Li's smile didn't change one bit.<br/>"This one has never planned to change my attitude, of course. After all, if your humble servant Li was to do so, we would be leaving a trace a whole li* wide, that your enemies might easily follow. This one would rather be blamed for lacking manners than for putting your life at risk!"<br/>He kept stirring the porridge.<br/>"Besides", he added, "I said I suspected you are more than you are letting us know. Such things matter less among the river and lakes**, a noble-born man or woman can easily have a beggar for his senior, or his ShiFu, and would owe respect and obedience!", he glanced at Jiao Jie. "One might ask, why then did I keep looking for the truth? Well, remember I swore to see you safely to your home. It's hard to do unless one knows where the enemies might come from and in what number... Ah yes! I think the porridge is ready! Anyone hungry enough to try my culinary skills?"<br/>Of course, if a porridge required any culinary skills, than everybody in ZhongGuo would have culinary skills. And it was quite obvious - sometimes painfully so - that this was not the case. Still, anyone could make this simple dish.<br/><br/><em><br/>*1 li - think about it as the Chinese word for a "mile", although it's actually much closer to 0,5 km. Li is also making one of his (and my own) favourite wordplays with his own name.<br/>**River and lakes - meaning JiangHu, the world of the martial artists.</em>