Before they had completed the procedures for their travel permits, outsiders were not allowed to move about freely.
However, the postal station had been built well and decorated with elegance. There was even a pavilion on the top floor where one could look out over the sea.
Guo Jia did nothing. Every day, he simply sat beneath the pavilion atop the postal station, enjoying the cool breeze as he read the free copies of the Wenchang Newspaper page by page, occasionally staring into the distance in a daze.
The area around the postal station was quite lively, with taverns, eateries, The Bookstore, shops selling the Four Treasures of the Study, tailor shops, and more. Yet aside from visiting The Bookstore to browse some books, Guo Jia had not even spared the others a glance. The reason was simple: he had no money. His travel funds had already been spent on the journey north, and his donkey was an old companion whom he could not bear to sell. Though he could read books for free at The Bookstore, once he heard that Wenchang Pavilion had even more books and allowed anyone to enter and read, the novelty of books no longer held much interest for him.
He knew that "paper" was the improved and developed version of Marquis Cai's papermaking technique, perfected by the Grand General into what it was today. The Grand General's territory also held Marquis Cai in great respect. There was a portrait of Marquis Cai in Wenchang Pavilion, and he had even heard that they planned to build a statue in his honor. That matter was still under discussion within Wenchang Pavilion, but construction would certainly go ahead.
After all, there would be plenty of chances to read in the future. He had already asked around: anyone