A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Chapter 145: Funeral Miss Zhang 4 remarries Sha Yanwen

Gui'er took the milk from Sha Yanxiao and drank it while asking, "I'm okay, I'm just a little scared. Have you caught the murderer?"

Sha Yanxiao said, "We're still searching the entire city. We've discussed this with Marshal Zhang. Since those people died in accidents, not natural causes, we'll only have three days of mourning. We could have sent you home first, but it's not safe for you to be traveling alone. I've already called the school and asked for leave for you. You can return with us in three days."

As he was speaking, the sound of music could be heard outside. Sha Yanxiao said, "They must have set up a mourning tent and invited a Taoist priest to perform a ritual to pray for the deceased."

Gui'er hadn't been that scared even when she saw the corpse, but now, for some unknown reason, she suddenly felt her hands and feet getting cold. Sha Yanxiao saw that Gui'er looked unwell, so he quickly hugged her and said, "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, don't be afraid. How about you stay in the same room with me tonight?"

Gui'er quickly said, "No need. If my parents knew, they would scold me. I'll just cover my head and sleep."

Sha Yanxiao smiled and said, "Children don't have so many taboos. Come here."

Gui Er said anxiously, "My classmate Tong Yujun is only thirteen and already engaged. I'm over ten years old too, so it's taboo."

Sha Yanxiao was stunned for a moment, then laughed and shook his head. "Boss Tong is really only interested in his family's interests..." He said to Gui'er, "I'll sleep on the sofa, and you can sleep on the bed, okay? Otherwise, how can you go without sleep for three days? Let's go."

Gui'er thought about it and nodded, thinking that Sha Yanxiao could still be trusted.

When they arrived at Sha Yanxiao's room, Gui'er realized that the sofa was not a European-style leather sofa, but a Chinese-style mahogany sofa. It was also not very long, and Sha Yanxiao couldn't lie down at all. So she said, "I'll sleep on the sofa. It's just the right length."

Sha Yanxiao took a look and said, "Okay." Then he took the quilt to make it softer for her, and then he lay down on the bed.

Gui'er saw that Sha Yanxiao had only taken off his military uniform and even placed his holster next to his pillow, which showed that he was also on guard.

From outside came the sound of suona, mixed with crying. Gui'er felt her heart pounding. She turned her head to look at the bed. In the dim light, she could vaguely see Sha Yanxiao's chest rising and falling. For some reason, it made her feel a little relieved. Gui'er was a little glad that she came here, otherwise she would not know how to get through the night.

The next morning, Sha Yanxiao woke Guier up. She didn't know when she fell asleep. Maybe she was too tired and fell asleep in a daze.

After finishing the breakfast brought by Sha Yanxiao, Sha Yanxiao brought Gui'er to the mourning hall to pay their respects. There were three coffins placed side by side in the mourning hall covered with white cloth. Miss Zhang Si was kneeling in the first one, wearing mourning clothes. Miss Zhang Er and Miss Zhang San's mother, who were kneeling below her, were also in mourning clothes. There was a row of people kneeling below in mourning clothes. Judging from their appearance, they should be the servants and slaves of the Zhang family. Marshal Zhang was not here, and Marshal Sha and his wife were not here either.

Sha Yanxiao took Gui'er to burn incense and said to Miss Zhang Si, "My condolences."

Miss Zhang Si had tears on her face and said in a trembling voice, "Thank you, Marshal."

At this time, the sound of chanting rang out again, and Sha Yanxiao pulled Guier out.

Gui'er asked Sha Yanxiao in a low voice, "Brother, why did the mother of Miss Zhang San and Miss Zhang Er wear mourning clothes for their daughters?"

Sha Yanxiao said, "Marshal Zhang felt that the mothers were merely maids, servants, while the two Miss Zhangs were the masters. Furthermore, Miss Zhang Si was not wearing mourning for her mother, but for her two sisters. Because the two Miss Zhangs had no children, she had several young maids in the mansion adopted as her goddaughters and wore mourning for them."

Gui'er didn't know what to say for a moment.

Sha Yanxiao pulled Gui'er to the main hall, where Marshal Sha and his wife and Marshal Zhang were all there.

Marshal Zhang said, "Both of my daughters are dead. You are definitely responsible. My remaining daughter must be my legal wife."

Marshal Sha said in embarrassment: "Old Zhang, why can't you listen to me? This person didn't die in my house, but in yours. How can you put the blame on me? My son is already engaged to Ji Zhongqing's niece. If they weren't engaged, I would definitely obey you."

Marshal Zhang said, "Don't use the mafia to pressure me. My only daughter will never be a concubine. If you don't agree, forget it. I'll marry my daughter off to someone else."

"Hey, hey, hey, why are you like this?" Marshal Sha was also a little anxious. He pondered for a moment and said, "How about this, if my second son can't make it, my other sons should be okay, right?"

Marshal Zhang thought for a moment and said, "Then the eldest son."

When the lady heard this, her expression changed slightly.

Sha Yanxiao quickly said, "Uncle Zhang is really insightful. My eldest brother had an accident two years ago, and now his legs and feet are not very convenient. I wonder if you mind?"

After hearing this, Marshal Zhang hesitated again.

Marshal Sha slammed the table and said, "It's settled for my third son. He's the biological son of my fourth concubine, and his uncles are both officials in Shanghai. He's more than enough to marry the daughter of your concubine."

Marshal Zhang's face turned pale after hearing this. After a brief thought, he sighed and said, "Alright, I'll take the loss."

Marshal Sha shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Old Zhang, you are still the same. If you don't get any advantage, you will feel that you have lost out."

In this way, even if the deal was done, Guier saw that the lady's face was obviously relaxed a little, and she also secretly cast an admiring look at Sha Yanxiao.

After the discussion, the atmosphere became better. Marshal Zhang urged Marshal Sha to send Miss Sanmei back, saying that he was now a bachelor and his life was very difficult.

Marshal Sha nodded and said with a smile, "Don't worry, don't worry, I will send it back to you as soon as I get back."

Gui'er felt a disconnect between the harmonious atmosphere and the wailing and chanting outside.

For the next two days, Sha Yanxiao took Gui'er to burn incense to the two Miss Zhangs every day. The servants around and the people who came to pay their respects praised Sha Yanxiao highly.

Gui'er heard someone whispering nearby, "Marshal Zhang originally didn't want a grand funeral for the two Miss Zhangs, thinking they were unmarried girls and needed to keep it simple. But Marshal Sha felt sorry for them and invited Taoist priests and monks to chant sutras to pray for their souls to be reborn."

"What? How did they die? How come the Zhang family members died suddenly of illness after returning from the Sha Mansion? I thought it was because the Sha Mansion people didn't take good care of them."

"Don't listen to their nonsense. This is my inside information. The people from the Sha Mansion originally brought the three Miss Zhangs here to discuss marriage, but they ended up encountering bandits who sneaked into Marshal Zhang's mansion and strangled them to death."

"But why are the three Miss Zhangs in Marshal Sha's mansion? Aren't they still married?"

"You don't know this. Aren't there several mines in Jiangcheng? Those minerals have to pass through Fengcheng every time they are shipped out. Marshal Sha has to pay a lot of tolls every year. But Marshal Zhang is still not satisfied. He wants to marry his daughter to Marshal Sha's most capable heir, the Second Young Master Sha. By then, if they have a grandson, Jiangcheng will belong to the Zhang family soon, right?"

"Is there such a thing? But I heard that the troops stationed in the city have been replaced. It seems that they were transferred from Jiangcheng. Why do I feel like you said it the other way around?"

"You don't know? At the end of last year, Marshal Zhang frequently mobilized his troops to launch a surprise attack on Jiangcheng, but he was discovered. He ended up losing more than he gained. However, Marshal Sha, considering they were former comrades-in-arms, wanted to form an alliance. Wouldn't it be better if the two families became one?"

"Oh, it seems that Marshal Sha is quite magnanimous. I've been to Jiangcheng, and it's much better here. If Marshal Sha were to take charge of us, maybe things would get better here too."

"Who says it's not?"

When Gui'er heard this, she felt as if she was witnessing a marketing war in the Republic of China.