Chapter 504: Mourning
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
It was better to teach a man to fish than to give him one.
A charity hall was nothing, but she also wanted to do something for this difficult world.
Zhou Linghuai was slightly stunned before reacting. “That’s great.”
The young lady’s thoughts were always so simple and pure. She did not have any unrealistic sympathy, but she could really do good deeds at the moment.
Old Madam Yu was also kind-hearted, but she was not as much as her.
The decree for a new funeral was issued the next day—
From that day onwards, the King of Zhouli would be buried strictly following the rules of the country.
On the twenty-first day of mourning, the memorials were not written in red but blue;
All the writings in the government office were changed to blue seals;
During the mourning period, monasteries and Daoist monasteries would chant sutras and pay their respects every day and ring the bell 21 times;
The civil and military officials, as well as the people, had to abstain from rituals, music, slaughter, marriage, and so on;
After being encoffined at an auspicious time, he stayed in the Fuyan Palace for eleven days;
The officials and wives had to wear mourning clothes and cry for three days;
After the funeral, etiquette envoys, ceremonial envoys, imperial envoys, bridge clerks, and so on helped the spirit of the King of Zhouli travel back to You residence to perform burial rituals and funeral rites.
The family members in the inner courtyard had also taken off their luxurious clothes and jewelry and changed into plain white clothes. There was no wine or meat in the house.
White sails were hung everywhere on Chang’an Street. The commoners queued up and went to the government office to receive their mourning cloth.
The government office sent people to spread the news of the King of Zhouli’s achievements.
After crying for a day, Old Madam Yu got up at midnight. She changed into her makeup and put on mourning clothes. Before dawn, she entered the palace with Madam Yao.
When they passed by Chang’an Street, Old Madam Yu lifted the window curtain and looked out.
The long street was covered in white mourning clothes, and the world paled in comparison.
The white lanterns walked along the long street like a long winding dragon.
The bright lights illuminated the long street, making it look cold and lonely.
Old Madam Yu’s heart was filled with sorrow. “Since ancient times, loyalty has never been repaid. Heroes have always been treated heartlessly.”
When they arrived outside the palace gate, the sky had just lit up. There were already many carriages parked outside the palace gate. Many officials and their families were lined up in a row, waiting for the eunuchs to sing their names and enter the palace.
Seeing the Yu Residence’s carriage, the guards at the palace gate didn’t stop them. Old Madam Yu and Madam Yao’s carriage didn’t stop. They drove all the way to the second palace gate before stopping.
The Zhenguo Marquis Residence’s carriage had just arrived.
Old Madam Yu and Old Madam Song met. Both of them had solemn expressions and didn’t even say anything. They looked away and waited for the eunuch to sing before entering the inner palace one after another and being brought to Fuyan Palace.
At this moment, there were already many courtiers kneeling in Fuyan Palace. The room was filled with mourning clothes and cries that shook the sky. The scene was also indescribable.
The women were all in the side hall.
The internal servant maids, led by the family members of the sect, were arranged at the front. Behind them were the external maids, led by Old Madam
Yu, Old Madam Song, and the others.
Those who are reserved pinched their handkerchiefs and sobbed softly.
Those who were thick-skinned would cry at the top of their lungs.
Under such circumstances, there was no shame. There were special palace maids and eunuchs who stared at him. Every day, they had to cry and report to the higher-ups. The louder they cried, the more they could show their condolences to the King of Zhouli.
Old Madam Yu had also seen big scenes before. As soon as she knelt on the praying mat, her eyes turned red. As she cried, she even sang about the King’s merits.
In less than an hour, Old Madam Yu couldn’t take it anymore.
At this moment, there was a commotion from the noble’s family. Someone shouted, “Oh no, someone come quickly. Madam Song of The Marquis of Zhenguo, has fainted from crying…”
Mourning were hard work to begin with. Everyone who had experienced it knew that there were people who fainted every time they cried. It was not rare.
The palace had also made preparations early in the morning. Immediately, eunuchs and palace maids brought the female doctor over to check. After confirming that there were no major problems, they could move to the inner room to rest.
Old Madam Yu was a little worried.
Old Madam Song’s health wasn’t good to begin with. Previously, Song Mingzhao had vomited blood and fainted. She had already gone through a lot. It wasn’t easy for her to find a capable female doctor and nurse her back to health for a while. Her body had just recovered a little. If even she couldn’t take it after crying for three consecutive days, Old Madam Song would definitely suffer.
After a while, a palace maid came over. “Is Madam doing well?”
Old Madam Yu had entered and left the Empress Dowager’s palace in the past and recognized her as her female official. “Thank Empress Dowager for her concern. I’m doing well.”
The palace maid continued, “The Empress Dowager has ordered that anyone who is old and weak will be exempted from crying. They can just kneel for two hours. Every half an hour, they can rest in the inner chamber for fifteen minutes. The inner chamber has prepared ginseng tea, snacks, and soup. The female doctor is also on standby at any time. If you are not feeling well, you can look for the female clinic to take a look. You can’t slack off.”
Old Madam Yu immediately bowed in gratitude. “Thank Empress Dowager for her benevolence.”
The female official hurriedly helped Old Madam Yu up.
After kneeling for more than an hour, Old Madam Yu was indeed a little tired. She went to the inner room with the female official.
The moment she entered the house, she saw Old Madam Song leaning against a couch with a haggard expression.
Old Madam Yu hurriedly went over and asked, “Are you alright?”
Although she was worried, she knew that Old Madam Song was a smart person. She definitely wouldn’t really cry and faint. She probably felt that her body couldn’t take it anymore, so she pretended to be weak.
Everyone knew that Old Madam Song wasn’t in good health.
Even if the doctor found out about it after a checkup, it was understandable.
Old Madam Song didn’t look too good. She sighed. “I’m old, but I’m not like this anymore. I’m useless.”
Old Madam Yu took out an incense pill from her sachet and handed it to her.
“This is the ginseng nourishing pill Yao Yao prepared for me. I brought some
today. You can use it too.”
After the edict was issued yesterday, Yao Yao had prepared some incense pills for emergencies and asked her to bring them with her.
The palace did not allow people to bring other things with them. The sachet was also an accompanying item, which was why it could be brought into the palace.
Old Madam Song took the incense pill, but she didn’t use it immediately. Instead, she got the palace maid who was taking care of her to call the female doctor over and handed the incense pill to the female clinic for examination.
Although the ginseng pill was relatively precious, it was commonly used by wealthy families to nourish their bodies. This pill was more complicated to pair with. It was also a little different from the commonly used prescription, but it was not a hindrance.
The female doctor scraped the pill lightly and tested its medicinal properties.
She smiled and said, “It’s a top-notch ginseng nourishing pill. Old Madam Song’s qi and blood are deficient, so it’s the right cure.”
With that, she returned the pill to Old Madam Song.
Old Madam Song hurriedly thanked her.
The palace maid had already prepared warm water to help Old Madam Song take her medicine.
Ten-year old wild ginseng had been added to the pill. Ginseng was nourishing to begin with. Once the pill entered her stomach, Old Madam Song’s heart settled down. She did not know if it was a psychological effect..
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