Hai Collection, Upper Volume Radical: Horse (mǎ) Entry: ri Kangxi strokes: 14 Page 1434, Entry 23 Pronounced ri According to the Shuo Wen Jie Zi (Explaining Graphs and Analyzing Characters), it refers to a relay station or courier. According to the Yu Pian (Jade Chapter), it means a courier. According to the Erya (Approaching Elegance), Shi Yan (Explaining Words), it means a courier. Commentary: Both refer to names for courier carriages and relay horses. Zuo Zhuan (Chronicle of Zuo), 16th Year of Duke Wen: The Viscount of Chu rode a courier horse to meet the army at Linpin. Zhengzitong (Correction of Characters): According to the Liushu Gu (Principles of the Six Writings), it means placing horses to ride in turns to gain speed. When using a carriage, it is called a chuan; when using a horse, it is called a ri. Yang Shen states: Mencius speaks of relay stations and postal dispatches. Ancient commentary says: zhi means a post station, and you is a ri. Zhi is slow, you is fast; a station is slow, a ri is fast. Zhi implies a settled place, similar to modern regulations of traveling one stage per day. You implies passing through without lingering, similar to modern regulations of traveling double stages, meaning rapid transit. Later generations did not understand the meaning of the character ri and took it as a simplified form of the character yi. During the Yongle reign, when the Chunqiu Daquan (Complete Collection of the Spring and Autumn Annals) was compiled, all instances of the character ri in the Zuo Zhuan were changed to yi. Yi and ri were conflated and not distinguished, thus the interpretations of the classics were all erroneous. Xu Qian of the Yuan dynasty said: Horse relays are called zhi, foot relays are called you, but these are all arbitrary guesses without ancestral foundation; he did not consider that ancient commentaries define you as ri. If it were a character for a foot relay, why would it have the horse radical? Based on this, the meanings of ri and yi are distinct; this is preserved here to facilitate examination and correction. Textual research: Erya, Shi Yan: Ju means a courier. Commentary: Both refer to names for courier carriages and ri horses. Careful note: The original text reads ri and ju are a courier; this means ri and ju are defined as a courier, not that ri is defined as a ju courier. According to the meaning of the original book, ju has been changed to the appropriate character. According to the original text, ri horse has been changed to yi horse.