Chapter 24 I Won't Be Human in My Next Life
Yu Shan stared at her blankly for a moment, then nodded.
Upon closer reflection, it's actually not wrong.
"Boss, you..."
"What's wrong? Why are you stammering? Just say what you have to say."
Seeing his hesitant expression, Tao Tao wondered if this brat wanted to borrow money from her.
"My brother meant to say that you are completely different from others."
Yu He leaned closer; being so young, he naturally spoke with more courage than the adults.
"Hahaha…"
Upon hearing this, Tao Tao laughed.
"What's the difference? Aren't they all the same – one nose and two eyes…?"
If we're talking about differences, everyone is different.
Yu Shan gave an awkward laugh, stealing a glance at her, thinking to himself that she was indeed unlike anyone he had ever met.
But he wasn't very knowledgeable and couldn't explain it clearly.
The carriage quickly stopped in front of their house. The two brothers carried the body out to the yard and put it down. Then Tao Tao told them to leave first.
She was a woman after all; even in death, she should still be treated with the respect and dignity due to her.
Several coffins were placed against the side wall of the courtyard, one on top of the other. The family also had wreaths, paper figures, gold and silver ingots readily available, so there was no need to go to the shop to get them. Running a funeral shop is so convenient; it saves you the trouble of buying all these funeral supplies.
She went inside, took a straw mat and laid it on the ground, then struggled to place the body on it and drew a bucket of water from the well.
They prepared a beautiful and exquisite set of funeral clothes, along with rouge, face powder, some special pigments, and sewing needles and thread.
She sat on a small stool, holding a bath towel, her gaze focused and her expression serious as she wiped the corpse's body.
As expected, she was right. He Wan did have ulcers on her body, but not many, and not as severe as those on Master Chen's body.
The woman had to be more meticulous, washing and sewing it up little by little; it just took a bit more effort and time.
After washing, she got up and took out the head of the basket to wash as well.
As I washed He Wan's hair and face, her eyes, which had been open the whole time, were covered with a thin layer of turbidity. Her dull and lifeless pupils reflected her image, giving the illusion that she had been staring at me the whole time.
"Don't worry, I'll definitely make sure you're clean and beautiful. If you could choose in your next life, what would you want to be?"
"Birds, beasts, fish? Or humans? But if you find this world too painful and unbearable, then don't be human..."
After cleaning everything, he held the head in his arms, placed the body on his lap, and took a needle and thread to begin sewing up the neck.
Her technique was nimble and quick; her fingers flew across the needle and thread, and it was done in no time. She looked down and examined it carefully; there were no stitches on her fair neck, only a very faint line.
Tao Tao nodded in satisfaction: "You've made a lot of progress again."
As she spoke, she carefully outlined her eyebrows with a pencil. When applying eyeshadow, she closed her eyes and used a brush to lightly sweep some blush onto both sides of her cheeks.
Finally, apply lip rouge, and the makeup is complete.
She placed He Wan on the white cloth spread on the ground, then got up, turned around, and went into the inner room.
When they came out, they were carrying a basket in each hand, and when that wasn't enough, they turned back and went back in to get two more paper figures of a boy and a girl.
She then sat cross-legged on the edge of the white cloth and began to tell her story.
"Let me tell you about the basic funeral rites: two paper figures, a boy and a girl, paper horses, paper money, gold and silver ingots, and wreaths and flower baskets. I've made them all out of paper, so we can burn them together later."
"There's also a courtyard house, and the paper figure can be your servant. Oh, and a cell phone—you've definitely never seen this kind of technology before. It's something from thousands of years in the future, and you can use it now. How about that?"
She smiled playfully at the corpse on the ground.
"It's much more advanced and fashionable than others. I'll burn an instruction manual for you too. You'll figure out how to use it after studying it."
"Do you keep pets? Cats, dogs, lambs, and the like. Keeping pets is actually quite nice; it keeps you from being lonely. Fine, I'll give them all to you."
Tao Tao got up, rolled up her sleeves, took a deep breath, and used all her strength to carry the body on her back. In one go, she stepped onto the stool and put the body into the coffin.
After doing all that, she collapsed to the ground, panting, her forehead covered in sweat.
She looked up at the sky, estimating the time; they would be back for dinner soon.
Since she was alone, she kept everything simple, skipping many steps in between. She placed a few copper coins, a small stone lion, and a beautiful bouquet of lilies beside He Wan, and then struggled to close the coffin lid.
"He Wan, may you rest in peace."
As soon as the words were spoken, the lid was closed, and they never saw each other again.
Tao Tao had just come out after taking a bath when she saw her mother returning with her younger brother.
Tao's mother glanced at the mess on the ground and said softly, "You're back after you've finished your work." She bent down and began to clean up.
"Ah, yes."
She casually wiped her wet hair a few times, then tossed it behind her.
"I'm going to cook. Tao'er, you need to dry your hair, or you'll catch a cold."
"elder sister!"
Tao Liang ran over and handed her a piece of candy, which she had bought last time; he hadn't finished it yet.
"Thank you, Liang'er. Go play somewhere else."
"Mother, let me help you." She walked over and rolled up her sleeves.
She's not good at cooking, but she's no problem helping out.
The next day.
Tao Tao got up and prepared to transport the coffin and funeral supplies to the desolate mountains outside the city later.
After leaving the capital, if you travel about ten miles, there is a place specifically for burying the nameless corpses of those who died in a foreign land, as well as for passersby.
Yu Shan and Yu He arrived during the move, and the three of them carried the largest item onto the cart together.
Just then, Tao's mother came out and casually asked, "Where are you all going?"
"Once we leave the city, we should be back soon."
"Then you must be careful."
After giving her instructions, she went into the kitchen to make breakfast, completely unaware that a dead person was lying in the coffin they were moving.
Tao Tao didn't say anything, otherwise, given her mother's gentle nature, she would have been scared half to death.
"Have breakfast before you go!"
Tao Tao sat on the cart at the door. Hearing the voices inside, she replied, "I took a few steamed buns. You can eat the rest."
"Let's go."
"drive!"
Upon hearing her words, Yu Shan started the carriage.
As she drove down the street, she looked at the various passersby and said, "After I'm done, I'll go back and get a coffin. Then we can go to the Chen residence to finish up."
"Okay, boss."
A magnificent carriage with a canopy made of rosewood was slowly approaching them.
Inside the carriage, Chen Jinghe looked at Duan Gan, who was leaning against the soft couch with his eyes closed, and said in a low voice, "Fourth Master, the Old Master has sent someone to the Privy Council to invite you back to the mansion."
"After several attempts, wouldn't you like to go back and take a look?"
"Just refuse."
He hesitated, glancing at the weary look on the Fourth Master's face, then said, "Yes."
Even though they were both in the capital, Duan Gan rarely went back to the Duan residence. He usually stayed at the Privy Council or in a house he had bought.
The women in the backyard, taking advantage of the old man's tacit approval, were always trying to arrange marriages for him, which was extremely annoying.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com