Chapter 11: Guardian Level, One Step at a Time

After asking the "Three Questions on Martial Arts," Li Xian had a general idea of ​​what was going on. He thanked Pang Long and, unable to bear his hunger any longer, began to eat heartily.

A few pieces of greasy, fatty meat were eaten.

With a full belly, I had the strength to finish my meal in no time. It was a rare treat for me to have my stomach full, and I was overjoyed.

But then I couldn't help but think:

"I've eaten my fill now. But I wonder how my younger brother is doing, all alone out there."

"Five hundred coins is a lot of money. It shouldn't be too difficult to have meat once in a while. If I have the chance, I should go back and see my brother."

...

After leaving the vegetarian restaurant, Pang Long suddenly heard a bell ringing; it was his wife's summons.

He dared not delay and was about to go see his wife, but leaving Li Xian alone here was not a solution.

Just then, a guard walked by and called out, "Zhao Han, this kid's new here, he's yours to show him around."

After saying this, he left in a hurry.

"Young man, hello there. I watched the previous match, and I never expected that you would be the victor."

The guard named Zhao Han had a kind smile and did not look down on Li Xian because of his background as a handyman.

Li Xian cupped his hands and said, "Brother Zhao, from now on we will be working together. I hope you will take good care of me."

"Haha, of course, of course." Zhao Han laughed heartily.

Seeing that Li Xian's clothes were tattered, his hair was dirty and his face was filthy, he said, "Commander Pang asked me to take care of you, so of course I will make sure you are taken care of. Come with me quickly."

Get some new clothes for Li Xian.

"I'll take you to the bathhouse so you can wash up and change into your new clothes."

"The guards' uniform is made of a much tougher material, far superior to the servants' clothes. You don't need to wear this anymore."

"After taking it off, just throw it away."

Li Xian was overjoyed to hear that he could wash up.

Since his arrival in this world, he had never washed himself; he was filthy and looked no different from a beggar.

The guards had a special large bathhouse.

Inside were individual cubicles. Zhao Han led Li Xian to the bathing room, only to realize that he didn't have a bath tub. He said, "You don't have a tub yet, use mine first."

Next to the bathhouse is a well, from which the water used for bathing comes.

Well water is warm in winter and cool in summer, but the so-called "warm in winter" is only relative to the air temperature. If you pour it on your body, it will be very cold.

Li Xian took off his clothes, picked up the wooden bucket, and poured it down from top to bottom. The cold water soaked him instantly.

It was already winter, and although it wasn't snowing, it was already very cold.

However, the chill soon began to fade, and a warm feeling returned, invigorating the spirit.

Despite the bitter cold, Li Xian rubbed off the mud and grime from her body and combed her messy long hair.

"Goodness, is it really that hard to be a handyman?"

"This kid... is actually quite enviable."

Zhao Han, standing to the side, clicked his tongue repeatedly, his gaze involuntarily drifting downwards as he secretly gestured with his hands.

Then, looking at himself, he made an unwarranted comparison and felt a slight sense of inferiority.

After being watered with seven buckets of water, Li Xian's skin turned red from the cold, but at least she was finally clean.

Then put on the guard uniform.

"Good young man!"

Zhao Han's eyes lit up, and he clapped his hands in praise.

As the saying goes, clothes make the man and a saddle makes the horse. In just half an hour, the dirty and disheveled servant was transformed into a handsome young man.

"Brother Li, you are actually quite handsome."

Zhao Han said.

"Really?" Li Xian touched her cheek, and it seemed that it was indeed not bad.

“That’s more like what a guard should do. Come, come, let me show you around. Let me tell you about the ins and outs of our guarding system.” Zhao Han put his arm around Li Xian’s shoulder and walked outside.

"Our guards are divided into four ranks: A, B, C, and D. You've just taken up your post, so you're only in rank D."

"I am in Class C. The higher the class, the better the monthly salary and benefits."

“For example, you, a low-ranking guard, earn 150 coins a month, which is not a small amount.”

Li Xian asked, "Then how do I upgrade the level of the guards?"

"Smart, that's a very good question." Zhao Han clapped his hands and said, "In our village, we hold a guard competition every now and then. The rankings are determined by the winners and losers of the competition."

"So, the competition among our guards is actually very fierce. Martial arts training is quite tough."

"Furthermore, the rank of a guard not only increases the monthly salary, but also enhances their rights within the manor."

"You've been to the vegetarian dining hall, haven't you? There are four classes of meals there: A, B, C, and D. The higher the guard's rank, the better the food they can enjoy."

"There are countless such rights and benefits. I won't go into details; you'll experience them for yourself."

As they were talking...

The two walked to a row of houses.

"This is where we'll be staying." Zhao Han stopped in his tracks.

Looking around, the houses are neatly arranged, in both vertical and horizontal rows. They have red brick walls and blue tile roofs, and all of them are the same style.

The room can accommodate four people.

“This is more like a place for people to live,” Li Xian couldn’t help but sigh, “yet it is still just a place for servants to live.”

The house was only ten feet high, and contained four beds, making it extremely narrow and cramped.

Each room has a number marked on its plaque.

“Brother Li, you may stay with me. We happen to have an empty space in our lodgings,” Zhao Han said with a smile.

“Great! I couldn’t be happier.” Li Xian laughed heartily.

"Haha, let me introduce you to everyone."

Upon arriving at residence number 113, Zhao Han pushed open the door and entered.

"Boss, you're back?"

"Hey, who's this? He's so handsome."

"Yes, it looks unfamiliar. I've never seen it before."

Two people immediately surrounded him, one thin and one fat, named 'Wang Chun' and 'Zhuo Yilie' respectively.

After introducing themselves and getting to know each other's names, Zhao Han asked, "Brother Li, how old are you this year?"

Li Xian said, "I just turned fifteen."

“Fifteen years old…you’re the youngest, so we’ll call you Fourth Brother,” Zhao Han said. “Wang Chun is twenty-one and Second Brother, and Zhuo Yilie is nineteen and Third Brother.”

Zhao Han patted everyone on the shoulder and said:

"Fourth brother, from now on, we're all in this together, so we have to help each other out."

If you have any questions in the future, feel free to ask us.

...

Night falls.

During the day, Zhao Han led the way and explained things to Li Xian, who had already roughly figured out the basic rules for guarding the courtyard.

He lay on the bed, no longer surrounded by servants pushing and shoving.

Although there is still a faint foot odor and body odor, it is still unavoidable. The second son, Wang Chun, has very smelly feet, but they are much better now.

"The world changed overnight."

"Even so, he is only a guard."

Li Xian's feelings were complicated; she couldn't tell whether she was happy or something else.

On the one hand, he personally experienced that people are divided into different classes, with different levels of nobility and lowliness;

On the one hand, I was relieved, and on the other hand, I was glad that my life had improved.

Zhao Han turned around and saw Li Xian staring blankly at the ceiling. He said, "Fourth brother, why aren't you asleep yet? There's morning training tomorrow."

"Um."

Li Xian closed her eyes and fell asleep.

The next day.

As dawn breaks, the rooster crows.

"Get up! Get up!"

Zhao Han rolled out of bed, dressed, and slapped Wang Chun across the face and kicked Zhuo Yilie in the back.

The two slept like logs, completely still. Zhao Han sighed, then suddenly thought:

"Yes, the fourth brother didn't sleep for a long time last night, so we have to wake him up."

Turning my head, I saw that Li Xian had gotten up even earlier, was already dressed, and was sitting quietly on the bed.

"Fourth brother, not bad, you got up pretty early," Zhao Han said in surprise.

“When I was a handyman, I had to get up even earlier, so I’m used to it.” Li Xian shrugged and stretched his limbs.

(End of this chapter)