A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Chapter 1120 The Fake Engagement

Fourth Madam and Shalili glared at Gui'er: "Gui'er, we're all family, why make things so awkward? You give us half of your property, and we won't interfere in your marriage plans, how about that?"

Looking at their ugly faces, Gui'er felt nauseous. She stood up and walked towards the door: "I don't need Fourth Aunt's concern for my affairs. The property was left to me by the Marshal's Mansion for my own protection, and no one can touch it. Please leave."

The fourth concubine was furious at her unexpected firmness, trembling with anger: "You! This is unfilial! Wait till I find your eldest brother, and see what he has to say!"

“My elder brother is far away in Shanghai, I’m afraid he doesn’t have time to meddle in these things.” Gui’er opened the door. “Take care, don’t bother seeing me out.”

Fourth Concubine and Shali wanted to say something, but when they glanced at Acheng standing next to them, his face as black as the bottom of a pot and his fierce expression, they didn't dare to say anything and could only slink away.

Dingxiang brought over a cup of hot tea: "Miss, don't get upset. It's beneath you to talk to those kinds of people."

Gui'er sighed and said, "I never expected that Fourth Aunt would run into that big sieve, Mrs. Song, who revealed Second Brother's situation. Now look what's happened. I bet those two won't let this go."

That evening, Wu Mingqiang returned home and learned of the incident. He immediately went to see Gui'er.

"Miss, are you alright? I heard that Fourth Madam wants to introduce you to a potential partner."

"Yes, I rejected him. I met the woman he introduced me to once at my third brother's funeral. She seemed honest, but I felt like she had a sexually transmitted disease."

"This is outrageous! Fourth Concubine received so many favors from the young master in the Marshal's Mansion before, and now she actually wants to turn her back on Miss and bully her!" Wu Mingqiang said angrily.

"Sigh, it's all because Mrs. Song, who can't keep her mouth shut, told her about my second brother's situation. I guess she's just trying to get a piece of the pie; introducing him to a potential partner is just an excuse."

"Should I warn them, mother and daughter, to stop bothering you?" Wu Mingqiang suddenly asked.

"Oh, is that alright? I've already refused. Besides, we're family in name only. If things get too ugly, it'll just make us a laughingstock."

Wu Mingqiang paced anxiously back and forth in the room. Gui'er rarely saw him like this, so she smiled and comforted him, "Brother Wu, don't worry. They're just saying that. They can't do anything to us. They can't possibly come to our house and rob us, can they? Don't worry."

“…Miss, I don’t think this matter will end so easily. They already know that the young master is in trouble, and Fourth Madam is your only elder in Hong Kong. I heard that she and her daughter are not very valued in their husband’s family. They have to pay for everything themselves. Not only that, but their husband’s family even used the excuse of needing funds for business operations to make them contribute a lot of dowry. I guess they must be suffering terribly in private. This time, they want you to marry her husband’s cousin. On the one hand, they may really want our wealth, and on the other hand, they want to use you to curry favor with her husband’s family.”

"Is that so? But it has nothing to do with me. I can't be bothered with them. These two women did a lot of bad things in the Marshal's Mansion before. Their current situation is their retribution," Gui'er said calmly.

Seeing this, Wu Mingqiang knew better than to say anything more.

The following afternoon, Acheng came to pick up Gui'er from school.

As soon as Gui'er got into the rickshaw, A-Cheng came over, his face showing some barely concealed unease, and rubbed his hands together, saying, "Miss, something happened at the pawnshop today..."

"What's wrong?" Gui'er lifted a corner of the carriage curtain and looked at the pedestrians coming and going on the street.

"Fourth Madam and Miss Lily... went to the pawnshop." Acheng's voice was very low. "They said they were elders of the Marshal's Mansion. They suddenly came to the shop, chatted with the regular customers, ordered the shop assistants around, wanted to look at the account books, and talked nonsense to the clerk, saying that they should be in charge of the shop. This made the shop assistants panic and they didn't know who to listen to."

Gui'er's heart sank, and she frowned: "They really dare to cause trouble?"

“That’s right,” Acheng sighed. “Luckily, Brother Qiang was collecting payments at a nearby shop. The shop assistant was quite clever. When he saw them throwing a tantrum, he secretly slipped out and called Brother Qiang back. When the mother and daughter saw Brother Qiang, they tried to act like elders, saying that he, as a servant, had no right to interrupt.”

The car chugged over the cobblestones. Gui'er gripped the hem of her dress tightly: "What did Brother Wu say?"

"Brother Qiang didn't waste words with them," A-Cheng said somewhat awkwardly. "He told the people in the shop directly that I was engaged to Miss Gui'er, an engagement arranged by the Second Young Master back in Jiangcheng. Now I am practically the owner of this shop, and it's none of the business of outsiders to interfere in the affairs of the Marshal's Mansion." Fourth Madam was stunned. Miss Lily wanted to argue, but Brother Qiang simply had the shop assistant at the door "invite" them out, saying that if they made a scene, he would call the police. Only then did they leave, grumbling and cursing.

Gui'er was stunned. She knew this was a ruse made up by Wu Mingqiang, but she knew that people on the street would definitely believe it to be true.

"How...how could he say that?" Gui'er's voice trembled slightly, whether from anger or something else, it was hard to tell.

“Miss, please don’t be angry,” Acheng quickly explained. “I think Brother Qiang had no choice. That mother and daughter are bullies who prey on the weak. If we don’t put them in a strong position, they will only take advantage of us. Besides, once this gets out, no one else will dare to mess with you anymore. It’s a win-win situation.”

The car stopped in front of the villa. When Gui'er got out of the car, her legs felt a little weak. She really couldn't understand how things had turned out this way.

At dinner, Wu Mingqiang sat opposite her as usual and put a piece of fish belly meat on her plate: "Acheng told you about what happened today, right? I'm sorry you had to go through that."

Gui'er looked up; his gaze was calm, as if he were talking about something completely ordinary. "Why did you make up such a story?" she asked softly.

“If I don’t say it like this, I can’t keep them in check.” Wu Mingqiang took a sip of his drink. “They want to use their status to cause trouble, so I’ll give them a title that will prevent them from acting recklessly again. The second young master is gone, so it’s only right that I protect you, even if it means being gossiped about.”

Gui'er didn't speak again, lowering her head to eat her rice. The freshness of the fish spread on her tongue, but she couldn't taste anything. She knew Wu Mingqiang meant well, but that word "marriage" was like a thorn, stuck in her heart, causing a dull ache. In this chaotic world, relying on such a lie to maintain their bond was truly heartbreaking.

After this incident, when Gui'er went to the shop, she felt that the way people looked at her had subtly changed; they seemed more respectful, which puzzled her.

Until one day, she ran into the young mistress of Ren'an Hall on the street. She greeted Gui'er with a smile and said, "Miss Gui'er, congratulations."

"Young mistress, what brings you this joy?"

"Miss, don't be shy. I've heard about it. I heard that your wedding with Mr. Wu is coming up soon."