Xue Huichun's maid Jinxia reminded her, "Miss, the old lady should have breakfast ready."

Xue Zhongfu was planning to carefully read the other eulogies delivered to the Marquis' Mansion, and planned to ask his elder brother to write a thank-you reply in his spare time after sorting them out.

"Go quickly and spend more time with your mother." He gently instructed Xue Huichun.

Xue Huichun agreed and slowly walked towards the door. Thinking of her second brother's tired and exhausted look, she turned around again.

"Second brother, you should ask Aqi to fetch you some water and change into clean clothes." She pinched the tip of her nose with her slender fingers: "You smell sour!"

After saying that, she shrugged in disgust and left Mo Yunxuan quickly as if she was running away.

Xue Zhongfu smelled his cuffs and lapels and couldn't help laughing.

"Stinky girl, don't ask me for help next time."

He heaved a long sigh, thinking that it would be disrespectful to kowtow before his father's spirit, and then ordered the servant to prepare hot water for bathing.

…

When Xue Huichun arrived at Prajna Hall, her mother Hong Yingrong and younger sister Xue Shanqiu had already finished their breakfast.

She was a little out of breath because she had walked so fast. She stood outside the door for a while before walking into the main hall.

"Mother, Wan'an."

When Hong Yingrong saw her eldest daughter coming, she didn't ask her why she was late. She just asked Zhao Ma to bring out the breakfast left for her, and she sat aside and talked with Xue Shanqiu.

After finishing her meal, Xue Huichun was anxious to go back to her room to read the eulogy Liang Fushan had written for his father, but considering that she had come late to pay her respects, it was not convenient for her to leave immediately.

Hong Yingrong looked at her eldest daughter, who was wearing a Taoist robe, and said slowly, "Once your father's mourning period is over, I will go to Baiyun Temple to revoke your place of secular practice. You can't really be a Taoist nun for the rest of your life, so you should go home and live."

At the beginning, Xue Huichun was deeply shocked by the Liang Fushan incident, and the Western Rong were at war again and again. So she petitioned her mother to practice secular cultivation in Baiyun Temple, claiming that it was to pray for peace on the border and victory for the army.

But the real reason was to avoid those people who kept coming to propose marriage.

Now, Hong Yingrong feels it is time for her daughter to end her practice and move back home.

Nanny Zhao cleared the dishes on the table, and the maid brought a teacup for Xue Huichun to rinse her mouth.

"Old Madam is absolutely right," Madam Zhao continued. "The Empress Dowager has already finalized the Fifth Miss's marriage. She'll wait for the coming-of-age ceremony this summer, and then she'll issue an imperial decree granting the marriage. As for you, Fourth Miss, Old Madam is also looking for a suitable candidate for you. It wouldn't be nice to have a younger sister marry before her older sister."

Now the entire mansion knows that the palace has already decided on Xue Shanqiu's marriage. The promised one is Li Longyuan, the Prince of Linjiang, who is the cousin of the current emperor. After returning to the capital from Yuzhou to establish his fiefdom, he was granted a prince's palace and lived in the capital permanently.

The Empress Dowager had been particularly fond of Xue Shanqiu since she was a child, treating her like her own daughter. She and Hong Yingrong had already privately agreed on this matter.

Some officials' wives and ladies in the capital who knew about the situation were extremely envious of the fact that the Marquis's Mansion was going to have a princess.

However, there were always people who were jealous and whispered behind the scenes, accusing the Queen Mother of being overly partial to the Xue family because of her cousin relationship with the old lady of Xingyuan Marquis.

Xue Huichun shrugged slightly after hearing this and said calmly, "I went to Baiyun Temple that day to pray for my father's victory in the Western Rong campaign. Now that my father has met with an unexpected disaster, I have returned to the Marquis' Mansion to live a life of luxury. I will really be ridiculed by the world. Mother, please grant my wish and let me stay in the Taoist temple for the rest of my life."

Hong Yingrong didn't expect her daughter to be so resistant to returning to secular life. Now that she was in mourning, it was not easy to argue with her.

Moreover, when I think about what my daughter said, there is some truth to it. Now that I am in a hurry to return home, it seems that my practice is not sincere.

"If mother has nothing else to say, I will go to my father's spirit chamber and chant the sutra for the deceased."

This was not an excuse for Xue Huichun to leave. Ever since the coffin of the old marquis Xue Yonghuai was transported back to the marquis's mansion, she had been chanting scriptures for her father in front of the coffin three times a day without interruption.

Hong Yingrong really had no idea what to do with her eldest daughter, so she agreed: "Go ahead. If anything happens, have Jinxia come to Prajna Hall to find me."

Xue Huichun bowed respectfully, then turned and left, leaving her younger sister to continue talking with Hong Yingrong.

…

By evening, the last day of the funeral, the gate of Xingyuan Marquis' Mansion was still busy with cars and people.

The towering gate of the Marquis' Mansion was wide open, and the paper lanterns hanging on both sides were shining brightly, illuminating the entire street as bright as day.

It was not until the hour of You that the Marquis' Mansion declined the endless stream of guests who came to pay their respects. The gate slowly closed, isolating itself from the noise from the outside world.

At this moment, the family's internal worship ceremony officially began.

Old lady Hong Yingrong walked slowly to the coffin, knelt down devoutly, clasped her hands together, and prayed silently.

Following closely behind were the eldest son Xue Yuanchu and his wife Jiang Shuxiu, the second son Xue Zhongfu, the third son Xue Jiyan, and two daughters Xue Huichun and Xue Shanqiu.

They lined up in order of age, and each of them kowtowed respectfully to the coffin to express their condolences.

Xue Jiyan hurried back to the Marquis' Mansion from the Imperial College in the afternoon.

He had been busy preparing for this year's spring imperial examination. He studied hard in the Imperial College on weekdays and only returned to the Marquis' Mansion in the evening to pay his respects to Hong Yingrong.

When the old marquis was alive, he asked his three sons to take the imperial examinations and not to rely on their grandfather's influence to enjoy a good life.

It’s a pity that although the eldest brother Xue Yuanchu and the second brother Xue Zhongfu both passed the imperial examination, it was difficult for them to go further.

Xue Jiyan originally hoped that when his father returned to Beijing in triumph, he would be able to pass the imperial examination and have double happiness.

However, Xue Yonghuai's death on the battlefield hit him hard, so he silently vowed in front of his father's coffin that he must pass the imperial examination to comfort his father's spirit in heaven.

My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!