Chapter 3197 Inquiry
The Wei Mansion's housekeeper could only watch them leave. Xiao Yuanzheng walked with her for a while before saying, "I'm going to pay my respects tomorrow, Mr. Zhou. There's no car to pick you up. Would you like to ride with me back?"
Zhou Man handed the medicine box to Xi Bing and refused, "It's not far, I can just walk back. Goodbye."
Xiao Yuanzheng glanced at the road ahead. The Wei Mansion and Zhou Residence were in different blocks, so it would take at least half an hour to walk there. However, thinking that Lord Wei had just left and Zhou Man and Wei Zhi had always had a good relationship, he sighed and stopped trying to persuade him. He nodded and turned to leave.
The capital city has always been prosperous, with a large number of merchants and travelers coming and going, and is not affected by the season at all. Even now that the autumn harvest has just ended and it is the time for various places to pay autumn taxes, the streets are still bustling with people.
Although the Fang and the market are separated, there are a lot of people going in and out of Chang'an in recent years. Although there are no shops in the Fang, there are people setting up stalls on both sides of the Fang Street, mostly selling small things and food.
Generally speaking, as long as there is no trouble, the patrolling yamen runners will turn a blind eye and pretend not to see anything.
Zhou Man slowly walked out of the gate and turned into the East Market Street. The noise instantly overwhelmed her. She paused, looked at the lively scene, and walked through with her hands clasped together.
There were people happily bargaining everywhere, but they must not know that just now, the Jin Dynasty lost a star and the emperor lost a close minister.
Xibing followed Zhou Man and returned home silently.
Everyone in the Zhou residence was busy. Only Old Zhou, Mrs. Qian, and Old Madam Liu were at home. Zhou Man put down his medicine box and said to Old Madam Liu, "Lord Wei has passed away. We need to prepare some funeral rites."
When Mrs. Liu saw her coming back, she guessed what had happened. She sighed and said, "I'll go with you tomorrow."
Back then, their family was able to clear their name and get revenge thanks to Wei Zhi's help. Otherwise, they didn't know when they would be able to meet the emperor to state their grievances.
Qian nodded repeatedly and said to Zhou Man, "We'll prepare a copy too. Please deliver it for us."
Zhou Man said, "Let Li Zhong go with me. This time, the new rice seeds were also provided by Lord Wei."
The death notice was delivered to every household before nightfall. Because Wei Zhi passed away, the market was put under curfew in advance. The emperor ordered the night market in Chang'an to be closed for seven days. When the news came out, some merchants had volunteered to hang white hemp to mourn Wei Zhi.
Zhou Dalang came back from outside and asked, "I see a lot of people are hanging white hemp. Should we hang some at home too?"
Zhou Man: "Can't hang up."
Madam Liu said, "Except for the Emperor, Empress, and their relatives, officials cannot observe mourning for other officials."
It's not a rule, it's common sense. If the Zhou family hangs Bai Ma, wouldn't that be a clear sign of forming a clique with the Wei family?
This is a big taboo for officials.
Zhou Man said, "That was a voluntary act of the people, a manifestation of their love for Lord Wei. Lord Wei and I served in the same court, so I can go and offer my condolences."
Apart from her relatives, she could only observe mourning for the emperor and empress when they passed away. If a white banner was hung in the Zhou residence, it would not be a good thing for the Zhou family, let alone the Wei family.
The next day, Zhou Man changed into a plain dress and took Zhou Lizhong and Liu Sanniang to the Wei Mansion to pay their respects.
Wei Zhi had already been buried and the mourning hall was ready. Many officials had come. Zhou Man was led into the courtyard and waited with everyone else to burn incense.
Old Master Tang arrived earlier and was in the front of the line. When he saw Zhou Man, he greeted the officials behind him and stepped back to Zhou Man's side. "You're here?"
Zhou Man saluted and said, "Master Tang, have Minister Liu and the others arrived?"
Old Master Tang looked behind her and said, "Here she comes."
Zhou Man turned around and saw Minister Liu coming in with Liu Huan and Zhou Liru.
Both parties nodded and lined up in silence to go in.
Zhou Man entered with Old Lord Tang, followed by Zhou Lizhong and Liu Sanniang. The four of them offered incense and inserted it into the incense burner. The prince also arrived with the imperial edict.
The emperor proposed the posthumous title Wenzhen for Wei Zhi, which is the highest posthumous title for civil officials. Throughout history, few people have been able to receive this posthumous title.
Before Wei Zhi, only two people could get it, one was Cui Hong and the other was You Zhao.
Old Lord Tang stood aside and watched the Wei family receive the imperial edict. He felt a little envious in his heart. He wondered if he could get a posthumous title starting with a character when he died. If not Wenzhen, Wenzhong or Wengong would be fine too.
After the prince issued the imperial edict, he went inside to pay his respects. When he came out, he saw Zhou Man and Old Lord Tang standing together. He raised his eyebrows slightly and turned to leave.
Zhou Man and Old Master Tang went out together. Many carriages were parked outside the door, stretching out and blocking the entire street. People who came to pay their respects got off the carriages and walked over from a distance.
Old Master Tang paused, called over his attendant, and said, "Let's go back and let the coachman go on his own."
He turned to look at Zhou Man, "Master Zhou, shall we go together?"
Zhou Man nodded, "Master Tang, please come in."
The two of them walked through the crowd and left. Zhou Man asked, "When will Brothers Tang and Yang return to Beijing?"
Old Master Tang glanced at her and said, "The court has already sent the official document. It should be on the way now and will arrive in Beijing soon."
Zhou Man nodded, and seeing the flowers sent by ordinary people at the gate, he sighed slightly and asked, "When is the next grand court meeting?"
Old Master Tang shook his head, "I don't know, maybe in the second half of the month, maybe we have to wait until Master Wei's funeral."
He stopped and looked at Zhou Man. "Lord Wei has passed away. The position of the Minister of the Imperial Household is the Left Prime Minister of the whole country. It cannot be vacant. Lord Zhou, who do you think is qualified for this position?"
Zhou Man also stopped, frowning in thought. After a while, he looked up at him, staring at him in silence for a long time, then bowed and said, "Your humble servant will take his leave first."
Old Master Tang smiled and watched him leave.
The attendant following behind Old Master Tang was completely confused and couldn't help asking, "Sir, why did Master Zhou leave so suddenly?"
Old Master Tang smiled slightly and said, "She has already replied to me. Let's go back and pack some things."
"Pack what?"
"Some books, patent medicines, and things like that. Clothes, shoes, and socks are also essential."
Long-servant: "Are you going on a business trip, sir?"
"It's not me, it's Zhihe."
Tang He and Yang Heshu still managed to pay their respects to Wei Zhi. After arriving in Beijing, they first went to the palace to report the matters, and after leaving the palace, they went to Wei's mansion.
Yang Heshu sighed and said, "If it weren't for Lord Wei's mediation in the court, what I did in Jiangnan wouldn't have been so smooth, and I might not even have been able to go to Jiangnan."
Just because the emperor and Wei Zhi believed in him didn't mean other court officials did too.
Wei Zhi had to block all the opposition from the court. Only when the emperor suppressed it could he focus on Jiangnan.
Tang He also sighed, "But it's a miracle that Lord Wei has managed to hold on until now. I heard that Zhou Man and his team have grown new rice seeds, and Lord Wei even went to see it in person. He can be said to have passed away without regrets."
Yang Heshu frowned, "I wonder if His Majesty has chosen the Left Prime Minister yet. Should we stay in the capital or continue to be sent out?"
Tang He asked, "Do you want to be sent out or stay in the capital?"
Yang Heshu thought for a moment and said, "I'll go see Zhou Man first and ask him about the new rice seeds. If they're the same as the new wheat seeds, they'll be more useful if they stay in the capital."
Tang He nodded, "You've been exiled for many years, it's indeed time for you to return to Beijing."
(End of this chapter)
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