On the morning of the second day after Xue Qinghe stayed to seek Ning Fengzhi's guidance, his two accompanying guards had already finished a round of training in the open space outside the guest courtyard before the kitchen fires were even lit.
One practiced turns and footwork, the other practiced recovering his stance with a weapon in hand. When it was time to change shifts, they stopped, ate breakfast, and drank water as usual. The sect member Ning Fengzhi had sent to look after them marked out a space for them. They practiced their usual routines, then helped their companions put away the weapons afterward.
When Xue Qinghe came outside the courtyard, the two were sheathing their weapons. He often took them out with him, so he knew the hardships of walking and standing guard, and he knew how their bodies would feel if they had to make it through to evening on dry rations alone after training. Today, they would have a hot meal. This ordinary difference was precisely what he wanted to see. When the taller guard saw him, he reached to take his outer robe out of habit, but Xue Qinghe waved him off. "Go wash your hands. Don't find yourselves more work before eating."
In the kitchen, Uncle Zhou had already prepared extra rice as discussed the day before. Chen An lifted the whole piece of skin-on pork from the pot and set it on a bamboo sieve to cool. The regulars who ate at the small stove would still arrive at their usual time today; he only sliced two extra portions. Seeing Twice-Cooked Pork on the worktable again, Fang Ming was just about to lend a hand when Chen An pushed a basket of greens into his arms.
"Pick out the tough roots. Don't tear