Wang Xingfu had hurried back to Pingzhou through the night. Even though he had traveled by carriage on the return journey, he was utterly exhausted; he had barely managed any rest inside it.
Just as they reached the outskirts of Pingzhou City, the sound of the Guiding Chime startled the groggy Wang Xingfu awake. He opened his bloodshot eyes and saw the old monk sharing his carriage silently reciting scriptures. The chime was the object the monk had just held in his hand.
"Master, we're almost back at Pingzhou City!"
A servant's voice came from outside the carriage. Both the driver and the several men accompanying them on horseback were exhausted as well.
Wang Xingfu roused himself and lifted the curtain on one side. The first thing he saw was the rather broad Zhuoyang River beside the carriage, with Pingzhou City on the opposite bank.
"How much longer?"
Hearing his master's question, the servant driving the carriage hurried to answer.
"Master, we'll cross the river after a detour of thirty or forty li. It'll take less than another two hours at most."
The carriage traveled along the still relatively peaceful riverside near Pingzhou City. The old monk kept silently reciting scriptures inside, but Wang Xingfu could not calm himself. Looking at the river, he suddenly slapped the carriage wall hard.
"Stop! Stop! Stop the carriage!"
The driver hurriedly pulled on the reins, slowing the carriage, and the servants riding alongside also stopped.
"Master, what's wrong?"
Wang Xingfu stepped down from the carriage and pointed at the river.
"Isn't that a ferry? We'll take the ferry back!"
The bridges along this stretch of the Zhuoyang River had yet to be rebuilt after the Great Flood swept them away, but Wang Xingfu could wait no longer.
"What about the carriage?"
"Then some