Although Wei Zhenghong had lost his pulse and breath, he was still very clear-headed.
Hearing their conversation, I was so shocked I almost sat up.
What do you mean he took such a big advantage from the Wei family?
Could it be that he is not a member of the Wei family, but rather the old lady's illegitimate son?
Even tigers don't eat their cubs, so even if he was an illegitimate child, the old lady wouldn't hate him to the bone and want to get rid of him as soon as possible.
They made it sound like he was picked up off the street.
Once the thought crossed his mind, he couldn't help but let his imagination run wild.
Maybe he really was adopted?
His father had several concubines, but only had him as his son, clearly indicating that having children was difficult.
Did the old lady give birth to a stillborn child back then, and want to keep her title, so she took him back and pretended he was her own son?
It might not have been found, but bought or stolen.
This explains why she was so angry that he gave the family heirloom to Wei Yan, and why she was able to be so ruthless.
It's possible that Ning was right; he's lived most of his life and doesn't even know who his father is.
The old lady chatted with Aunt Chang for a few minutes before leaving.
The next morning, servants came in, dressed him in his burial clothes, and carried him into the coffin.
The mourning hall was set up next to the banquet hall. Aunt Chang and Wei Teng, dressed in mourning clothes, knelt on the south side with blank expressions.
The old woman wailed loudly, lamenting that she, an elderly woman, had outlived her son.
But Wei Zhenghong secretly glanced at her and found that she hadn't shed a single tear.
It's just empty howling.
After wailing for about half an hour, she "fainted" and was carried out of the mourning hall.
After the obituary was issued, relatives and friends came to pay their respects one after another.
Wei Yan and Ning Shi were among them.
They did not receive any cloth or silk—that is, the cloth or silk that the bereaved family sends to relatives and friends to make clothes for attending the funeral—but came on their own after receiving the news.
When she heard the news of his death, Ning was combing her hair. The sandalwood comb slipped from her hand and broke in two.
Although Wei Zhenghong was carried into the mansion yesterday, he was in much better spirits than when she was seriously ill. How could he have suddenly passed away?
Was it a final burst of energy before death?
Ning found it difficult to describe her feelings at that moment.
There was shock, grief, and a touch of regret.
If she had not only reminded him to go see Xiao Qingyin, but had instead invited Xiao Qingyin over, she might have been able to save his life.
Based on her understanding of Wei Zhenghong, she knew he wouldn't go to Xiao Qingyin immediately.
He has never cared much about his health.
In the past, people would often be almost burnt out while still training in the army.
They said something like, "I thought it was because the sun was too strong that I got this tanned."
A person who was alive and well yesterday is gone today.
Life is so unpredictable.
With Wei Zhenghong's death, she forgot all his bad points and remembered the harmonious times they had shared.
When they got married, they were so happy together that they promised to grow old together with their children.
Although it turns out that a man's vows, like spring blossoms, disappear without a trace once the season is over, at least for that moment, they were somewhat sincere.
Out of consideration for that sliver of genuine affection that had long since faded, Madam Ning felt it necessary to offer her condolences.
—Yan'er must go eventually, otherwise she will be despised by the world if she doesn't even visit her father after his death.
But neither the mother nor the daughter expected that the gatekeeper of the Duke's mansion would refuse to let them through.
"The young master said that Marquis Jing'an had long severed ties with the Wei family and was not a relative of the Wei family, so he was not among those who came to offer condolences."
Ning was furious.
He called to Wei Yan, "Let's go report to the authorities. The Duke was perfectly fine yesterday, but he's already being laid to rest today. Wei Teng hasn't even offered us a condolence. He must be afraid we'll find out he murdered his father. Let's get justice for the Duke right now."
The gatekeeper was terrified when he heard this and quickly notified Wei Teng.
Before Wei Teng could respond, Aunt Chang scolded him: "Why are you arguing with them at this critical moment? If His Majesty finds out you're not offering condolences, he might not let you inherit the title."
Wei Teng had no choice but to compromise once again.
They had someone respectfully invite Ning Shi and Wei Yan in.
When Ning and Wei Yan arrived at the mourning hall, they paid their respects and stood beside the coffin, looking at the person inside.
Wei Zhenghong looked completely at ease, as if he had died without any pain.
Just as Ning was about to look away, she suddenly noticed something stuck below Wei Zhenghong's throat. Upon closer inspection, she saw it was a nearly dried tea leaf.
Judging from its shape, it was the Maojian tea she drank when she met Wei Zhenghong yesterday.
It must have been when he questioned whether Yan'er was his biological daughter that she threw the teacup at him.
He didn't clean it up; he just left it there.
Thinking of this, her heart skipped a beat.
No, isn't the body supposed to be bathed before being placed in the coffin?
If the body had been cleaned, how could there be tea leaves left behind?
She immediately realized that the Wei family must not have bathed Wei Zhenghong's body.
Wasn't Wei Teng supposed to be his most filial son? How could he be so perfunctory in handling even his funeral arrangements? It's both pathetic and laughable.
She decided to consider it an act of kindness and help him out.
Having made up her mind, Madam Ning walked up to Aunt Chang and questioned, "Why didn't you clean up the Duke's body?"
Aunt Chang was taken aback, then looked up and said, "Madam, what do you mean? It was cleaned before changing the burial clothes."
Ning sneered: "Since it's been cleaned, why is there still tea leaves stuck to the Duke's neck?"
tea?
Aunt Chang only saw Wei Zhenghong when checking whether he was dead or not, and then she didn't pay attention to him anymore, so she didn't know that he still had tea leaves on him.
However, she didn't mind and replied, "It was probably blown away by the wind by accident. I'll take it away right away."
He stood up and headed toward the coffin.
Ning reached out to stop her.
"Stop lying. If it wasn't cleaned, it wasn't cleaned. Believe me or not, I'll call the coroner to check."
Aunt Chang dared not let the coroner examine the body.
She immediately said with shame, "Since the Duke passed away, I have been overwhelmed with grief and have left the cleaning up to the servants. I did not expect them to be so careless. I will call someone over now to clean up for the Duke."
Only then did Madam Ning let her go.
Wei Zhenghong: Ning is so meticulous, she even noticed this. But I don't want to clean it up, there are still so many people mourning.
But as a dead man, he had no say and could only let his servants carry him into the bathtub to wash him.
Only after he was put back in the coffin did he continue to receive condolences from relatives and friends.
When Ning saw the servants about to move the bath tub, she shouted, "We haven't even drunk the water yet, what are you doing moving the tub?"
Drink water?
What kind of water should we drink? This corpse bath water?
The servants were at a loss.
Ning looked at Aunt Chang and said coldly, "The servants may not know, but you should know, right? Only when relatives drink the water used to bathe the corpse can the deceased be spared from going to hell. If you don't drink the water, do you want to send the Duke to hell to suffer?"
Upon hearing this, Wei Zhenghong wished he could applaud Ning Shi.
Well done!
He should pour all his bathwater into that vicious woman with a heart of stone.
Aunt Chang almost lost her composure.
She shouldn't have let Ning Shi in!
Not only are they pointing fingers and making comments, but they even want her to drink Wei Zhenghong's bathwater?
Is that drinkable?
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