A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Gui'er smiled and came to Taohua's room. Taohua was sitting inside with an unhappy look on her face. When she saw Gui'er come in, she complained, "Such a big thing happened in your courtyard, and you didn't even tell me."

Gui'er still didn't dare tell her the truth about Sha Yanxiao going to Fengcheng. She just smiled and said, "I didn't know things would change so quickly. I've moved in with my eldest brother and his wife now. I don't have to endure their anger anymore."

Taohua was very surprised when she heard this and said, "How could this be? Isn't my second brother coming back?"

Gui'er said, "I don't know. Anyway, I haven't heard from him since he left. Father wants to let those two families move in, and I can't do anything about it. If I really want to make a fuss, I can only wait for my second brother to come back."

Taohua said worriedly, "Will Second Brother be okay? We all rely on him in this mansion."

Gui Er sighed and said, "He should be fine over there. They are all his people. We just need to be careful with our words and actions in the mansion. No one should bully you here with the Third Concubine."

Taohua nodded and said, "That's right. I went over there and caused such a scene today, but Third Aunt didn't say anything. She just sighed and told me not to cause trouble. The Young Marshal couldn't protect himself, let alone her, who had fallen from favor. That's why I suspected that something had happened to Second Brother."

Gui Er quickly said, "You're being overly suspicious. The scene you caused today hasn't created a feud with the fifth and sixth concubines' children. You still have to study with the teacher together, so will that affect them?"

Taohua said nonchalantly, "Actually, the teacher doesn't teach us anything anymore. We only have one class every morning, which is just about teaching women's virtues and training. He said the Marshal believes that women are virtuous even without talent, as long as they can read books and newspapers. Women who are too smart have bad luck. The children of the fifth and sixth concubines sometimes don't even go."

Gui'er breathed a sigh of relief when she heard this.

After leaving the Third Concubine's place and returning to Sha Yanyao's courtyard, Dingxiang hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Miss, where have you been? Dinner is about to start."

When Gui'er lived with Sha Yanyao, his wife didn't eat with them, so she and Sha Yanyao were quite casual. But now, perhaps because Sha Yanyao had a family, he became more particular. Sha Yanyao and his wife ate together with his wife, and Gui'er had no choice but to say, "Mother eats, brother and sister-in-law eat."

After dinner, Guier went back to her room to do her homework. While she was doing it, Miss Shen came over.

Gui'er quickly stood up. Miss Shen smiled and said, "Guier wasn't this polite before. Why did you become so cautious after moving here this time? Although it's appropriate, it's a bit strange."

Gui'er was stunned for a moment. She thought that Miss Shen was probably quite free here because of her family background. Neither the Madam nor Sha Yanyao had any expectations of her. So she smiled and said, "Actually, I'm still myself. It's just that I can't bring my unruly behavior to Madam no matter what."

Miss Shen smiled and said, "No wonder Mother said you have good etiquette. Then we don't need to be so formal in private."

Guier smiled and nodded.

The next day, Gui'er took Sha Lili's car to school. Sha Lili asked, "Are you used to living with your big brother?"

Gui'er said, "It's okay. Come to think of it, have you noticed that since my eldest brother and his wife got married, they've been interacting less."

Sha Lili snorted and said, "My mother told me to stay away from the main house. That tiger-aunt has a snake heart and a Buddha's mouth. She has no good intentions. Besides, my family has already arranged a partner for me."

Gui Er immediately remembered the blind date she had mentioned in Shanghai, and asked, "Is that the one you mentioned earlier, the one with the wealth?"

Sha Lili nodded helplessly and said, "Yes, my mother told me not to be picky. In this day and age, it's not reliable to seek help from high-ranking officials. Who knows who will rule the world tomorrow? It's better to have money in hand. Besides, his family has transferred their assets overseas as a precaution. Maybe in two years, when I turn fifteen or sixteen, I will get married. You are really pitiful. No one has made plans for you."

"Do you want me to tell my uncle and ask them to keep an eye on you? But you don't have your mother's family to look after you. Now your father's so-called Marshal's Mansion has no weight in the eyes of others. Besides, you are just an adopted daughter, so you can only be a concubine or a second wife. Are you willing?"

Gui'er was startled and quickly waved her hands, saying, "Thank you, I don't plan to get married at all."

Now it was Sha Lili's turn to be shocked. Her eyes widened as she said, "What nonsense! How can a woman not get married? If you don't get married, how will you survive?"

Gui'er was actually startled and accidentally said what was in her heart. But she thought it didn't matter anymore, so she said to her calmly, "Lily, you know if I want to find a partner, I definitely won't be able to find a very good one, so I haven't thought about looking for one. I just want to study hard and have a job that can support myself in the future. Look at Wing On Department Store, aren't there many female clerks? When we went to Shanghai, didn't we see so many companies and banks with many female employees? And schools also hire female teachers."

Sha Lili shook her head and said, "Do you know how many people died in the war in Shanghai a while ago? How many schools were bombed? Making a living isn't as easy as you think. Don't think I don't know how ordinary people survive."

"These are turbulent times. Ordinary people live in fear from day to day. A bomb could easily kill them. Even if they're not immediately in dire straits, how long can their meager salaries sustain them? Do you know how bad the security is out there? How many of those scammers and those dancing in miniskirts in dance halls were originally teachers? Were they bank employees?"

Guier fell silent. She listened to the radio every day, and in fact, it also mentioned how many factories went bankrupt, workers were displaced, and could not make a living. But she still had the thinking of a modern person. She did not want to marry a rich man as a concubine or be a concubine to an old man just to survive.

She sighed and said, "Maybe when I grow up, the world will be better again."

Sha Lili smiled bitterly and said, "You listen to the radio every day, too. The Japanese could attack at any moment, so why are you dreaming of such an unrealistic dream? To be honest, after we get married, I will move to Hong Kong with my husband's family. My brother will also go to Hong Kong with my father-in-law to develop our business. It's British territory, so the Japanese will probably be wary of us. Mother will probably come with us too. She's too lazy to compete for favor now. It's pointless."