The prince is in charge of the capital, as well as Pei Shan, who was specially left behind, the military commander Zhongxinhou Wanglin, and the assistant minister Xu Min.
Among the ministers who came, there were Wang Xiu's father Wang Wenbai, Dingguo Duke Jiang Wenmao, Xu Min's brother Xu Dun, Ji Shangshu and other veterans. In addition, Lu Yunhong's father Lu Shouchang also came.
They and the old master were all former colleagues. Thinking of the old master who was high-spirited and proud when he was young, he couldn't help but feel sad.
The funeral was held in a dignified manner. The emperor named the old master the Duke of Fu, made Mrs. Li the wife of the Duke, and made Mei Xinjue the son of the Duke. He also gave him a house and farmland, which was hereditary for three generations.
In other words, there is still hope for the Mei family to rise. At least if one of the three generations can come out of the cabinet to become prime minister, the Mei family will not be considered in decline!
The moment Mrs. Li received the decree, she felt relieved and her face became much better. Although everyone wanted to congratulate her, no one mentioned it at the funeral of the old master. They just asked her to take care of herself and everything else.
Leave it to the children.
Children? Mrs. Li thought of Mei Min, and the chill in her eyes flashed away. But she endured it and said nothing.
When all the children of the old master arrived, the funeral was finally over.
On the day of the burial, Lu Yunhong followed Fu Ling out, and soon found that the sky was covered with dark clouds, and it looked like it was going to rain heavily.
He put his hand on the coffin and faintly heard a strange jeering sound coming from his ears. Then, in the misty mountain forest, he saw two people standing not far away, with fairy-like demeanor, kind eyebrows and kind eyes.
They laughed together and said: "Mr. Lu is still nostalgic for the mortal world, why don't we go together?"
"That's right. Why don't you come with us today? Everyone misses you."
At this time, he saw the deceased old master walking past him gracefully, looking back with a smile in his eyes, looking full of energy. He walked to the side of the two people, followed them and laughed together.
: "He, by chance, has his beloved wife and son by his side, so he probably still has a dozen left."
After saying that, he turned back and waved to Lu Yunhong, and the three of them disappeared into the forest.
Lu Yunhong felt a splitting headache and was out of breath. He suddenly felt someone tapping his shoulder and woke up suddenly.
But he saw Mei Xinjue with a worried look on his face and said: "Brother Lu, are you okay? Did you catch the cold? The Taoist priest said that the time has come and my father will be laid to rest."
Lu Yunhong looked at the surrounding mountains and forests in a daze. They were similar but not the same. The weather was sunny. Where could there be thick fog and cloudy weather?
He stood up, his heart pounding, thinking that the two people called him Lu Gong, as if they had known each other before.
This title was what the officials below him called him in his previous life after he served as the Imperial Master for two terms.
By chance, there's still another sixty years left?
Was the old teacher hinting at something?
Lu Yunhong turned back to look at the coffin of the old master, and found that it was the same as in the dream. When he touched it with his hands, it seemed to have a dull and heavy feeling.
The most important thing was that he didn't even know when he fell asleep. He just remembered that when Fu Ling left Mei's house, he was already in a trance.
On the way back, Lu Yunhong asked Mei Xinjue: "When did I fall asleep?"
Although Mei Xinjue was still surprised, he said truthfully: "When we went to the mountain, Brother Lu took a nap under the coffin. Other adults also said that Brother Lu had a close relationship with my father. You can't bear the blow when my father leaves this time."
, I still can’t accept it for a while.”
Lu Yunhong was silent for a while, nodded and said, "Yes."
Seeing that he had admitted it, Mei Xinjue felt quite unhappy and said, "Now that my father's funeral has been completed, but the third sister is still incarcerated at home, can Brother Lu give me some advice?"
Lu Yunhong said: "Don't do anything, let her go back to Beijing."
Mei Xinjue opened his mouth, but no sound came out, looking very surprised.
Lu Yunhong continued: "Just listen to me, you can't have a hand in this matter. From now on, study hard on your homework and try to come back with a meritorious exam and bring glory to your Mei family."
…
The funeral of the old master was finished, and Lu Yunhong and Wang Xiu set off back to Beijing.
In the carriage, Wang Xiu fell asleep.
While stroking her hair, Lu Yunhong lowered his head and looked at her sleeping face. She was quiet and gentle, sleeping soundly, and did not wake up despite the bumps in the carriage.
At this time, he thought of the emperor.
He had a very strange feeling in his heart, that if the emperor had followed Fu Ling out at that time, maybe he would have seen a different scene.
What scene? In a trance, I saw my former figure.
An indescribable feeling, like a hole in the dusty bookcase of old things, gradually revealing the clues inside.
And he thought that the mystery that he would never be able to solve in his lifetime, now it seems that there is no chance at all.
Back at Lu Mansion, Lu Yunhong hurriedly went to see Ming Xin.
Mingxin was copying scriptures at the desk when she saw Lu Yunhong coming, and felt a little strange.
Lu Yunhong took off his cloak and put his hands on the smoker to keep warm. Looking at Mingxin, who was still wearing single clothes, he asked, "Aren't you cold?"
Mingxin shook her head, but she poured him a cup of hot tea and asked, "Didn't you just come back from Daxing? What happened?"
Ming Xin said, counted with her fingers, and then smiled and said: "I said so."
"Scared?"
Lu Yunhong said: "No, I was just shocked by the sound of holding the spirit and throwing the tiles, and I was reminded of some old things."
"Do you remember what you said?"
Mingxin asked: "What?"
Lu Yunhong said: "As you once said, there was once a chief minister who lived through three dynasties. He was an honest and upright official throughout his life. He taught two generations of famous emperors. When he died, all the officials mourned, the nine ministers carried the coffin, and the new emperor supported the spirit.
"
Ming Xin nodded: "That's what I said."
Lu Yunhong immediately said: "I think if the emperor had also gone to help the deceased on the day of the funeral, I would have remembered everything, everything!"
Mingxin couldn't help but feel happy, and asked: "How much do you remember now? You can't just fake your own death and let the emperor come to support the spirit? Besides, you don't have the qualifications now!"
Lu Yunhong said: "I know it's impossible, and I haven't thought about pretending to die?"
"I want to ask you, is the person you are talking about me?"
Ming Xin nodded, looked up at him, and said calmly: "Yes!"
Lu Yunhong sat down and tugged on his clothes impatiently, feeling very depressed.
He continued: "But you also said that there was a relic when I died, which was a banknote that could no longer be redeemed. Then I can probably guess that the reason why I went around in circles was because I couldn't let go of Axiu and wanted to get back to me again.
Continue the lead."
Ming Xin looked at him, smiled, and said enigmatically: "Is that so?"
Lu Yunhong said angrily: "You are so smart, why do you think you are a monk? Why do you think you are a fox? You can't say anything. You say yes to everything I say!"
Mingxin said helplessly: "You forgot it yourself, and you come to ask me?"
"I can only tell you that she once said something like this to me. You can listen to it."
When Lu Yunhong heard this, he held his breath and stared at Ming Xin motionlessly.
Ming Xin's lips moved slightly and she said, "I can't remember when that was. Anyway, before that, she never told me in detail about your relationship."
"But that day, she said: I once had a short marriage, and most of the people who knew it are no longer alive. But I still remember it, clearly."
"Then I saw her swallowing harder and her eyes were red. Did you know that she hadn't cried for a long time."
"Later, when you became terminally ill, she wandered the streets of the capital and refused to leave for a long time."
After Lu Yunhong heard this, his eyes suddenly turned red and he didn't speak for a long time.
In the silence, his throat felt extremely sore, and his heart was filled with uncontrollable sadness.