A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

After hearing this, Sha Yanxiao was deeply moved and said, "I never thought that the wife of the great hero Marshal Zhang would pass away so quietly. They didn't even tell me that if someone came to report the news, they would at least give her a decent funeral."

Guier smiled and said, "It was the other concubine who forbade them from notifying them. She said they were all sent by their own families to curry favor with Marshal Zhang. Life in the Marshal's mansion wasn't good, so she didn't want to be buried with Marshal Zhang. She also instructed that after he passed away, he should be buried with the other concubine, so that the two sisters could keep each other company."

Sha Yanxiao nodded and said, "I see. Well, I won't force it. The person is dead anyway. But you just said your brother's business is not doing well. That's perfect. This concubine has passed away. I will send some money and food and drinks over tomorrow to help them solve this urgent problem."

Gui'er said gratefully, "Thank you so much, brother. I don't know how to thank you enough."

Sha Yanxiao glanced at her with a smile on his face and said, "Really? You little brat, I don't believe you anymore. Do you still remember the promise you made to me?"

Gui'er thought about it over and over in her mind, and suddenly remembered that she seemed to have said before that she would make him a new sachet, but then she was busy with other things and completely forgot about it.

She said quickly, "Brother, you're talking about the sachet, right? Okay, I've been thinking about it, but I was too busy to make it. Now I have time. Tomorrow I'll go pick out some beautiful brocade and make you a very, very beautiful one. Are you satisfied now?"

Sha Yanxiao scratched her nose and said, "That's a deal. And this time, you can only make it for me. Don't let me find out that you have the same style as someone else."

Gui'er chuckled sheepishly. The two of them kept bantering back and forth, seemingly having endless things to say. Even when they went back to their room for the night, Gui'er was still wondering how time had flown by so quickly. It was already so late.

Ding Xiang came in with hot milk. Smiling, she said to her, "Young Lady is still happy here. She seems to have endless things to talk about with Young Master every day. I heard from other servants that before Young Lady came back, Young Master was busy with work every day and was very unhappy when he had some free time. Now he is much more cheerful."

Gui'er smiled and suddenly remembered the attendant she saw in the main courtyard today. She asked Dingxiang, "Do you know the person in the main courtyard? He looks like an attendant I haven't seen before, but he looks so familiar."

Dingxiang thought for a moment and said, "You're talking about Butler Zhao's son, Zhao Yingwu, right? He looks a lot like Butler Zhao, but he's much more handsome than Butler Zhao. The Marshal has been quite fond of him since he was little and even sent him to school. Originally, he was supposed to join the army after he finished his studies, but the Marshal happened to be ill and said he needed someone he could trust by his side, so he kept him by his side. Miss, why are you asking about him all of a sudden?"

"Nothing. I saw him in the House of Representatives today. He looked new, yet familiar. He turned out to be Butler Zhao's son. I've been in the Marshal's Mansion for years, but I've never seen him before."

"Of course, because he has been in the academy all year round and just graduated and came back recently. We did meet when we were young, but we were not familiar with each other. He and Housekeeper Zhao are both the Marshal's confidants. Many maids in the mansion want to be close to him."

Gui'er listened thoughtfully.

The next day, Sha Yanxiao and Guier went to the military camp after breakfast.

Gui'er was bored in the living room, listening to the radio and reading the newspaper.

Ah Cheng walked in and whispered in her ear, "Miss, Brother Qiang has an appointment. He said he will meet at Chunlai Hotel in an hour."

After hearing this, Gui'er quickly changed her clothes and got on the rickshaw that Acheng called to go to Chunlai Hotel.

The rickshaw went around the city streets for a long time and was almost out of the city when it stopped at an inconspicuous corner.

Guier got off the rickshaw and looked up to see a courtyard on the roadside that looked rather old, but it was bustling with people. She felt something was wrong. Why was the business so good in such a remote place?

Ah Cheng saw her concerns and said with a smile: "Miss, don't worry, I'm here, let's go in."

When I walked into the restaurant, I saw that it was very lively inside. It turned out to be a restaurant, inn and casino combined into one.

The first-floor hall was surrounded by square dining tables, with two large round tables in the middle. These were the kind where people bet on big or small. People were already crowded around them, busy placing bets and shouting, "Big, big, big!"

The dealer was a big, burly man with a face full of flesh. He shouted loudly: "Come on, place your bets quickly, and don't hesitate to buy."

The hotel was mostly populated by men, but there were also a few women, wearing makeup, high heels, and smoking cigarettes. It was obvious at first glance that they weren't working in legitimate professions, and some were even seen hanging out with men.

As soon as Gui'er walked into the hotel, she smelled a strong mixture of cigarettes, alcohol, and sweat. She couldn't help but frown and took out a handkerchief to cover her nose.

At this time, someone noticed her: "Oh, why is there a young girl here? She's quite young. Hey, are you new here? How much is it?"

Gui'er didn't expect that Chunlai Hotel would be such a place. She turned her head and looked at Acheng.

Ah Cheng stepped forward and punched the man on the temple.

"Ouch, damn it, you dare to touch me." The man picked up a bench and was about to hit him.

"Stop." A familiar clear voice came from the second floor.

Then, several people surrounded a figure as they walked down from the upper floors. It was Wu Mingqiang, whom I hadn't seen in a while. He had grown a lot taller, now almost as tall as Sha Yanxiao, and his face had lost its youthful baby fat, giving him the appearance of a mature man. Everyone else here was wearing long gowns, but he was the only one wearing a white shirt. It looked a bit out of place, but it was perfectly appropriate, like a wealthy nobleman.

As he walked down the stairs, the few women on the first floor immediately focused their attention on him. One or two even quietly moved forward, trying to gauge where he was going and get a good spot.

"Miss, I'm sorry to scare you. Let's go upstairs and talk."

Guier nodded and continued to cover her mouth and nose with her handkerchief. This time, it was not to block the smell, but to prevent others from seeing her face clearly.

"Xiao Wu, why did you come to a place like this?"

"Miss, don't be offended, this is my territory." Wu Mingqiang reached out and poured her a cup of tea.

"Ah Cheng, you too. Why are you taking a lady out the front door? It's so messy."

Ah Cheng patted his head and said, "I haven't been here for a long time. I don't know. There are so many customers here now. Wait a minute, let's go back through the back door."