A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Chapter 1053 Friends get together

“He has a daughter born to his concubine, who has taken a fancy to a rich man surnamed Zhou,” Wu Mingqiang said slowly. “The Zhou family made their fortune in smuggling and are still transporting rice to Guangzhou, competing with us for business. Relying on their wealth, they have poached our customers several times. Mo Gansheng despises this kind of ‘shady business’ and absolutely refuses to agree to this marriage.”

He paused, a sly glint in his eyes: "I told Mr. Mo to leave this to me. I found a few dancers who could speak a few words of foreign languages ​​and dressed like schoolgirls, and had them hang around the club that the young master of the Zhou family frequented, pretending to bump into him. That young master wasn't exactly a faithful man to begin with. After being pestered by the girls for a few days, he forgot about Miss Mo and started getting really close to one of the dancers."

Gui'er gasped in astonishment: "It's done just like that?"

“It’s done.” Wu Mingqiang smiled smugly. “Mr. Mo thought I was efficient, so he not only rewarded me with money, but also praised me to Detective Long. Detective Long saw that I had made contact with Mr. Mo, so he naturally had to give me face and send some gifts, hoping that I would say a few good words for Mr. Mo in the future.”

He picked up the English book and patted it: "See, this is the benefit of moving up the ranks. Before, we had to watch Detective Long's face, but now he's trying to win me over. Once I've mastered English, maybe I'll be able to deal directly with the British, and then..."

Looking into the light in his eyes, Gui'er suddenly realized that Lin Peishan's words were not unfounded. This young Wu Ge, who once only knew how to protect her, had already figured out his own way of survival in the quagmire of the chaotic world, climbing silently to higher places like a vine. However, to some extent, she admired him quite a bit. He had high emotional intelligence, outstanding abilities, and a thirst for knowledge. Even in this chaotic and complex era, he could quickly stand out wherever he went. At this rate, he would become a wealthy man sooner or later.

"By the way, Miss, how do you pronounce this sentence?" Wu Mingqiang suddenly asked Gui'er, pointing to a sentence in an English book.

“I miss you,” Gui’er read aloud casually.

"I miss you." Wu Mingqiang read it aloud once, then smiled and looked into Gui'er's eyes as he read it again: "I miss you."

"Yes, you read very well," Gui'er said. "If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask me."

"Okay," Wu Mingqiang said with a wry smile.

"Miss, Mrs. Song called looking for you," Dingxiang suddenly said as she entered.

"Mrs. Song?" Gui'er didn't react for a moment.

"Your classmate."

"Oh, Tong Yujun." Gui'er was surprised. Ever since Mr. and Mrs. Song came to Hong Kong, she had rarely visited Tong Yujun, because she didn't want to face Mrs. Song.

She hurried to the living room and picked up the phone: "Hello, Yujun, it's been a long time."

"Hey, Gui'er, how have you been lately?"

"I'm fine, how about you?"

"I'm just so-so. Weren't you guys on vacation the other day? Why didn't you come over to visit?"

"Oh, yes, I went back to the mainland during the holiday. My brother had something to do and needed to come to Guangzhou, so I went to see him. I didn't come back until a few days before the start of the semester."

"Oh, you went to see your brother. How is he?"

"pretty good."

"Yu Jun, is there something you need to call me about?" Gui'er had a feeling that Tong Yu Jun seemed to have something to say but was hesitant to say it.

"Well, it's nothing..." At that moment, a third person's voice came from the other end of the phone.

Who are you talking to on the phone?

Gui'er immediately recognized Mrs. Song's voice.

"Oh, it's my sister. By the way, it's been a long time since we last met. How about we meet up tomorrow afternoon and go shopping at Sincere Department Store? We can grab some drinks while we're at it."

Gui'er realized that she wanted to avoid talking to Mrs. Song, so she said, "Okay, then I'll wait for you at the entrance of Sincere Department Store after school."

The next afternoon, as soon as the school bell rang, Gui'er rushed to Sincere Department Store.

She hadn't shopped at Sincere Department Store in a long time. The building was a striking off-white, adorned with a ring of delicate carvings. Above the main entrance hung the four large, gilded characters "Sincere Department Store," gleaming in the sunlight. Two retro brass streetlights stood at the entrance, their poles entwined with artificial ivy, giving them an elegant and stylish look.

Sincere Department Store is located in a bustling area. The street is lively at this time of year. Rickshaws carrying foreigners in suits speed by, and vendors carrying loads on their shoulders call out "Wonton noodles—". Several girls in school uniforms walk hand in hand, chatting and laughing, with the bows in their hair swaying gently with their steps.

As soon as Gui'er stood still, she saw Tong Yujun come out of the revolving door. She was wearing a moon-white cheongsam with delicate orchids embroidered on the collar. When she saw Gui'er, she smiled happily and said, "You've finally come."

The two walked inside together, where the department store was bustling with activity. The cosmetics counter on the first floor was crowded with people, and the saleswomen were trying on lipsticks in front of the mirror; the silks in the fabric section shimmered softly under the lights, and the shop assistants were busy with rulers; in front of the toy counter, several children were pestering their parents to buy them tin trains, their cries mingling with Cantonese opera from a gramophone.

Tong Yujun picked up an ivory comb, then put it down and said softly, "I rarely go out now. Every time I'm about to go out, my mother-in-law asks me a lot of questions, saying that things aren't safe outside." She paused, then pointed to the second floor, "Let's go upstairs and sit down."

Gui'er always felt that she wasn't as cheerful as before, but that made sense. Who could be happy living under the same roof as Mrs. Song? She herself had to keep her distance from her.

The restaurant on the second floor was carpeted with red carpet, and the window seats offered a view of the street. A waiter brought two glasses of iced lemon water, with water droplets condensing on the outside of the glasses. The straws made a soft "pop" sound when inserted. Tong Yujun took a sip before slowly speaking: "Gui'er, you don't know, my days in the Song family are worse than being in prison."

"what happened?"

“You know what kind of person the old lady is,” Tong Yujun said in a low voice. “She’s become even more unreasonable now. She can’t stand me talking to Xilun for more than a few minutes, saying that ‘a woman should keep to her duty.’ She wants to control everything in the house, even what color clothes I wear. The worst thing is…” Her eyes reddened, “She always says that I haven’t given birth in the three years since I got married, and that she wants to find Xilun a concubine, saying that ‘the Song family line cannot be broken.’”

Gui'er grasped her hand, feeling the icy coldness of her fingertips: "The Second Young Master won't agree, will he? What about the Second Madam and Master Song?"

“He actually dislikes the first wife quite a bit. Back in Jiangcheng, she looked down on him. Now that her son is a revolutionary in Jiangcheng and doesn’t know what’s going on, she’s started acting like the stepmother.” Tong Yujun smiled bitterly. “Although my father-in-law is a reasonable person, he has told us to work hard and have children for the Song family as soon as possible. What’s most hateful is that my sister-in-law is married but still lives at her parents’ house, tormenting me with the first wife and always standing next to her mother making sarcastic remarks.”