Chapter 12 Entering the Valley

"Yes, sir," these people answered in unison. Military Advisor Ji waved his hand and said gently, "Chen An, Li Yin stay, you all go and do your own things."

After those people dispersed, only the two soldiers who had just stood in the middle came over. Li Yan looked at the two men, one was about 30 years old, and the other was about 20 years old. They were both about 7 feet tall, but the older one had a square face and a ruddy complexion, while the younger one had a round face, big eyes, and slightly white skin.

Both of them were wearing standard military uniforms. The military division commander pointed at the square-faced man and said, "His name is Chen An." Then he pointed at the young soldier with a round face and big eyes and said, "His name is Li Yin. The two of them are usually responsible for the chores in the valley and are also familiar with the military affairs. If I am not in the mansion, you can tell them to do it. If you go to the city to do things, let them follow you. First, it will be convenient for you to do things with them; second, they will be responsible for your safety. After all, this is a border city, and the enemy often sneaks into the city to spy on the news. If they know that you are my disciple, they will inevitably turn their attention to you." Li Yan's heart tightened after hearing this, and then his heart warmed up. He bowed and replied, "Thank you, teacher." If he said that he was a little unfamiliar with calling "teacher" before, now it was from the heart. Chen An and Li Yin also bowed to the military division commander and said, "I respect your words, please rest assured, sir." "Well, go and prepare his daily necessities, and send them over later." "Yes, sir." After saying this, Military Advisor Ji called Li Yan and walked back inside. However, Li Yan turned around and didn't see that Chen An and Li Yin looked at each other and stared at his back with flickering eyes.

Li Yan originally thought that he lived in one of the two rows of bluestone houses, but he saw that the teacher didn't even look at the houses on the sides and walked straight ahead. When the two of them walked to the end of the bluestone house and turned right, a valley suddenly appeared in front of them. On the stone wall on one side of the valley entrance, there were several bright red characters "Military Advisor's Mansion".

Li Yan thought, this is just a valley, why is it called "Military Advisor's Mansion", but he couldn't stop and followed the teacher into the valley. ??

The valley is not very big, about 50 to 60 feet in size, surrounded by mountains on three sides, each side has towering peaks, and the slopes are almost straight up and down. On the slopes, there are thin trees and shrubs, some tall and some short, with branches and twigs growing densely from the foot of the mountain to the top of the mountain. There is only one entrance to the valley. There is also a row of bluestone houses on the right side of the valley entrance, about three or four rooms. It is already dark now, and the rest of the scenery in the valley is blurred and not very clear.

At this moment, hurried footsteps came from behind. Li Yan heard the sound and looked back. Two people came in the darkness. When he got closer, he saw that they were Chen An and Li Yin who had just met.

The two of them were carrying items in their hands. I think they should be the daily necessities that the teacher had ordered just now. They came quite quickly, which means they were the work of the front and back feet.

The two quickly walked past them and walked towards the bluestone houses. Soon after, lights were lit in several houses one after another. The lights shone through the doors and windows, and some scenes in the valley suddenly became much clearer.

Master Ji turned around and said to Li Yan, "It's getting late today. Chen An and the others will come over to help you get familiar with this place. Then you can have a rest after dinner. You have traveled hundreds of miles from home today, so you should rest early. Come to me early tomorrow morning. I will tell you about some things about the sect then." As he was talking, Chen An and Li Yin came back quickly and said with a smile, "Mr. Li, someone cleans here every day, so we just need to bring some daily necessities." Master Ji saw them coming, so he ordered, "Take Li Yan with you. I will deliver the food to you later." After that, he smiled and nodded to Li Yan and walked towards the first house near the valley entrance. Then the figure disappeared when the light at the door dimmed. Li Yan stared at the back of Ji Junshi in a daze, thinking, "My teacher is really simple and clear in his work."

Chen An laughed and said, "Mr. Li, please come with us." Li Yan thanked him and followed them inside.

Chen An was very talkative, and Li Yin was the leader, but he was quick and occasionally said a few words. They talked as they walked. Li Yan began to know some of the situation. It turned out that Marshal Hong originally arranged a mansion for Ji Junshi in the city, but Ji Junshi liked to live alone in a quiet place and did not want to live in the city. Later, he found this valley outside the city and lived alone. But how could Marshal Hong let an official live in such a simple place? He persuaded him several times, but Ji Junshi was still unwilling to enter the city.

Marshal Hong could only send people to clean up the valley, open up a hundred feet of open space outside the valley, build houses and send soldiers to guard it, and arrange corresponding maids and servants to take charge of the living and eating here. However, Military Advisor Ji finally left only 20 soldiers and three women in charge of food, and sent the rest back. According to Military Advisor Ji, it would be best for him to be alone, but he could not refuse the Marshal's kindness. As for the name of "Military Advisor Mansion", it was of course named after the mansion.

There are four houses in this valley. Except for the first one near the valley entrance where Military Advisor Ji lives, the one next to it is used by Military Advisor Ji to practice martial arts sometimes. The other two are empty and no one lives there.

In Chen An's words, they are not allowed to enter here casually. Except when Lord Ji asks them to come in, they can only enter when they need to deliver food and clean up every day. Otherwise, they will be expelled from the valley by Lord Ji. It is conceivable how Marshal Hong will treat them after returning to the city. In addition to the four houses, the toilets and bathrooms in the valley are also fully equipped and built in the side corners of the houses.

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

The stone house is very spacious. It must have been built by soldiers. The things built by the army focus on practicality, solidity and durability.

The door of the stone house faces south, facing the valley. The floor of the house is also paved with bluestone and broken pieces. It is clean and bright. The simple furniture is complete, but it seems inconspicuous in this huge house.

There is a large wooden bed against the wall on the north side of the house, a washstand and some toiletries are placed on the east wall, and a four-layer bookshelf with some books on the west wall; A wooden table is placed by the south window, with a few teacups and kettles, two chairs on the table, and two tall boxes made of brown old rattan at the head of the table, placed side by side on the ground, almost flush with the tabletop, probably used to store clothes or other items. The north and west sides of the stone house are built against the mountain, and the east wall is connected to other houses, so there is only a large window on the wall in the same direction as the stone gate, which is also facing the valley. The window is tall and has fine wooden grids. At this time, it is open. There is no sense of stuffiness in the house. Instead, the cool breeze of the autumn night is allowed in, which makes people feel a little relaxed and comfortable. "Mr. Li, please take a rest first. There is hot water in the kettle. Someone will bring the food to you soon. We can't stay in this valley for long. Lord Ji doesn't like outsiders here. If there is nothing else, we will take our leave first." After Chen An and Li Yin put their things away, they said to Li Yan.

Li Yan was looking around the room. Hearing this, he quickly looked at the two of them and said, "Thank you for your help. In this case, please do as you please." The two of them bowed and left.

Li Yan walked to the table, took off the package on his shoulder and put it on the table, then walked to the brown rattan box at the head of the table and opened the two boxes one by one. The boxes were empty. There was a piece of black cloth at the bottom of each box, which was probably used to place clothes and the like.

Li Yan took the package on the table, unwrapped it, and put the coarse cloth clothes in it neatly into a box. These were sewn by the fourth sister and mother. Although the fabrics of these clothes were very rough, and some of them were cut from other worn-out clothes, Li Yan felt that the home in the village was right next to him, with a comfortable temperature. Seeing them was like seeing his mother and fourth sister.

He didn't bring much stuff, and the box was wide. Putting all his clothes in one box only took up three or four tenths of the space. Li Yan thought about it, and took out the pickles, dry food, etc. in the package on the table and placed them neatly on the table against the wall. He didn't put them in another empty box.

After covering the two boxes, Li Yan pulled a chair in front of the table, took the kettle and teacup and poured a glass of water. The water was really hot. It seemed that someone should come to change the water and clean the room every day.

He was really tired today. He had traveled more than 200 miles and only had some dry food and water on the way. He was hungry, thirsty, and tired. It was pitch black outside, and he had no intention of going outside. He drank water while thinking about his worries, thinking about what he had experienced today and where he was sitting now, just like in a dream. After a while, he drank some water, but felt even more hungry and tired. He thought, "Fortunately, the teacher didn't arrange anything, otherwise I really couldn't muster much energy, and it would be embarrassing in front of the teacher." While he was thinking, there was a sound of footsteps outside the door. His door was not closed, and this was a valley. The footsteps were clearly heard in the middle of the night. Li Yan thought that it must be the person who delivered the meal. When he looked up, he saw that the door was dark, and a woman holding a wooden tray was standing at the door.

Li Yan stood up and walked to the door. Seeing that the woman was still standing outside respectfully, he said, "Where is your kitchen? I can go there and get it myself next time." The woman heard this and her face turned pale. She quickly said, "Mr. Li, don't dare to do this. If Lord Ji finds out, it will be a disaster." Li Yan stretched out his hands to receive the wooden tray and was startled. He asked curiously, "Why is this?" The woman said, "How can the lord and the young master go to places like the kitchen? These are where we servants stay."

Li Yan was a little confused when he heard it, but he understood it after thinking about it. When he was at home, he could stay anywhere, but now the change of his identity made him feel a little uneasy. He also knew that these respects and inferiors were not aimed at him alone, but were the rules of this world. After he took the wooden tray, he said, "Then next time you come, just put the food on the table inside the house."

The woman looked at him after hearing this, and said to him as if she remembered something, "Mr. Li, except for delivering food and cleaning, we are not allowed to enter this valley casually every day. The master has also instructed that these four rooms cannot be entered casually to avoid disturbing the master's work. The master basically closes the door every time he comes back. If we see a wooden sign hanging on the door handle, 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 is not eaten, we will take it back and throw it away and redo it before delivering it again. The cleaning of the master's room is also done by a special person with the master's permission. Since no one lives in your room and the room next to it, you don't need to ask the master for permission every day. Now that you have moved in, we can't enter."

When Li Yan heard this, he noticed that there was a black wooden sign hanging on the handle inside the door. It seems that when the teacher is practicing, he will hang this wooden sign on the handle outside the door to avoid disturbing the practice. Although he didn't understand these advanced martial arts, he had always heard of some of them. He heard that when those internal energy meditations were being practiced, they must not be disturbed, otherwise they would go astray and become possessed. Thinking of this, he understood a little.

The woman told him to put the tableware on the stone platform outside the room after dinner, and someone would come to clean it up. She bowed slightly to Li Yan and left.

Although the food here was not exquisite, it was also food that Li Yan had never eaten before. Li Yan was still not satisfied with the meal, but later he thought of his parents at home. He wondered if they had eaten now and whether they were still thinking about him. Thinking of this, he suddenly became a little bored.

He got up, packed up the dishes and put them on the tray, walked outside, and sure enough, saw a stone platform in front of the door, so he put his hands on it, and looked up. There was a dark mass of trees spreading far and wide, all the way to the top of the surrounding mountains. Only the round sky dozens of feet above was shedding a little starlight. He stared blankly for a while, then retracted his gaze and found that not far from his stone house, that is, not far from the stone platform, there seemed to be a puddle of water. However, as a wanderer away from home for the first time, his mind was always full of thoughts on the first night away from home. He could not forget his hometown, and he felt even more tired after dinner, so he gave up the idea of ​​taking a walk in the valley. He turned back to the house, washed up simply, closed the doors and windows, lay on the bed, and fell asleep in the thought of his parents at home and every tree and grass in the village.