...Mei...

The group headed to the nearest village to the wall, they looked for a place to stay.

- This village seems small, can we find a place to stay.

- I don't know, let's search maybe we can find something.

While they were wandering around, an old woman intercepted them. She was carrying so much stuff and she couldn't walk any further because she was very tired.

Dylan run towards her and carried some stuff on her behalf:

- We will help you, where did you live?

The old woman didn't understand him at first, but when Laila and Sarra carries the remaining stuff she realized that they want to help her. She smiled at them, then she walked to show them her house. After walking for a while, they finally arrived at an old house.

They entered through a gate and stood up in the middle of a big courtyard. Dylan and the rest were surprised by the big size of the wooden house. It looks like a fully enclosed complex of buildings and walls.

- Wow, look at this house. Are there any other people here.

Suddenly a voice came from behind:

- No, there is only me and my grandmother. Who are you?

A young woman in her early twenties appeared. She has long black hair and small black eyes, And she was wearing Chinese traditional clothes.

- Hello...

She looked at them suspiciously:

- Strangers are not allowed to come in here.

The grandmother told her that those strangers were kind to her and helped her. After talking to her grandmother, she seemed more relieved:

She approached them, then she bowed her head:

- Thank you for helping my grandmother.

- Well, it's nothing. We will leave, now.

- Wait, my grandmother wants to invite you to dinner to thank you.

- That's not necessary.

- Please, accept our invitation or she will be sad.

- Alright, we will stay if you insist

- Follow me.

She young woman took them inside.

- There are two rooms in this place. You seem that you are travelers, rest a while here until we serve dinner...My name is Mei. Please, call me if you need anything.

- Alright, thank you for your hospitality.

When Mei left, Dylan went immediately to his room

- I'm going to sleep for a while, I'm exhausted.

The girls stayed in a different room to be more comfortable.

After a couple of hours, Mei called for them to eat. The old lady prepared so much food for them that they were amazed.

- All this food for us?

- Yes, we did our best to show to you our gratitude.

- This is such a big house, why there are only you and your grandmother?

- This is our ancestors' house. My parents traveled away for work, and it's only I remained here.

- Why you didn't go with them.

- I can't leave my grandmother alone, as you can see she is very old and people around tend to refuse to help her.

- Why?

- They are afraid of the house, they think that it is cursed. Only strangers will accept to come in.

- This is horrible.

- Yeah, that's why we are very thankful to you.

Sarra looked at Dylan and gave him a signal. They decided to ask the owner to let them stay here.

- Can we rent a room in this house? We will pay you as much as you want.

The old lady didn't answer, instead, she asked them to finish their meal first.

The guests were surprised by how much the food was delicious. The old woman was a good cook.

Dylan wanted to thank her, he bowed to her to show her his respect.

- Thank you for the meal.

Sarra and Laila did the same thing:

- We didn't eat anything this delicious since we left our land.

- Where did you come from.

Dylan hesitated at first, but then he decided to tell the truth.

- We come from the land of the monsters.

Mei's small black eyes opened widely, she suddenly jumped from her place while looking frightened.

- YOU ARE MONSTERS!

- Not all of us...

Dylan regretted telling her. He backed off while trying to calm her down.

- Please, don't be afraid of us...we won't harm you in any way.

Mei told her grandmother about them. the old woman glared at them and that's when Dylan realized that they will be kicked out.

- We...We will leave, thank you for the meal.

- WAIT!

The old lady got close to him and put her hand on his face, then she smiled and said something in Chinese.

- What did she say?

Mei also was surprised by her grandmother's reaction:

- She said that you can stay here as much as you want.

- We can?

- Yeah.

Dylan was happy that they could find a place to stay in. He bowed again to the old lady.

- Thank you for accepting us.

Though Mei was still afraid of them, her grandmother's reaction made her reassured for a bit. She kept looking at them from afar.

Laila got closer to her while smiling:

- I'm a human like you.

- REALLY?

- Yeah, and I have been traveling with them for a long time. Believe me, they are good people.

- Al...Alright.

- Tomorrow we are going to the Great Wall, can you be our guide?....