Chapter 47 Preparations

After much persuasion, Shen Qingyue finally got through to him and returned to her own courtyard.

Shangguan Jin finally breathed a sigh of relief.

As for winter wheat, Shangguan Jin had absolutely no reason to worry.

Dongmai completely believed what Shangguan Jin said, that the funeral was just a formality.

It was merely a means to delay the wedding and pave the way for the Duke's return.

What's wrong with killing two birds with one stone?

No, this should be a win-win-win situation.

Can I receive another gift?

When the Duke returns, we'll hold another grand banquet to celebrate his safe return, so we can receive gifts again.

Ah, thinking about it this way, the winter wheat is full of energy.

“Miss, leave this to me. I will definitely do it as well as the old lady’s birthday celebration.” Dongmai said confidently.

Shangguan Jin felt that this matter could not be handled as casually as celebrating Old Madam Shen's birthday.

There's a lot to do when it comes to a state-sponsored funeral.

We can't tell anyone that we're celebrating the old lady's birthday just because the fortune teller chose an auspicious date.

Emperor Xiao Jing will definitely ask: When did you find out? How did you find out? How can you prove that the Duke of Dingguo is dead?

One careless move and you could be guilty of deceiving the emperor.

Therefore, Shangguan Jin needs to make a good plan.

"Dongmai, now I'm letting you know about this, besides Sister Yao."

"You must keep this a secret, understand? This concerns the very survival of the Duke of Dingguo's mansion," Shangguan Jin whispered.

Dongmai immediately patted her chest and said that she would definitely keep this matter very secret.

They will definitely treat this as a real funeral.

Shangguan Jin nodded.

That's right, there's no need to worry about winter wheat.

The concern now is with the government.

From the old lady to the youngest Shen Qingyu, how should we put it?

We're having a sudden funeral; we hope nothing goes wrong with the old lady.

Therefore, Shangguan Jin decided that she still needed to have a proper talk with the old lady.

How should I put it?

Let's say it's half true and half false! Let's say the funeral was fake, and that the funeral was just a cover-up.

Perhaps it's best to let the old lady have a funeral filled with hope.

The more Shangguan Jin thought about it, the more convinced she became that she was right.

Now that I think about it, it's easy to talk about my own affairs. Since the Duke of Dingguo's mansion was always run by the family, the old lady would definitely believe whatever I say.

As long as it's not the real Duke Dingguo lying in the coffin, the old lady will definitely be able to fool her.

The most important thing right now is what's happening outside...

The most pressing question for the people of Chongqing in recent years has been whether the Duke of Dingguo is still alive.

Yes! Please provide evidence!

They're not here! Please provide evidence!

Therefore, without any evidence, the Duke of Dingguo could only be considered missing!

No one dared to make a judgment on whether the Duke of Dingguo was alive or dead.

Even though Duke Anguo was so wary of Duke Dingguo, he still dared not say whether Duke Dingguo was dead or alive.

Therefore, in order to make the funeral reasonable, Shangguan Jin first needs to convince everyone that the Duke of Dingguo is no longer alive.

This doesn't mean you can just find some people to spread rumors on the street.

It's not as simple as just making up a story to convince everyone.

The hurdle of Emperor Xiao Jing alone is difficult to overcome.

Therefore, Shangguan Jin must think about this carefully.

"Miss, if that doesn't work, just say you dreamed about the Duke, and he asked you to burn more paper money for him."

He said he didn't have enough money to bribe those little devils down there. He was starving and freezing, and almost had to beg for food. Dongmai offered a suggestion from the side.

Shangguan Jin...

"Dongmai, tell me, if we told this to the imperial family, do you think they would believe us?" Shangguan Jin asked.

Dongmai thought for a moment.

If she were from the Heavenly Family, she would definitely believe it, since she had dreamt that her father told her to burn paper money!

It's a pity she wasn't from the imperial family; it's a bit of a shame...

"Hehe! The imperial family won't believe it, but the Empress will most likely believe it," Dongmai grinned.

Shangguan Jin pointed at the winter wheat with her finger.

"Her Majesty the Empress is a shrewd woman; she certainly wouldn't believe it."

"Then what should we do? Why don't we find a Taoist priest or a monk to perform a ritual and have them say they saw the Duke was gone?" Dongmai continued to offer suggestions.

Shangguan Jin continued to shake her head.

This method is suitable for fooling people like the old lady of the Shen family.

As for those people in the palace, they're all as cunning as sieves, they definitely won't believe it.

Not only would they not believe it, they would probably also secretly wonder if the Duke of Dingguo's mansion had some other purpose in suddenly making such a fuss.

Or to put it more conspiratorially... say that the Duke of Dingguo's mansion was plotting a rebellion or something.

The more Shangguan Jin thought about it, the more difficult it seemed.

"Dongmai, tell me, under what circumstances would you believe that the Duke is dead? Tell me your true thoughts." Shangguan Jin looked at Dongmai.

“I would believe things like the dream presentation and the Taoist ritual just now,” Dongmai said.

"Besides these two, what else would you believe?" Shangguan Jin continued to ask.

After thinking about it carefully, Dongmai realized that there were only these two options!

"They must have believed it just because they saw the Duke's body."

"No, even if we can't see the body, as long as we see the clothes the Duke usually wore, or the accessories he often carried, we'll believe it," Dongmai said honestly.

Shangguan Jin slapped her thigh.

Exactly! If there's no evidence, then just fabricate it!

Clothes, accessories, anything is fine, as long as she insists that they belong to the Duke of Dingguo, then it's acceptable.

After all, the person who knows the Duke of Dingguo best, who knows what he wears and what he carries, is her.

Bloodstained clothes! Or half of some ornament worn on the body...

Shangguan Jin felt that she had finally figured out the way.

However, we still need to figure out how the blood-stained clothes and those ornaments were discovered.

You can't just say that someone suddenly threw a bag of blood-stained clothes in front of the Duke of Dingguo's mansion...

This doesn't make sense, and Emperor Xiao Jing certainly wouldn't believe it.

Shangguan Jin thought for a moment and decided that the best option would be someone from the Duke of Dingguo's mansion, preferably someone who was close to the Duke of Dingguo.

They endured wind and rain, begging their way back to the capital.

Then they brought back this blood-stained garment, and news of the Duke of Dingguo's death...

That's how it's portrayed on TV and in storybooks.

Shangguan Jin thought this was a viable path.

The issue of choosing the right person needs to be carefully considered.

We must choose someone who can handle things, is loyal to the Duke's mansion, and can adapt to changing circumstances...

Sigh, this person is hard to find!

If that doesn't work, then we'll have to go back to the Shangguan residence to look for it.

However, before searching for the person, we need to deal with the best physical evidence first.

The issue of the blood-stained clothes.

"Dongmai, tell me, have I been good to you all this time...?" Shangguan Jin looked at Dongmai, who seemed to be deep in thought.