Old Mrs. Qin passed away peacefully.
With her passing, the room filled with tumultuous sobbing, the filial sons and virtuous grandsons all knelt on the ground, except for Qin Liuxi. She neither knelt nor shed a single tear.
She glanced at those who had co and at Old Mrs. Qin standing beside them, and slightly bowed to her: "May you have a safe journey."
Old Mrs. Qin smiled, nodded at her, took one last look at the filial sons and grandsons kneeling and weeping on the ground, then turned away with a smile.
Lai Dou Lai said, "Sir, I shall take my leave."
Qin Liuxi nodded: "Thank you for your efforts."
She walked outside, took the gold ingot handed by Teng Zhao, and burned it. So ingots fell into the hands of the ghost ssenger, others into the hands of the Old Lady.
Watching them disappear into the Ghost Gate, Qin Liuxi instructed Housekeeper Li: "Hang the lanterns for the mourning rites."
Housekeeper Li received the order and left, first having his son hang the already prepared white lanterns, then changed into mourning clothes, and asked the temporarily hired servants to start setting up the Mourning Hall and arranging the funeral.
Inside the room, after a round of sobbing, Mrs. Wang stood up, looked at Qin Boguang and Qin Boqing, and said, "Second brother, third brother, your return was tily. Mother seems to have no regrets. Now that she has passed, father and husband are still in the capital, you must temporarily take up the banner as the head of the family. Go change into the mourning clothes first, the obituary will go out, and people will co to offer condolences soon."
Qin Boqing got up, took a deep look at his mother who had already closed her eyes, wiped away tears, took the clean handkerchief handed over by Nanny Ding, covered the Old Lady’s face, and then bowed to Mrs. Wang: "These past two years, my hardships, our sisters-in-law, and wife..."
Mrs. Gu looked at his empty left arm, her tears fell profusely. Hearing these words, she raised her head, staring at him blankly: "San Lang."
The two were filled with a sense of reunion, constrained from overstepping due to the current circumstances.
"Dad." Qin Mingbao, however, had no such concerns, pulling his two younger brothers, he walked up to him, eyes full of admiration and excitent.
Seeing the children, Qin Boqing couldn’t hold back, crouched down and hugged them all tightly, a big man, yet tears fell again.
While this side was filled with warmth, on Qin Boguang’s side, a storm was brewing. Mrs. Xie looked at the pale-faced but heavily pregnant Mrs. Cao, her eyes wide with anger, especially upon hearing her call Qin Boguang, her eyes fixated on her belly.
"Qin Boguang, who is this woman?" Mrs. Xie questioned sharply.
Everyone in the second house, except for Qin Mingmu, was staring at Mrs. Cao, eyes filled with scrutiny and disbelief.
Mrs. Cao’s eyes flickered slightly, gently calling, "Elder sister."
Mrs. Xie was instantly furious at this "elder sister": "Who is your elder sister? Qin Boguang, you damned bastard, even in exile you can’t behave and bring back a pregnant woman, do you think you’re fair to us, your wife and kids?"
"Second sister-in-law!" Mrs. Wang interrupted sternly: "Do you know where you are? Can’t you see this is no ti for a scene?"
Mrs. Xie stiffened, looking at Old Lady lying straight on the bed, fear overca her, she glared fiercely at Mrs. Cao, and lowered her head, not daring to curse further.
Qin Boguang breathed a small sigh of relief seeing her quiet down.
The group left the room, removed their hairpins and rings, changed into mourning attire, while Qin Liuxi, together with Wuwei and the old Taoist, and Sanyuan who arrived early at the Qin family for preparations, set up a small Daoist temple. They then helped Mrs. Wang and others dress the Old Lady in her grand clothing, placed a Copper Coin in her mouth, covered her face with yellow paper, laid her in the door board, covered with white cloth, and then moved to the Mourning Hall to weep.
As for notifying of the funeral, Qin Liuxi had already arranged for Chief Li to report the death to a few familiar families, and as for Old Master Qin and his side, she sent Wei Xie, the Life Impermanence ssenger, to notify them. When thanking the Emperor in the Imperial City, Qin Bohong could submit a letter of mourning and wouldn’t need to go back on duty.
For other relatives, funeral notifications were sent, even to Qin Yingniang far in the northeast, as she was the legitimate daughter, a servant who originally helped with rough work was sent to inform her.
Everything proceeded in an orderly manner.
Upon hearing of Old Mrs. Qin’s passing, people from Li City ca to offer their condolences one after another; familiar or unfamiliar, they all ca to the Qin family, recently vindicated, to save face with the officials.
At this mont, close to Shengjing, Qin Bohong and Qin Yuanshan were resting at an inn when Wei Xie suddenly appeared.
Father and son both shuddered, a foreboding feeling overcoming them.
"The Old Lady passed on the fifth day of December, peacefully and without regrets. Qin Liuxi wanted to inform you both to do as you please." Wei Xie said coldly to them.
Qin Yuanshan froze, then his eyes reddened as tears welled up.
His old wife really went before him, the old couple would never et again in life, such a pity and lant.
Qin Bohong then kneeled in the direction of Li City, weeping bitterly.
Qin Yuanshan sniffed, "Let’s get on the road. Write a letter of mourning, submit it and then head back to Li City, observe mourning as required, and spend these years quietly educating the children."
Qin Bohong nodded.
The two dared not rest further, drank a couple of mouthfuls of hot ginseng soup, and pressed on towards the capital.
Back in Li City, the Qin family held the wake for three days, and the small commotion in the second house lasted the sa period. If Qin Liuxi hadn’t had Qin Mingchun and Teng Zhao put on a show in front of Qin Boguang, showing the Old Lady’s quick passing was partly due to Mrs. Xie, who was thus held in check by Qin Boguang, there would have been further disturbances.
The wake lasted seven days, then the Old Lady was dressed for burial and laid into the coffin.
Qin Boqing asked Qin Liuxi: "Your father should be hurrying back, should we wait?"
Qin Liuxi showed no expression, saying: "Although it’s harsh winter now, and a longer wake wouldn’t hurt, this year it’s too cold, keep vigil too long, and people will collapse. Besides, even if he returns, the coffin is already sealed, she passed long ago, he’d hardly dare to peek inside."
Leaving aside waiting that long, even within these few days, livor mortis has set in, who would dare look?
Qin Liuxi said again: "It’s almost the New Year, and there aren’t any auspicious days for burial, it’s better to proceed with the funeral early. If he cos back, he can kneel before the Old Lady’s grave or build a small hut and keep a vigil for a few years, fulfilling the mother-son bond."
Qin Boqing: "..."
This niece is ruthless, suggesting building a hut for mourning, how bitter such isolation must be! She does not care at all for her father’s fate!
On the road, Qin Bohong hugged himself tightly, this winter is truly cold!
"In that case, proceed with the funeral." As for elder brother, let him kneel thrice every nine steps, that is filial.
Everyone listened to these words, and the younger ones looked at Qin Liuxi. Since the Old Lady’s passing, even while keeping vigil, she hadn’t shed a single tear, nor reddened her eyes.
But no one dared say anything, because those extra days Old Lady stayed, were thanks to her using the Golden Needle to hold on, not to ntion, she could summon ghosts, who dared provoke her, lest she summons the Old Lady to personally deal with them?
All were tactful, and Qin Liuxi was satisfied, even reciting a scroll of the Rebirth Scripture personally before comncing the funeral and moving to the ancestral tomb.
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