A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Chapter 788 Banquet 4

Guier frowned and said, "That's strange. Where did the money go?"

Song Xichen thought for a moment and said, "How about this? I'll go back and talk to my father and try to get his opinion on what he's saying. I'll see if I can get anything out of him. But as far as I know, we're only responsible for handing over the money. As for where the Marshal's Mansion spends the money, I'm afraid it's not our business to ask. You'll probably have to investigate inside the Mansion as well."

After hearing what he said, Gui'er felt that there must be something fishy going on, so she nodded and said, "Okay." But she was also a little unsure about how to investigate. After all, it was impossible to get to know many things about an adopted daughter in depth, and the Marshal was a very suspicious person who might not even trust his own biological son. Thinking of this, she couldn't help but become a little worried.

Song Xichen looked at it and said, "It doesn't matter if we can't find out about this. After all, we know it's not easy for you. Oh, and there's one thing: Shopkeepers Zhang and Liu's shops have closed down."

"What?" Gui'er thought she had misheard.

Song Xichen sighed and said, "Because the market is bad now, many shops that serve ordinary people are struggling to survive. Shopkeeper Zhang's shop originally bought some embroidery pieces and sold them to those tailor shops to make a small profit. But now the economy is bad, many ordinary people don't want to add embroidery to their clothes to save money, so many tailor shops don't buy embroidery pieces. Shopkeeper Zhang can't sell the embroidery pieces on hand, and he doesn't dare to buy more. As a result, he has no income. Shopkeeper Liu's pharmacy used to serve the neighborhood, but now many people go to the hospital for serious illnesses. For minor ailments, they just pick up some medicine on their own or simply put it off. As a result, his business is pitifully low. Although the shop was found for him by the Young Marshal, the rent is much cheaper than other places, but with his current income, it is still a bit unaffordable. So after discussing it, we decided to just close it."

Gui'er felt very upset and asked quickly, "So what do they do for a living now?"

"Manager Zhang returned to his hometown to farm, while Manager Liu became a traveling doctor, visiting the streets and treating patients."

"Ah? But Manager Liu's foot was injured at the time. Although it's much better now, if he walks around all day, won't that have an impact?"

"This was Comrade Liu's own request. I originally wanted to arrange for the couple to work as shopkeepers or clerks in my family's shop, but they said they had no experience and were unfamiliar with the business. Besides, being a traveling doctor would allow them to treat the common people and help our Party pass on intelligence and gather news."

Gui'er felt very upset after hearing this. She had known Shopkeepers Zhang and Liu since she was a teenager. At first, they were small bosses with some money, but they were first persecuted politically, and now due to the impact of the war, they were reduced to bankruptcy. This is probably a microcosm of the vast majority of Chinese people of this era.

"I'll ask Sha Yanxiao to see if he can find a way to get Manager Liu to join the hospital. After all, Manager Liu has some real skills. His health has been deteriorating since he was tortured by the spies last time, and his legs and feet are not very convenient. He has to walk around the streets all day long, which is very tiring. Besides, a large hospital can also come into contact with many dignitaries, and a lot of intelligence can be obtained from them." Guier said.

Song Xichen nodded and said, "That's a good idea. The key is that you came up with it. Manager Liu will definitely agree. Before he closed the shop, he even said with some regret that he wanted to teach you medicine, but now you have nowhere to study medicine."

Gui'er smiled and said, "That's right. If he goes to the hospital, I can ask Sha Yanxiao to arrange for me to work as a nurse there so I can continue my medical studies."

"Damn it, what are you pulling me over here for?"

"My dear, it's quiet here, not many people around, come quickly."

The two were chatting enthusiastically when suddenly a couple walked in from the side door. Fortunately, Gui'er and Song Xichen were standing behind a rockery, so they were not discovered.

However, the sky garden is not very big, and it seems that we can't continue chatting here. Song Xichen made a gesture to Gui'er and asked her to go back through the door on the other side.

Gui'er nodded, and when she was about to get up and walk towards the door, the couple actually walked towards them, so Gui'er didn't dare to move.

Song Xichen said softly, "Don't worry. I'll hold them off first. You leave quietly." He took out a cigarette, lit it, took a long drag, and exhaled. Then, deliberately walking loudly, he walked out from behind the rockery and said to the man, "Isn't this Boss Zhao? Is this your new wife?"

The couple was startled, and the man stammered, "So it's Mr. Song. This is a friend."

Guier knew that now was the right time, so she quickly bent over and tiptoed to the other side of the rockery, trying to find some flowers to cover her, walked to the other door, and slipped in.

Before returning to the banquet hall, Gui'er carefully straightened her clothes to see if there was any grass or mud on them so that others would notice. After confirming that there was nothing, she pretended to walk in casually.

As soon as I entered the banquet hall, Sha Yanxiao came towards me with a grim look on his face. He asked, "Gui'er, where have you been? Why haven't I seen you since I came in?"

Gui'er was startled and said a little guiltily, "When you came in, I was still eating. I saw so many people needed you to entertain, so I didn't disturb you. After I finished eating, I felt bored, so I took a walk outside."

After hearing this, Sha Yanxiao's expression improved a little and he said, "What do you want to eat? I'll get it for you."

Gui'er was about to speak when she suddenly felt that many people were looking at her. She turned around and saw that they were all people who brought their daughters to have a blind date with Sha Yanxiao. Some of them had inquiring eyes, and some girls even had resentful expressions.

She wondered, could it be that none of the other men had chosen her? Now that Sha Yanxiao was here to take care of her, wouldn't he become a thorn in the eyes of these two women?

So he quickly said to Sha Yanxiao, "Brother, don't worry about me. Today is your big blind date day. You need to spend some time with those girls and see which one is right for you. Look, they're all staring at you."

Sha Yanxiao turned his head and looked around. The girls all lowered their heads in panic, not daring to look him in the eye.

He sighed and said, "Don't worry about this matter. Dinner probably won't be prepared at the mansion. Eat something more and we'll go back."

After hearing this, Gui'er had no choice but to obediently get some food. The two of them found a table and sat opposite each other. There were still many rich daughters, and even some women who were not on the roster also secretly went to see Sha Yanxiao.

Sha Yanxiao didn't care at all and brought food to Guier from time to time. Guier felt that her back was about to be burned through by the fiery gazes of these girls who admired Sha Yanxiao.