A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Sha Yanxiao said, "This time, we're not going with our real identities. If we were all men, it would inevitably arouse suspicion, so having a woman is more convenient. It's difficult to find a trustworthy woman who can handle these things right now. It just so happens that my sister is back. She knows Director Shen and his family from beginning to end, and she's smart and clever, so she's the perfect fit."

The Marshal smiled and looked at Gui'er and said, "That's right. Okay, then you all should be careful."

Gui'er said obediently: "Thank you, father. You must take care of yourself. I see that you have lost weight. I am afraid that you are too busy with military and political affairs and your health has been damaged." She wanted to remind the Marshal to quit smoking opium, but she couldn't say it directly, so she could only remind him in this subtle way.

The Marshal glanced at her, smiled, touched her head and said, "Of all my children, Sha Maitian, you're the only one who cares about my health. I've indeed felt a little worse these past two years, but don't worry, your father can still beat the rhythm for another 20 years. It's a pity to marry Young Master Liang. Although he's a bit of a playboy, he has a wealthy family. If you marry him, I will definitely ask Boss Liang to give most of his wealth to this son. You're so capable, it's no problem for you to take over."

Gui'er hadn't expected the Marshal to come up with such an idea. She was a little speechless, but she smiled and said, "I'm sorry to have worried Father. But Young Master Liang did mention that he and his uncle are helping the Nanjing high-ranking officials to deal with foreigners. I don't know what they're doing, it's very strange."

The Marshal listened and said thoughtfully, "Mr. Liang mentioned it to me before, saying something ambiguous, but I ignored him. His brother-in-law has become a traitor in Manchuria. If we talk about dealing with foreign countries, it's just the Japanese. As for Fengcheng and Jiangcheng, I fought hard to conquer them. I developed them into what they are today. More than ten years ago, Jiangcheng had no schools or hospitals. Apart from two undeveloped mines, it was just a small, broken place. Now that I've developed it, they're all like black-eyed chickens, wanting to come over and tear off a piece of fat meat. It's wishful thinking."

As the Marshal was speaking, he began to grit his teeth and slammed his fist on the table, which scared Guier.

Sha Yanxiao said to the Marshal, "Father, you should rest early and we will go back to prepare." Then he took Gui'er and left.

After leaving the compound, Sha Yanxiao sighed and said to Gui'er, "Ever since father got involved with that drug, his temperament has become suspicious and erratic, and his moods have become unstable. Everyone avoids him. Just a few days before you came back, he was with the Seventh Concubine, and for some reason, he suddenly started punching and kicking her. She was seriously injured, with a broken nose and a broken arm. She's still in the hospital."

After hearing what Sha Yanxiao said, Gui'er remembered that on the night she just came back, she didn't see the Seventh Concubine at the dinner party. However, the Seventh Concubine had no children, so she didn't have much presence.

She asked curiously, "Then why did father beat the seventh concubine?" In her impression, the Marshal was domineering and moody, but he was also a very shrewd person who would not do something without reason.

Sha Yanxiao said helplessly, "Father said that the Seventh Concubine wanted to murder him, but we investigated and found nothing like that. We originally thought that the Seventh Concubine was having an affair with someone else, and Father said that out of respect, but after a thorough investigation, we found nothing."

Gui'er suddenly remembered the Marshal's thin face when she first met him, and realized that his temperament might have changed drastically or he might have become suspicious because of his long-term opium smoking.

The Marshal was not a very good person, but among his many children, he treated his adopted daughter Gui'er relatively well. At least he gave her the same monthly allowance. Although it might be because of Sha Yanxiao's face, Gui'er still accepted his kindness.

In addition, the Marshal has been in Jiangcheng for so many years, and his subordinates have fought with him. If something happens to him, the situation in Jiangcheng may change.

She said to Sha Yanxiao, "Second brother, I feel that the reason father is like this now might be related to the same thing he did to Third brother. Isn't there anyone in the mansion who can persuade him?"

Sha Yanxiao was stunned for a moment and said, "You mean opium? He refuses to admit that he still smokes it. Ever since he executed the doctor in the government office last time, he has been claiming to have quit. If anyone says anything, he thinks they are plotting to harm him and seize his territory, so no one dares to say anything. Some of his old subordinates don't know, and some who do know don't dare to say anything. What's worse is that some generals in the army are actually imitating him and smoking it secretly."

Gui Er was shocked when she heard this and said, "That won't do. Decades ago, didn't the Qing Dynasty officers and soldiers learn from this bloody lesson that many of those who took that longevity cream lost their fighting capacity? It's right before our eyes. Brother, you must punish them severely."

Sha Yanxiao nodded and said, "I've already issued a ban, and Dali is secretly investigating in the barracks who is actually getting these people to smoke opium." He smiled, patted Gui'er's head, and said, "I didn't expect a girl like you to know about Qing Dynasty soldiers smoking opium. No wonder father thinks highly of you. But these things are very difficult even for me to handle, so don't worry about it. Go back and prepare. We'll set out tomorrow."

Guier nodded and said, "Okay."

After returning to Sha Yanxiao's courtyard, he asked Dingxiang to help him pack his luggage. He packed two or three simple sets of clothes, some for daily makeup, some for attending banquets, and some less conspicuous jewelry in case of emergency.

Guier knew that the situation in Shanghai was not very clear, so she brought a pen and a pocket pistol with her.

The next morning, early in the morning, Sha Yanxiao called Guier to get up. Acheng drove Sha Yanxiao, Guier, and Dingxiang to Fengcheng to take the train.

When the car left Jiangcheng, Guier felt strange that they had no military vehicle escort on this trip.

She couldn't help but ask Sha Yanxiao: "Brother, are we going out in just one car this time?"

Sha Yanxiao nodded and said, "In order to avoid attracting attention, we won't arrange those guards. When we pass through the mountainous area, we all need to be alert."

Dingxiang whispered in Guier's ear, "Miss, we only have one car. Aren't we afraid of being robbed by bandits when we pass through the mountains?"

Gui'er didn't say anything, but she was also worried in her heart. Every time she took the train, she was escorted by a military vehicle, but this time there was only a car, and she still felt a little uneasy.