A soldier's duty was to protect the people and the country. Now that there was no country, there was no one to pledge loyalty to. They would not expel the people they had protected in the past either.
As time passed, more and more people gathered and relied on the General Valley to survive.
Although life wasn't good, it wasn't bad either. At least they could live on and were willing to work hard. Those who had the opportunity to become cultivators could also continue to grow stronger and change their fate.
The people who gathered here were like the people of General Valley. They did not belong to any forces and had no intention of joining other villages or towns. Instead, they felt that it was safe near General Valley. They did not need to be subservient to others and lived dependent on the whims of others. They were free people now.