Sending Letters by Wild Goose

The childhood sweetheart she'd grown up with was conscripted into the army, and a letter arrived from a thousand miles away.

Unable to read, Wu Shan, the butcher's daughter, had no choice but to ask a scholar who often came to buy meat to interpret it for her.

The scholar, Shen Yao, was handsome, with a graceful bearing, but distant in his manner and unpleasant in the way he spoke, as if he looked down on everyone.

One time led to another, and soon people often saw Wu Shan and the scholar sitting in the shop while he translated the letter's embarrassingly direct declarations of love for her, over and over again.

The scholar said coldly, "I can't say this line. It would be improper."

Wu Shan complained, "What does it mean? I don't understand."

The scholar: "...I miss you so much I can't sleep."

One day, several jars of wine were delivered to the shop. Wu Shan got drunk and insisted the scholar was her childhood sweetheart, clinging to him and refusing to let go. Their clothes ended up scattered all over the floor. When they woke up, they were too awkward to say a word.

Another letter from her childhood sweetheart arrived. By now, Wu Shan had picked up enough from hearing the letters read aloud to understand some of it. It was roughly asking whether they could arrange a betrothal once he returned.

After carefully reading it, the scholar told Wu Shan solemnly, "He says he's started a family over there and advises you to find someone else."

Theme: Find yourself.