A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

After bandaging the wound, Sha Yanxiao took Gui'er back to his yard. Seeing that Gui'er had not eaten anything in the evening, he asked the kitchen to make a bowl of fish porridge.

Gui'er was also hungry, so she didn't care about anything else and started to eat voraciously. Sha Yanxiao sat next to her and watched her eat.

At this time, the Marshal arrived. He walked in and said to Sha Yanxiao, "Son, given the current situation, do you think we should send your three sisters over there tomorrow?"

The Marshal was informed that Sha Yanxiao was a subordinate of Lord Long. The Marshal stroked his beard and said, "I see. That's none of Marshal Zhang's business then. Let's send your three sisters over tomorrow as planned. But you have to be careful. I'll send more people with you."

Then he said to Gui'er kindly, "Guier, have a good rest. If you need anything in the next two days, please tell the government."

Gui'er quickly said, "Thank you, Marshal."

Sha Yanxiao set off early the next morning, and everyone in the mansion came out to see him off.

Only then did Gui'er see the three brides. Yiman and Erfeng wore custom-made Yunshanglou wedding gowns by Sha Yanxiao. They were indeed exquisite and luxurious. Sanmei's gown was made by the Third Concubine, so it was a bit simpler. However, Sanmei's dowry was larger than her two sisters'. Each young lady came with a maid, while Sanmei had two, plus an old maid assigned to her by the Third Concubine. It was indeed different to have a mother and not have one.

After seeing Sha Yanxiao off, Guier wanted to go to school, so she asked Sha Lili when she would leave for school?

When the Marshal heard this, he said to her, "You're already injured. It doesn't matter whether you go to school or not. Just rest at home for a few days first."

Guier said, "I just hurt my ear. It won't affect my class."

She really wanted to go. She used to think that as an adult, she would have no problem learning the primary school curriculum of the old society. However, after actually going to school, she found that what was taught was still different from what is learned modernly. For example, abacus. When she was young, she had taken an interest class and learned it for a while, but now she has forgotten it all.

Moreover, in this era, there were neither computers nor calculators, and all account calculations were done with an abacus. She felt that she had to learn it well, because in the future, whether she was a clerk, a female employee, a bookkeeper, or a shopkeeper, she would need to know how to use an abacus.

Although Gui'er had never seen a female accountant, she had heard from other classmates that big cities like Shanghai were already hiring female accountants. Gui'er planned to move to a big city when she grew up, if there weren't enough career options locally. Before that, she had to learn her skills well.

Seeing that she insisted on going to school, the Marshal said, "Okay, go back to your room and rest. I'll ask someone to help you make arrangements."

Not long after returning to the Marshal's courtyard, Gui'er saw the principal of her school coming in a car, sweating profusely.

After getting out of the car, the principal bowed deeply to Butler Zhang, who had come with Gui'er to greet him, and said, "Hello, Marshal Sha. I am the principal of St. Mary's College, and I have come here to teach Miss Gui'er at your request."

Gui'er and Butler Zhang were both embarrassed. Butler Zhang quickly said, "Principal, you're mistaken. I'm just the butler here."

The principal's face flushed and paled when he heard this. To ease the awkwardness, Gui'er quickly said, "Principal, you've come all the way here. You've worked hard. Please come in and rest for a while. I'd also like to trouble Butler Zhang to pour me a cup of tea."

Butler Zhang agreed and went to pour tea. Seeing how respected he was, the principal felt a little better. He adjusted himself and said to Gui'er with a kind smile, "Student Gui'er, the Marshal asked me to come here and teach you the lessons you missed before your injury heals. Please take out your books."

Guier was stunned the next day and felt very bad. She said, "Why did we bother the principal to come all the way here?"

The principal waved his hand and said, "It's okay. I've asked your teachers. You have excellent grades in all subjects. It wouldn't be good if you missed out on classes because of your injury."

After a pause, the principal said hesitantly, "Yes, yes, you see I'm here too. When we're done with class, can you take me to see the Marshal?"

Guier immediately understood that the Marshal was the actual ruler of this area, and the principal probably wanted to curry favor with the powerful and gain some benefits.

But she herself might not be able to see the Marshal whenever she wanted to, so how could she introduce him? Just when she was feeling a little embarrassed, the principal quickly said, "It's okay, it's okay. I know the Marshal is very busy. It's the same even if we have the chance to meet again in the future. Let's go to class first."

Gui'er breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this.

So the two of them started teaching. It must be said that the principal's professional level was quite good. He explained things in a simpler and easier way than the teacher, and he also had a great sense of humor. In the whole morning, he taught: Chinese, mathematics, history, and abacus.

It was almost noon and Gui'er was practicing with an abacus under the guidance of the principal.

The lady came suddenly, and with her came the concubines, and behind them were the maids and servants from the guest rooms, a huge crowd of people.

Gui'er quickly stood up, and Housekeeper Zhang was so flustered that he quickly called all the servants out to greet her. When the principal heard that this was the Marshal's wife, he quickly straightened his gown, bowed deeply, and said, "Greetings, Madam. I am the principal of St. Mary's Girls' College, and I have come here at the Marshal's request to teach Miss Gui'er."

The lady's frosty face showed a hint of a smile, and she said, "Thank you for your hard work, Principal. How is Gui'er doing in school?"

The principal quickly said, "Miss Guier is very talented and studies very hard. She is an excellent student."

"Oh? Then let me test you." He picked up Guier's textbook, turned to the back of the textbook where there were questions that had not been explained before, and asked Guier to calculate the answer using an abacus.

Sweat broke out on the principal's forehead.

Fortunately, Gui'er had learned it before she traveled through time, and now she reviewed some basics. She set the abacus in place and started dialing. After a while, she figured out the answer and told her wife.

The lady smiled, this time for a longer time, and said, "It seems that you are indeed a studious child. You are injured, so I brought some things for you."

Then she glanced at her maid, and the maids of the mistress and the concubines placed the things in their hands on the table. Guier took a look and saw ginseng, fish maw, deer antlers, and other precious medicinal materials, as well as silk clothes, handkerchiefs, pillows, etc.

The principal watched in astonishment. Gui'er was not only secretly surprised, but also at a loss as to what to do. In her heart, she didn't want to accept these things, fearing that they would be implicated. But if she didn't accept them, she was also worried about what the mistress would think. Not to mention the mistress, if any of the concubines wanted to do something bad, she would be in big trouble now that Sha Yanxiao was gone.

Just when she didn't know what to do, Butler Zhang stepped forward and said, "Thank you, Madam. I'll put these things into the warehouse for Gui'er."

Seeing that things had come to this, Gui'er bowed deeply and said, "Thank you, Madam, and all the aunts for your care. Gui'er is very grateful."

The lady was very satisfied with her reaction and said with a smile, "Then you can have a good rest." Then she left with a group of people.