A Family Letter Is Worth Ten Thousand Gold

The mountains are high and the emperor is far away; the grass is thick and the bandits are many.

After a night's rest, Song You walked from the ferry towards Lingbo County. The journey was nearly a hundred li. Besides the winding and difficult mountain paths and the thick grass and dense forests, there were two groups of mountain bandits who tried to stop him.

However, neither group of mountain bandits made things difficult for him. Seeing that he was a true Taoist priest, they let him go.

As for money, Song You still had some on him.

He had brought about twenty taels of silver when he left home. The merchants on Jinyang Road had gifted him about ten taels, and the wanted poster for the subterranean thieves offered another twenty taels as a reward. However, the cost of living in Yidu was quite high. He had lived there for half a year and had hardly skimped on his own living expenses. Although he had some income from drawing talismans here and there, he had still spent nearly twenty taels.

He had originally planned to use the remaining money to buy a horse mule and save some as initial capital for his journey in the spring. He figured he could be a bit extravagant if he had money and frugal if he didn't; it didn't really matter to him. Unexpectedly, he didn't have to spend money on a horse, saving him a considerable sum.

If those mountain bandits had known he had nearly thirty taels of silver on him, they probably wouldn't have let him go so easily.

He arrived at Lingbo County the next morning.

Song You used the direction of the sun to determine north, but it wasn't very accurate. For one thing, the sunrise wasn't necessarily due east, and for another, the division of the city into north, south, east, and west wasn't precise. He searched and asked his way, finally reaching the north city.

It was already close to noon.

He found Ganzao Lane and asked for Chen Han's home.

By the time he reached the doorstep, the sun was already overhead. Song You stood at the entrance, hoping that Chen Han hadn't moved and was home today.

Delivering a letter was difficult enough; there was no need to add more trouble.

So, he lightly knocked on the door knocker, and a tok-tok sound arose.

Soon, voices and footsteps could be heard from inside. The footsteps grew closer and stopped at the door. Perhaps it was just after waking from a nap, and the person was tidying their clothes, so they didn't open the door immediately.

He heard a middle-aged man's voice from inside:

"Who are you looking for?"

"Duke Chen, Chen Han."

"And who might you be, sir?"

Song You saw him lean closer to the crack in the door, looking at him through it.

"I am a solitary cultivator who lives in the mountains and rivers. I was entrusted by Duke Chen's father to deliver a family letter."

"A family letter? From where?"

"Outside Yidu City, at a roadside tea stall."

With a clang, the wooden door was immediately pulled open.

Inside stood a thin and dark middle-aged man, his clothes disheveled, with a beard and a weathered face. He looked shocked and respectful.

"I am Chen Han!"

"Then you are the right person."

"Are you truly from Yidu, sir?"

"It's no lie."

"That's over a thousand six hundred li!"

"The water route is easier."

"Sir..."

"No need for such formality."

"Please, come in quickly!!"

The middle-aged man's lips were trembling.

Song You followed him into the house.

Inside was a courtyard, not too big or too small. There were some chickens being kept, and it looked like a horse could be led in.

"My horse is well-behaved and doesn't need a rope; it won't wander off. My cat is also sensible and won't harm the chickens and ducks underfoot," Song You said, casually taking a bamboo tube from his bag and handing it to the man--

"This is to fulfill my promise!"

Chen Han immediately extended both hands and tremblingly accepted the bamboo tube with utmost respect. He immediately twisted off the mud seal, took out the letter, and as he held it, after reading just two or three lines, his eyes turned red.

After finishing the letter, he immediately burst into tears.

Song You stood quietly by, watching.

Amidst his sobs, his words were unclear, but Song You could vaguely make out phrases like "My child is unfilial" and "Thank you, sir."

And in his heart, he had only one thought--

A family letter is truly worth more than gold.

Before long, someone inside heard the crying and came out. It was a woman. Seeing the situation, she quickly helped Chen Han up, took out a handkerchief to wipe away his tears, and asked questions and offered comfort. It took a long time before she managed to calm him down.

"You've made a spectacle of yourself in front of the sir."

"Not at all."

"As the saying goes, 'When parents are alive, one should not travel far.' Alas, I, as a son, am a thousand li away. I haven't been home for two or three years, which has made my elderly mother ill from worry. I even had to ask someone to bring a letter..."

"Life is never as simple as it is in books."

"Quick! Sanniang! Kill the chicken!"

"Got it!"

The woman seemed to understand what was happening and didn't dare to delay. She immediately went outside to catch a chicken.

Everyone knew back then how difficult it was to deliver a letter. If someone traveled thousands of miles to deliver one, it wasn't just about paying for their travel expenses. Treating them to good food and drink was a matter of courtesy, and the kindness they showed was hard to repay.

And so, that afternoon, smoke rose from the Chen family's kitchen again.

Judging by this, he was the first to arrive.

Song You preferred to believe that the mountains were high and the waters were long, the roads were treacherous and the journey was arduous. The others were delayed by the long distance, feared mountain bandits, or had their own affairs to attend to, and weren't intentionally late.

Perhaps some were still on their way.

"Mister!"

"Hmm?"

"Mister, you shouldn't leave today. Although our home is simple, we have a bed for you to rest in. It's better than the inns in the city or the temples outside." The man said to him with red eyes.

"It's better to obey than to refuse."

Pushing away now would be meaningless and would only make them feel more indebted. Besides, Song You really needed a place to stay.

Just then, there was another knock on the courtyard door.

"Knock, knock, knock."

It wasn't using the door knocker, and the force was slightly greater than Song You's.

Chen Han quickly wiped the moisture from his face with his sleeve, said something to Song You, and then hurried outside.

A gentleman does not stand where a melon grows or his shoes are tied. Song You followed him out.

Before they even reached the door, he called out:

"May I ask... who are you looking for?"

A woman's voice came from outside:

"Is this Chen Han's home?"

Chen Han glanced back at Song You. Not daring to delay, he immediately opened the courtyard gate when he reached the door.

"It is!"

Outside stood a martial artist, dressed as a man, with a cloth wrapped around her face. She was of average height, with a simple long saber in her left hand, the reins wrapped around her wrist, leading a yellow Southwest horse. In her right hand, she held a bamboo tube containing a letter. She was covered in the fatigue and dust of travel.

She glanced into the house, her eyes lingering on Song You, and then immediately looked at Chen Han:

"Are you Chen Han?"

"I am!"

"I was entrusted by your father to bring you a letter."

Saying this, she handed the bamboo tube to Chen Han. Her speech was as crisp and forthright as a martial artist's. She paused, "But it seems someone has already arrived before me."

She looked at Song You, and Song You looked back at her.

Song You nodded to her in greeting, and she let out a quiet laugh.

Thousands of miles away, with mountains and rivers, rampant bandits, and an unpredictable road ahead, this path of delivering a letter was not for ordinary people. Skill was secondary; the most important things were integrity and perseverance.

Chen Han was naturally extremely grateful. He thanked them repeatedly and immediately invited them both in.

The red and yellow horses stood side by side in the courtyard, while the three of them sat in the main hall.

Chen Han read the letter again.

The handwriting on this letter was different again, clearly written by a different person, and even the wording was different. However, the meaning expressed was the same. Without much thought, he knew that the old man must have been embarrassed to trouble one official to write all the letters at once, so he had asked different officials to write them separately. Reading it again, not only did the longing remain, but he could also imagine the old man asking one official after another, and then telling them how much he missed his child. And these officials, touched by the old man's longing, patiently organized his rambling spoken words into written text on the letters, each written differently, yet all written with exceptional care.

As Chen Han read, he couldn't help but cry again.

The Three Flower Cat jumped onto the table, leaning in to watch him cry.

The woman removed the cloth from her face, revealing a somewhat round face. Even though she was covered in dust and her lips were chapped, her delicate and youthful features were still evident. Walking the martial arts world with such a face, she probably only had a few moments of intimidation when she had just finished killing someone and was carrying a blood-stained saber.

However, as she turned, she cupped her hands towards Song You:

"As a person of the martial arts world, I'll state my name first. My surname is Wu, and my given name is Erzi. I am a disciple of the Xishan Sect in Yizhou. What is your name, Mister?"

Her voice was much rougher than her appearance.

"My surname is Song, my given name is You, and my courtesy name is Menglai. I am a hermit from Lingquan County in Yizhou."

"That's a nice name."

"Your name also carries much Dao charm."

"Indeed, it was given by a Taoist priest from Qingcheng Mountain. But I don't think it sounds good. Perhaps the Taoist priest just said it casually."

"This name is suitable for a man."

"Women in the martial arts world often take male names."

"I see."

Song You felt he had gained a bit more knowledge.

"Where did you go? You got here before me."

"I took a water route."

Only then did Song You vaguely discern that when he left the tea stall and walked only a few steps, looking back, the old man selling tea was again asking a group of martial artists where they were going. She was among that group.

Fortunately, it wasn't long before his memory remained clear.

Saying it remained clear was also incorrect.

If this woman hadn't brought the letter and wasn't talking to him now, and if they had merely met by chance on the roadside, he wouldn't have been able to connect it to his memory.

So he added:

"We meet again."

"This is our third meeting."

"Oh?"

"At the Yidu temple fair, I think I saw you once before." The martial arts woman placed her saber on the table, her tone not at all shy. "Back then, seeing you in a Taoist robe and looking so young, you were quite conspicuous. Later, I circled around and saw you looking for that street magician fellow. Heh heh, we were guessing then, you probably had your money stolen by that man, right?"

"Fate."

"Fate, fate..."

The woman repeated the word, but continued to stare at Song You, her gaze eager:

"But did you have your money stolen?"

"Did you make a bet with your companion?"

"Haha, no."

The hearty laughter from the woman was something Song You rarely heard in this era.

"I was just curious."

"You are an interesting person."

"We are people of the jianghu, meeting by chance. We'll part ways tomorrow, and the world is vast. We'll never meet again. I advise you not to be shy, just tell me quickly."

"Makes sense."

Song You narrowed his eyes and nodded repeatedly.

Those words were also quite interesting.

Only then did he say in a low voice:

"Yes."

"I knew it!"

The woman seemed satisfied and asked:

"Are you going back?"

"I'm going back."

"That fellow was quite principled."

"Yes."

"But he was arrested that night, wasn't he? You didn't report him, did you?"

"No, that wasn't it."

"I thought so. I heard that as soon as that group tried to escape that night, a thunderclap in clear skies struck them half to death. It was probably King Yue's spirit manifesting that caught them."

"Perhaps."

Song You's enthusiasm for conversation wasn't high.

The Chen couple soon brought the food.

An entire large hen, stir-fried with mushrooms, a huge basin full, fragrant and tender, along with a basin of noodles fried until golden brown on both sides. Under the circumstances, these were all good dishes to entertain a guest.

The woman was not reserved and ate heartily.

Song You didn't speak, eating while feeding the cat.

The table gradually became piled with bones. It was truly satisfying.

Chen Han was somewhat intimidated by the woman, who clearly looked like a martial artist. But since she had traveled a long distance to deliver a letter, how could he neglect his manners? Thus, he invited the woman to stay the night. While eating meat, the woman agreed with great heartiness, but she also knew their concerns, saying she would leave the next morning.