Chapter 32: The Ridiculous Letter Delivery Request

After the Sand Pear Dragon Well Tea mission was completed, the system calculated Yun Tao’s rewards and refreshed the side quest.

[Side Quest: The Azure Bird Mailbox is getting cobwebs! Find at least ten new customers within a week.

Reward: 300 Shanhai Coins, 500 Mailbox Experience Points

Upgrade Progress: 500/1000 Experience Points]

Come to think of it, since the Azure Bird Mailbox was installed, Ming Siyu was the only customer.

Yun Tao wasn’t worried at all, proudly saying, “This mission isn’t hard, I have connections in the mystical arts circle.”

The next day, Lin Jiuyuan came to work, and Yun Tao hugged him tightly, “Xiao Lin, Xiao Lin, I need your help with something!”

Lin Jiuyuan bravely patted Yun Tao’s head, “Little boss, just tell me what you need.”

Yun Tao: “I need to find ten new Azure Bird Mailbox customers within a week. Can you help me spread the word in the circle?”

Lin Jiuyuan: “Easy, my old man would be happy to help. How much do you plan to charge for postage?”

Yun Tao thought for a moment, “Let Taoist Lin set a price according to the circle’s standards, he has more experience than me.”

“Okay.” Lin Jiuyuan thought of something and changed the subject, “Little boss, let me be your first new customer.”

Yun Tao tilted his head to look at him, “Who do you want to send a letter to?”

Lin Jiuyuan: “My idol. We’ve never met, but he’s my guide on my creative path, his comics helped me through the most painful time of my life.”

Seven years ago, the Lin family’s blood well mutated, and fifteen-year-old Lin Jiuyuan stepped forward, sealing a ghost with his own body.

The Lin family elders and the villagers of Linjia Village praised him for his responsibility and talent, saying he could carry the future of the Lin family’s Taoist lineage.

Everyone seemed to forget that he was still a young boy. The evil ghost sealed inside his body wandered around day and night, tearing at his flesh and tormenting his nerves.

If he relaxed, the evil ghost would take over his body, and the seal placed on him by the Lin family elders would become his death warrant.

Lin Jiuyuan was always tense, unable to sleep at night, relying only on meditation and cultivation to survive the night. His dark circles were formed during that time.

One late night, the evil ghost went crazy in his body again. This time, the evil ghost didn’t curse or threaten him, nor did it tear at him, but kept saying in a low voice, “You must be very tired, right? You’re so young, why should you bear all this? They don’t know how much you’re suffering, stop struggling, close your eyes and sleep…”

The cold moonlight fell on his body, and Lin Jiuyuan couldn’t concentrate on meditation. He suddenly felt exhausted, and the evil ghost was right, maybe he should just fall asleep…

Just as he was about to close his eyes, a sudden phone notification woke him up.

He’d been absent-minded all day and forgot to silence his phone.

The evil ghost was still whispering temptations, but Lin Jiuyuan couldn’t hear it. He picked up his phone and saw that it was an update notification for a comic he’d bookmarked.

“So there’s someone like me, still awake at this hour.” Lin Jiuyuan stopped meditating and sat lazily on the windowsill, opening the comic called “Strange Tales.”

The comic’s protagonist, a manga artist, moved into an apartment building in an urban village and frequently encountered supernatural events. The protagonist was just an ordinary person, brushing shoulders with death countless times. Every time he escaped, he would break down, thinking, “Why do I always encounter this? I’m so tired, I want to give up!”

Until one day, the protagonist saved a stranger from an evil ghost, and he suddenly found the meaning of his existence. From then on, he changed from being timid to growing rapidly.

Lin Jiuyuan was engrossed, as if he saw himself in the protagonist.

The sky was already dawning, Lin Jiuyuan put down his phone, looking down at the talisman on his arm, and muttered, “This is my path of cultivation.”

From then on, Lin Jiuyuan was no longer lost. When the evil ghost threatened and intimidated him, he would deliberately show the ghost the protagonist’s ghost-slaying scenes, scaring it back.

Lin Jiuyuan was deeply influenced by this comic. In college, he chose animation without hesitation, creating four-panel comics during his studies, hoping his work could bring strength to others.

Unfortunately, the author of Strange Tales died of illness before his signing event, and the comic had no ending. Lin Jiuyuan didn’t get to say thank you in person.

After listening, Yun Tao understood, “So you want to write a thank-you letter to the manga artist!”

“You could say that.” Lin Jiuyuan rubbed his nose, telling the truth, “Mainly, I want to urge him to update.”

Yun Tao: “…” How honest.

Lin Jiuyuan: “You don’t know, the last chapter of Strange Tales was so suspenseful, the protagonist met a ghost and vanished, and then there was no follow-up! And there will never be a follow-up. Not just me, there are many people checking in every day in the Strange Tales super topic.”

For example:

“I was careless, I fell into a pit that will never be filled.”

“The world has another sad person waiting at the bottom of the pit.”

“Like the protagonist’s fans, I’m waiting for a return with no date.”

Although it was absurd, it seemed understandable. Yun Tao said, “Then write a letter, but it’s been two years, the manga artist might have reincarnated, you might not be able to contact him.”

Lin Jiuyuan waved his hand, “That guy is a supernatural fan, he’ll definitely find a way to stay in the underworld, he might even be starting a new series down there.”

Yun Tao: “I don’t really understand you supernatural manga artists.”

Lin Jiuyuan wrote a very short letter and put it in the Azure Bird Mailbox.

Letters sent to the underworld don’t need a detailed address. As long as you have the name and identity, the Azure Bird can deliver it accurately.

As Lin Jiuyuan expected, Liu Yi, the author of Strange Tales, didn’t want to reincarnate so quickly. He kept delaying, and even started a new series in the underworld called “My Years as a Manga Artist in the Underworld.” This comic was very popular in the underworld, and he often received letters from fans.

He wasn’t surprised when the community doorman told him to pick up a letter at the gate. But he was very surprised when he saw the sender’s address.

“It’s not Qingming, it’s not a memorial day, how can a letter from the human world be delivered to the underworld?”

He didn’t recognize the sender either.

“Is it a scam? Can scams even reach the underworld now?” Liu Yi tore open the envelope and read it quickly.

“…Damn, he’s urging me to update in the underworld.”

Liu Yi was amazed and immediately wrote back.

After receiving the letter, Lin Jiuyuan read it aloud to Yun Tao, “Dear fan, thank you for your letter. When I first arrived in the underworld, I was full of inspiration and finished the ending of Strange Tales, but I can’t resume the serialization in the human world. How about you send me a USB drive?”

Yun Tao: “That’s a bit absurd, but it kind of makes sense.”

Lin Jiuyuan: “Your Azure Bird Mailbox is like a bug anyway.”

Lin Jiuyuan put a USB drive in an envelope and sent it to the underworld. The next day, he received a reply from Liu Yi.

The comic had been copied to the USB drive. Lin Jiuyuan connected it to his computer and quickly finished reading the ending. He was so excited he wanted to slam the table. “It’s too amazing!”

The moment he finished reading, all the content on the USB drive was cleared, just like every letter sent to the human world.

Yun Tao put his hands on the table, regretting, “Ah, it’s gone. It’s such an amazing ending, it’s a pity only we saw it.”

Lin Jiuyuan: “I’ve memorized all of it, I can try to write it out, but the style won’t be as good as Teacher Liu’s. I’ll write to him and ask if he minds.”

Yun Tao clicked his tongue, “Xiao Lin, you have an amazing memory!”

Lin Jiuyuan: “I can even memorize the most difficult runes in one go.”

Yun Tao gave him a thumbs up, “Write the letter, I’ll send Teacher Liu an afternoon tea, he drew it so well!”

Yun Tao packed a jar of Sand Pear Dragon Well Tea and a large bag of Feifei’s Bakery pastries for Liu Yi, attaching them to the Azure Bird Mailbox with Lin Jiuyuan’s letter, and added a note: “Fresh delivery, hurry!”

The Azure Bird avatar who came to pick up the letter: “…”

You call this pile of stuff a letter?

Looking to the side, there was a plate of fragrant food, with a note: “For the little Azure Bird.”

The Azure Bird avatar shyly buried its head in its wings: But he called me little Azure Bird.

The Azure Bird avatar grabbed the heavy “letter” with its third claw and whooshed into the underworld.

When the afternoon tea reached Liu Yi, the Sand Pear Dragon Well Tea was still emitting wisps of cool air, and the cream on the Worry-Free tiramisu cake hadn’t melted at all. Smelling the sweetness, Liu Yi’s mouth watered.

He quickly wrote back, agreeing to Lin Jiuyuan’s suggestion, including his desired new pen name and some ideas. Then, under the envious eyes of the ghosts, he leisurely went home with the precious tea and pastries.

Liu Yi took a bite of the cake and a sip of the fruit tea, his long-numb taste buds awakened. The tip of his tongue felt like it was being gently brushed by a breeze. Even when he was alive, he hadn’t had such delicious fruit tea.

“Sand Pear, sounds familiar.” Liu Yi smacked his lips, “Is it the Sand Pear from the Classic of Mountains and Seas? Looks like my little fan has a big background!”

After receiving Liu Yi’s reply, Lin Jiuyuan asked Yun Tao for leave to write out the ending of Strange Tales from memory.

Meanwhile, Taoist Lin contacted Yun Tao, saying several clients wanted to send letters.

Yun Tao added their contacts and found an old customer among them.

Old Mr. Jin.

Some time ago, Old Mr. Jin’s grandson was tricked into reckless cultivation, almost suffering a qi deviation, but was saved by the Taotie Delicacies’ Wen Yao Fish Congee.

Later, Old Mr. Jin asked Tai Sui to teach those malicious people a lesson.

Old Mr. Jin’s grandson ate Wen Yao Fish Congee for half a month, with the driver picking up meals every day. Yun Tao hadn’t met Old Mr. Jin yet.

Old Mr. Jin was old and didn’t like typing, so he called.

“Hello~” As soon as Yun Tao spoke, Old Mr. Jin was stunned, “Baby, where are your parents? Why are you answering the phone?”

Yun Tao: “Grandpa Jin, I manage the Azure Bird Mailbox, tell me what you need.”

Yun Tao was articulate, talking like an adult. Old Mr. Jin was experienced and knew he couldn’t judge this circle by ordinary standards, so he didn’t treat Yun Tao like a child and became more serious.

“Do you know about my grandson’s incident?”

Yun Tao: “Yes.”

I was the one who asked Xiao Lin to deliver the takeout!

Old Mr. Jin: “After my grandson’s incident, I occasionally dream of my late wife. At first, I thought it was because I didn’t take care of my grandson and felt guilty towards her.”

“But, even after my grandson got better, I kept having the same dream…”

In the dream, his deceased wife stood in front of him, anxiously saying something. He couldn’t see her face clearly, nor could he hear what she was saying. He could only worry in his dream, waking up with a cold sweat every time.

Last night, he dreamed of his wife again. This time, her face was clearer, and her words were clearer. He thought he would remember what she said when he woke up. But he still forgot everything.

“I’m afraid she’s in trouble down there, or missing something, and I can’t eat or sleep. I saw Taoist Lin’s friend circle and contacted you right away.”

Taoist Lin had posted about the Azure Bird Mailbox to help Yun Tao promote it.

Thumbs up for Taoist Lin.

Yun Tao comforted him, “Don’t worry, write a letter to grandma, I’ll send it for you.”

Old Mr. Jin happily agreed, personally delivering the letter and putting it in the Azure Bird Mailbox that day.

He looked at the small mailbox, asking uncertainly, “That’s it?”

“Yes.” Yun Tao smiled, his eyes curving, “Grandpa Jin, since you’re here, would you like to come in for tea?”

Old Mr. Jin thought, he would be anxious until he received a reply. He might as well wait nearby, so he nodded, “Okay, thank you, little expert.”

Yun Tao chuckled, “Grandpa Jin, just call me Taotao.”

He was already cute, and his smile made him even more likable. Old Mr. Jin was amused and relaxed, patting his head affectionately, taking a box out of his bag, “Taotao, if you call me grandpa, I have to give you a gift.”

Yun Tao opened the box, finding a white jade double-eared cup, clearly a valuable item.

“Grandpa Jin, this is too expensive.”

Old Mr. Jin waved his hand, “Grandpa has many more at home. You’re offering me tea, I’m giving you a cup, it’s only polite.”

Is this how rich grandpas do things?

Old Mr. Jin was old, so Yun Tao made him a cup of hot tea. He took a sip, his old eyes brightening, “Good tea! What kind of plum is this? The fragrance is so sweet, I’ve never tasted anything like it.”

Yun Tao took out a Sand Pear and handed it to him, “It’s Sand Pear, Grandpa Jin, can you swim?”

Old Mr. Jin took the Sand Pear, examining it closely, “When I was younger, I used to go winter swimming, why do you ask?”

Yun Tao: “This is Sand Pear, it helps you control water.”

Old Mr. Jin’s eyes became respectful. After the Wen Yao Fish incident, he wouldn’t doubt the authenticity of this fruit.

“Grandpa’s gift is too light.”

“It’s not light.” Yun Tao pointed to the menu in the shop, “This Sand Pear Dragon Well Tea only costs twenty-five yuan!”

Old Mr. Jin was even more respectful, knowing that even if Yun Tao charged 25,000 yuan, many people would still buy it.

Old Mr. Jin stayed for a long time. Yun Tao didn’t have time to keep him company, so he sat by the window, watching the wisteria gently sway in the wind, the petals falling. He felt more peaceful than ever, and even dozed off.

In his drowsy state, he dreamed of his wife again. In the dream, he and his wife were young, their first date was under the wisteria trellis. A gust of wind blew, and they were covered in petals. His wife smiled, picking the fallen petals off his shoulder.

“Grandpa Jin, Grandpa Jin…”

Old Mr. Jin woke up to Yun Tao’s voice. Yun Tao was holding a puppy, with a unique pattern, only its head was white, and it was looking at him curiously with round eyes.

Old Mr. Jin thought the puppy looked familiar, like something from the Classic of Mountains and Seas… After a while, he remembered, it was a Heavenly Dog!

Old Mr. Jin suddenly woke up.

Yun Tao handed him a letter, “Grandpa Jin, you’ve got a letter.”

Old Mr. Jin realized it was late, Taotie Delicacies must have been closed for a long time.

Old Mr. Jin put on his reading glasses and looked at the envelope for a long time.

The writing on the envelope was so familiar, yet so distant. His nose was sore, and his fingers were shaking.

Yun Tao had quietly left, playing with the Heavenly Dog nearby.

Old Mr. Jin opened the envelope, reading each word silently.

His wife answered his questions one by one. She had been restless recently, sensing something was wrong at home, but didn’t know what it was, so she asked him in a dream.

He had explained everything in the letter, and now that she knew her grandson was safe, she was relieved.

Reading the last paragraph, Old Mr. Jin’s eyes were wet, his glasses fogged up.

When they were young, he wrote many love letters to his wife. His wife had a habit of only expressing her longing in the last paragraph of her replies.

She probably hadn’t changed that habit, had she? Old Mr. Jin wiped his glasses and read the last paragraph in a low voice.

“Wenzhou, after hearing you, I think the Wen Yao Fish Congee must be delicious. Since we can send letters, can you send me a pot of porridge? Dried fish would be fine too.”

Old Mr. Jin: “.”

Old Mr. Jin read the letter again, the words had disappeared, leaving only a few wet tear stains.

A line of deeply hidden words appeared, then quickly vanished.

“Words cannot express my longing, please take care.”

Old Mr. Jin’s old face flushed, and he put the blank letter in his pocket, going to find Yun Tao to discuss.

“Taotao, can this mailbox send porridge?” He knew it was a bit absurd, and added, “I can pay extra postage.”

Yun Tao readily said, “We can try.”

“Great!” Old Mr. Jin was so happy he wanted to lift Yun Tao up and spin him around, but he restrained himself, then whispered, “Can I get a monthly subscription for the Azure Bird Mailbox?”

He coughed twice, “The food in the underworld doesn’t seem very good, I’m a little worried about my wife.”

Definitely not to send love letters.

Yun Tao: “Monthly subscriptions cost extra.”

Old Mr. Jin: “Small problem.”

That night, the Azure Bird avatar who came to pick up the letter looked at the pot of porridge, slowly forming a question mark.

These “letters” are getting more and more creative.

Since he dotes on the little Taotie, he might as well keep spoiling him. The Azure Bird avatar sighed, dutifully delivering the porridge to the underworld.

When Old Mr. Jin’s wife opened the pot, the porridge was still steaming!

Taoist Lin’s promotion was very effective, and Yun Tao received several more letter-sending requests.

Besides the generous Old Mr. Jin, he was most impressed by a client named Jiang Qianxing.

After arriving at Taotie Delicacies, Jiang Qianxing ordered a table full of dishes, finished eating them all, then praised Yun Fenghe with eloquent words, making Yun Tao want to applaud.

After praising him, Jiang Qianxing took out a letter from her bag and said in a low voice, “I was recommended by Taoist Lin. I heard your shop has an expert who can send letters to the deceased. I also run a restaurant, and I couldn’t resist the aroma in your shop, so I ate first.”

“No wonder you gave such professional reviews, I thought you were a food critic.” Yun Fenghe introduced Yun Tao to her, “My brother manages the mailbox, you can talk to him.”

Jiang Qianxing looked at Yun Tao, then at the Heavenly Dog he was holding, her eyes widening in disbelief, “He’s the expert Taoist Lin mentioned?”

Her voice was a little loud, attracting the attention of two diners. Yun Tao didn’t want to disturb the customers, so he invited her to the garden.

Jiang Qianxing had calmed down. She was talkative and explained her situation on the way.

It turned out her family ran a private restaurant, which was quite successful in her mother’s generation. But she had no interest in cooking since she was a child. The less interested she was, the stricter her mother became, leading to more conflicts.

Last year, her mother passed away. While organizing her belongings, she found her mother’s notes, realizing how much effort her ancestors had put into the restaurant and how much thought had gone into her education.

But she hadn’t grown into a reliable person, unable to carry on the family tradition. Looking at her mother’s recipes, she was fascinated and realized she wasn’t completely uninterested in cooking.

“After my mother passed away, the restaurant’s business plummeted. The chefs originally wanted to find other jobs, but they agreed to stay and help me after I said I would inherit the business.” Jiang Qianxing said with some emotion, “They watched me grow up… Now the business is slowly recovering, and I’ve become the reliable little boss they talk about.”

“Unfortunately, my mother can’t see it, she probably left with regrets.”

Yun Tao heard the choke in her voice and put the Heavenly Dog in her arms, “Sister, it’s not too late to write a letter to aunt now.”

“Yeah!” Jiang Qianxing patted the Heavenly Dog and smiled calmly, “One page of our family recipe is missing, we’ve tried for a long time but couldn’t recreate it. I want to ask my mom for help. If we can replicate the dish, our restaurant will definitely regain its former glory.”

Yun Tao said, “Good luck. If you need it, you can also talk to our chef.”

Jiang Qianxing recalled Tai Sui’s fleeting glimpse when he lifted the kitchen curtain, “Your chef’s aura is too strong, I thought he was a celebrity!”

Jiang Qianxing received a reply the next day. Her mother was pleased with her actions and apologized in the letter. They used to argue, refusing to give in, hurting each other deeply.

Her mother also included the missing recipe, wishing her to surpass her one day.

Jiang Qianxing read the letter with tears in her eyes. To thank Yun Tao, she used the bakery to make many traditional pastries—which was why Yun Tao was so impressed by her.

Those pastries were so delicious!

Peach blossom pastries, osmanthus cakes, Sand Pear dumplings… Jiang Qianxing was skilled, each pastry was like a work of art, beautiful and delicious. Yun Tao held a basket of pastries, sitting under the trellis, slowly eating, feeling very happy.

On the day he finished the tenth letter-sending request, Lin Jiuyuan came out of his seclusion. After working for so many days, he had two more dark circles, but he was energetic, excitedly telling Yun Tao, “Little boss, I registered a new account for Teacher Liu, and he just updated the ending of Strange Tales!”

Yun Tao understood this was important to him and was happy for him, “Xiao Lin, you’re amazing! Eat something and get some sleep, I’ll give you another day off. By the way, what about your own updates?”

“…” Lin Jiuyuan froze, looking at the calendar, he breathed a sigh of relief, “Luckily, the deadline hasn’t arrived yet, or my editor would be here to get me.”

The ending chapter Lin Jiuyuan posted didn’t get much attention at first because it was a newly registered account. But he added the Strange Tales super topic, and soon it was discovered by the fans who checked in daily.

The fans thought it was fan fiction and casually clicked in, then—their eyes widened.

“Damn!!! Liu Yi is alive??”

“The plot, the panels, the dialogue… if it wasn’t for the slightly different art style, I would have thought it was drawn by the original author!”

“I can see the ending of Strange Tales in my lifetime, thank you, god-level artist, I’m satisfied.”

“The more I look at it, the more I think it’s Teacher Liu’s work, it’s terrifying!”

The fans forwarded the post, and countless super topics, group chats, forums… related to Strange Tales came alive, a true internet miracle.

In the end of the comic, the protagonist found the cause of the strange occurrences, saved the world, and finished his cultivation.

A perfect ending.

Many fans shed tears when they finished reading the last page.

Strange Tales even trended on social media.

Lin Jiuyuan selected some comments, printed them, and sent them to Liu Yi.

Looking at the comments, Liu Yi flicked his cigarette ash and chuckled, “I miss the human world a little.”

[Mission completed; rewards issued!

Azure Bird Mailbox upgraded to Level 2: Azure Bird Window!

Description: In addition to sending letters, the Azure Bird Window can accept deliveries (within 10kg)]

The Azure Bird avatar, who also received the upgrade notification, smiled slightly: Hehe, the little Taotie’s mailbox has been used as a delivery window for a long time.