A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Sha Yanxiao sneered, "Everyone knows what the Second in Command did back then. The people under him are all criminals. He must have done a lot of bad things outside in recent years. What do I need someone like him for? Besides, when his boss suffered such a disaster, he didn't even return to the mountain to inform him. He ran away on his own. How dare he want to serve under me now?"

Dali said, "I thought so too, but he knows too much. I can only give him a few silver dollars to calm him down first, and..." He paused and said, "He said he has something to tell you about the boss. It's about the boss's illness back then..."

Gui'er sat in the living room waiting anxiously, but she also knew that the matter was of great importance and did not dare to ask rashly.

It was almost lunchtime when Sha Yanxiao and Dali came out.

Sha Yanxiao was walking out while putting on his coat. Under his vest, he was wearing a holster with a gun. Guier knew he was going out again and quickly stood up: "Brother, it's almost time for dinner. Why don't you finish eating before going out?"

Sha Yanxiao walked up and rubbed Gui'er's head vigorously, then said with a smile, "It's okay, I'll be back soon. If you're hungry, you can eat first."

Gui'er knew that he must be going to deal with Feng Laoliu's matter. She really wanted to go with him, thinking that something very important seemed to be involved. But when she saw Sha Yanxiao said that he would definitely not take her with him, she had to give up.

Not long after they left, the housekeeper came over and asked, "The Second Young Master is out. Miss, do you want to eat first, or wait for the Young Master to join you?"

Gui'er thought for a moment and said, "Brother said he'll be back soon, let's wait together."

Sha Yanxiao did return quickly, but he didn't mention anything after his return. He and Gui'er had dinner together as if nothing had happened. Then, as usual, Gui'er was very curious about what happened to Feng Laoliu. But Sha Yanxiao didn't mention it. She felt that he didn't want her to know about it, so she didn't ask.

Two days passed, and the fifteenth day of the first lunar month was getting closer and closer. Gui'er still couldn't think of any way to avoid the engagement. She was frustrated and thought that at worst she could get engaged first, and then find a way to cancel the engagement later. Anyway, there was still some time from engagement to marriage, and if she really couldn't cancel it, she could just run away.

However, she still took the opportunity to go to the Eighth Concubine's courtyard to play and pretended to casually tell the other concubines about Duanmu Heng's visit to the brothel. Who knew that the other concubines looked as if they were not surprised. The Eighth Concubine even laughed and said, "Men are all the same. No matter how righteous they pretend to be on the outside, they are still the same when they take off their clothes. Master Duanmu's family is a family of scholars and they care about their reputation. So he is willing to go to these brothels without telling anyone, which is already a great honor for him."

After hearing this, Gui'er felt speechless and depressed, so she had to think of another way.

Around the tenth day of the first lunar month, people's lives had basically returned to normal. Gui'er went back to work as an apprentice at Liu's Pharmacy. Shopkeeper Zhang asked her, "How are things going with the Duanmu family?"

Gui'er said, "I haven't thought of a solution yet. If nothing works, we can get engaged first. Anyway, I'm going back to Nanjing to study soon. After all, I'm the Marshal's daughter. I can't get engaged to him and get married right away. I have to finish my studies anyway. And I guess the Marshal wants me to get engaged to him just to stabilize the Duanmu family and prevent them from pursuing the issue of not giving the mine to him. I heard from Duanmu Heng that his parents have written to his brother Duanmu Lei to come over. Duanmu Lei is in charge of the mines for the Japanese in Northeast China. If the Marshal is unwilling to give it to me, he will definitely turn against me, and my engagement might be invalidated."

Shopkeeper Zhang frowned and said worriedly, "You said last time that the Marshal agreed to your engagement with the Duanmu family in order to balance the two families so that he could choose between the Japanese and the central government. If that's the case, is it possible that he would hand over the mine to please the Japanese?"

Guier thought about it. She had considered this possibility, but if the mine was handed over, the economic lifeline of Jiangcheng would also be handed over. How could she support the army without money?

She smiled and said, "The Marshal wants to be a fence-sitter just to maintain his rule over Jiangcheng and Fengcheng. If he hands over the mine, he will lose his ruling position in Jiangcheng sooner or later. I don't think he's that stupid."

The two were working and discussing when suddenly, Shopkeeper Liu came over in a panic, holding a tabloid and said to them in a low voice, "Come in for a moment."

When Gui'er and Manager Liu heard his voice change, they quickly put down their work and went to the secret room at the back.

Shopkeeper Zhang said, "What happened? You look so flustered. It's really unpleasant. It'll arouse suspicion."

Shopkeeper Liu anxiously took out a palm-sized newspaper from his pocket, unfolded it, pointed at a photo on it and said, "Look for yourselves."

Guier looked down and saw the photo of a ragged man lying on the ground. He looked a bit like the people who starved to death on the streets. But when she looked more closely, wasn't it Feng Laoliu?

The headline of the newspaper was: A bizarre murder occurred on the outskirts of the city, and the mystery of the gold bars remains to be solved.

Recently, a bizarre murder occurred in a remote suburban area, sparking widespread discussion. A resident passing by spotted a man lying on the roadside. Initially assuming it was a simple fall, they approached and discovered he was carrying several gold bars. The stark contrast between his wealth and his destitute appearance sparked suspicion of murder for money, prompting residents to quickly report the incident to the police.

After an official investigation, the deceased was identified as a runner for Meixiangzhai. His financial situation was precarious, making the value of the gold bars incongruous and puzzling. The autopsy results were even more shocking, revealing the man had been strangled to death, a clear case of brutal murder.

Meixiangzhai, a renowned restaurant in the city, how did its errand boy suddenly become so wealthy and then be murdered? What secrets lie behind this? Is it a vendetta or a financial dispute? The police are now fully investigating and urge anyone with information to report it immediately. Upon verification, a generous reward will be offered. We encourage the public to actively contribute to solving this case, bringing justice to the deceased, and maintaining peace in the area.

Gui'er was shocked. She knew that Sha Yanxiao must have met Feng Laoliu later. Could it be that Sha Yanxiao was afraid that Feng Laoliu would know his past, so he wanted to silence him?

Shopkeeper Liu said, "Gui'er, when we saw the young marshal dragging you away that day, we weren't very happy and were a little worried, so we watched from a distance. We noticed that when you were about to leave the alley, someone came up to you. It was this person, right?"