Gu Chengyu thought that this Dayou was somewhat clever, as he was afraid that he wouldn't return to the Jingyuan Prefecture's restaurant for years. Therefore, he needed someone to keep him informed of the situation here, and Dayou was a good candidate for that.
It's a pity that such employees generally couldn't read. Even if one used messenger pigeons or sent letters to the Capital, it wouldn't work. Even if he could find someone else to write for him, Gu Chengyu found it too troublesome and thought it better to find someone else entirely.
Who would have thought that Dayou would grin widely in pride and say, "You may not know, Young Master, but I studied characters for a year before, and I can recognize a few. It's just that my family was poor and my father's health was poor, so I didn't continue studying. Later, I found opportunities to learn some characters on my own, and although I don't know many, I can read ordinary family letters."
