Entering the Valley

"Yes, Lord Ji." They answered in unison. Military Advisor Ji waved his hand at them and said gently, "Chen An, Li Yin, stay. The rest of you, go about your business."

After the others dispersed, only the two soldiers who had been standing in the middle walked over. Li Yan looked at them. One was about thirty years old, the other about twenty. Both were around seven feet tall. The older one had a square face and a ruddy complexion, while the younger one had a round face, large eyes, and fair skin.

Both were wearing standard military uniforms. Military Advisor Ji pointed to the square-faced man, "He is Chen An." Then he pointed to the young soldier with round face and big eyes, "He is Li Yin. They are usually responsible for odd jobs in the valley and are also familiar with military matters. If I am not in the residence, you can instruct them to handle things. If you need to go into the city, have them accompany you. Firstly, it will be easier for you to handle matters with them around. Secondly, they will be responsible for your safety. After all, this is a border city, and enemy troops often sneak into the city to gather information. If they know you are my disciple, they will inevitably try to harm you."

Li Yan's heart tightened upon hearing this, and then he felt a warmth in his heart. He bowed and replied, "Thank you, Teacher." If he had been somewhat awkward and unnatural when he called him "Teacher" earlier, now it came from the bottom of his heart.

Chen An and Li Yin also saluted Military Advisor Ji, "We respectfully obey your orders, Lord Ji. Please rest assured."

"Alright, go prepare his living supplies and send them over later."

"Yes, Lord Ji."

After Military Advisor Ji finished speaking, he called out to Li Yan and walked further inside. However, Li Yan didn't see it when he turned around, but Chen An and Li Yin exchanged glances, their eyes flickering as they stared at his back.

Li Yan originally thought he would be living in one of the blue stone houses in these two rows, but he saw that his teacher didn't even look at the houses on either side and walked straight ahead. When they reached the end of the blue stone houses and turned right, a valley suddenly appeared before them. On the stone wall on one side of the Valley Entrance were carved several large, bright red characters: "Military Advisor's Residence."

Li Yan thought to himself, This is just a valley, why is it called "Military Advisor's Residence"? But he couldn't stop his feet and followed his teacher into the valley.

The valley wasn't very large, about fifty or sixty zhang in size. It was surrounded by mountains on three sides, each with towering peaks. The slopes were almost vertical, with thin trees and shrubs growing densely, tall and short, with branches and twigs growing densely from the foot of the mountain to the top. There was only this one Valley Entrance for entry and exit. On the right side of the Valley Entrance, there was also a row of blue stone houses, about three or four in number. At this time, it was getting dark, and the rest of the scenery in the valley was blurry and unclear.

Just then, hurried footsteps came from behind. Li Yan turned around at the sound and saw two people walking in the darkness. As they got closer, he recognized them as Chen An and Li Yin, whom he had just met.

The two were carrying items in their hands, presumably the living supplies that his teacher had just ordered. They had come quickly; it had only been a short time.

The two quickly walked past them and headed towards the blue stone houses. Soon, lights began to light up in the houses, and the lights shone through the doors and windows, making some of the scenery in the valley much clearer.

Military Advisor Ji turned to Li Yan and said, "It's getting late today. Chen An and the others will come over later to help you familiarize yourself with this place, and then you can eat and rest. You've traveled hundreds of miles from home to here today, so you should rest early. Come to my place early tomorrow morning, and I'll tell you about some of the matters of our sect."

As he was speaking, he saw Chen An and Li Yin walking back quickly, smiling and saying, "Young Master Li, this place is usually cleaned every day, so we just brought over some daily necessities."

Military Advisor Ji saw them coming and ordered, "Take Li Yan there. You can send the food over later." After saying that, he smiled and nodded at Li Yan and walked towards the first house near the Valley Entrance. Then his figure darkened in the light at the door and disappeared inside.

Li Yan stared blankly at Military Advisor Ji's back, thinking, My teacher is really straightforward.

Chen An chuckled and said, "Young Master Li, please come with us." Li Yan thanked him and followed the two inside.

Chen An was very talkative, and Li Yin followed his lead, but he was quick and efficient, and would occasionally say a few words. They walked and talked, and Li Yan began to learn some things. It turned out that Marshal Hong had originally arranged a residence for Military Advisor Ji in the city, but Military Advisor Ji preferred a quiet and secluded life and didn't want to live in the city. Later, he found this valley outside the city and lived there alone. But how could Marshal Hong allow an official to live in such a simple place? He persuaded him several times, but Military Advisor Ji always refused to enter the city.

So Marshal Hong had to send people to tidy up the valley and clear hundreds of zhang of open space outside the valley, build houses, and send troops to guard it. At the same time, he also arranged for corresponding maids and servants to be responsible for the daily life and diet here. But Military Advisor Ji only left twenty soldiers and three women responsible for the diet, and sent the rest back. According to Military Advisor Ji, he preferred to be alone, but he couldn't go against the marshal's good intentions. As for the name "Military Advisor's Residence," it was of course named after the residence.

There were four houses in the valley. The first one near the Valley Entrance was where Military Advisor Ji lived. The one next to it was used by Military Advisor Ji to practice his boxing and martial arts. The other two were empty and uninhabited.

In Chen An's words, this place was usually not allowed to enter casually. Unless Lord Ji had something for them to do, they could only enter for the daily delivery of food and cleaning. Otherwise, they would be expelled from the valley, and then they could imagine how Marshal Hong would treat them. In addition to the four houses, the valley also had a toilet and bathroom built on the side of the houses.

Li Yan finally chose the blue stone house built against the mountain wall at the innermost part of the valley. Chen An first walked in and put the bedding on the bed. Li Yin and Li Yan followed in.

The stone house was very spacious, presumably built by soldiers. The things built by the army were all about practicality, sturdiness, and durability.

The stone house faced south, directly facing the valley. The floor inside was also paved with blue stone and gravel, clean and bright. The simple furniture was complete, but it seemed inconspicuous in this huge house.

Against the north wall of the house was a large wooden bed. Along the east wall were placed a washstand and some toiletries. Along the west wall was a four-layer bookshelf with some books on it.

A wooden table was placed by the south window, with a few teacups and a kettle on it, and two chairs. At the head of the table were two tall boxes woven from brown old rattan, placed side by side on the ground, almost level with the tabletop, presumably for storing clothes or other items.

The north and west sides of the stone house were built against the mountain, and the east wall was connected to other houses, so there was only one large window on the wall in the same direction as the stone door, also facing the valley. The window was tall, with thin wooden squares. At this time, it was open, and there was no feeling of stuffiness in the house. Instead, the cool autumn night breeze blew in, making people feel relaxed and comfortable.

"Young Master Li, please rest for a while. There is hot water in the kettle. Someone will bring the food over later. We can't stay here in the valley for long. Lord Ji doesn't like outsiders here. If there's nothing else, we'll take our leave." Chen An and Li Yin said to Li Yan after placing the things.

Li Yan was looking around the room and quickly looked at the two of them when he heard this. "Thank you both. In that case, please do as you please." The two cupped their hands and left.

Li Yan walked to the table, took off the package from his shoulder, and placed it on the table. Then he walked to the brown rattan boxes at the head of the table and opened the two boxes one by one. The boxes were empty, and each box had a piece of black cloth laid on the bottom, presumably for placing clothes and the like.

Li Yan picked up the package on the table, untied it, and placed the few sets of coarse cloth clothes inside neatly into one of the boxes. These were sewn by his fourth sister and mother. Although these clothes were made of very rough fabric, and some of the fabric was cut from old clothes, Li Yan felt that his home in the village was right next to him, warm and comfortable. Seeing them was like seeing his mother and fourth sister.

He didn't bring much, and the boxes were wide, so his clothes only took up about thirty or forty percent of the space in one box. Li Yan thought for a while and took out the pickles, dried food, and other items from the package on the table and placed them neatly on the table against the wall. He didn't put these in the other empty box.

After closing the two boxes, Li Yan pulled out a chair in front of the table, picked up the kettle and teacup, and poured a cup of water. The water was indeed hot, so someone must come over every day to change the water and clean the room.

He was really tired today. He had traveled more than two hundred li, only eating some dried food and water along the way. Now he was hungry and thirsty, and his body felt tired. It was dark outside now, and he had no intention of going outside to take a look. He drank water while thinking about things, thinking about what had happened today and where he was sitting now. It was like a dream. After a while, he drank some water, but he felt even more hungry and tired. He thought, Fortunately, Teacher didn't arrange anything, otherwise I wouldn't have much energy, and I would be embarrassed in front of Teacher. While he was thinking, he heard footsteps outside the door. His door wasn't closed, and this was a valley, so the footsteps were clear in the night. Li Yan thought that this must be the food delivery. He turned his head and saw that the doorway was dark, and a woman was standing at the door holding a wooden tray.

Li Yan stood up and walked to the door. He saw that the woman was standing respectfully outside, so he said, "Where is your kitchen? Next time, I can go get it myself." The woman's face turned pale when she heard this, and she quickly said, "Young Master Li, you can't do that. If Lord Ji finds out, it will be a great disaster." Li Yan paused with his hands outstretched to take the wooden tray and asked strangely, "Why is that?" The woman said, "How can lords and young masters go to places like the kitchen? Those are places for us servants."

Li Yan was a little confused when he heard this. After thinking for a while, he understood a little. When he was at home, he could stay anywhere, but now the change in his status made him feel a little uneasy. He also knew that this hierarchy wasn't directed at him alone, but was the law of this world. He took the wooden tray and said, "Then next time you come, just put the food on the table in the house."

The woman looked at him after hearing this, and said to him as if she remembered something, "Young Master Li, we are not allowed to enter this valley casually except for delivering food and cleaning. Lord Ji has also ordered that these four houses are not allowed to be entered at will, so as not to disturb Lord Ji's work. Lord Ji basically closes the door every time he comes back. If we see a wooden sign hanging on the doorknob outside, we will put the food on the stone platform outside the house and come back to clean it up after a while. If the food hasn't been eaten, we will take it back, throw it away, redo it, and send it over again. The cleaning of Lord Ji's room is also done by a special person with Lord Ji's permission. Since your room and the one next to it are uninhabited, we don't need to ask Lord Ji for instructions to clean them every day. But now that you live here, we can't enter."

When Li Yan heard this, he noticed a black wooden sign hanging on the inside of the doorknob. He thought that his teacher would hang this wooden sign outside the door when he was cultivating to avoid disturbing his cultivation. Although he didn't understand these profound martial arts, he had heard of some of them. He heard that when meditating with internal energy, it was absolutely forbidden to be disturbed, otherwise, there would be phenomena such as going crazy. Thinking of this, he understood a little.

The woman instructed him again to put the tableware on the stone platform outside the house after finishing the meal, and someone would come to clean it up. She bowed slightly to Li Yan and left.

Although the food here wasn't exquisite, it was a meal that Li Yan had never eaten before. Li Yan ate this meal with relish, but later he thought of his parents at home, wondering if they had eaten now and if they were still thinking about him. Thinking of this, he suddenly felt a little disheartened.

He got up, cleaned up the dishes and chopsticks, put them on the tray, walked outside, and saw a stone platform in front of the door, so he put them on it. He looked up and saw a dark expanse of trees spreading far and wide, all the way to the surrounding mountain peaks. Only a few dozen zhang of the round sky above sprinkled a little starlight. He stared blankly for a while, then withdrew his gaze and found that there seemed to be a pool of water not far from his stone house, that is, not far from the stone platform. However, at this moment, the first night away from home, the wanderer's thoughts were always turning, and it was difficult to forget his homeland. In addition, he felt even more tired after the meal, so he gave up the idea of taking a walk in the valley. He turned around, went back to the house, simply washed up, closed the doors and windows, lay on the bed, and fell asleep thinking of his parents and the trees and plants in the village.