A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Ever since she found out that Dingxiang might be an undercover agent sent from another academy, Gui'er felt a little unsure about how to get along with her. Fortunately, Dingxiang didn't notice. She just thought Gui'er was in a bad mood recently and asked her, "Miss, you always seem a little unhappy lately. Is there something wrong?"

Gui'er could only force a smile and make up an excuse, saying, "No, it's just that when I went to the party the other day, I saw many rich ladies, all dressed in jewels and precious stones, trying their best to choose their own husbands. I felt a little helpless."

Ding Xiang smiled and comforted her, "Young lady, you've grown up and know how to think about your future. This is a good thing. Although you're a little worse than the other handsome young ladies, you'll live with the Second Young Master. He's interested in you, so you'll always have a good home in the future. Don't worry."

Gui'er was moved and took this opportunity to test Dingxiang, so she asked, "Dingxiang, how old are you this year?"

Ding Xiang was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "I'll be 18 in a few months."

In this era, girls from ordinary families usually started discussing marriages at the age of fifteen or sixteen, and were usually married before the age of 20. Gui'er looked at Dingxiang. Although she wore a servant's cloth gown all day long, she was a personal maid of the young lady and did not have to do any heavy work. She had been growing up in the general's mansion. Even as a servant, she had no shortage of food and clothing. She had rosy lips and white teeth, and a shiny big braid hung behind her head. She was considered pretty among the maids.

Gui'er said, "You're not young anymore, it's time to find a husband. You said before that your family is all at the farm, have they said anything? If there's a good family, please let me know so I can report back and help you find one."

Dingxiang said shyly, "My father and brother are both at the farm and seldom come over once a year. I did see them before the Mid-Autumn Festival when they came to deliver the annual tribute. They said I was getting old and wanted to help me find a husband, but those at the farm are all strong. If I marry into that family, I'll just be a peasant woman. It's better for me to serve the young lady here without being exposed to the sun and rain."

Gui'er was a little confused about what she meant: "Do your father and brother want you to look for someone here? Do you have anyone you like?"

Dingxiang said hesitantly, "How can a girl secretly have affairs with others? We all obey the arrangements of the master's family." She turned around and looked at Gui'er, who looked confused. She coughed lightly and said, "Generally speaking, when a young lady marries into a family, her personal maid will also be married off. She will either become the son-in-law's concubine or be paired with the son-in-law's personal housekeeper."

Gui'er finally understood what Dingxiang was thinking. After Gui'er got married, she could become the brother-in-law's concubine, or at the very least, become the man's personal servant, and become a manager in the future.

In this era, her idea was reasonable, because the personal maid of the eldest wife of the Song family married Mr. Song as his third concubine, but she was not favored and did not even have children.

But Gui'er didn't want to get married at all. She shook her head and stopped thinking about these unnecessary things. The most important thing now was to find out who was behind Dingxiang.

She smiled and said to Dingxiang, "So that's how it is. What you said is indeed true. By the way, you were with Sister Erfeng before. Did she help you with any arrangements?" Guier suddenly remembered that Dingxiang had followed Erfeng and married Marshal Zhang.

Dingxiang was horrified and said, "Although Guixiang and I accompanied the Second Miss to marry, Marshal Zhang has many concubines, so it is not my turn to serve Marshal Zhang yet."

Gui'er thought for a moment and said, "As far as I know, Marshal Zhang only has three concubines, and they are all quite old, over 40 years old. How can you say he has many concubines?"

Dingxiang looked so anxious she was about to cry. She said to Gui'er, "I dare not lie to you, young ladies. It's true that when the three young ladies first got married, Marshal Zhang was like a wolf that had been hungry for half a month. He would ask the young ladies to sleep with him every night, and sometimes he would even bring their maids with him. But because my face was covered with acne at the time, Marshal Zhang found it disgusting, so he never asked me to serve him."

Gui'er felt as if she had accidentally learned a great secret. She patted Dingxiang's shoulder and said, "I know. It's not easy for you either. But you must not tell anyone else about this. After all, Sister Sanmei is now the Marshal's wife. If it gets out, it will be embarrassing."

Ding Xiang nodded and said, "Miss, please rest assured. I know the severity of the situation. In fact, when I saw the three young ladies and the other maids were covered in bruises after serving the Marshal, I actually felt that I was lucky."

Gui'er thought for a moment and then got back to the point. "So, originally, I was supposed to arrange your lifelong event for you. But as you can see, I'm just the adopted daughter of the Marshal's Mansion. I'm not even on the family tree, so I don't know what my future holds. If I had a good life, I certainly wouldn't leave you behind. I'm just worried that they've raised me out of kindness, and when I grow up, if they let me go out and fend for myself, wouldn't you be left wanting? Why not, while I'm still in the mansion and have a say with Second Brother, if you've taken a fancy to someone in charge or a servant, I can ask Second Brother to help you make it happen. Isn't that better than risking a few years waiting in vain?"

Ding Xiang thought about it hesitantly and said, "Yes."

Seeing her expression, Gui Er felt a little sorry for her and said, "It's all because you followed a young lady like me who has no ability. I'm sorry that you've gotten into trouble. If you have someone to talk to, that would be great. If not, I'll tell my brother and ask him to keep an eye out for you and find you a good door."

Ding Xiang quickly said, "Miss, you are too kind. You are already considered very good among the many masters in the mansion."

After she had revealed everything to Dingxiang, Gui'er took the opportunity to tell Sha Yanxiao about it in the car on the way to school. She said, "I expect Dingxiang to secretly meet with the person who ordered her in the next few days. After all, she must be nervous about her lifelong event. I also ask Dali to secretly keep an eye on her. Which room she goes to and who she interacts with. We will naturally know who placed her with me."

After hearing this, Sha Yanxiao and Dali both praised Guier and said that they didn't expect that Guier, at such a young age, could think of using this method to find out who was behind Dingxiang.

Gui'er sighed and said, "Actually, Dingxiang has been very dedicated since she followed me. But if she has someone behind her, I'm still worried. I'm afraid that person might want to harm us one day, so we have to be prepared, right?"

Sha Yanxiao nodded and said, "You've always been thoughtful and attentive, and I didn't expect you to be quite intelligent. But don't worry, I have a rough idea. In our mansion, the only people who can order the servants around are none other than a few people. But it's good to know who they are so we can be on guard in advance."