A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Soon the signature dish arrived. Sha Yanxiao was in a good mood and invited Gui'er and Dali to come and eat. He even personally put the dish into Gui'er's bowl.

Guier smiled and asked, "Brother Yanxiao, why do I feel like you're happier today than on your wedding day?"

Sha Yanxiao scratched her nose and said, "You guessed right. I'm happier today than when I got married. Marshal Zhang is in such a bad state now that he won't be able to cause any big trouble. We've done some good things for the people in Fengcheng, like running schools, building roads, and bridges. We have a very good reputation in Fengcheng now. Fengcheng is ours."

At this time, a guard in plain clothes raised his wine glass and said, "It's all thanks to the young master. When we were bandits in the mountains, we never thought we would be so prosperous today."

Gui'er was shocked when she heard this.

Sha Yanxiao laughed heartily, raised his glass, clinked glasses with them, and said to Gui'er, "Look at your surprised expression. These are the brothers I brought from Qingfeng Village. They now command a large number of troops in Fengcheng and are absolutely trustworthy."

Sha Yanxiao pointed at Gui'er and introduced her to everyone: "This is my sister Gui'er."

Everyone said, "We've heard about it a long time ago. Miss Gui'er is extremely smart and brave. She killed the kidnapper with a single shot. Even the Marshal looked at her differently. We thought she was a tough girl, but today we see that she is so cute and lovely. No wonder the young master likes her so much."

Gui Er quickly stood up, raised her teacup and said, "Thank you all for your hard work, brothers. Gui Er also wants to thank you all for your continued assistance to Brother Yan Xiao. I will offer you all a glass of tea instead of wine."

As he spoke, he picked up the teacup and took a sip, which made everyone laugh.

At this time, the shop assistant came back with a bunch of local snacks from outside. Sha Yanxiao said to Guier, "Come on, eat whatever you like. Eat as much as you want. If it's not enough, ask for more."

Then they drank and chatted with their subordinates, it was very lively. Gui'er sat in her seat and took whatever she wanted to eat. Occasionally, Sha Yanxiao would pick up some dishes that were farther away for her.

They were still discussing the military deployment plan in the city over the wine table. Only then did Gui'er understand why Sha Yanxiao was reluctant to bring Ji Yiru with him. Perhaps he still didn't trust her very much.

The meal lasted more than two hours. When we returned to Marshal Zhang's residence, it was already afternoon. As soon as we entered the residence, Ji Yiru came out and asked, "Where have you been?"

Sha Yanxiao said, "I had a meal with the local garrison officers and discussed the matter."

What else did Ji Yiru want to say? Sha Yanxiao ignored her and said to the housekeeper, "Are you ready?"

The butler said respectfully, "Yes, everything is ready, young commander." Then he led Sha Yanxiao to a hall full of people, all of whom were old men in their fifties and sixties, and their attire looked a bit like local gentry.

When they saw Sha Yanxiao walk in, everyone in the room stood up, and those who were wearing hats took them off.

Sha Yanxiao pulled Gui'er into the house and went straight to the master's seat and sat down. Although Ji Yiru was puzzled, she also walked over and sat down next to him.

Sha Yanxiao smiled and said, "Thank you for coming here, elders. My sister has given birth to Marshal Zhang's heir. I've called everyone here today to be a witness. My sister will be promoted as the legal wife and her name will be included in the family tree."

A group of old men were whispering in the room, but no one responded.

Sha Yanxiao crossed his legs and said calmly, "Why? When my sister married me, she agreed that as long as she gave birth to a son, she would be made his legal wife. Are you thinking of going back on your word?"

An old man sitting close to Sha Yanxiao stood up and bowed, saying, "That's exactly what was written in the marriage agreement between the two families, and we have no objection. However, Marshal Zhang is seriously ill now, so it would be better to wait until he recovers before getting married. As long as Marshal Zhang gives the order, we'll add your name to it immediately."

Sha Yanxiao chuckled and said, "The Marshal's illness, what does that have to do with this matter? Could it be that you want to take advantage of Marshal Zhang's illness to bully them mother and son?"

When the people present heard this, they were so frightened that they waved their hands and said, "Young Marshal, you misunderstood. We absolutely did not mean that."

Sha Yanxiao glanced at everyone in the room. Those people didn't dare to look at him at all and lowered their heads.

Sha Yanxiao snorted and said, "Well, let's call Marshal Zhang out." Then he waved to the butler, who respectfully said, "Yes, please wait a moment." Then he walked out.

The people below murmured again.

After a long while, there was a sound of sticks hitting the ground. Marshal Zhang walked in slowly and weakly, leaning on a crutch and supported by two burly maids.

The people in the room slowly stood up again. Guier saw that they were all looking at Marshal Zhang with eager anticipation, and some even stepped forward to pull him.

But Marshal Zhang seemed very tired, his face was pale and he was sweating. It took a lot of effort for him to take a step. He really didn't have the energy to pay attention to that group of people.

Sha Yanxiao said, "Show me a seat, Marshal."

Several servants brought in a chair with a slanted backrest and asked Marshal Zhang to sit on it half-lying.

The old man who had just spoken stepped forward, bowed to Marshal Zhang, and said, "Marshal, the young marshal of the Sha family has proposed that we add the young master's biological mother to the family tree today and make her the legal wife. What do you think about this..."

Marshal Zhang's eyes moved, he glanced at Sha Yanxiao, and said nothing.

Seeing his expression, Sha Yanxiao smiled and said, "If the Marshal doesn't want to acknowledge my sister and her son, that's fine. At worst, I can take them back to Jiangcheng to raise them. My family can afford this little money anyway. This son will have nothing to do with your Zhang family in the future." After saying that, he was about to stand up.

Marshal Zhang panicked and quickly extended his hand, saying, "Wait a minute." He then seemed to regret his words. After a few seconds, he said helplessly to his own people, "Let Sanmei's name be included in the family tree and be promoted to the official wife."

Sha Yanxiao said, "Okay, it's better to have the ceremony now than to choose a date."

Several elders said, "Isn't this a bit too hasty?"

Sha Yanxiao said: "It's not rushed at all. It just so happens that everyone is here today."

Those tribesmen wanted to say something more.

Sha Yanxiao suddenly slammed the table and said, "Please don't push your luck. If you don't accept my toast, you'll have to pay me back. Our Sha family has always been very courteous to you all. Marshal Zhang has also spoken today. Does anyone have any objections?"

Suddenly, the hall fell silent. After more than ten seconds, several elders of the Zhang family said with a smile, "Young Marshal, what you said makes sense. Today is actually a good day. Let's do it today."

Sha Yanxiao smiled and said, "That's right. Let's move to the ancestral hall."

A group of people stood up and walked out. The maids also helped Marshal Zhang out of the door. Guier saw several old women supporting the three beauties with headscarves walking over, and the baby was also brought over.

Everyone left Marshal Zhang's mansion and arrived at the Zhang family ancestral hall across from the mansion square. The maids helped Marshal Zhang and Sanmei kneel before a pile of Zhang family ancestral tablets. A clan elder read aloud nearby: "Sha's Sanmei has contributed to the birth of an heir and is now made the legal wife and entered into the family tree. She must be virtuous, support the elderly and love the young, and serve her parents-in-law."

The three beauties kowtowed three times, and the elders wrote the names of the three beauties and the child into the family tree in front of everyone, and the ceremony was over. According to the normal ceremony, firecrackers would be set off and everyone would be treated to a meal, but since time was short, they kept it simple.

Sha Yanxiao smiled happily and said, "Thank you very much, everyone. I know some of you are still running casinos. As long as you don't go too far, I believe our two families can still live in peace."

The tribesmen nodded in agreement. Sha Yanxiao called the servants and helped Marshal Zhang and the three beauties back to the Marshal's residence.

After entering the Marshal's Mansion and closing the door, Sha Yanxiao called the housekeeper and said, "Tell the servants to prepare the Marshal's things. Come back to Jiangcheng with me in the car this afternoon."

The butler hesitated and said, "Did the Marshal agree?"

Sha Yanxiao glanced at him and said, "The Marshal is tired. Go give him some sleeping pills and let him lie down for a while."

The housekeeper frowned in embarrassment, but under Sha Yanxiao's gaze, he finally sighed, nodded, and said, "Yes."

So the servants in the Marshal's Mansion became busy. At this time, two women walked in timidly. Gui'er turned her head and saw that it was the biological mother of Miss Zhang Er and Miss Zhang San.

The two men cautiously walked up to Sha Yanxiao and said, "We heard that the Marshal was going to Jiangcheng, so we came here to listen to Young Marshal Hou's orders."

Sha Yanxiao said to them kindly, "The two maids are old and tired from the journey, so you don't need to go. You are the mothers of Miss Zhang Er and Miss Zhang San, and you almost became my mother-in-law. It's fate. I will have the housekeeper arrange your living expenses. You can live here in peace."

The two were very surprised to hear this and stood up to thank him repeatedly. Sha Yanxiao gave Ji Yiru a meaningful look and said, "No need to thank me, this is also my responsibility."

Ji Yiru looked at the two maids with a smile on her face, and the two maids even bowed to her before leaving.

As soon as they left, Ji Yiru came over, hugged Sha Yanxiao and said, "My dear, you look so majestic today."

Gui'er asked, "Brother Yanxiao, why do the Zhang family members seem reluctant to make Sister Sanmei their legitimate wife?"

Ji Yiru said mockingly: "You are so stupid. If Sanmei becomes the legal wife, her son will be the legitimate heir."