A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

The two walked out sleepily. Ah Cheng was standing outside the gate of the building. When he saw Gui'er coming out, he quickly called a rickshaw and took the two of them back to Sha Mansion.

After returning to the mansion, the lady and Sha Yanyao hurriedly asked the captain what he had asked.

Gui'er told the truth, and Sha Yanyao said with a smile: "You have worked hard, go and have a rest."

Song Tingting suddenly said, "Now that Director Zhou is dead, shouldn't Jinbao go home?"

Jinbao was stunned and looked at Guier helplessly.

Gui'er said, "Jinbao and I are like sisters. Besides, both her parents are dead, and she has nowhere to go. Where are you going to let her go? The action leader just finished questioning her, and if we let Jinbao leave our home now, people will think we have some secret."

Song Tingting didn't say anything else.

In the evening, as soon as Gui'er returned to her room, Jinbao came over.

As soon as he entered the house, Jinbao knelt down on his knees. Guier was startled and said, "What are you doing? Get up quickly."

Jinbao said, "Ever since my mother passed away, I've been living in hell. I've only lived like a normal person for two days. I really don't want to go back. Please redeem me. I'll work like a slave for you and pay you whatever you want."

Gui'er quickly said, "Don't worry, I won't let you go back. It's just that the matter with Director Zhou hasn't been resolved yet, so I can't do anything too ostentatious to avoid arousing suspicion. Once this matter is resolved, I will arrange to redeem you."

Jinbao felt relieved after hearing this. Guier comforted her again and let her go back to rest.

When I went to school the next day, Zhou Huifang was already there, and a group of classmates immediately surrounded her with concern.

Guier asked, "Is everything okay at home?"

Zhou Huifang smiled and said to everyone, "Everything is fine. The adults have arranged everything at home, so my mother still let me come back to school."

The students comforted each other again and then returned to their seats.

After all the classmates had left, Guier and Zhou Huifang also came to the playground for a walk.

Zhou Huifang said: "Although I knew my uncle was not a good person and was very strict with his family, I never expected him to pass away like this, and in such an undignified way. I really don't know how to explain it."

Gui'er looked at her and said, "When a person dies, it's like a light goes out. Now that he's gone, everything is over. The remaining things are for the living to handle. Is his family all right?"

Zhou Huifang said, "My aunt doesn't seem to be sad at all, but she's only been married to my uncle for a year. I heard there's a property dispute, and my uncle has almost taken away most of her dowry. She was already planning a divorce, but now it's over, and she can even get a little inheritance."

"My uncle was such a playboy. Besides my cousin, he had no other children at home. But as soon as he died, several women came to the house, dragging their children with them, demanding money. They said they were my uncle's children, and we had no idea. Of course, we didn't dare give them any money. So, they started crying and making a scene at home. My father and several uncles were terrified, afraid that word would get out. Finally, they opened my uncle's safe and found some money. They took out some and gave it away, and the situation finally calmed down. But because they found a slightly larger number of gold bars, the dispute has now turned into a fight between my father and several uncles. Alas."

Gui'er knew that Director Zhou's gold bars might contain some gold given by the Sha family, but there was no way to get them back in the current situation. She only hoped to rescue Manager Liu and Song Xichen.

She said to Zhou Huifang, "Don't worry about the adults' affairs. Once the funeral is over, everything will return to normal. If your cousin or aunt needs anything, you can lend a hand. But I think Teacher Zhang Yunchu is a strong person, so he should be fine."

Zhou Huifang said, "That's right. That's why she keeps saying that my uncle took her dowry. But now that the estate has been divided, she must have gotten more. They're still arguing about how the estate is divided. I'm really worried that starting the memorial service tomorrow will make people laugh."

These are all family affairs of the Zhou family, so Gui'er is not in a position to say more.

After school, Sha Yanyao returned to the Sha Mansion and said to his wife during dinner, "I heard the new director's surname is Tian. I don't know where he came from. Should we try to win him over in advance?"

The wife said, "You could ask Director Wang. He's your brother-in-law after all. If he has some influence, ask him to be flexible. The whole conspiracy allegation was fabricated by Director Zhou, who has already extorted so much money from us. Let Director Tian settle this case."

Sha Yanyao said, "I've asked around. They say he was transferred from a local position and has no political achievements, but he has strong connections with people above him. He's said to be an acquaintance of the chairman's family. His backing is undeniable. I'm worried about what to do."

Gui'er interrupted, "My classmate Zhou Huifang said that their family is planning to hold a memorial service tomorrow. Why don't we go? We might even run into Director Tian."

Sha Yanyao nodded and said, "Okay, then you can come with us tomorrow."

The next day, the whole family of Shafu came to the mourning hall to pay their respects. As soon as they arrived outside the mourning hall, many people gathered there. There were also many people who had pretended to be vendors outside Shafu setting up surveillance around the mourning hall.

Guier then remembered that the small vendors surrounding the Sha Mansion were no longer there.

"Hey, have you heard? There was no one in that coffin, just a set of clothes. It was blown to pieces, blood and flesh everywhere. There wasn't even a human figure left, just a pile of flesh. And there were three people in it, it was impossible to tell who was who."

"I've heard about it too. It's all because Director Zhou is such a bad person. He only cares about making money and is lustful. He bullies men and women. He's offended too many people and ended up like this. It's really pitiful. The two brothers who followed him are so unlucky."

"I heard there was a rumor that the explosion was caused by the Communists. Director Zhou has always been a member of the Communist Party and would rather kill 100 people by mistake than let one go. So he angered the Communists."

"I don't think so. The Communist Party still has rules and regulations when doing things. They don't hurt civilians. Look at this time, several passers-by were killed or injured. This doesn't seem like their style."

"But apart from the Communist Party, who else would be so arrogant? They even dare to kill high-ranking government officials?"

"What's so hard to guess? Gangsters, bandits, warlords. I heard that Director Zhou is extorting money from people everywhere. If you don't pay, he will accuse you of collaborating with the Communist Party. I guess he must have offended a ruthless person this time."