Chapter 72 Chapter 72 It’s time to pray at Da Ci’en Temple. …
It's sad to say that Chen Wei's funeral came earlier than He Qiongzhu's wedding.
The coroner from the Dali Temple carefully examined the body again and again, but could find nothing to prove. He only said that he was beaten by many people and all his bones were broken. He seemed to have crawled on the ground for a while before his death. The murder weapon was a sharp Mo Dao.
How could an ordinary family have such a fierce weapon as the Mo Dao? Even the fierce bandits guarding in the dense forest outside the city mostly used homemade crude iron weapons. The Dali Temple has already determined that this horrific tragedy was the work of the He and Wang families.
The Dali Temple summoned Chen Guifang and asked her to take the body back.
Duan Zhiwei accompanied Chen Guifang, whose eyes were red and swollen from crying, to the vicious street in Xishi, which was a complete funeral supplies industry chain in this dynasty.
The last time Duan Zhiwei came here with her aunt was during the Qingming Festival. At that time, the shop was crowded with people who came to buy supplies for the Qingming Festival, so it didn't feel that desolate.
Today, as she walked along the bustling market, the streets became increasingly deserted. There were few pedestrians on the street, and white banners were hung on the shops on both sides. Occasionally, a family member dressed in mourning would pass by hurriedly carrying a basket full of paper money. Madam Chen beside her was crying, and she also felt sad.
The owner of the Xiongsi shop was not like ordinary shop owners who would do business with people in a happy mood. He introduced various artifacts to Chen Guifang with an expression of respect and sympathy.
The ancients believed that "treating death as life" and believed that after death, part of the soul would remain in the tomb and continue to live, while the other part would ascend to heaven. Therefore, servants, musicians, chariots and horses, and even tableware made of tri-color pottery were all lifelike, and the prices were ridiculously high.
Chen Guifang used up all her savings to buy paper money, paper horses, paper houses, and paper clothes. Finally, she had to choose a tombstone and ask Chen Wei's classmates to help write the epitaph.
The owner of the shop asked earnestly, "How big do you want? I have all kinds of stones here. The rough ones from Mount Zhongnan are cheaper. The most expensive is a kind of black jade shipped from the Western Regions. It's heavy and it takes several months to ship it from the Western Regions, so the price is also high."
Chen Wei died young and had no achievements, so if he wrote an epitaph, he would only get a few empty words like "filial piety" and "respectful", nothing else could be written, so the owner of Xiongsi recommended the smallest black-gray tombstone.
Thinking of how her brother was kind and generous, and how he had a bright future, but unfortunately ended up with nothing to write on his epitaph, Chen Guifang burst into tears again.
There are the most cemeteries in Shaolingyuan and Bailuyuan near Chang'an City. The Chen family chose the cheapest cemetery in Shaolingyuan and gave it to Chen Wei.
There were some deep gong and drum sounds coming from afar. It was the funeral procession bidding farewell to the deceased...
Duan Zhiwei accompanied her for half a day and returned to Yuan's house. Yuan Shenji had finished his shift and was leaning on the bed reading a military book. Seeing her pale face, he quickly turned over and handed her a bowl of hot drink: "It is really sad to stay in a place like Xiongsi for a long time."
Duan Zhiwei took the drink and almost choked. The drink was added with jujube and astragalus to restore blood color and replenish qi, and a handful of pepper was sprinkled to drive away the cold.
The taste is simply unpalatable.
This person even asked her attentively if she was hungry and went to cook, but Duan Zhiwei raised his leg and kicked him lightly.
This guy is not cooking, he is poisoning, poisoning!
She went into the fire room herself and left Yuan Shenji to chop wood in the garden.
It's the season when seafood is plump and full. When Duan Zhiwei came to Chang'an, what he craved the most was seafood, but unfortunately it was not available anywhere. There was a store selling dried seafood in the East Market, but the prices were shockingly high.
However, Mingzhou would pay tribute to Chang'an every year at the right time. There were a lot of postmen and couriers just to transport the seafood, and they had to "travel tens of thousands of miles a day", otherwise the seafood would die before it reached Chang'an. Common people would have no place to buy it even with money, and only the dignitaries could get some rewards.
So when Yuan Shenji rode his horse back home with a basket of sea cucumbers, Duan Zhiwei stared at him with shining eyes: "I knew there was a reason why I married you."
Soak dried winter bamboo shoots and shiitake mushrooms in water. Melt the lard, add the scallion segments and stir-fry until fragrant, quickly fry the sea cucumber, then put the bamboo shoots, mushrooms, lean meat and sea cucumber into the casserole and stew them. The dish is reddish brown in color, the sea cucumber is stewed until soft and has a strong scallion aroma, and it looks appetizing.
On the other stove, various small shrimps and scallops were being cooked with rice porridge, bubbling. The essence of the seafood was slowly being extracted. Duan Zhiwei finally sprinkled some green onions on the porridge and added a spoonful of pepper to his own bowl.
Yuan Shenji picked up a piece of sea cucumber out of curiosity. In the past, the old housekeeper always stewed it in the soup, but he didn't think it was very delicious.
This is the first time I have eaten red stew. The sauce covering it is rich in color. The outer skin is slightly bouncy and tough, while the inside is soft and glutinous. The delicious taste of sea cucumber and the salty and mellow flavor of braised sauce melt on the tip of the tongue.
He ate half a plate by himself, still not satisfied, and said, "This is delicious."
"Don't you even look at who cooked it?" Duan Zhiwei handed him the bowl and asked him to serve the porridge: "Give me less."
The seafood porridge was cooked for a long time. The rice grains were plump and blooming, and the rice soup was thick and mellow. It was filled with tender scallops, plump shrimps and shredded crab meat. When you take a bite, the fresh and fragrant flavors of all kinds of seafood rush to you like a surging tide.
Duan Zhiwei finally ate seafood and felt that her soul was nourished. She collapsed on the chair and said to Yuan Shenji, "Husband, you must work hard to get promoted. I heard from Madam Du that her father also got abalone."
The types of seafood allocated to fourth-rank officials and third-rank officials are still different. Yuan Shenji was drinking the delicious seafood porridge and suddenly felt a huge pressure.
Otherwise, how about going to the Turks to take a few heads and bring them back to earn some military merit?
Tomorrow is the day when Lady He is getting married. The Dali Temple is secretly collecting evidence, including the two cases of Wang Lang impersonating a local tribute student to take the imperial examination and He's eldest son killing someone.
The Dali Temple Minister had always been at odds with the Wang family, so this matter was handled with extra care. Duan Zhiwei was very worried. Impersonation in the imperial examination was a serious crime, and it didn't matter if the beast Wang Lang went to jail, but it was a pity for Madam He.
Yuan Shenji comforted her, "Her experience is indeed pitiful. Maybe she will be able to receive some blessings in the future."
Duan Zhiwei looked at him suspiciously, and Yuan Shenji went to hold his hand: "I know you are kind-hearted and like to meddle in other people's affairs. Believe me, she will be fine."
On the other side, in the gloomy alley, the gate of the He Mansion was closed. The two stone lions at the door looked particularly majestic in the night fog, as if they were determined to guard the family's secret.
He Zhuohua, the eldest son of the He family, was kneeling in the study, crying bitterly: "I was also confused for a moment, Father, you must save me."
He lingered in Pingkang's brothel and gambling houses day and night, where the beautiful ladies were gentle and charming, and the fishermen were extremely attentive to him. He threw the eighteen brass wine dice on the table, and thousands of gold were spent overnight.
The master of the He family is just a Grand Historian with no real power. How could he have so much money to pay back? He Zhuohua thought of Wang Lang, who was also lingering in Pingkang with him.
Wang Lang is even more of a beast who roams in the arms of various beauties, but he is different from He Zhuohua.
The Wang family of Langya was ranked first among the five surnames. The family was famous for producing queens, which meant they were extremely wealthy. When Lady Pingkang met Wang Lang, she was even more enthusiastic in trying to please him.
He Zhuohua thought of her own sister, He Qiongzhu, who had just come of age. She was cute and adorable, like a pink peach blooming on a branch in Chang'an in spring. She had two shallow dimples on her face all day long, and her smile was as crisp as a silver bell. She looked innocent and kind, and everyone in the family loved her from top to bottom.
It's so annoying.
It was a bright spring day, and He Qiongluo acted coquettishly in front of her mother Aye, asking to go to Da Ci'en Temple to burn incense.
This was a great opportunity. He Zhuohua went to Pingkangfang to find Wang Lang and invited him to go for an outing at Da Ci'en Temple.
The Da Ci'en Temple is filled with willow shadows, bright flowers, and chirping swallows and orioles. He Zhuohua pretended to lead Wang Lang to visit the Big Wild Goose Pagoda.
The Zhongnan Yinling Mountains are beautiful, and the Zhongnan Mountains in the distance are lush and verdant; the towering Qinling Mountains, the Qinling Mountains in the north are majestic and pierce the blue sky. Chang'an has such beautiful scenery, but these two idiots can't see it.
Wang Lang was quite impatient about this. He was deceived by the stunning lady mentioned by He Zhuohua. Da Ci'en Temple? It's just a dilapidated temple, what's so good about it?
He Qiongzhu, wearing a pink silk skirt with a pattern of birds holding flowers and plants, walked to the mural in the west corridor, where there is the "place for inscriptions under the Ci'en Pagoda". Jinshi who have just entered the official career will inscribe their names under the pagoda, implying that they will be promoted step by step and become high-ranking officials in the future just like climbing a pagoda.
He Qiongzhu carefully picked up the handkerchief and wiped the place where the poet Wang Wei wrote. She didn't like reading poetry, but she liked Chen Wei's smile and soft recitation: "When people are idle, the sweet-scented osmanthus flowers fall, and the spring mountains are empty at night."
His smile is like the quiet spring mountains at night.
She hoped that her ideal man could become a Jinshi just like Wang Wei.
Wang Lang, who was standing on the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, was guided by He Zhuohua. He lowered his head impatiently, and when he saw her, he could not walk immediately. He Zhuohua was secretly happy in her heart, as everything was developing according to his plan.
A generous bride price would pay off all her debts, and she would also have a powerful brother-in-law, killing two birds with one stone.
As for that sister, how is she doing? What does it have to do with him? It's best if she doesn't live a good life.
Oh, by the way, to be on the safe side, he had to help the Wang family deal with the poor scholar. He found a reason to trick his address, hired a few servants to break his legs, and then threw him somewhere to die while he was dying.
That damn scholar actually dragged his crippled leg to the back door of the He Mansion with a cheap windmill in his hand. What did this ant want to do?
Do you want to complain? How could a poor scholar like him sue the eldest son of a fifth-rank Grand Historian?
He Zhuohua was furious. He had lost several hundred coins last night and had drunk some wine. Impulsively, he drew his Mo Dao and slashed the scholar to death with one blow.
He bribed a Qianniu Guard to let him pass, and found a few servants to dig a deep pit at the foot of Mount Zhongnan to bury Chen Wei. It would definitely be foolproof. Even if he was discovered, there were so many bandits outside Chang'an City, who could trace him back?
As a result, the bribed Qianniu Guard was suddenly arrested and taken to the Dali Temple, and He Zhuohua became uneasy.
What do they want to do?
Isn't it just killing a civilian? What's there to check?
After hearing the story, the master of the He family was so angry that he whipped him several times.
His son was incompetent and useless, but he was something that could carry on the family line after all. Besides, although he was a fifth-rank official, he had no real power and had to rely on the power of the Wang family.
I had no choice but to write a letter, ask a few fellow disciples to make arrangements, and go to the Dali Temple to beg for mercy. However, since I killed a civilian, I hope you can show mercy and compensate me with more money.
He Qiongzhu listened to the whole thing outside the study with an expressionless face. She glanced at the Rakshasa bird perched on the tree, then got up and went back to her room.
The wedding day was an eerily cloudy day, with dark clouds covering the entire city of Chang'an. Not a single ray of light could penetrate through the carved windows of the Embroidered Tower, and the noisy sounds of the guests outside hit her eardrums like waves on the river.
Her mother forced a smile, but she could not hide her guilt when she saw her face: "Zhu'er, it is inevitable that you feel a little wronged to marry into a rich family, but the Langya Wang family is the head of the five clans. In the future, I hope you can say a few good words to your husband's family and help your father more."
He Qiongzhu's red nails dug deep into her flesh. She looked at the hypocritical face indifferently: "Father, let's talk about some terms."
He Zhuohua was in high spirits today. In his original circle of friends, he was just an ordinary fifth-rank Taishi Ling son, with no power and not worthy of admiration. But now it was very different. A group of young men came to toast him and congratulated him on his marriage to the Wang family of Langya.
He felt very proud until one of his servants came over and whispered something in his ear.
He Zhuohua's face darkened: "She is really rebellious."
Then he kicked open He Qiongzhu's boudoir. The head of the He family, the eldest and the second lady, were standing there, looking unhappy.
"You're getting married soon, and you still dare to put forward conditions? Be careful or I'll find someone to tie you up and put you in the bridal sedan!"
He Qiongzhu sneered, "If you don't agree, I will say a few bad words about you in Wang Lang's ear, and I will see how you can gain power again."
He was in high spirits, and if he was hit hard at this moment, he had no choice but to shut up, suppress his anger, and go out to find the servants who carried the sedan chair: "Go, first take my wife around Shaolingyuan in the west of the city, and then send her to Wang's house."
The servant who carried the sedan chair asked in confusion: "But...but, there is a large cemetery in Shaolingyuan."
He Zhuohua had already been humiliated by his sister and was so angry that he had no place to vent. He kicked the servant in the chest and said, "What an idiot! You're not the one who can tell me!"
The auspicious time has arrived, firecrackers sound outside the He residence, and the bridal sedan is like a drifting red boat, sailing from the torrent of unfair fate into the ocean of revenge.
It was windy in Chang'an today, with yellow earth rolling wildly. The whole city was covered with a dim curtain of sand. From afar, the only light that could be seen was the glow of a red lantern with the Chinese character "喜" (happiness) on it.
Then a suppressed sob was heard from the sedan chair.
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