A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

The eldest young master brought Gui'er to his courtyard and told her, "This is my house." Gui'er then discovered that the Song family was divided into several courtyards. The master and the mistress had a courtyard, and each young master and young lady also had a courtyard. Each courtyard had a small garden and a small villa, as well as servants dedicated to this courtyard. The eldest young master's courtyard had an old nanny and two servants, one of whom was Dagang who brought them here.

Gui'er's arrival surprised the servants in the eldest young master's house. His wife had previously expressed her displeasure at the young master's lack of servants and suggested sending a few maids, but he had refused. Now, he brought back a little girl. The eldest young master said to them, "Guier is too young. Don't let her do any heavy work. Just tidy up things in my room." He also specifically instructed the maid, "Madam Wu, go get her some daily necessities and clothes."

Wu Ma quickly and respectfully agreed. The eldest young master then said, "She's so young, there's no need for her to live so far away from the servants' quarters. There's a small room next to my study that's empty. You can just let her live there."

When the eldest young master said this, Gui'er saw the strange expressions on everyone's faces. Wu Ma hesitated and said, "Well, the young master's room is..." She was interrupted by the eldest young master halfway through. The eldest young master said, "That's it." Wu Ma and the others had no choice but to say, "Yes."

After arranging these things, the young master left with his two servants, leaving Gui'er standing there blankly. Wu Ma sighed and said to Gui'er, "Come with me." She then led her into the small house. The decoration of this small house was basically the same style as the hall, but not as luxurious. The small house had a hall, a reception room, a study, a bedroom, and even a separate bathroom.

Gui'er was secretly surprised: It was a good thing that I didn't go to the orphanage and chose to stay here. If I had gone to the orphanage, some of the infrastructure in this old era would not have kept up. Here is a wealthy family, and the living standard is not much different from the modern one. At least I don't have to suffer so much.

"Gui'er, Gui'er" Wu Ma called out twice before she pulled Gui'er back from her thoughts.

Seeing Gui'er's dull demeanor and slow reaction, Wu Ma was a little dissatisfied and said sternly, "Guier, this is the eldest young master's room. You need to be smart and cautious in what you do. Be alert and vigilant."

Guier quickly agreed, "Yes."

Aunt Wu took her to a small room next to the study and said, "This is your room. I see that you have a wound on your head, so you can rest here for a while." After that, she left.

Guier looked around the small room. Although it was called a small room, it was actually about 10 square meters. There was a bed, a desk and a chair. The room was on the second floor. There was a window that could see all the places in the courtyard on the first floor. The lighting was also good. Guier was very satisfied.

She stood blankly in the small room for about ten minutes. Only when she realized how quiet it was around her did she come to her senses. She went out and looked around, only to find that there was no one in the young master's courtyard. It was already noon. She had been called to see the master and his wife early in the morning and hadn't eaten anything. She was starving now. She looked back at her room and found no pillows or bedding. Thinking about Wu Ma's attitude just now, it seemed that she didn't like her very much and probably wouldn't arrange these things for her. So she walked out of the young master's courtyard and walked through the corridors and aisles based on her memory. After many twists and turns, she returned to the big barrel bed room where she slept yesterday. She wanted to take the pillows and bedding she used last night and see if she could find something to eat.

As soon as I arrived at the dormitory room, I ran into Taohua and Zhang Ma. Zhang Ma touched their heads and said with a smile, "You two are so lucky. You both became the personal maids of the young master and the young lady. You must serve them well in the future." The two quickly agreed.

Gui'er explained her purpose, and Aunt Zhang smiled and said, "This Aunt Wu is the young master and young lady's wet nurse. She has a bit of a bad temper, but don't worry about it. The kitchen is behind here, and we servants usually eat here. You two can come over when you eat, but you have to wait until the young master and young lady have finished eating before you come over. I'll save it for you."

Seeing how easy it was for Zhang Ma to talk to, Gui Er quickly said, "Thank you so much, Zhang Ma. Tao Hua and I are both country girls from the countryside. We don't know a lot of the rules, and this is a wealthy family. Please teach us, Zhang Ma."

Aunt Zhang was stunned for a moment and said, "You are quite clever, girl. No wonder the young master likes you. Well, let me tell you something. Our Song family is one of the most powerful families in Jiangcheng. Master Song's ancestors were high officials in the previous dynasty, and our master's generation has accumulated countless assets. We have orchards, fields, and farms in the countryside. In town, we have pawnshops, teahouses, grain stores, and banks. We even have branches in many other cities."

Taohua seemed to understand what was said, so she could only smile foolishly. Guier, however, understood everything. With assets like the Song family, they would be a big capitalist even in modern times. However, she could not show it, so she just imitated Taohua and smiled foolishly.

Aunt Zhang glanced at them and smiled. "You kids don't understand anyway. All you need to know is that we're the richest family in this city. Let me tell you about the masters of our family. The most important master in our family is definitely Master Song. Our master's name is Song Shichang. He's a very famous figure in Jiangcheng. He's quite resourceful. When he was young, he knew that the world was not peaceful. He didn't become an official, but instead used his family's connections to go into business, earning such a large family fortune. Now he has connections in both official and business circles. He has three wives and concubines. The one you met this morning was the mistress of the main house, Wang Wenhui, the daughter of another major family in this city. He also has two other wives and concubines. The second wife is He Xiufang, a classmate of the master when he was studying away from home. Because her family was only a small family, she could only be the second wife. The third wife is Chunhong. She was originally a servant in the family. She was lucky enough to become the master's concubine when he was young. She was promoted to concubine after the master married his wife."

Gui'er was secretly shocked. It was indeed the old society where having three wives and four concubines was normal. She turned to see Taohua's reaction, but found her expression calm. If she thought about it, it was true. She should have been used to this environment since she was a child.

Aunt Zhang took a sip of water and continued, "There aren't many children in our Master Song's family, just two sons and one daughter. The eldest young master and the young lady were both born to the eldest wife, and they are the two you two will serve. The eldest young master is called Song Xichen, and he is 28 years old this year. Logically, he could have married a long time ago, but no matter whether the master and his wife found a suitable match for him, whether it was a wealthy family or a lady from a scholarly family, he didn't like any of them. The master scolded him for being a playboy, saying that he was used to being a playboy outside and couldn't settle down, so he simply ignored him. The young master also went to a big city in another province to study and make his way around. After returning, he was invited to be the chief of the police station, which is considered an official of some size in the local area. The eldest young master is very dedicated to his job. He is busy suppressing bandits and solving cases, and he is away from home all day. However, what he does is widely praised by the people and it can be considered a benefit to the area."

Taohua said impatiently, "What about our young lady?"

Aunt Zhang said slowly, "Why are you in such a hurry? Our daughter is called Song Tingting, she's 16 years old this year, and she's the apple of our family's eye. Many people came to us to propose marriage to her. But she's already been chosen, but the other party's young master is studying abroad and won't be back for four years. When he comes back, it will be the daughter's wedding day."

Gui Er suddenly remembered that there was a second young master and asked, "What about the second young master?"

Aunt Zhang looked around and, seeing no one was around, said, "This second young master was born to the Second Madam, but he's been raised under the First Madam's name since he was little. His name is Song Xilun, and he's 24 now. It's time for him to get married, but the First Madam said the eldest son hasn't married yet, so how can the second son get married first? So, there's been no movement, and he's currently learning the business from the Master."

As soon as Gui'er heard it, she smelled the scent of a struggle among wealthy families, but this was not the most important thing for her at the moment. The most important thing was to survive.

Gui Er bowed to Aunt Zhang and said, "Thank you for telling us all this, Aunt Zhang. Taohua and I are young and ignorant, and we're new here, so please take good care of us in the future."

Aunt Zhang waved her hands repeatedly and said, "No need for such a grand ceremony. From now on, you will be the young lady's personal maids. I will need your care in the future."

Guier finally understood why Aunt Zhang was willing to reveal so much to these two little girls she had just met. It turned out she wanted to build a good relationship first. She smiled and said, "Aunt Zhang is so kind to us sisters. We will definitely repay her in the future. However, we are just children now and don't understand many things. If there is anything we don't do well, we hope Aunt Zhang can give us more advice."

Aunt Zhang looked at Gui'er and couldn't help but sigh: "No wonder the young master likes you. Despite your young age, you are calm and experienced."