A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

After finishing the meal and rinsing his mouth with the tea brought by the servant, Sha Yanxiao handed a peeled apple to Gui'er and said, "I'm afraid Ji Yiru is dying."

Gui'er was so frightened that she almost dropped the apple. "Why did it suddenly become like this? Have you called the doctor in the mansion to see it?"

Sha Yanxiao said, "I called her, and she got a prescription and boiled some medicine, but the doctor said the abscess wouldn't go away."

When Gui'er heard this, she felt that it was probably an inflammation of the wound. In this era, there were no antibacterial and anti-inflammatory drugs like penicillin, so it might be troublesome.

Gui'er said, "I'll go see her later." She thought to herself, Ji Yiru is at least her sister-in-law in name. Even though she has hurt her many times, she still has to do things for the sake of face.

Sha Yanxiao shook his head and said, "No need. Although her disease is not contagious, she has been treated for so long that she is so skinny and ugly. It will scare you."

Then he turned around and called the manager and said, "Send a telegram to inform her parents and brothers and see if they want to come over to see her. If they can't afford the fare, we can wire some money over."

The steward said, "Okay, Master."

The next morning, just as Gui'er and Sha Yanxiao were about to leave, the steward from the Madam's courtyard suddenly came over and said to Sha Yanxiao, "The Marshal and Madam know about the Young Madam's affairs. Madam said that the eldest young master is getting engaged in the next two days, and it would be inappropriate to have funerals, so try to postpone it."

Sha Yanxiao gave a bitter smile: "You say that, do you think I'm looking forward to my wife's death?"

The manager was a little embarrassed by his criticism and stood there at a loss as to what to do.

Sha Yanxiao sighed and said to the manager, "Please go back and tell my mother that I've asked the doctor to do his best to treat her. I'll arrange for someone to take her to the hospital and have a foreign doctor take a look."

When the steward heard this, he quickly said, "Madam instructed us not to send her to the hospital. Miss Shen and Madam are in the hospital right now. If they see her, I'm afraid the engagement will have to be postponed."

Sha Yanxiao was stunned for a moment, then said helplessly, "I understand."

After the steward of the Madam's Courtyard left, Sha Yanxiao asked the people below, "Has the telegram been sent?"

The manager said, "I sent it last night, but my in-laws haven't responded yet."

Sha Yanxiao said: "Okay, if there is a reply, call the military camp immediately to tell me." Then he pulled Guier into the car and went out.

Gui'er felt uneasy and asked Sha Yanxiao, "Brother Yanxiao, is my sister-in-law in danger this time? If mother doesn't allow us to see a foreign doctor, will it delay treatment?"

Sha Yanxiao looked at Gui'er deeply and said with a smile, "Guier is so kind. Ji Yiru and I have no feelings for each other for a long time, but considering that we are still husband and wife, I will still save her. But the doctor told me last night that she won't live for a few days. I'm afraid that sending her to the hospital will be enough. It depends on her own fate."

That day, Gui'er was restless even at school. Tong Yujun saw this and thought it was her aunt's problem, which was quite troublesome. She cautiously inquired about it. Gui'er quickly explained to her, "It's not your aunt's problem. My sister-in-law is not in good condition."

Tong Yujun finally felt relieved and asked with concern: "Isn't your sister-in-law the daughter of a very powerful family in Shanghai? She was in a car accident before and she is not getting better now?" She still gave Gui'er face and did not mention the gang directly.

After school that day, Dali wanted to send her to the Zhenxiufang, but Guier said, "Let's not go. Let's go back. My sister-in-law is seriously ill and she's still staying out. I'm afraid others will find out and gossip."

Dali chuckled after hearing this: "Look, how many people have come to see this young lady since the car accident? She is completely unpopular in the mansion. When she was in power, everyone was afraid of her, so they flattered her. Now that she's in trouble, no one comes to step on her. It's all for the sake of the young master. Besides, she has tried to kill you time and time again. The young master has no idea how much he hates her. It's just that he can't do it himself because of his status. Don't say I said that."

Gui'er was very surprised. She thought Sha Yanxiao was in a dilemma, so she said, "I was always worried that Brother Yanxiao would be in trouble because of me."

Dali sighed and said, "There's nothing we can do. We're a wealthy family, and there are so many people out there who want to bring down the Marshal. Who knows how many spies are hiding in our house? You're still young, so the young master naturally can't let you know too much."

When they returned to the mansion, Sha Yanxiao had also returned. Gui'er hurriedly asked him, "How is my sister-in-law? Has her family come over?"

Sha Yanxiao shook his head and said, "Her parents said they are not in good health and cannot come, but they hope that we will return her dowry."

Gui'er didn't expect that her family, who had protected Ji Yiru so much before, would become like this now. Besides, Ji Yiru's dowry was just two big opium dens. Later, the Marshal advocated banning smoking, and in order to set an example, Sha Yanxiao closed them down and gave two farms to Ji Yiru in exchange.

Gui'er asked, "So are we going to give my sister-in-law's two farms to her family now?"

Sha Yanxiao sneered and said, "They don't want the farm, they want an equal amount of money, and they also want to return the property we seized in Shanghai to them."

Gui'er knew that Ji Zhongqing had already died, and the Ji family members were afraid of retaliation from their enemies, so they fled. Sha Yanxiao led his men to seize back part of the Ji family's property. Although they said it was to help Ji Yiru, they actually put it all into the Marshal's pocket. The Marshal immediately ordered the land deeds to be handed over to the treasury, so she said, "What are you going to do, brother?"

Sha Yanxiao said calmly, "I'm afraid they've been accustomed to spending lavishly in the past, and now they've probably squandered all their money. But if we don't give them some, it'll be bad for their reputation. I can talk to my father and give them some money, but I have to give it to them in front of everyone when they come to the funeral, so they don't keep blackmailing us."

Guier thought it made sense.

This was the day to have dinner with the Marshal. At dinner, the Marshal announced that the eldest young master and Miss Shen were getting engaged in two days. He said, "Because Miss Shen is ill, the wedding won't be a big deal. However, the Shen family is a prestigious family, so it will still be held. We just won't invite too many people, and Miss Shen herself might not attend."

After he finished speaking, he looked at Sha Yanxiao and said, "No accidents can happen in the next two days, so as to avoid any changes in the engagement."

Everyone in the room was looking at Sha Yanxiao. Gui'er had originally thought that only the Marshal and his wife knew about Ji Yiru's affairs, but it seemed that the entire Marshal's Mansion knew about it.

Sha Yanxiao nodded and said, "Don't worry, father."

Gui'er suddenly felt that although the Marshal valued Sha Yanxiao, he should still favor his eldest son in his heart. Otherwise, he would not let his youngest son marry an arrogant and unruly gangster's daughter, but marry his eldest son with the daughter of a central government official. What's more, Miss Shen was far superior to Ji Yiru in appearance and knowledge.