A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Guier divided the things she bought into two parts and gave one to each family.

He said to Taohua and Miss Zhang, "I see you're both malnourished. Are you eating too frugally? One of you is pregnant, and the other is breastfeeding. You can't skimp on food right now."

Taohua sighed and said, "It's not that I want to save money, but the market is bad right now. The market is not stable, and there are not many people making furniture. I used to be able to make some embroidery to help out, but now I can't get any work. You should have met Shopkeeper Zhang, right? Her embroidery workshop is almost bankrupt, and there are rumors everywhere that the Japanese are going to attack. How can I not save some money just in case?"

Gui'er sighed and said, "So you have no income at all now?"

Wu Dafu said, "Not really. My second brother and I go to the docks and carry bags when we have nothing to do, so we earn a few cents. We have a little savings, but we don't know when things will get better, so we're all tightening our belts."

At this time, one of Miss Zhang Si's concubines came over with tea and said with a smile, "Miss, have some tea. This is good tea. It's the dowry that Miss Taohua brought."

Gui Er quickly said, "Thank you, Auntie." Noticing there was only one Auntie, she asked, "Where's the other Auntie? Why hasn't she come out?"

Miss Zhang Si said with red eyes, "She's gone. When she was in Fengcheng, she always had stomachaches. She had always endured them, but the pain became unbearable, so she secretly got some opium and made tea. At that time, I happened to be giving birth to my second child, and I was so busy that I didn't notice she was feeling unwell. Then one morning, I found she hadn't gotten up, so I went to call her, but she was already gone."

Gui Er was deeply moved after hearing this and said, "Such a big thing, and you didn't even inform me. Even if you didn't inform me, you should have informed Second Brother. Auntie is an old friend of Marshal Zhang, and he wouldn't neglect her. How are the funeral arrangements going?"

Everyone else lowered their heads in silence. Auntie smiled and said, "I told them not to tell anyone and to bury us like ordinary people. When we were young, we were sent by our families to serve as concubines to Marshal Zhang to please him. We have resentment towards our natal families. We have no feelings for Marshal Zhang at all. We don't want to return to our natal family, nor do we want to be buried with him. Now everything is fine. I've already told them that when I'm gone, they should bury me and this old sister together, so we'll have company."

Since she said so, Gui'er didn't want to force it, so she smiled and said, "Auntie, you are quite open-minded, but please take care of your health. An old man in the family is like a treasure. They are all young people, and they still need an elder to be the backbone."

Wu Dafu also said quickly: "That's right, I often tell my aunt to take care of herself. We have been without a mother since we were young, and we have always treated her as our mother. If we become rich in the future, we can still be filial to her."

When my aunt heard this, she smiled with joy, and the atmosphere became much more lively.

"Master Dahua, Master Dahua, are you there?"

Suddenly, someone called Wu Dahua in the yard.

"Hey, you're here." Wu Dahua thought it was a guest and hurried out to greet him.

Guier turned her head and saw a woman in her 3s wearing a bright red gown, a forehead bandage, and three-inch golden lotus feet. She was plump and had a rosy face.

"Isn't that the matchmaker Zhao? What is she doing here?" Taohua said curiously.

The matchmaker was seen greeting Wu Dahua while keeping her eyes on the living room and walking slowly in small steps.

"Oh, Dahua, your family is so blessed. Not long ago, you married a daughter from a wealthy family, and she got pregnant right away. Now, another good match has come your way."

Wu Dahua was an honest man, and he couldn't make out the words. He smiled and said, "Aunt Zhao, you must be joking. My son has just learned to walk, and it's far from time for him to get married. No one in the family wants to act as a matchmaker."

"Haha, are you still teasing me? When your brother got married, and when you had a child, didn't your family always have a girl who looked like a rich lady? I just saw her, and she's here again now. She should be in your living room, right? Whose family is she from? She's really pretty, even prettier than your brother's wife. I know a lot of wealthy people in this city, so I wouldn't take the initiative to introduce ordinary girls to her. But this girl looks very smart and charming to me, and she really suits my taste. Is she married? Or I can find a match for her. I have several talented young men on hand."

"Oh, you are talking about my sister, but she has been adopted since she was a child. Her adoptive parents are rich, so they will help her out occasionally. I'm afraid we can't decide on her marriage." Wu Dahua actually said it directly.

"Oh, this second brother is really stupid." Wu Dafu stomped his feet and walked out quickly.

As expected, when the matchmaker heard that Gui'er was Wu Dahua's sister, she slapped her thigh and said with a smile, "Isn't this a coincidence? What's the point of talking about adoption? You're also planning for your sister's lifelong happiness. Besides, it's not reasonable for a brother to have any say in his sister's marriage. I've finalized this matchmaking today."

"Matchmaker Zhao, matchmaker Zhao, hello, my second brother is wrong. She's not our biological sister, but our cousin. She's just kindhearted and often comes to help us out. Think about it, how can a cousin ask about his cousin's marriage? Besides, I heard that her adoptive parents have already arranged a marriage for her, so there's no need for you to worry about it."

"Oh, so that's the case. That's a pity, but it hasn't been decided yet. If I mention a few more families, maybe I can find a better one, right?" Matchmaker Zhao said as she walked further in.

Seeing that the two brothers were unable to deal with the old woman, Ah Cheng said to Gui Er, "Miss, let's go first. I'm afraid the young master doesn't like you to interact with the neighbors here."

Gui'er thought about it and realized she had said everything she needed to say, so she nodded and said, "Okay, but isn't she stuck there now? How can she get out?"

Miss Zhang Si said, "We have a back door."

Gui'er was about to leave through the back door when Taohua grabbed her and said angrily, "Why are you so afraid of this bitch? Gui'er finally came here and she hasn't even said a word. You can go through here to my main hall, let's go talk there. Brother Cheng, you block the entrance to the hall, I don't believe he dares to come in. Besides, this bitch has never patronized our business before, and she often tries to take advantage of us by asking us to make small items for her without charging any money. I'm really fed up with it."