<p><quote>You did well to keep up with me, my Lord,</quote> he says, as he places his glowing lantern on the hut<ch.apos/>s solitary table. <quote>We<ch.apos/>ll rest here for a few hours and leave at first light.</quote></p>
<p>From his leather backpack he produces some provisions: a loaf of bread, some strips of cured lamb meat, some dried fruits and a small bottle of rice wine. Generously, he shares his meagre rations with you. While you are eating, you take the opportunity to observe your guide. He is a lean man in his early fifties, physically fit and impressively agile. He is dressed in simple peasant garb with a wide conical hat made from straw. Despite his mundane clothing, this man is clearly not a lowly peasant. He has the distinctive mien of a professional soldier, the legacy of years spent as a Captain in the Imperial Chai Guard: the warrior elite of the Chai army. A <quote><foreign xml:lang="x-chaian">kirusami</foreign></quote>, an ornate bladed pole arm is slung over his shoulder on a thin strip of leather.</p>
<p>When you have finished your meal, Anseng opens a wooden cupboard fixed to the interior wall and retrieves two bed rolls. He unties them and lays them out upon the floor of the hut.</p>
<p><quote>You did well to keep up with me, my Lord,</quote> he says, as he places his glowing lantern on the hut<ch.apos/>s solitary table. <quote>We<ch.apos/>ll rest here for a few hours and leave at first light.</quote></p>
<p>From his leather backpack he produces some provisions: a loaf of bread, some strips of cured lamb meat, some dried fruits and a small bottle of rice wine. Generously, he shares his meagre rations with you. While you are eating, you take the opportunity to observe your guide. He is a lean man in his early fifties, physically fit and impressively agile. He is dressed in simple peasant garb with a wide conical hat made from straw. Despite his mundane clothing, this man is clearly not a lowly peasant. He has the distinctive mien of a professional soldier, the legacy of years spent as a Captain in the Imperial Chai Guard: the warrior elite of the Chai army. A <quote><foreign xml:lang="x-chaian">kirusami</foreign></quote>, an ornate bladed pole arm is slung over his shoulder on a thin strip of leather.</p>
<p>When you have finished your meal, Anseng opens a wooden cupboard fixed to the interior wall and retrieves two bed rolls. He unties them and lays them out upon the floor of the hut.</p>