A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Miss Tian and Gui'er walked in. The actors who were taking off their makeup or had already taken off their makeup, as well as those who were surrounding the actress to support her, all looked at them.

Gui'er felt very uncomfortable. At this time, a fat man in his forties or fifties who looked like a foreman came out and bowed to Miss Tian and said, "Ladies, we have finished watching the show. Do you have any suggestions?"

Miss Tian ignored him and walked straight to the actress, saying with a smile: "You are Boss Jin, my last name is Tian, I just saw you singing well in the audience, so this is a reward for you." Then she took out a small yellow croaker, and in front of the stunned eyes of everyone, even Gui'er, she took Boss Jin's hand and stuffed the gold bar into his hand.

Then he turned around and walked out. Gui'er was stunned for a moment before she reacted and hurriedly ran to follow him.

After leaving the theater, Gui'er asked Miss Tian, "Sister Xiuwen, we've already paid for the theater, why should we spend so much money to reward him?"

Miss Tian smiled, tapped Gui'er's nose and said, "You're a child, you don't understand. This is called supporting an actor, it's a very elegant thing."

Guier thought that the Tian family must have extorted a lot of money, otherwise how could Miss Tian be so generous in supporting such an actor?

Miss Tian sighed in boredom and said, "It's very boring. Does Guier know of any places that are not boring?"

Gui'er was thinking about how to find an excuse to find Song Xichen, but she didn't want her intentions to be too obvious, so she looked around.

Suddenly I saw a familiar figure across the street. It was Shopkeeper Zhang. She was hurriedly holding a bag of things and walked into an alley.

"Guier, Guier, what's wrong with you? Did you see someone you know?" Miss Tian asked.

Gui'er quickly said, "No, I remembered there are a few local snacks in that alley. They're pretty good. Should we go try them?"

Miss Tian's interest piqued, and the two of them headed toward the alley Zhang had just walked through. The houses in the alley were closely connected, and the place was rather dim. The sunlight seemed to be intercepted by the towering buildings on either side, only a few stinging rays of light could be found, casting a mottled shadow on the ground. The alley was narrow, paved with bluestone slabs. Some of the slabs had been slightly dented by time and the foot traffic, leaving shallow puddles.

The streets are lined with houses inhabited by impoverished locals. While not old, they exude a sense of rusticity and humbleness. The doors and windows are simple, some covered with slightly yellowed paper that rustles in the wind. Many homes use their first floors as storefronts, either for rent or personal use, but they are extremely small, incomparable to the former Zhenxiufang.

Guier saw Zhang walk into one of the narrow shops and took Miss Tian to a dessert shop across the street. They ordered two bowls of sesame paste, a small plate of red bean paste rolls and pan-fried buns. Miss Tian took a bite and said in surprise, "It tastes really good."

Gui'er agreed with a smile, feigning a casual glance at the shop across the street. She saw that the shopkeepers Zhang and Liu had rented was extremely narrow, with a small medicine shop on one side and an embroidery workshop on the other. It was much smaller than the old Zhen Embroidery Workshop, and had two small gatehouses separated.

Shopkeeper Liu, still limping but a bit heavier, was dragging his legs around the shop, taking the pulses and treating the patients who came seeking medical advice. He was so focused, beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

Shopkeeper Zhang's hair had turned gray, and his clothes were much older than before. He used to wear silk cheongsams, but now he wore homespun gowns and jackets. He was bustling back and forth between the embroidery workshop and the pharmacy, completely occupied. There were no shop assistants in the shop; only the couple was busy running around. Shopkeeper Zhang, in particular, had to juggle the embroidery workshop's needlework while also helping Shopkeeper Liu, handing out medicine and tending to patients.

Gui'er felt a pang of sadness as she watched this scene. She wanted to go over and greet them, but Miss Tian was right beside her, so she had to suppress the urge for fear of arousing suspicion.

Miss Tian was eating dessert and didn't seem to pay much attention to anything around her. She only occasionally complained that the alley was a bit dark.

After finishing the dessert, the two went back. They didn't see Song Xichen, but unexpectedly ran into Shopkeeper Zhang and Shopkeeper Liu. Gui'er felt very upset and was listless all day.

In the evening, when Sha Yanxiao returned home from the military camp to pick her up for a banquet, he noticed this and asked, "I heard Miss Tian took you out to play today. What happened? Didn't you have a good time?"

Gui'er thought for a moment, then said to Sha Yanxiao, "Brother Yanxiao, didn't I tell you before that I still wanted to study medicine with Shopkeeper Liu? I was thinking of visiting them these past couple of days, but today while shopping with Miss Tian, I stumbled upon their newly moved shop. It's so small and cramped, and Shopkeeper Liu's leg is broken. I felt really bad. It's not like Director Zhou was trying to blackmail you, Big Brother. Shopkeeper Liu shouldn't have to suffer like this."

Sha Yanxiao sighed and said, "It's just bad luck that he went to a store next to the Communist Party stronghold to buy goods. Do you want to help him?"

Guier said uncomfortably, "I want to help, but I don't know how."

Sha Yanxiao comforted her, saying, "Let's go to the banquet first, and then think about it slowly when we get back. Tonight is a big occasion, and you should wear something nice so that everyone can see how beautiful our Gui'er has become."

Guier chose the osmanthus silk cheongsam that Sha Yanxiao had just made for her at Yunshang Tower, and paired it with the jewelry she had picked out before. After putting them on and looking in the mirror, she felt like a completely different person.

Ding Xiang was yelling beside her: "Miss, you are so beautiful, even prettier than Miss Lily."

Guier smiled and said, "It's because the clothes are beautiful. Clothes make the man." In fact, she never wanted to stand out too much. She felt that in troubled times, beauty would sometimes bring disaster.

When she came downstairs, Sha Yanxiao and Dali, who were waiting in the living room, turned around and were stunned for a moment. Dali blurted out, "I didn't expect such a little girl to grow up to be such a beauty."

Sha Yanxiao coughed and quickly shrank his neck: "I'll go drive." Then he slipped away.

Sha Yanxiao looked at Gui'er with admiration and said, "This outfit looks really good on you, little sister."

Gui Er said a little worriedly, "The current situation is not good. Isn't the chairman promoting the New Life Movement? I think it's not a good idea to wear something too extravagant."

Sha Yanxiao laughed out loud: "What a bullshit new life! His own wife is so extravagant, but ordinary people don't know it. Let's go."

Gui'er followed Sha Yanxiao to the banquet hall of the Yong'an Hotel. The hall was magnificent, with crystal chandeliers casting a soft glow. Valuable oil paintings hung on the walls, and heavy red velvet curtains accentuated the luxury.

The guests were dressed in gorgeous attire, the men in neat suits or long gowns and jackets, the women in exquisite cheongsams and adorned with jewels. They chatted and laughed, their champagne glasses clinking against each other.

The waiters were dressed in uniform, black uniforms with white gloves, and moved around in a well-trained manner.