A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Sha Lili glanced at the snacks and said with a smile, "We are all sisters and living in a foreign country together, so why be so polite." She nodded to the maid next to her. The maid took the snacks to the kitchen, put them on a plate, and then poured tea. Her hands and feet were quick and nimble, showing that she was well-trained.

Gui'er glanced at the maid and said, "Why didn't you bring your maid with you this time? I think her name is Luhua."

Sha Lili smiled and said, "Since she's pregnant, I'll leave her back home to take care of my parents-in-law on my behalf. Besides, I don't know what life is like out there, and the old folks also think it's important to leave a child back home, since she's the eldest son after all."

Gui'er was stunned for a moment. She hadn't expected Sha Lili to be so tolerant of a pregnant concubine. You know, the Fourth Concubine was famous for her cruel methods back then. She asked cautiously, "Aren't you worried?"

" "I don't know what to do with her," said Sha Lili, smiling. "She's just a cook. She can't even read. She's dull and can't even make a fart. I'll ask her to come over after she gives birth. My wife and I both love the food she cooks. The child will be raised in our hometown. If he's successful in the future, I'll be his aunt. If he's not, he'll stay in our hometown to take care of the old man. He'll have a share of the hometown's property in the future, and I'll be able to benefit from it too." "Anyway, I won't let them be together. If they're not together, there's no affection. He'll still respect me as his aunt, and that won't pose a threat to me." "Originally, my mother-in-law wanted Luhua to accompany my wife over, saying that she needed someone to take care of her. I didn't know that if I stayed in our hometown, I'd end up like her. Her husband would have three wives and four concubines outside, and she'd become a yellow-faced woman. I won't do that."

At this point, Sha Lili smiled and whispered in Gui'er's ear: "Guier, I have good news for you. I'm already three months pregnant."

Gui'er quickly congratulated her: "Congratulations."

Sha Lili said sweetly, "Yes, she's finally pregnant. But now, I'm afraid my husband will have to look for another one outside. It's really annoying. I'm thinking about finding him another one to marry, so he doesn't have to find some shady girl outside and get into trouble. You know those dancers that business people find outside? They're not easy to deal with."

When Gui'er heard Sha Lili say this nonchalantly, she felt extremely sad in her heart and didn't know what to say for a moment.

Seeing her expression was a little strange, Sha Lili smiled and said, "You're here again. I find you're really sentimental. Isn't marriage like this these days? Look at every man in every family, and which one isn't like this? Unless you marry a poor bastard, but what's the point of marrying a man like that? Are you going to eat coarse food with him?"

Gui'er was speechless.

Sha Lili changed the subject and sighed, "Actually, it's been difficult for us too. Everything is just starting out. Look, this store has just opened, and my wife has to go out for social events every night. We're not financially strong enough. It would be great if we had more capital. I heard that my father gave Director Shen's property to Mi, and then transferred it to Hong Kong as a way out. Now that my father is dead, I guess these properties should have fallen into the hands of my second brother. Now that you're in Hong Kong, didn't he give you some? You're about to become an aunt now. If you have money, you can invest with us. I can't do without you."

Gui'er was stunned for a moment. She finally realized once again how powerful the Fourth Concubine was. She could even find out such a secret matter. If she completely denied it now, Sha Lili would definitely not believe it. But if she admitted it, she would inevitably be targeted by others. After thinking it over, Gui'er decided to avoid the main point: "Look at what you said. Can I come here to study without spending money? I used to live with my eldest brother in Nanjing, so my family still gave me a monthly allowance. Now that we have separated, of course my second brother is in charge. He gave a sum of money, but you know I am not good at managing finances at my age, so he gave it to Wu Mingqiang who came here with me, and asked him to do some business to make a living so that it can be sustainable. I just reported to my second brother today that he wants to open a pawn shop. I don't know how to do it, but I don't care anyway."

Upon hearing this, Sha Lili quickly glanced towards the stairs. Wu Mingqiang hadn't fallen behind. She patted Gui'er's shoulder and said, "You're so stupid! Why would you hand over your money to an outsider? I remember this Wu Mingqiang was a thug brought over by my second sister-in-law. How did my second brother use him so highly? I'm warning you. People like him who come from the underworld have no conscience. If they rebel, losing all your money wouldn't be a big deal. I'm just afraid that they'll cheat you out of your life, and then we won't be able to save you. If you don't want to think about it, tell my second brother to invest the money in our store. It's a deal. I'm going to go down and tell Wu. I don't believe he'd dare to disobey his master."

Gui Er quickly stopped her and said, "Don't be so busy. My brother does have some banknotes and passbooks, but they're all from Shanghai. Wu Mingqiang is from Shanghai and has connections, so we let him get them. Does my brother-in-law have connections in this area as well? If so, please talk to my brother-in-law and ask him to cash them out for me. I'm sure I'll give him a thank you gift when the time comes."

Sha Lili was stunned for a moment after hearing this, and stammered: "Oh, my second brother is really something. How could I give you something like this? What about you?"

Guier smiled and said, "He did give me some cash, which I used to pay for tuition and support my life. I also have some savings, but it's not much. It's definitely not enough to support me for a few years, so now I have to find a way to cash out the money in the Shanghai account. I can only give it to Wu Mingqiang."

Sha Lili forced a smile and said, "That's right, this is the only way. Oh, it's almost noon now, why don't you eat before going back? Your brother-in-law won't be home either, and there's nothing to eat at home, so don't be disgusted."

Gui'er wasn't a slow-witted person, so she quickly said, "I have something else to do this afternoon. I need to prepare my school supplies, so I'll be back first. I'll come see you later. Take care of yourself."

Sha Lili didn't try to persuade him to stay. She smiled and said, "Well, take care. By the way, can you give me your address? I'll come visit you later."

Gui'er wrote down her address. Sha Lili took a look at it and said, "This area is surrounded by many wealthy people. It seems that Second Brother still values ​​you very much."