A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

After hearing this, the Marshal's face became even gloomier. He neither agreed nor disagreed, but just snorted coldly: "Hmph, let's not talk about this for now. There are not many people in the mansion now, so you have to pay more attention." As he spoke, his eyes unconsciously glanced at Taohua again.

The third concubine was shocked to realize that the Marshal was actually thinking of having an affair.

After the shock, she calmed down and thought for a moment. Taohua and Gui'er were good friends, and Gui'er was Sha Yanxiao's lover. She had also heard from Sanmei that Taohua had hinted that she had a childhood engagement with someone outside, Gui'er's brother. She knew Sha Yanxiao's position in the military and the general's mansion was now comparable to that of the Marshal. If she rashly agreed to the Marshal's request, she would likely offend him and bring herself into trouble.

So, the third concubine decided to play dumb. She put on a smile and said carefully, "The Marshal is in his prime, full of vigor and vitality. He will definitely have a son in the future. Even if I am not good enough, there are still the younger sisters like the seventh and eighth concubines. They serve the Marshal wholeheartedly. As long as the Marshal visits them more often, I believe that good news will come soon."

After hearing this, the Marshal frowned slightly, as if he was not satisfied with the third concubine's answer, but for the sake of face, he was embarrassed to say it too explicitly. After all, taking his adopted daughter as a concubine was such a shameless thing, he still didn't want to say it himself, so he hoped that the third concubine could help him say it.

While they were discussing this, an inconspicuous old maid from the Third Concubine's Courtyard quietly glanced around. Seeing that no one was paying attention, she quietly slipped out and walked quickly towards the Seventh Concubine's Courtyard...

The next day, when Gui'er woke up early, Sha Yanxiao was gone. She asked the people below and they said he had gone out with the Marshal. Gui'er guessed that he must have sent the Marshal to take the train to Shanghai.

She had nothing to do in the hospital, so she decided to go to the pharmacy to help.

Duanmu Heng didn't show up all day today, and Gui'er was very happy. She could finally do her work with ease.

Back at the Marshal's residence in the evening, it was supposed to be dinner with the Marshal, but everyone still came to the main courtyard. The Marshal naturally did not show up, so the housekeeper said, "The Marshal is not feeling well, so he won't be eating. Let everyone eat as they please and then go back to their respective courtyards."

The first, third, fourth, and seventh concubines said nothing, but the fifth and sixth concubines looked around in surprise, asking, "What's going on? Is the Marshal seriously ill? Why isn't he coming out for dinner?" Then they looked around and found that the eighth concubine was not there either. They hurriedly asked the others, "Why is the eighth concubine not here too? Is the Marshal accompanying him? Where did he go without us?"

The other families didn't want to pay any attention to them.

Gui'er also realized that except for their two rooms, all other rooms had received the news. The Marshal's concubines had always been independent, and the Marshal also asked for the matter to be kept secret, so no one was too lazy to tell them.

She herself didn't like the fifth and sixth concubines who were fence-sitters, so she finished her meal quietly and prepared to go back to her own courtyard.

I was walking back while chatting with Taohua.

"Gui'er."

Suddenly someone called her. Gui'er turned around and saw it was the Seventh Concubine. She was holding an instruction manual written in English and said to Gui'er with a smile, "Guier, I heard you are good at English. This is the instruction manual for the imported nutritional supplements I bought from Wing On Department Store. Can you help me take a look?"

Gui'er was a little stunned. She had never had much interaction with the Seventh Concubine, and her presence was very low, as if she wished that no one would notice her. She didn't expect that she would take the initiative to talk to her this time, so she accepted it without thinking too much.

This turned out to be an instruction manual for egg and cod liver oil. It listed the effects, saying that it could replenish calcium, strengthen bones and muscles, and also boost brain power and bone marrow. Gui'er naturally didn't believe it, but she still read the instructions to her.

After listening to her finish reading, the Seventh Concubine smiled and said, "It's good to be able to go out and study. You can understand all these foreign words. Come to my yard more often when you have time."

Gui'er was a little confused, but she still smiled politely and nodded.

The Seventh Concubine turned and left. Taohua said enviously, "If only I had chosen to go out to study. Look how much you know."

Sha Lili walked up and said, "It's just cod liver oil. She knows it by looking at the picture on the bottle. Why does she need you to read it? I think she has finally come to terms with it. She wants to take care of herself and have a child. Otherwise, with her father getting older, she might not be able to have children anymore."

Gui Er learned from Shopkeepers Zhang and Liu that the Seventh Concubine was also forced to become the Marshal's concubine. Feeling that she was a pitiful person, she said, "It's not easy for her either. If she could have a child, her life would have a purpose. Otherwise, it's so depressing to always be stuck in this Marshal's mansion."

Sha Lili nodded and said, "That's true."

Back in Sha Yanxiao's courtyard, the two were sitting in the living room, listening to the radio and chatting, when suddenly the steward came in with an announcement: "The third concubine wants to see you."

Sha Yanxiao and Gui'er were both very surprised. Sha Yanxiao said to the steward, "Please ask her to come in."

Soon, the third concubine came in alone. She looked very embarrassed and said with a smile, "Second Young Master, is Gui'er chatting?"

Sha Yanxiao smiled and said to the steward, "Bring some tea. Please have a seat, Third Concubine."

The third concubine said quickly, a little flattered, "You're welcome, you're welcome, thank you very much."

Gui Er felt very strange. What happened today? First it was the Seventh Concubine, and now it was the Third Concubine. Could it be that something happened in the mansion that she didn't know about?

After serving the tea, the Third Concubine glanced at the steward and the old maid standing nearby, and Sha Yanxiao asked, "Third Concubine, what's the matter with you?"

Sha Yanxiao was relatively polite to the wives in the Marshal's Mansion, calling them mother. The others were just called concubines. However, because he was outstanding in ability and was highly regarded by the Marshal, the Marshal's concubines were all quite polite to him. After all, one day in the future he would take over the Marshal's position and lead the Marshal's Mansion, and their future lives would depend on him.

The Third Wife looked around, seeming to be hesitant to speak. After a while, she finally sighed and said, "It's still about the three beauties. Your father still won't allow it? Second Young Master, the Marshal complained to me a few days ago that the Third Young Master has not been in the Marshal's Mansion since he got married. He said that the male population in the Marshal's Mansion has withered and I am also responsible. Alas, I really have no place to complain. Everyone knows that the Second Young Master is very talented and will definitely surpass him in the future. What can we do? We are just following your father and son's orders. For example, Gui'er, the Marshal said that you can marry Duanmu Heng, can you refuse? It's all up to you, the head of the family, and we are also in a difficult situation, right?"