in his hand, feeling exceptionally heartbroken!

The quality of this paper was absolutely priceless!

Among the group, only Zhou Yu and Cheng Yu picked up the woodblocks and compared them to the paper in their hands!

"My lord, you used this woodblock to print this?"

Cheng Yu's eyes were filled with astonishment; at this moment, he seemed to have guessed something!

"What? This was printed?"

Mi Zhu, Gu Yong, Guo Jia, and the others to the side also reacted instantly!

Looking at the text on the paper in their hands, then glancing at the woodblock, they understood!

Why Lin Yang had asked them to look at the woodblock first!

"That's right, the content on these papers all came from the same woodblock!"

Lin Yang nodded; these people were all smart, and he didn't need to explain too much!

With Lin Yang's words, the few people in the room all fell silent!

Especially Guo Jia, Cheng Yu, and Zhou Yu, whose gazes were fixed firmly on Lin Yang!

"My lord, we would like to know, how many of these do you have?"

Guo Jia and the others looked at each other, and finally, Guo Jia asked!

Yes!

They had already reacted!

If one woodblock could print onto paper!

Then what would they be when combined?

That's right!

Books!

Paper books!

"Not many!"

Saying this with a light laugh, Lin Yang held up one finger!

The last time this thing appeared, Lin Yang had arranged for Li Gang to keep it secret!

"Ten thousand sheets?"

Looking at that finger, Gu Yong, who didn't quite understand Lin Yang's personality, asked weakly!