No matter how Yu Tang felt, time kept moving forward, and soon it was the day of the old lady's funeral.

The Pei family's ancestral tomb is located on the waist of Dongtianmu Mountain, backed by the mountain and facing the river. Everyone says that it is a Feng Shui treasure land, so the Pei family has been rich for generations.

The day before Old Lady Pei was buried, Yu Wen simply stayed at the Pei residence. Yu Tang and his mother prepared paper money and candles early in the morning, and got up before dawn the next day to wash and dress in plain clothes, and took Mrs. Chen and Shuangtao with Madam Ma and her daughter to Xiaomei Lane.

They were going to see Old Lady Pei off for the last time.

There are people all along the way.

People gathered in groups of three or five, discussing Old Lady Pei's funeral.

"Even if the weather is hot, it shouldn't be so shabby! Not only was the funeral only held for seven days, but the coffin was also buried directly in the ancestral tomb. Whose idea was this?"

"I heard that it was the Third Elder's idea." Someone who knew the situation whispered, "The eldest son of the eldest branch of the family even had an argument with the Third Elder over this matter. But he was just a kid, how could he win over his uncle? This matter has been settled!"

"Didn't the second elder of the Pei family say anything? He is also my uncle!"

"Now the third elder of the Pei family is in charge, what can he say?"

"That's true." Someone sighed, "When the old man passed away, the coffin was paraded around the city for everyone to hold roadside memorial services. Now we can't even send paper money to the old lady, so we can only send her to the mountain in such a simple way."

Some people were more concerned about their own interests and whispered, "You said that the Pei family is now headed by Master Pei San. Do you have any evidence?"

"Look, has the chief steward shown up these days?" Someone gossiped, "In the past, the chief steward was the tutor of the eldest master. He had the final say on everything in the Pei residence. And the second chief steward, have you seen him show up these days?"

"I know about the chief steward, but what does this have to do with the second steward? Doesn't the second steward follow the chief steward's lead all year round?"

"You don't know this. Do you understand collective punishment? The Second Steward is on the side of the First Steward. If the First Steward falls, what good can he do?"

"Hey! The Liu family of Fanzi has suffered a great loss. They just married their daughter to the chief steward."

"It's not that she got married in, it's that she got carried in!" When talking about the romantic affair, everyone got excited.

"Whether it's a marriage or a wedding, it's true that Fan Liu claims to be a relative of the chief steward..."

Yu Tang listened to these gossips and thought of Master Pei San's gloomy face.

Why do we need to create something for others to use against us?

Isn't it just mourning after death?

It’s not like the Pei family is short of money, so they can just use the money to do the job.

Or, was this a strategy for him to fight with the eldest son?

Yu Tang made wild guesses and the Pei family arrived.

Mrs. Ma took them to a grocery store at the corner of the alley and said, "This is a store I'm familiar with. Let's take a break here. It won't be too late for us to go out when Old Lady Pei comes to the funeral!"

But before she could finish her words, there was a commotion outside and someone shouted "the pot has been broken".

A huge crowd rushed towards the gate of Pei's house.

Yu Tang heard someone say, "Why is it the third master of the Pei family who holds the tablet? What about the eldest son? Even if the eldest master dies, there is still the second master. It's not his turn even in the ranking!"

"Stop talking!" someone said, "Can't you see it? The rumor is true. From now on, the third elder of the Pei family will be the patriarch of the Pei family."

Smashing pots and holding spirits are the responsibilities of the eldest son and grandson!

Even if the eldest master is gone, he still has two sons.

Although Mr. Pei San eventually became the head of the Pei family in his previous life, there have been some changes between this life and the previous life. For example, in the previous life, the Pei family only knew how to buy land and build shops, and never thought about lending money to neighbors.

When Yu Tang heard this, he became anxious for Master Pei San.

This isn't about making him the clan leader; this is about roasting him on the stove!

What kind of will did Old Lady Pei leave behind?

Even if Master Pei San is to be the clan leader, couldn't the brothers wait until after the funeral to sit down and discuss and decide? Why did they have to blatantly slap the face of the eldest branch at the funeral? It was as if they were going to turn the eldest branch into a side branch. Who could stand this?

Yu Tang stood on tiptoe and looked inside.

Master Pei San was helped out by someone.

He lowered his head.

The rising summer sun slanted down on his mourning hat, casting a shadow that blocked his face.

"Filial sons kowtow." As the guests of honor shouted, the filial sons and grandsons of the Pei family all knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times.

People who came to pay tribute to Old Master Pei started setting off firecrackers and lighting incense sticks.

The guests shouted "Arise!"

The coffin was lifted up and took three steps.

The guest of honor shouted again, "The filial sons kowtow," and the coffin stopped, and the filial sons and grandsons kowtowed again and again.

Mrs. Ma held Ma Xiuniang tightly and said to Chen: "Let's go and burn the paper money quickly, otherwise when everyone starts setting off firecrackers, it will be no fun to get blown up."

This was the first time that Chen brought her daughter to attend the roadside memorial service.

She nodded nervously and followed Mrs. Ma closely.

The sound of firecrackers rang out and the air was filled with suffocating smoke.

Just as Yu Tang and his mother stood still, they saw a tall and thin man rushing towards the Pei family's funeral procession. He knelt down in front of the old man's coffin and cried, "Old man! You have to open your eyes and look carefully. You chose an ungrateful person! He is going to squeeze out the young masters of the eldest house and make them have no way to survive..."

The crowd exploded.

"It's the chief steward!"

"It's actually the chief steward!"

"What's going on?"

"Is there any other hidden reason why Master Pei San became the sect leader?"

Master Pei San raised his head and glanced at the chief steward.

Cold, bored, lifeless.

Yu Tang was shocked.

Someone came forward and took the butler away.

He was struggling and yelling something, but the sound of the firecrackers was too loud for Yu Tang to hear.

Someone shouted loudly, "Goodbye, old lady!" Everyone was stunned, and then they remembered the kindness that Old Lady Pei had shown them, and they all started crying.

The funeral procession restored its previous order and soon started moving again.

The sound of firecrackers seemed to get louder.

Yu Tang felt that the shout did not seem unintentional.

She looked for mourners among the funeral procession, but found none.

Yu Tang tiptoed again to look for his father.

The crowd was so crowded that all you could see were heads.

I don’t know where my father is busy.

Yu Tang sighed.

It was already past noon when I said goodbye to Mrs. Ma and her daughter and returned home.

Yu Tang was covered in sweat, and her underwear was sticking to her body.

She took a good bath, changed into a thin silk jacket, had lunch, and slept until sunset.

Yu Wen also came back. While eating in the living room, he chatted with Chen about the Pei family: "The chief steward is also a loyal and brave man. For the sake of the eldest master, the lives of the whole family were put on the line. Alas, what a pity."

Yu Tang's heart skipped a beat when he heard this, and he walked in quickly, saying, "Dad, what are you talking about?"

Chen was sitting next to her husband, fanning him. Hearing this, she said, "Little boy, just listen to what the adults say. Don't meddle in things that shouldn't be your business. How's the handkerchief I asked you to embroider going? Didn't you say that Xiuniang would be visiting our house in a couple of days? Have you prepared the ice and melons you promised her?"

Yu Tang smiled and walked over to Yu Wen, pinching his shoulders, saying, "Mom, am I not here to ask for help from Dad? I only have two taels of silver in my pocket money, and I have no pocket money left after buying ice cream and melon!"

"You are so extravagant all the time." Mrs. Chen blamed her, but still told Mrs. Chen, "Go to my room and give Atang a few taels of silver."

"Mom is the best!" Yu Tang rushed forward to massage Chen's shoulders.

Chen was both amused and annoyed. She pulled her daughter's hand off her shoulder and said, "Don't be naughty anymore. Go massage your father's shoulders. Your father has been helping out at the Pei family these days. He's worked hard."

"Okay!" Yu Tang went to massage Yu Wen's shoulders again and said, "Dad, am I good to you?"

Yu Wen looked at his wife and daughter in front of him, his eyes curved with smile, and said, "Good, good, good! Our Atang is the best!"

"Okay then!" Yu Tang stretched out his hand to Yu Wen, "Then you can also give me some money! So that I won't lose face in front of my friends."

"Yutang!" Chen was angry.

Yu Wen hurriedly comforted his wife: "Don't be angry, don't be angry. Doctors Yang Yu and Wang Yu both said that you can't be angry." Then he scolded Yu Tang, "If you dare to do this again, be careful or I will put you under house arrest again and punish you to write a thousand big characters."

Yu Tang originally wanted to use colorful clothes to entertain his parents, but ended up making things worse. He felt very regretful and hurried to coax his mother.

Yu Wen called out Chen's maiden name: "Xiu Yan, look, Atang's face is pale with fear. Don't be angry! Besides, Atang is our only child, and the family property will belong to her in the future. There is no difference between giving it to her now and in the future. Don't you agree?"

Chen sighed helplessly, and ordered Mrs. Chen: "Give her a small piece of silver." After that, she rolled her eyes at her husband and said, "Are you satisfied now?"

"Satisfied, satisfied!" Yu Wen said with a smile, winking at Yu Tang, "Look at your mother, she treats you so well. A few days ago, I saw a box of Hu brushes that cost two taels of silver, but your mother was reluctant to buy it for me, and you asked for ten taels of silver."

"Thank you, Mom!" Yu Tang thanked his mother with a smile.

Chen shook his head helplessly.

Yu Tang asked about his father, the Pei family: "Father, were you talking about the chief steward of the Pei family? How is he?"

Yu Wen was afraid that Chen would hold on to the silver, so he followed his daughter's lead and changed the subject, saying, "That's him. He hanged himself after he returned!" At this point, his expression darkened, and he continued, "When I came back, I heard that because of this incident, the Third Elder detained the entire family of the eldest house in Tinglan Waterside Pavilion and forbade anyone to see them. Didn't the eldest wife's sister-in-law and nephew still stay? There was a commotion on the spot."

It was only at this time that Chen heard this and exclaimed, "Oh my!", "Master Pei San is too, too..."

She couldn't find a suitable word to describe what Master Pei San had done.

Yu Wen also shook his head and said, "Everyone said so. I saw that the Pei family was about to have a turmoil, so I used the excuse of being concerned about your illness to come back early. Mr. Tang and his friends are still staying in the Pei Mansion."

Yu Tang frowned as he thought of the conversation between Madam Pei and Madam Yang. He felt that what his parents said was wrong. He said, "How can you blame the Third Master of the Pei Family for this? As the chief steward, he should put the Pei Mansion first in everything. Today is the day of the old lady's funeral, and he actually hanged himself. What was he trying to do? If I were the Third Master of the Pei Family, why would I bury him? I should just send him away directly."