Chapter 14
Lin Lang had no way to refute, so he had to find some cutting tools and carefully cut out both clusters of flowers, so that the pattern was in the middle of the paper. The trimmed rice paper was square and looked like a black and white postcard. It was impossible to tell that it was cut out from a single piece of paper.
Then, Lin Lang followed Su Yun's instructions and gave the pattern on the left side of the rice paper to Wu's father, while he kept the right side for himself.
Because they were frightened, Mr. and Mrs. Wu were unable to come downstairs for lunch. After all, they are old, and fainting suddenly is very dangerous. Now that they have woken up, it would be better for them to rest more.
When the cook heard about this, he went to make some light food and sent it to the guest room. As for the extra food cooked at noon, they had to try their best to eat it all.
Su Yun was so happy that she ate an extra bowl of rice because someone was helping her investigate the matter of the seeds of resentment. After the meal, she was so full that she fell on the recliner and couldn't get up. However, she always slept after eating, so no one pulled her up.
I lay there until around three in the afternoon, when the ghost and the ghost bride brought over several printed photos. Three of them were of Aunt Wu when she was young, with her smiling, grinning, and not smiling. The other two were straight shots of the corpse, one with her smiling and one with her not smiling.
The photos were so well taken that when you stare at them, it's as if the people in them come alive.
After Su Yun looked at them one by one, he felt that they were all good and couldn't make a decision, so he said, "You have worked hard, go eat first, I will ask the uncle and aunt to choose which one, and then frame it."
The work of mounting portraits was previously done by the ghost catcher Ah Xiu. He was a careful person and had learned simple carpentry in the funeral home. Su Yiling then arranged for him to make photo frames. The customers didn't know that the photo frames they took back were actually made on site and were not wholesale goods at all, so they were a little more expensive.
The three photos have their own characteristics, and they all reflect Aunt Wu's true emotions before her death. However, ordinary cameras cannot convey the emotions in the photos. Su Yun can only notify Wu Jin to come downstairs to choose. If he cannot make a choice, he can let Wu's father choose. He hopes that he will not faint again.
Wu Jin replied very quickly. He said directly: Please send it over. Dad said he is mentally prepared and can accept it now.
Su Yun hesitated for a moment and replied: Are you sure?
The other side displayed "input" several times, and it was obvious that Wu Jin was also struggling, but in the end he gave a positive answer.
So Su Yun stacked up the photos and put the old photo on top, as a buffer for Wu's father and mother so that they would not faint again. They were old and would really have to be sent to the hospital if they fainted again.
When Su Yun arrived at the guest room, he saw Wu's father and mother eating at the coffee table in the room. Their faces were a little pale and they did not look too well. Being frightened was very harmful to their health. The chef made them porridge and pigeon soup, but they did not eat much.
Su Yun carefully poked his head out from behind the door: "Uncle and aunt, are you feeling better?"
Father Wu and Mother Wu looked over, and Mother Wu waved to Su Yun: "Much better, thank you Yunyun for the incense. Wu Jin just said that the photos have been taken?"
"Well, I took a picture of everything. Are you sure you want to see it?" Su Yun walked into the guest room with her hands behind her back. She hid the photos behind her first. If they regretted it, she would take them out.
"Of course I'll watch her. No matter what she looks like, she's my own sister. There's nothing to be afraid of." Wu's mother took a deep breath and said.
The two elders were still a little frightened, but they tried hard to restrain themselves. Besides, even if Aunt Wu attacked them, it was because she was controlled by someone. In fact, this sister had a very good relationship with them in the past.
Su Yun put the photo in Aunt Wu's hand and said softly, "I took five photos in total, with every look. Let Aunt Wu pick one."
The top photo is of Aunt Wu, who is in her forties and whose skin was painted by Yan Gui. She is smiling slightly, as if she has never had a carefree life.
Mother Wu's eyes turned red. She looked at it for a while and then went to look at the next picture. The next one was of Aunt Wu, who was in her forties and had no smile on her face. She looked very cold and numb. This should be the only emotion she had in that attic.
It is impossible to look at this photo for too long. Looking at it for even a second longer would be painful, as if Aunt Wu's tragedy was about to overflow from the photo and drown everyone in it.
Facing the photo, Wu's father and mother had different reactions, as did Wu Jin beside them. Only Wu Yu, the brainless one, said after looking at it: "Aunt is so pitiful..."
Hearing this, Su Yun slowly turned his head to look at him and couldn't help but complain in his mind: It's really good to be brainless, you can't even find a bite to eat when zombies come.
With Wu Yu's interruption, Wu's father and mother finally came back to their senses from the emotions in the photos. They calmed down a little and continued to look at the following photos. The next three photos showed Aunt Wu's youth, with bright eyes, white teeth, generous and gorgeous. Even black and white photos could not hide Aunt Wu's beauty.
Wu Mu saw it and was very surprised: "This, this... was it taken just now?"
In the photo, Aunt Wu is smiling with her teeth showing and her eyes slightly narrowed, and the whole photo is filled with a joyful atmosphere.
Su Yun nodded: "Yes, the camera we use in the funeral home is an old item. The pictures it takes can capture several emotions before a person dies. Since Aunt Wu's picture is like this, it means that she felt very happy to be able to return to the Wu family before she died."
"Old thing?" Wu Jin always felt something was wrong.
"Yes, a very old thing." Su Yun put a lot of emphasis on the word "old".
Low emotional intelligence: There is a ghost in this camera and it's a demon.
High EQ: This is a very old item.
The Wu family immediately understood Su Yun's implication. They were stunned for a moment, then suddenly looked down at the photos. Only then did they realize that these photos were very real. After looking at them for a long time, they no longer felt that they were flat photos. Instead, they felt that there was another space in the photos, and the people in the photos lived in the photos.
When Su Yun saw their expressions, he immediately raised his hand and gently tapped the folding fan on the coffee table. The white jade fan bone made a crisp sound when it hit the coffee table. The Wu family members who were immersed in the photo woke up instantly after hearing the sound, but they forgot what happened to them just now.
"There are two more photos below, keep looking." Su Yun said softly.
The remaining two photos were not as shocking as the previous ones. The Wu family no longer got caught up in the emotions reflected in the photos. After some selection, they finally decided to use the one with Aunt Wu's young look and a toothy smile.
After choosing, Mother Wu said to Su Yun, "I used to be in a free love relationship with your Uncle Wu, but at that time, how could we meet so directly? I was also shy, so my younger sister secretly sent messages between us. Every time I came, she would wait for me under the wall of my house. When I peeked out from the upstairs, she would smile like this, as if not much time had passed..."
This happened more than 30 years ago. At that time, no one would have thought that Aunt Wu would become what she is now.
After hearing this, Su Yun smiled and said, "Then let's take this one. I'll ask my employee Ah Xiu to frame it with better wood, and then print a smaller one and put it on the tombstone later."
The funeral process was neither complicated nor not complicated, as there were many trivial matters. Su Yun took the photo to find the ghost catcher Ah Xiu and said that the wood for the portrait frame should be made of peach wood. Aunt Wu's resentment was hard to dissipate, and the photo would be taken home by the Wu family. If peach wood was not used, it would be easy for evil spirits to invade, which would be bad for the body and affect the fortune.
The ghost catcher Ah Xiu spent several hours making the photo frame. He is now a skilled worker and is very efficient.
After it was done, Su Yun gave it to Wu's father and mother. Tomorrow, this photo can be held by Wu Jin or Wu Yu, or someone from the employees can be chosen to help hold it, because after the funeral, someone has to carry Aunt Wu's tablet, the portrait and the urn to the cemetery. According to the original plan, Wu Jin will carry the urn and Wu Yu will hold the tablet, so there will be no one to hold the photo.
Wu Mu asked Su Yun if he could help carry the things. Su Yun replied helplessly, "I would like to, but generally speaking, these three things are only carried out by close family members. After all, this is the last leg of the journey, so how can we let outsiders come?"
Even if Su Yun called her Aunt Wu, she was still an outsider. She had no blood relationship with the Su family, let alone the Wu family.
So Wu's father decided that he would be the one to carry the portrait. As an elder brother, it was only natural for him to send his sister off.
Su Yun thought about it and nodded: "Alright, be careful on the road, the portrait, the tablet and the urn must not be damaged, otherwise it will be difficult for the ghost to take away Aunt Wu's soul, and it will only add to the torment in the world."
Speaking of the soul, Father Wu remembered that Aunt Wu had become a zombie, and couldn't help asking: "Yunyun, your Aunt Wu has become a zombie. If you burn her now, what will she do..."
According to what ordinary people understand from watching movies and TV shows, they think that if they want to destroy zombies, they just need to burn them, which is equivalent to the soul being scattered and having no afterlife. Father Wu is worried that Aunt Wu will live a miserable life. If she is to be burned to death because of turning into a zombie, he is afraid that he will not be able to sleep peacefully for the rest of his life.
Upon hearing this, Su Yun hurriedly explained, "Don't worry, Aunt Wu was deliberately made like this. I haven't solved this problem yet, not only because I want to follow the clues to help you find the mastermind, but also because our master has a skilled craft that can burn away the resentment in Aunt Wu, leaving only her soul. This way, she can truly be reincarnated cleanly and easily."
The reason why the fire master is the fire master and never has to keep watch is that he has this ability. The corpses placed in his crematorium can eventually burn away all the burdensome causes and effects, allowing people to reincarnate in peace. When people die, all the things in their past lives will be considered to have vanished into thin air. I believe that few people are willing to be involved with their previous lives.
After getting Su Yun's answer, the Wu family immediately breathed a sigh of relief. They had been worrying about this matter today and had been mentally prepared for a long time before asking. Fortunately, Su Yun was very reliable and directly solved all the problems they were worried about.
After talking about the photos, Su Yun began to explain the process to the Wu family. The funeral was prepared for three days, and everyone was very busy, especially the ghost bride and the sexy ghost. They knew the most manual work, so they made various wreaths and elegiac couplets on the spot, and also had to clean up Aunt Wu's body. They didn't get much rest at night.
In fact, most orders are not so tight. Others would estimate the time early and make an appointment with the funeral home. However, Aunt Wu's order was urgent and it was a hot day. Su Yun was worried that the body would rot, so he shortened the process. However, many accidents arose, making these three days very busy.
It was already the last night for the body to be kept, and the ghost had already dressed up Aunt Wu, trying to make her hair and clothes look as meticulous as possible. Aunt Wu would attend the funeral in this look tomorrow, if she didn't move around tonight.
Su Yun didn't sleep well that night. She had to keep an eye on Aunt Wu. She wasn't sure if anyone was keeping an eye on Aunt Wu, but she was just in case. Otherwise, if an accident really happened, they would be caught off guard.
"The funeral will start tomorrow. Apart from us, uncle and aunt, as well as Wu Jin and Wu Yu, will all get up at five in the morning to see Aunt Wu off. We are not well prepared for this funeral, so we can't do our best like we did the last time. In addition, uncle and aunt asked for a low profile, so neither the mourning nor the funeral can be done in a grand manner. Our only task now is to prevent Aunt Wu from running away tonight." Su Yun stood in the morgue and made the final mobilization.
For the previous order, she let her subordinates do it as they pleased. In the end, because the family members requested it, she even cut paper people carrying coffins and crying. Fortunately, the family members did not want funeral plays, otherwise Su Yun would have to go to the countryside to find a master performer to perform.
Compared with those messy requests, the Wu family's requests are already simple. There are only two requests in total: keep a low profile and Aunt Wu should not disappear.
After hearing this, the fire-burning master stepped out and said, "Director, would you like to have Ms. Wu cremated here or at the crematorium? If she is cremated here, I need to preheat the boiler in advance."
Su Yun nodded: "Approved, Aunt Wu will be cremated here tomorrow. I have already told my uncle and aunt. Also, burn her cleanly. Aunt Wu should be able to go to the underworld with ease."
"Understood." After receiving the order, the fire-burning master immediately went to the crematorium in the funeral home. He wanted to prepare for tomorrow's cremation in advance.
The cook was next. He asked, "Director, will Mr. Wu and his friends have their meal here tomorrow? And do you want me to prepare the offerings?"
Su Yun quickly replied, "We'll eat here. Master Chef, you'll have to work harder. We'll have to make offerings for the cemetery. As for the menu, just follow the normal ones. Add a lotus pastry. I remember Aunt Wu loves it. And prepare a bowl of glutinous rice for the seventh day."
On the seventh day after death, the soul of the deceased will return to the world under the guidance of a ghost messenger, which is the legendary Night of Returning of the Soul.
Families that are more particular will keep candles, lamps, incense and eternal lamps in the house burning after the death of a family member. Funeral plays will be performed all night three days before and on the seventh day when the soul returns. The first three days are for sending the deceased soul to the underworld, and the seventh day is for letting the returning soul eat and watch happily, after all, this may be the last lively time in the deceased's life.
People who are not too particular will not make these preparations. At most, they will light some incense and candles that can burn for a long time in front of the grave. However, no matter how long they burn, they may not be able to burn for seven days, not to mention that there may be wind and rain. Therefore, the dead who do not light the eternal lamp often cannot find their home. If they are lucky, they will be taken back by the ghost catcher. If they are unlucky, they will become a wandering ghost.
Su Yun would definitely not let this happen, and he had arranged in advance the glutinous rice and eternal lanterns to be eaten on the night of the return of the soul, as well as the incense, candles and paper money to be exchanged every day.
Regarding the glutinous rice placed in the window on the night of the return of the soul, the customs vary in different places. Some places put fragrant rice, some just put rice, and some put all kinds of things. The purpose is to give the returning soul something to eat. The custom in Bincheng is just glutinous rice.
After the cook finalized the menu, he left in a hurry. He only had one night to prepare, but the banquet required heavy dishes, so he had to prepare them now.
There were still the sexy ghost, the ghost bride, the ghost messenger Ah Xiu, and Lin Lang left in the morgue. Su Yun looked at them, wondering if there was anything else she had not explained. All her experience came from watching the few funerals held by Su Yiling and Ji Weitong during her recovery period, so she was not particularly proficient in the business.
Lin Lang suddenly spoke up: "Director, Ms. Wu still doesn't have a coffin lid. I tried it again today, but it still doesn't work."
Su Yun was also worried about the coffin lid. They were now in a very awkward situation - if they wanted Aunt Wu to be obedient, they needed a complete coffin, preferably one measured for her by Ding Lan's ruler. But Aunt Wu was too resentful, and every coffin lid made for her would crack.
The old people often say that if the coffin is cracked, it means there is an injustice, and the best way is to keep the body but not bury it. The deceased's resentment must be dissipated before the burial can take place, otherwise the whole family will be in trouble.
Aunt Wu's injustice was that she was tortured and abused for many years by the human trafficker, but her biggest wish now is to die in peace. In other words, her wish has been fulfilled. If she had not been turned into a living zombie, she would never have refused to rest in peace.
In order to resolve the resentment of others, you need to let the fire master burn Aunt Wu's body, which can burn away the cause and effect and the control of others.
This is a complete mess. No matter what you do, you will get stuck at the previous step, which makes it very difficult to handle.
After thinking it over, Su Yun frowned and asked Lin Lang: "Lin Lang, the fever will start tomorrow morning. Will it be too late for you to do it?"
"Director, I'm not omnipotent." Lin Lang tried to awaken Su Yun's conscience. He didn't know how to make a coffin, he just knew the theory of how to use Ding Lan ruler.
In ancient times, these contents were divided into factions and categories. A Taoist priest who was good at geomancy would not necessarily use Ding Lan ruler to measure coffins for tombs.
Taoist knowledge is vast and complex. Lin Lang is a Taoist practitioner and his main goal is to ascend to heaven. The other knowledge he has is at most entry-level. It is really difficult for him to use Ding Lan ruler to make a coffin board within an hour.
If these things were so easy, there wouldn't be different organizations such as coffin shops, charity cemeteries, Taoist temples, etc. in ancient times. Each organization even has its own unique way of practice. People who practice Feng Shui and divination can also fight with a Taoist master like Lin Lang after practicing. It is not possible to become an almighty Taoist by just practicing one Taoism.
Su Yun looked at him with disdain and said, "Forget it. It's better to rely on yourself than on others. I will guard it myself tonight. Don't come over. Remember to take over at five o'clock tomorrow morning."
Hearing this, Yan Gui disagreed: "Director, this——"
"What's your opinion? Or, do you have any suggestions?" Su Yun raised his eyebrows and looked at her.
"Director, this is really inappropriate. How can we ask you to keep watch all night?" the ghost bride said anxiously and in a low voice.
Even Ah Xiu, the ghost messenger who usually only said "hmm", raised his head and said, "Director, this is inappropriate."
Lin Lang didn't understand what they were resisting. He looked at Su Yun's face again. After looking at it for a long time, he still felt that Su Yun was just an ordinary person. He had no luck and no cultivation.
Thinking of this, Lin Lang suddenly felt a chill on his back. Su Yun had always been able to draw talismans and use simple Taoist techniques, so how could he be a person without any cultivation?
At this time, Lin Lang suspected that Su Yun had concealed his fate and cultivation in some way, but even he could not see through it. It might be a very precious thing, perhaps so precious that once it appeared, people would fight for it.
Su Yun noticed that Lin Lang's gaze changed several times, glanced at him, and then said: "I'll be the only one guarding tonight, there's nothing I can't do. If I can't even deal with a living zombie, how can I survive in this business in the future?"
"Director..." Yan Gui wanted to say something, but Su Yun raised his hand to stop her.
"Stop shouting. I'm not a powerless loser. If you don't want to destroy Aunt Wu's body and want to survive safely until tomorrow, I'm the only one who can do it." After Su Yun finished speaking, he pushed everyone out and slammed the door of the morgue.
The ghost employees who were pushed out hurriedly turned around and wanted to knock on the door, but they didn't dare to, because they had never made Su Yun angry before. Although they called Su Yun the director, they actually felt that he was their own child and the young master. They would never refuse their child's request and were worried that the child would get angry and hurt his health.
Compared with these immortal ghosts who have lived for thousands of years, Su Yun, as a human being, is too fragile.
Lin Lang couldn't understand their anxiety: "Why are you so anxious?"
The ghost said unhappily, "Because the curator is an ordinary person. Putting an ordinary person in the same room with a zombie is going to be a disadvantage for the ordinary person, isn't it?"
"But the curator knows Taoist magic, fortune-telling, and can draw talismans. What's so ordinary about her?" Lin Lang still didn't understand.
"Why don't you think about it the other way around? What price would an ordinary person have to pay to know these things?" the ghost asked him in return.
Lin Lang was stunned for a moment, he finally figured out what was wrong with Su Yun. As an ordinary person, she appeared calm and strong enough. This was due to the confidence given by her family, but it was also a manifestation of her unwillingness to admit defeat. She was like the kind of gentle girl who usually had an indifferent attitude, but she would never be a passive person.
Those who have the ability say that they really don't care, while those who don't have the ability say that they are courting death.
Doesn't Su Yun know how much it will cost him, an ordinary person with no luck, to be involved in these secrets?
She understood, but since she grew up in the Su family's environment, she knew even more what would happen to someone who didn't have the ability to protect himself, so even if it was for her own freedom and success, she had to hold the power in her hands first.
If anyone dares to provoke her, she will lose her life and make the other person be buried with her.
Such a person should be born to be a hero, but unfortunately his fate was changed when he was weak. Now his powerful soul is trapped in a weak body. Every moment he is like a dying beast, and every step forward means death.
Lin Lang and the ghost employees outside the house fell silent. They did not go to rest, but waited outside. If anything happened to Su Yun, they could go in and rescue him in time.
The situation in the morgue was much better than they had imagined.
Su Yun knew that Yan Gui and the others were worried about her. Even if she emphasized a hundred times that she was fine, they would still treat her as a child, fearing that she would get hurt.
Maybe it was when Su Yun was wrapped in gauze and lying on the bed unable to move when he first arrived, maybe it was when pus mixed with blood flowed all over the bed of ghosts and they could only clean up again and again but were powerless, maybe it was when Su Yun endured the piercing pain and waited for his flesh, blood, skin and bones to grow back...
During that time, the ghost employees saw Su Yun's fragile state too many times. Even though she slowly regained her human form and became beautiful and arrogant again, they were still worried that Su Yun would stumble and fall apart again.
Su Yun pulled a chair and sat down beside the coffin. She slowly leaned against the coffin and placed the folding fan in her hand along with the black and white dragon jade pendant on Aunt Wu's chest. She said softly, "Aunt Wu, be obedient tonight, and we'll all be better off..."
After saying that, Su Yun slowly closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
After Su Yun fell asleep, thick fog suddenly emanated from the black and white dragon jade pendant, slowly covering the coffin and Su Yun. As time passed, the two colors of fog filled the originally empty morgue, and even the lotus lamp in front of the coffin was extinguished, and the entire morgue fell into complete darkness.
At five o'clock in the morning, the funeral home seemed to come back to life. The Wu family's alarm clock rang, which was very abrupt in the quiet funeral home. Lin Lang, who was guarding the door of the morgue, was the first to wake up. He stood up suddenly and stomped his feet gently to wake up the other three ghosts.
"Ayan, Xinxin, Axiu, it's five o'clock." Lin Lang had just finished speaking when the rooster in the backyard started crowing and the sun rose at this moment.
The three ghosts woke up immediately. They quickly got up and nervously looked at the door of the morgue.
The next moment, Su Yun opened the door and yawned: "You guys came so early?"
The ghost rushed over to check Su Yun's body: "Director, are you okay? If you don't come out in more than five minutes, we will notify the old director!"
The ghost bride dimly vigorously: "That's right, you are too reckless. If something really goes wrong, how are we going to explain it to the old curator?"
Su Yun walked around in front of them helplessly and said, "Look, I'm fine. I just kept watch for the night. Can Aunt Wu eat me? Don't worry."
The employees outside the door looked at Su Yun and were slightly relieved when they confirmed that there was no blood or wounds on her body. No matter what method Su Yun used, at least she came out safely, and Aunt Wu did not make any noise before the night.
"Okay, that's all. Now you guys should clean up and dress neatly. Go to the ceremony hall with Aunt Kang Wu. Uncle and aunt will be ready soon. The funeral will start on time at 6:30. There are still many things to do." Su Yun didn't want to be asked any more questions, so he asked the ghost employees to get busy.
The sexy ghost and the ghost bride sighed and could only deal with Aunt Wu's matter first. They went in to check on Aunt Wu's condition and found that Aunt Wu's hair and clothes were fine, only the fabric on her chest had some wrinkles.
The ghost Ah Xiu asked Su Yun: "How are we going to send the coffin to the ceremony hall later? Will we still have paper-cut figures? Or should I ask a few brothers to come up?"
This is what they usually do when there are not enough people to carry the coffin. They either invite ghosts or cut paper people, depending on their mood. If they invite ghosts, they have to treat them to a meal and play mahjong.
Su Yun said directly: "The paper-cut man will do. Aunt Wu, in this situation, it's best not to see other ghost messengers. They also have occupational diseases."
Ghost messengers have a variety of occupational diseases. Relatively speaking, Ah Xiu's occupational disease is very normal. He just likes to play the game of chase. Some of his brothers like to play cause and effect. It's not good for them to see Aunt Wu. After all, Aunt Wu's cause and effect lines are like a ball of thread, which cannot be cut or sorted out.
Afterwards, the ghost Ah Xiu cut four paper figures to carry the coffin. The beautiful ghost and the ghost bride took the suona, gong, and two baskets of paper money, and suddenly they didn't have enough hands.
Su Yun lit the incense and handed it to Lin Lang, saying to him, "Now you go make the coffin lid, it won't crack this time. Start from now on, is there enough time?"
Lin Lang took the incense burner, looked at Su Yun quietly for a while, and nodded: "It must be enough."
If it is not enough, he will make it enough. Even an ordinary person like Su Yun is fighting for this funeral, so what reason does he have not to try?
After Lin Lang left with the incense burner, Su Yun pulled the ghost and the ghost bride aside and said, "No more gongs or suona today. Aunt Wu probably doesn't want to make such a commotion. As for paper money, only scatter it on the underworld, not on the human world. Do you understand?"
"Okay." The sexy ghost and the ghost bride looked at each other and nodded in unison.
The paper money scattered during a funeral is a toll. The paper money scattered on the road to the underworld is for the ghost messengers, and the paper money scattered on the road to the human world is for the lonely ghosts passing by, so that they can make way and not trouble the soul of the deceased.
However, Aunt Wu was full of resentment, and no ghosts had ever come to bother her. But when she entered the crematorium of the fire-making master, Aunt Wu's body was free of karma but still had the aura of fire, so no ghosts would dare to rob her. Since no ghosts would come, there was no need to make such a big fuss and bother Aunt Wu.
If you don't do it in the human world, you can't avoid it in the underworld. After all, the ghost catcher relies on such tips to make a living, and the wages paid by the underworld are not much higher than Su Yun's.
Since it is the Yellow Springs Road, there will be a scene where the ghost and the ghost bride just scatter the paper money, and the paper money disappears as soon as it hits the ground. It looks very strange, but it is quite environmentally friendly.
The paper man carried the coffin and Aunt Wu to the ceremony hall, where a bench had been placed. The coffin was to be placed on the bench. The corpse, which had turned into a zombie, could not touch the ground, otherwise it would become more rigid.
Wu Jin chose the largest ceremony hall in the funeral home for Aunt Wu. This ceremony hall was also the most expensive one in the funeral home. Only real flowers were used for the wreaths and elegiac couplets. In order to decorate this ceremony hall, the ghost bride almost plucked all the chrysanthemums in the greenhouse.
The funeral home has its own greenhouse where they grow flowers for funerals and worship services, as well as some flowers with special meanings, such as red roses, white roses, etc., which may be used in funerals.
There used to be no flower room in the funeral home. Later, when Su Yiling and Ji Weitong held a funeral in winter and found that flowers were very expensive, they spent money to build a greenhouse to grow flowers. This way, they could have fresh flowers to decorate the funeral all year round, and they didn't have to run around all the big and small flower and bird markets in Bincheng to get enough flowers for a funeral.
Aunt Wu's tablet and portrait were placed on the altar. Su Yun went over to light the first stick of incense, the candle and the eternal lamp. From that moment on, the eternal lamp could not be extinguished and had to stay lit until the end of Aunt Wu's seventh day of mourning.
The cook brought the offerings and glutinous rice on time. The glutinous rice had to be replaced every day until the end of the seventh day. Aunt Wu might not eat it in the first few days, but it was just kept here so that she could have it whenever she wanted to eat it.
The offerings included lotus cakes, boiled chicken, oranges, and paper money ingots. Meat is always offered at funerals, and Su Yun chose boiled chicken because she remembered that Aunt Wu lived in South China when she was a child. The sacrificial custom there requires boiled chicken. Other things can be replaced, but boiled chicken cannot.
In addition to these, there is also cooked fragrant rice. The chef's cooking skills are quite good, and each bowl is piled high and round.
Su Yun counted them all and remembered that he also needed to put tea, wine and clothes. Tea and wine were regular supplies. Almost everyone who often worshiped their ancestors knew that half tea and full wine should be put in. As for clothes, they were to be buried with the deceased.
Nowadays, most people are cremated, so clothes are placed next to the offerings and worshiped together with more paper clothes, while more paper clothes are burned at the same time.
After all these were prepared, it was exactly half past six and the Wu family was already waiting outside the ceremony hall. They were wearing similar black suits, while Wu's mother was wearing a black long skirt and they all wore black cloth on their arms to indicate that there was a funeral in the family.
Su Yun and his employees were wearing black funeral home uniforms and had sackcloth strips tied around their right arms to indicate they were mourners.
After the Wu family entered the ceremony hall, the first thing they saw was the portrait they had chosen. Then they walked slowly inside and came to the side of the coffin, where Aunt Wu was lying peacefully. She looked to be around forty years old, not young anymore, but she had the facial features and face shape that they were vaguely familiar with. If Aunt Wu had not been picked up, they might have been able to watch her gradually become what she is now.
以乌姑姑的脾气，她当时一气之下跳车，运气好自己到了医院，大概会养好腿回来大闹乌家，然后去把老爷子想让她嫁的男人也揍一顿，反正她不好过，那其他人都别过了。
However, no one expected that Aunt Wu's jump would almost mean a farewell forever.
Su Yun lit some incense and passed it over like he did three days ago: "Uncle and aunt, light some incense for Aunt Wu first. You can say goodbye to Aunt Wu. She doesn't have much self-awareness at this moment, but she can still hear you. If you're lucky, she might remember it later."
The family members wanted to say something, so Su Yun took the employees away and left the space for them.
Outside the ceremony hall, Su Yun slowly looked up at the sky for a long time, and said, "We may have another order soon."
The ghost was puzzled: "Director, how did you know that we can still have business?"
"I'm just guessing. Isn't that how life and death work? Things that you can't understand when you're alive, you still won't understand after you die, just like... the old man from the Wu family." Su Yun said calmly.
"Ah...you mean..." The ghost bride covered her mouth in surprise and stopped talking. She carefully looked back at the ceremony hall.
Su Yun stretched his muscles and said, "Anyway, let's get ready first. Although the old man of the Wu family may not hold a funeral here, if uncle and aunt want to take care of our business, we still have to do it well. At least we can't rush it like this time."
The ghost employees all nodded and said they would make preparations in advance.
The conversation in the ceremony hall continued until Lin Lang came back with the coffin lid. This time it went really smoothly. While the incense lit by Su Yun was burning, there were no problems at all, and the coffin lid was finally ready in time for cremation.
Su Yun saw Lin Lang bringing the coffin lid over, and then she turned and entered the ceremony hall. She saw the red eyes of the Wu family, and after a pause, she walked over and said, "It's almost time, uncle and aunt... I'm so sad."
The incineration time was agreed upon yesterday. For things like this, we always have to choose an auspicious time. If we miss it, it will be bad for no one.
The Wu family members nodded silently, stared at Aunt Wu's face and stepped back, while Lin Lang and the ghost catcher Ah Xiu carried the coffin lid and closed it little by little, followed by the coffin nails. Aunt Wu died in vain, and seven coffin nails were needed to allow her to enter the incinerator safely.
Lin Lang and the ghost catcher Ah Xiu stood on the left and right, hammering nails into the peach wood coffin one by one. For a moment, the only sound in the hall was the sound of their hammers.
Su Yun took this opportunity to light some incense and bowed to the tablet, paying respect to his ancestors and then to the heaven and earth, hoping for a smooth funeral.
After the last hammering of the coffin nail, Su Yun turned around and shouted, "Open the coffin—"
Four paper figures jumped out from the corner of the ceremony hall, picked up the heavy coffin, and staggered towards the crematorium.
Su Yun quickly called out to the Wu family, "Wu Jin and Wu Yu, go get the things you should get. Uncle, you take the photos. We'll go to the crematorium now, and when the cremation is over, Wu Jin, go pick up Aunt Wu's bones and put them in the urn."
Wu Jin, who had just picked up the urn, was stunned for a moment. He turned around and asked, "Picking up the bones?"
"Yes, the incinerator cannot burn the human body into ashes. Generally, only large pieces of bones are left. Usually, the large pieces are picked up and put into the urn. But if the urn is relatively large, some people require that all the contents must be put in." Su Yun explained as he walked.
They hurried to catch up with Su Yun, and Wu's father asked, "Can we take everything? Including the ashes?"
Su Yun took a look at the urn they had chosen and nodded, "Okay, this urn is big enough. I'll ask the fireman to prepare the tools for you."
Now it only takes about 40 minutes for the crematorium's incinerator to burn a body. From pushing it in to picking up the bones, the whole process takes about an hour. The Wu family watches outside in silence.
The funeral home sometimes has to burn the coffin together with the body, so the incinerator is custom-made so the coffin can be pushed directly in. The fire-burning master closes the door and starts the operation. Under the high pressure, the coffin immediately burns. Five minutes later, shrill screams are heard from the incinerator, as if someone was burned to death alive.
When the Wu family heard this, they suddenly opened their eyes wide and were about to rush in, but the ghost who were prepared quickly stepped forward employees to stop them.
Su Yun stood at the door of the incineration room and spoke slowly: "Uncle and aunt, that's the thing in Aunt Wu's body calling out. Aunt Wu is dead and she can't speak anymore. The dirt on her body can only be dealt with by burning it like this, so that it won't follow Aunt Wu into the next life."
The screams from the incinerator resounded through the sky, as if someone was really being burned to death inside, and Su Yun's voice also reached the ears of the Wu family clearly, waking up their brains that were instantly controlled by the sound.
Even though they knew it wasn't Aunt Wu who was screaming inside, the Wu family still couldn't bear to listen and turned their heads away. However, the sound came from all directions and they couldn't avoid it.
Lin Lang couldn't help but took a look and asked Su Yun, "Director, how about I go?"
"It hasn't been divided cleanly yet. If you go in, you will just burn Aunt Wu together." Su Yun shook his head and rejected Lin Lang's suggestion.
The screams lasted for half an hour, and finally gradually disappeared after half an hour, and the funeral home returned to peace.
When the forty-five minutes were up, the fireman said loudly, "It's done. Family members, come in and get it."
Only then did Su Yun move aside to let Wu Jin in.
Wu Jin walked into the cremation room in a daze and mechanically. He saw a pile of ashes and bones on a steel table. The fireman handed him a few tools and said, "Here, these are the tools. You can sweep the ashes into the dustpan and then pour them into the urn. If there are large bones that cannot be put in, you can use this hammer to break them up a little."
Basically, in order to prevent the family members from going through this, the crematorium employees crushed the bones in advance. But just now the Wu family said they wanted to do it themselves, so the cremator simply stopped.
In the end, Wu Jin suppressed his grief and put all of Aunt Wu's ashes into the urn. After closing it, he didn't feel how heavy the urn was. It was so heavy when she was lying in the coffin, but now, the urn and the person together weighed less than ten kilograms.
Later, the Wu family would send Aunt Wu to the cemetery for burial. Usually, Su Yun and his friends would follow them on that journey, but the Wu family brought bodyguards with them and would come back for a banquet later, so there was no need to trouble Su Yun and his friends to make another trip. The Wu family felt that they had received good enough service for such a small amount of money, so they would not bother the funeral home for the burial process. Moreover, they wanted to say something to Aunt Wu along the way.
Su Yun knew that the family members needed private space for this section of the journey, so she agreed and asked them to pay attention to the time. She had already informed the staff at the cemetery and they would remember to remind them.
After watching the Wu family's motorcade leave, Su Yun turned around and said to the employees, "This is the first order since I took office, so today's banquet must be reserved, and we must always be prepared to provide the best service to our customers."
The employees responded in unison and hurried back to prepare the banquet.
Su Yun walked slowly at the back. She would not do any work because she was a fragile human being.
Back in the yard, Su Yun slowly lay down in her old position. The cook had already placed her daily snacks. Before she could take two bites, the fire-making master came over quietly and peeked out from behind the recliner like a thief.
The short recliner could not block the tall figure of the fire-making master. Su Yun stabbed a piece of watermelon and said, "Second Master, be normal."
The fire-making master nodded, then stretched out his palm. In his palm lay an irregular black mass: "Found in Ms. Wu's ashes."
Su Yun picked it up suspiciously, put it to his nose and sniffed it: "Wow, the Ganoderma lucidum from the thousand-year-old zombie coffin, no wonder it can break free from the yellow talisman of Lin Lang and me, this thing is wild."
"Director, this thing is not something that ordinary people can find. You have to be an expert or have ancestors to protect you. The Wu family has offended a big shot. Shouldn't we avoid it and not get involved?" The fire-making master said worriedly. He was worried that with Su Yun's current health, if he continued to be involved in private affairs, he didn't know how long he could last.
"Second Master," Su Yun stopped the fire-making master from continuing, "We are born as human beings and ghosts, and we should help those who are injustice. Aunt Wu has suffered so much, of course we should seek justice for her and bring the murderer to justice. Otherwise, the murderer will kill more people in the future. If we stand by and watch, isn't it a kind of moral deficiency? Especially such an ominous thing, we must confiscate it and keep it well, and never let it harm the world again."
The fireman listened carefully for a while, his expression gradually becoming subtle. After a while, he said quietly, "The old curator wanted to rob something before, and he seemed to say the same thing..."
Su Yun lowered his head and carefully put the small piece of Ganoderma lucidum into his Qiankun bag, and replied confidently: "What nonsense are you talking about? How can you call it robbery when you are doing something righteous? Let's change the word. From now on, this kind of thing will be called eliminating harm for the people."
[End of this chapter]
Su Yun: I am the living Lei Feng, O(∩_∩)O
Sorry, sorry, it's even later. I wrote the 21,000-word chapter all night long a few days ago. Today I couldn't hold on any longer and took a nap in the afternoon. As a result, I woke up late. I will try to update more later after adjusting my schedule. QAQ
By the way, the maximum value of a chapter in Jinjiang is only 30,000 words, which is 90 coins. There is no transaction of 100 coins. Hehehehe =￣ω￣=
Thanks for watching, happy reading.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
