Chapter 53 Lu Xiang has gone mad.
Mingwu sat quietly by the window, carefully sorting the medicinal herbs.
The dappled sunlight slanted down, outlining a gentle curve on her delicate profile.
Even the dust particles floating in the air seemed to be infected by the tranquility surrounding her.
A familiar flutter rose in Lu Yuan's chest, and he unconsciously took a step forward.
She turned her head.
The world shattered without warning at the same instant.
The colors faded like the tide.
Window frames, light and shadow, medicinal herbs... everything collapsed in the blink of an eye.
Suddenly, the scene before me turned into a scorched wasteland, with deathly black and gray spreading to the horizon, swallowing up all life.
In the center of those ruins, that familiar figure stood quietly, becoming the only bright spot in this desolate world.
Lu Yuan reached out his hand to her.
"Snap—"
A charred roof beam, still sparking, crashed down, raising a cloud of dust and engulfing her figure.
"No--!"
Lu Yuan suddenly sat up in bed, his chest heaving violently, his forehead covered in cold sweat.
In the darkness, he breathed heavily, and after a long while, he slowly exhaled the breath he had choked on.
It was a dream.
...Thankfully it was just a dream.
The heavy curtain was pulled open with a "whoosh," and the faint light of daylight shone in, illuminating the silhouettes of people.
It's Xu Ming.
His face showed a relieved joy: "Prime Minister, you're awake?"
Lu Yuan ignored his words, staring blankly ahead, as if his soul was still lingering in the scorched ruins of his dream.
Unable to detach.
"And her?"
His voice was hoarse, as if it had been ground by coarse sand.
Xu Ming's joy froze, and he whispered, "Madam, she..."
Lu Yuan's heart clenched, and he abruptly turned his head, his sharp gaze piercing Xu Ming.
"What's wrong, Madam?"
His voice trembled uncontrollably.
Xu Ming knelt down with a thud.
"The old lady said...the deceased is gone and should be laid to rest. Last night...last night the lady was buried overnight."
"Buryation?"
Lu Yuan repeated these two words, as memories of yesterday flooded back like a tide.
That wasn't a dream; she really left, she really left him.
His lips trembled, and the last trace of color drained from his face.
With a "whoosh," the brocade quilt was suddenly ripped off. He forced himself to stand up despite the intense dizziness, his legs so weak he could barely support his body.
"Prime Minister, the imperial physician says the mother Gu in your body is causing a severe backlash, and you must rest and recuperate," Xu Ming urged urgently.
Lu Yuan turned a deaf ear.
He shoved Xu Ming, who was trying to help him up, aside, grabbed an outer garment and draped it over his shoulders, then staggered toward the door.
The mother Gu worm violently retaliated in his heart meridian, writhing wildly in his chest cavity like a maddened venomous snake.
It was gnawing at his internal organs.
Before long, cold sweat beaded on his forehead and soaked his temples.
But he didn't stop for a moment.
"Where is she? Take me there, right now."
Xu Ming tried to dissuade him further: "Prime Minister, the Madam has already..."
"take me!"
Lu Yuan interrupted him with a hissing voice.
A streak of bright red blood slid down from the corner of his lips, starkly contrasting against his pale face.
Yet he still stood tall, as if relying on this last bit of willpower to support his broken body.
Xu Ming finally relented, her eyes red with tears, and helped him onto the carriage.
He whispered to the driver to head west of the city.
It was still dark.
The night was as dark as ink, covering the surrounding area, with only a pale gray line visible on the eastern horizon.
The carriage bumped along the quiet street, and Lu Yuan leaned against the swaying carriage wall with his eyes closed.
He let himself wallow in his memories.
All those memories of her past now transformed into the sharpest blades, slowly slicing him apart.
If only I had known this day would come.
He would definitely go to fetch her in person, instead of abandoning her on their wedding night and making her, the wife of a high-ranking official, a laughingstock in the capital.
He would definitely protect his mother when she made things difficult for her, instead of letting her suffer repeated grievances under the pretext of "filial piety".
He would definitely stop making her drink that harmful contraceptive medicine, and instead hope that she could bear them children. Perhaps by now, their child would already be babbling and softly calling him "Daddy."
...
Unfortunately, there are no "what ifs" in life.
Lu Yuan suddenly clenched his clothes at his chest, where the pain was so intense it felt like they were being torn apart.
The carriage curtain was suddenly lifted by the wind, and a slightly chilly morning breeze rushed into the carriage.
Lu Yuan slowly opened his eyes, and through the swaying curtains, he saw the outline of distant mountains gradually appearing in the morning mist.
That is Qiming Mountain, thirty miles outside the city, where the Lu family's ancestral tombs are located.
Although the funeral was held hastily, the old lady still maintained the dignity of the Prime Minister's residence, and all the necessary regulations were observed.
The blue stone tombstone stands solemnly, the neat stone steps wind upwards, and the vigorous pine and cypress trees silently guard it; everything that should be there is dignity.
But this elaborate arrangement only served to accentuate the indescribable desolation of the new grave.
Far away, amidst that gray landscape, before the newly erected tomb, stood a figure in pure white.
The morning breeze swept across the hillside, fluttering her white dress and outlining her slender and familiar silhouette among the pines and cypresses.
Though the face was obscured by the hazy morning mist, the figure—
That figure was clearly...
Lu Yuan's breathing suddenly stopped, and even his heart skipped a beat.
But in the blink of an eye...
The figure in pure white vanished into thin air.
The grave was empty, with only a few withered leaves swirling in the morning breeze on the hillside.
"parking!"
Lu Yuan roared and jumped down before the carriage had come to a complete stop.
He staggered toward the new grave, the excruciating pain in his chest making it almost impossible for him to straighten up, yet he still ran toward it like a madman.
"Awu...Awu!"
He rushed to the grave, but there was no one around, only the pine and cypress trees rustling in the wind.
He suddenly grabbed Xu Ming, who was chasing after him, his eyes bloodshot.
"Just now...did you see someone standing here, dressed in white?"
Xu Ming hurriedly helped him up, his gaze sweeping over the empty cemetery, and whispered.
"Prime Minister, it's always just us here."
Lu Yuan stood frozen in place, staring blankly at the new grave.
The tombstone is inscribed with: Tomb of Lu Menming.
So, even this last glimpse was just his imagination?
The mountain wind howled, as if it had wept away the last glimmer of hope.
"No!"
He clenched his fist tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force, and his voice was icy.
Even if it means death, you are not allowed to leave me. You are not allowed.
He stared intently at the tombstone, issuing the order word by word.
"Dig it open!"
Xu Ming was so shocked that he thought he had misheard.
"Your Excellency, this is unacceptable. It is a great disrespect to the deceased and will disturb the Lady's peace."
Lu Yuan ignored him, shoved him aside, snatched the shovel from the accompanying guard, and was about to do it himself.
The mother Gu gu retaliated fiercely against his heart, blood constantly spilling from the corner of his lips, yet his movements did not falter in the slightest.
Seeing this, Xu Ming knew that further persuasion was useless, so he could only signal the guards to step forward and help.
As the soil was gradually dug away, Lu Yuan's movements slowed down.
He was afraid that she would blame him for disturbing her peace.
The coffin was finally revealed.
The shovel in Lu Yuan's hand fell to the ground with a "clatter".
He reached out with trembling hands and gently stroked the cold coffin lid, as if afraid of disturbing the person sleeping inside.
"Awu, don't blame me."
He finished speaking softly and gave the order to the guards.
“Take it back to the manor.”
-
The news that Prime Minister Lu had dug up his wife, who had just been buried the night before, from her ancestral grave and carried her all the way back to the Prime Minister's residence spread like wildfire throughout Lin'an City.
"Have you heard? Prime Minister Lu has gone mad!"
"He personally led people to dig up the new grave and transport the coffin back to the mansion!"
"What a terrible thing to do... This will surely be punished by heaven!"
In teahouses and taverns, everyone was talking about this shocking incident.
Some vividly described how Prime Minister Lu dug the earth himself, some swore they saw blood seeping from the coffin, and others said the Prime Minister was possessed by an evil spirit to do such a shocking thing.
"How could a prime minister commit such an immoral act..."
"That Ming family is pitiful; even in death, they cannot find peace."
"I heard that Prime Minister Lu clung to the coffin and refused to let go, coughing up blood all the way..."
The rumors spread like wildfire, even alarming the emperor deep within the palace. Discussions raged throughout the court and the public, and impeachment memorials poured in like snowflakes before the emperor.
The Prime Minister's residence remained tightly shut, ignoring all criticism.
Inside the mansion, Lu Yuan dismissed everyone and stood guard alone beside the coffin.
He carefully wiped the dirt off the coffin, his movements as gentle as if he were drawing her eyebrows.
"Awu, I've said it before, you must share life and death with me."
The candlelight flickered, illuminating his pale face.
The coffin was surrounded by her favorite peonies, their fragrance mingling with the scent of earth, filling the ice chamber.
With a loud bang, the door was pushed open.
The old lady stood outside the door, leaning on her sandalwood cane, followed by a group of servants who held their breath and bowed their heads.
Inside, the coffin rested silently on the millennia-old ice. Lu Yuan knelt before it, intently wiping away the last bit of dirt from the coffin.
The old lady was so angry at the sight that she trembled all over.
"Yuan'er! You've gone mad!"
She rebuked him sternly.
"Digging up graves in the dead of night, disturbing the deceased—do you know what the whole capital is talking about now? The Lu family's century-old reputation is about to be ruined in your hands!"
Lu Yuan did not turn around, but continued to gently wipe the coffin as if it were a fragile treasure.
“Mother, Awu doesn’t like noise.”
"you!"
The old lady slammed her cane heavily on the ground.
"Look at the state you're in! The Ming family is gone! You are the Prime Minister of the country, how can you debase yourself like this?"
She took a deep breath, suppressing her anger.
“Send the coffin back immediately and hold a proper Buddhist ceremony to pray for the deceased; perhaps that can salvage some face.”
At this moment, Lu Yuan finally slowly turned his head.
In the candlelight, his face was as pale as paper, and there were still traces of blood on the corners of his lips, but his eyes were eerily calm.
“Mother,” he said softly, “Awu is just asleep.”
The old lady was stunned by the madness in his eyes and unconsciously took a half step back.
"You're insane!"
"Lu Yuan! Wake up! Ming Shi is gone! If you keep her trapped like this, she will never be able to rest in peace! This is not love for her, you are making sure she cannot find peace even in death!"
Having no other choice, the old lady had to bring up Mingwu.
"Have you forgotten how much the Ming family valued etiquette during her lifetime? If she knew you were behaving so recklessly, how would she face them in the afterlife?"
"No more children allowed?"
Lu Yuan chuckled softly, the sound particularly eerie in the quiet room.
"That's perfect."
He slowly pressed his face against the cold coffin.
"Then come with me down to the eighteenth level of hell."
The old lady staggered back a step, tears streaming down her face.
"You're insane...you're really insane..."
She never imagined that her son, who had been calm, self-controlled, decisive, and emotionless since childhood, would be like this.
How could he deceive himself like this because of a woman?
At this moment, Lu Yuan made her feel as if she had returned to the years when her eldest son died young.
The same experience of an elderly person burying their child, the same helplessness, the same heart-wrenching grief.
She lost one son years ago, and now she is about to lose another.
If she had known her son was so deeply in love, she should have…
But it's too late to say anything now.
She glanced one last time at the figure slumped over the coffin, then finally turned and left, her body trembling.
"Go and invite the Imperial Physician... and find a few more eminent monks."
In less than half an incense stick's time, the Imperial Physician arrived in a hurry with his medicine box.
The moment he stepped into the ice room, he couldn't help but gasp.
Lu Yuan was seen leaning against the coffin, his face as pale as paper, his breath so weak it seemed he might die at any moment.
Upon seeing Lu Yuan, who was pale and seemingly on his deathbed inside the ice chamber, they were startled.
"Your Excellency..."
The imperial physician hurriedly stepped forward and knelt down. The moment his fingers touched Lu Yuan's wrist, his expression changed.
"This mother Gu has backfired and entered the heart meridian; it must be removed immediately, otherwise..."
"Mother Gu..."
Lu Yuan's previously unfocused eyes suddenly lit up.
That's right, how could he forget that the mother Gu and the child Gu share the same origin? If he could activate the mother Gu, he might be able to sense the child Gu on A Wu's body.
If that white figure in front of the grave really is her...
The idea ignited in his heart like wildfire.
He abruptly broke free from the imperial physician's grasp, ignoring the excruciating pain of the backlash, and forcefully activated the mother Gu within his heart meridian—
"Your Excellency, you mustn't!" the Imperial Physician exclaimed in alarm.
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