A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Chapter 797 Arrange for Manager Zhang to Enter the Mansion

Gui'er smiled and said, "Oh, so that's how it is. Tell your sisters to keep finding out. By the way, Dingxiang, you often hang out in the mansion, chatting with the sisters and asking about things. If someone tells you, I'm afraid you'll have to give them some benefits. This is especially true of Zhao Yingwu's story. I'm very interested. Here are three dollars. You can do whatever you want with it, but I don't want anyone else to know about this. Do you understand?"

Dingxiang happily accepted the dollar Gui'er handed her and said with a smile, "Thank you, Miss. I know what to do. I'll buy her some small things she likes and not give her money directly. That way it won't be obvious. Three dollars can buy a lot."

Gui'er smiled but said nothing. Zhao Yingwu, a simple guard in the palace, was able to get so close to military officers. This would be impossible without someone to help him. She wondered, "Could it be that the Marshal wants to train Zhao Yingwu to be a pawn to balance Sha Yanxiao? Or perhaps even to replace him?"

This is a bit troublesome, Guier decided to find an opportunity to remind Yisha Yanxiao.

The news that Gui'er asked the embroiderer to come into the mansion to teach her needlework soon spread throughout the mansion.

The other concubines didn't care much about this matter, but the third concubine praised it wholeheartedly, saying to Gui'er, "You are a smart child. You know you don't have any advantages. You learned more about housework. This way, you will have a good reputation for being virtuous. If I had known earlier, I should have done the same for my three beauties."

The fourth concubine said bluntly, "You don't have to be like this. Your brother likes you no matter what you are like."

Gui'er was panicked and at a loss, not knowing what to say. Sha Yanxiao smiled and said, "Fourth Concubine, you're joking. For me, it doesn't matter whether these things happen or not. As long as I'm happy, that's all."

The uninformed Fifth Concubine interrupted and said, "Second Young Master, you don't understand women's hearts. Everyone says Gui'er is an honest person, but she is also scheming. She is not a proper young lady in our mansion. If she doesn't use some chips to gain a good reputation, she will probably end up like Taohua and can only marry a craftsman."

The Sixth Concubine also covered her mouth and said with a gossipy laugh, "That's right. And didn't Gui'er always say she wouldn't get married? Now she's taking the initiative to learn these things. It seems she has already found her target."

The general on the side suddenly said, "Shut up, you bitch! I think Gui'er is wonderful. If my own daughter could be like this, I'd wake up laughing even in my sleep. Look at you and your sisters. They're not good at anything, not even chess, calligraphy or painting. All they do all day is eat, drink and wear. What else can they do? It's almost time for her to get married in the past two years. Do you think your daughters have anything to show for it? I actually wanted to marry her to the son of the general Feng from Bincheng next door, but when they heard she couldn't even read, they said she couldn't be the main wife and could only be a concubine. It really pissed me off."

When the others heard what the Marshal said, they kept silent.

Unexpectedly, the Sixth Concubine was unconvinced and pouted, saying, "Since Marshal Feng wants someone who is well-educated, gentle and virtuous, then he can just marry Gui'er to his son. Why wouldn't you agree? It's simply because she's not your biological daughter at all, and they won't acknowledge her as your daughter."

The Marshal's face darkened even more as these words were spoken. The Eighth Concubine hurried to smooth things over, saying, "Alright, alright, Marshal Feng is ungrateful, so we won't marry him. But if your daughter, Fifth Concubine and Sixth Concubine, wants to find a good husband, she really should learn from Gui'er. Otherwise, she'll just have to marry a craftsman, or else marry an adjutant like Sanmei did, which is already quite good."

After hearing this, the Fifth Concubine rolled her eyes and said to Gui'er with a smile: "Guier, when will the embroiderer you hired come to your house? Otherwise, let your two sisters learn from her."

Of course Gui'er was not happy about this. The purpose of asking Manager Zhang to come to the house to teach her female workers was not only to help Manager Zhang earn more money, but also to let her help her contact the outside world conveniently. If the two daughters of the fifth concubine also came to learn, it would be very inconvenient.

She smiled and said, "Of course it's no problem, but I agreed with them that it was just one person. If we add more people, we'll have to pay extra. How about this? Ask your two sisters to bring 5 yuan each to our yard tomorrow. I'll tell them, and they should agree."

The fifth concubine cried out, "It's so expensive, it's enough to hire a teacher. I'd better find someone else."

Gui'er felt she had to tell Sha Yanxiao about Zhao Yingwu's situation. One evening after dinner, as they sat in the living room, listening to the radio and reading the newspaper, she pretended to say casually, "Brother, the other day when I was out and about in a rickshaw, I passed by the Paramount and saw Housekeeper Zhao's son. He was walking out with a stylishly dressed young lady. He looked so impressive."

Sha Yanxiao continued reading the newspaper without even looking up and said, "Oh, I didn't expect this kid to be such a playboy. It looks like Butler Zhao's little fortune will be squandered by him soon."

Seeing that he didn't get the expected reaction, Gui'er said, "Yes, but it's possible that he doesn't need to spend much money. After all, he's handsome, and I saw him greeting some officers."

Sha Yanxiao finally put down the newspaper and said, "Officers? Which officers?"

Gui'er hadn't yet figured out which officers Zhao Yingwu was close to, so she said, "I don't know them either, but I recognized them as officers by the clothes they were wearing. Also, I heard from some servants that Steward Zhao has been going to the bank frequently to exchange silver."

Sha Yanxiao glanced around. There was no one else in the hall at that moment. He looked at Gui'er thoughtfully and said, "Guier, what do you want to say? We are not strangers. Just tell me directly if you have anything to say."

Gui'er pursed her lips. She felt that what Sha Yanxiao said was right, so she said to her directly, "Brother, to be honest, I reminded you last time about the matter between the Eighth Concubine and Zhao Yingwu, but you didn't want to get involved. But I heard that Zhao Yingwu is not Butler Zhao's biological son. He was adopted from outside. Some people say that he is the Marshal's illegitimate son. He and the Eighth Concubine are now by the Marshal's side every day. If they want to do something, it would be too easy. Moreover, Butler Zhao is close to the Marshal and controls the financial lifeline of the Marshal's mansion. You were very valued by the Marshal before, but don't you think he has been dissatisfied with you since the Marshal fell ill? I think you should be careful to avoid being taken advantage of."

Sha Yanxiao frowned and pondered for a moment before saying, "I'm currently overwhelmed by the military and political affairs of Fengcheng and Jiangcheng. Could it be that Father still harbors suspicions about me?"