A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Dali said to Guier, "Since the young marshal has gone to Fengcheng, I want to go find him too."

Gui'er quickly said, "Brother Dali, could you take me to the Zhenxiu Workshop first? It's so chaotic right now, I'm a little worried about the owner, who is my master after all."

He nodded vigorously and said, "Okay."

So I drove Gui'er to Zhenxiufang. There was nothing unusual on the street, but many shops were indeed closed, with only a small window at the door to pass things out. Some restaurants posted a note at the door asking people to pay first and then eat. People were in a hurry on the road. These people who originally made a living by begging on the roadside were now having a harder time. There were also some people walking slowly on the street, staring at passers-by with their eyes like hungry wolves.

When the car was about to reach Zhenxiufang, it suddenly stopped. Guier looked up and saw two men wearing top hats and black silk gowns who looked like gangsters. One was standing in front of the car blocking it, and the other was standing next to Dali's cockpit, trying to open the door.

Dali yelled, "Damn it!" and pulled a pistol from his waistband, loading it. The two men, upon seeing the pistol, immediately turned and ran away. He turned to Gui'er and said with a wry smile, "Look, these people are specifically looking to rob the wealthy fleeing here. I'm going to Fengcheng, and you absolutely mustn't run out, okay?"

Guier nodded obediently and said, "Okay."

Arriving at the Zhenxiufang, Zhang, the shopkeeper, was surprised to see Gui'er. He said, "My dear, it's already so late, why are you still here? Why don't you just hide at home?"

Gui'er said, "I'm worried about you guys, and the situation in Fengcheng isn't good right now. My brother needs to deal with it over there. I want you to pick up some trauma medicine for me so that this strong man can take it over."

Shopkeeper Zhang agreed and politely said to Dali, "Wait a moment, this master, please come in and sit down."

Normally, Dali would not have entered the house, but the security was bad now and he was very alert, so he nodded and went in.

Shopkeeper Zhang poured him a cup of tea and said to Gui'er, "Come with me to the drugstore over there to get some medicinal powder."

Guier said to Dali, "Brother Dali, I'm going to the pharmacy next door to help get some medicine. Please sit here and wait for a while."

He nodded vigorously.

Gui'er followed Zhang to the pharmacy. She turned around and saw that Dali hadn't followed them. Then she asked, "Any news about Brother Xichen?"

Shopkeeper Zhang shook his head and said, "We've completely lost contact with them, and we can't get through to them. I guess Director Song is going to evacuate them and won't come back until he's ensured the safety of everyone there."

Gui'er nodded and said, "If you have any news about Brother Xichen, could you please give me a call? Then, you can introduce yourself as my classmate, He Ruizhu. If Brother Xichen returns safely, tell them that everything is fine with the class. Then I'll know."

Shopkeeper Zhang nodded and said, "Okay, don't worry, I'll call you as soon as he gets back."

Gui'er asked again, "Are you safe here? I heard prices are skyrocketing outside. Do you have any food reserves?"

Shopkeeper Zhang patted Gui'er's head and said, "Don't worry, we're fine. We have enough food. We even bought some New Year's goods to prepare for the holidays. As for safety." She opened a drawer on the medicine shelf labeled "Ziheche" and pulled out a pistol, shaking it. She smiled and said, "Are you relieved now?"

At this time, Zhang's husband, the owner of the pharmacy, Liu, came over with a packet of something and gave it to Gui'er. He said, "This packet is white medicine. It's very effective in stopping bleeding. Take it."

Gui'er quickly thanked him and was about to pay, but Zhang said, "No need. The young marshal is resisting the invaders and protecting the peace. Consider this as a small token of our appreciation."

After meeting Manager Zhang, Dali drove Guier back to the Marshal's Mansion, and then went to Fengcheng to assist Sha Yanxiao.

After that, Guier never left the house again and turned on the radio every day so that she could listen to the news about the war at any time.

Two days later, the latest news came over the radio: "Dear viewers, now for the latest news, thanks to the mediation of the British and American Consuls General in Shanghai, we and the Japanese have reached an agreement to cease fire for three days."

At dinner that evening, one of the concubines said to the Marshal, "I heard on the radio today that the British and American consuls general mediated for us and said a ceasefire has been reached. Does that mean we don't have to fight anymore, Marshal?"

The Marshal had been largely unseen in the past few days, except for family meals. He frowned and said, "It's only a three-day ceasefire. We don't know what the situation will be like after that. However, given the Japanese's nature, I think we have to continue fighting. I've rarely been home lately, and things on the battlefield are changing rapidly. Don't run around. If the attack really reaches us, follow the Madam and the Young Master and retreat. Understand?"

All the wives, concubines, and children said cautiously, "Yes."

The Marshal stood up and was about to leave when Gui'er quickly stopped him and said, "Father, is there any news about Lily and the others?"

The Marshal paused, sighed, and said, "All contact with Shanghai has been cut off. Let's wait a little longer. If they don't come back, I'll send someone to Shanghai to look for them."

As a result, the next afternoon, the fourth concubine returned to the Marshal's Mansion with her two children, a dozen relatives, including two brothers who worked in the government.

Normally, each department in the Marshal's Mansion would take care of its own business, but now, because of the war, it seemed as if everyone was on the same side. They all came out to greet him, and the Marshal also rushed back from the barracks.

As soon as the fourth concubine saw the Marshal, she rushed forward and hugged him, crying, "Marshal, my mother and I almost didn't make it back."

The Marshal naturally tried to comfort them with kind words. He turned around and looked at his two brothers-in-law, who usually kept their distance from him. This time, they had brought their families to him for refuge. He quickly ordered the kitchen to prepare a large meal for them and said, "The situation in Shanghai is unstable right now. You can rest assured to stay at the Marshal's Mansion. The courtyard of the Fourth Concubine is quite elegant. If it's not enough, I will have the housekeeper arrange a few more rooms for you. However, we have to separate them."

The two brothers-in-law hurriedly thanked him and said, "Yes, yes, brother-in-law, we haven't been here for many years. I didn't expect that it has been expanded so much. It seems that my sister has really enjoyed a lot following you all these years."

This is naturally flattery, but the Marshal also appreciates it.

After they finished eating and returned to the courtyard, Guier couldn't wait to go to the fourth concubine's courtyard to find Sha Lili. She was eager to know the current situation in Shanghai.

Sure enough, before she could say anything, Sha Lili started talking herself: "Oh, you don't know. We didn't dare go out those days. We didn't have much food stored at home. We usually have six dishes and one soup, but during those days we only had four. From time to time, there was a rumbling sound overhead. We didn't dare live upstairs for fear of planes dropping bombs. We all stayed in the rooms on the first floor and even moved the beds to the door to make it easier to escape."

"The cook went out to buy groceries and never came back. Later, we sent our housekeeper out to buy groceries and look for him. We found that he had been shot dead on the street by a machine gun from a Japanese plane. When the housekeeper came back and told us about it, we were trembling with fear. He said that if we met a Japanese soldier on the street, they would shoot him without asking any questions. We thought of sending someone to inform the cook's family, but they didn't dare to go out. We gave them a silver dollar and sent someone to his house. We found that there were six people in his family, but only a grandfather and a child were left. We gave them a bag of millet and five silver dollars as a send-off."

"People from Zhabei, Jiangwan, Wusong, and Zhenru said that almost all the houses, shops, and schools there had been bombed and burned down. Many refugees were displaced and flocked to our non-war zone. We were really scared that the refugees would run out of food and rob and kill people. There was no electricity, no radios, and no newspapers. But one day, someone who had gone out to buy groceries came back and told us they'd heard there was a three-day ceasefire. My uncle seized the opportunity and bought a dozen train tickets with a gold bar, and that's how we escaped."