Chapter 51 The Prince's Failed Rebellion
Zhang Xiaojia was particularly receptive to advice and planned to go to the mansion of Duke Hengguo to ask for forgiveness for secretly holding the funeral hall for Princess Anguo in her mansion in Lin'an County, and to ask the prince of Duke Hengguo to come and see his wife off.
When she went out, it started to snow lightly. A little beggar handed her a note with the words "Shou Tang" written on it.
This was written by Bai Luonan. There must be some secret here?
Zhang Xiaojia recalled in his mind what a longevity hall is?
The Great Zhou continued the Song Dynasty’s practice of building tombs and preparing coffins while people were still alive.
The people of the Zhou Dynasty were also very keen on this, mainly because they built tombs while they were alive, named "Shou Tang", and then happily waited for more than ten years or even decades, living in peace and quiet until they were buried in the ground.
The tomb is guarded by a statue of the "God of Longevity" and the tomb passage is guarded by tombstones.
People are still alive but their graves are dug in advance. However, for the people of the Zhou Dynasty, doing so is very auspicious. First, it can prevent their children and grandchildren from being at a loss after their death and not being able to buy a coffin or dig a grave properly.
Secondly, it has the effect of "averting victory", trying to fool the god of death who encounters it unexpectedly by using an empty grave without a corpse.
People in the Great Zhou Dynasty avoided talking about death, but they never avoided putting coffins in the house. The coffins prepared when the person was alive were euphemistically called "longevity materials". People believed that they were not only not unlucky, but could also make people live longer.
If a princess has married into her husband's family, she is usually buried with her husband, and her husband's family is responsible for preparing the cemetery.
"An Yi, go check Princess Anguo's birthday hall for me. Is the Duke Hengguo's Mansion prepared?" Zhang Xiaojia ordered.
"I'll do it right away." An Yi accepted the order.
An Yi was gone for less than half an hour before returning to report: "Princess, the prince of Hengguo initially built a longevity hall for Princess Anguo, but three years ago, the name on the hall and tombstone changed. It was no longer Princess Anguo, but the concubine's name. The prince sent his subordinates back to report this."
"An Yi, go to the government office and tell my brother about this. Also, arrange for someone to use the drug I gave you to make everyone in the Duke of Heng's mansion unconscious."
"yes"
"An Er, tomorrow I want the whole of Kyoto to know that the names of the prince Hengguo and his concubine are on the tombstone in his Shoutang Hall."
Zhang Xiaojia already has a plan to whitewash himself!
Zhang Xiaojia called Zhou Panni and whispered.
Zhang Xiaojia carefully painted her face, trying to create an appearance of being heartbroken and about to faint.
Her once stunningly beautiful face was now deliberately painted pale as paper, with deep black eyeshadow smudged around her eyes, making her look haggard as if she had not slept all night; her lips had also lost their former rosy color, showing a light bluish-gray color, making people feel the pain and sorrow in her heart at a glance.
After completing her makeup, Zhang Xiaojia got on a gorgeously decorated carriage and slowly drove towards the Duke Hengguo's Mansion. The carriage arrived in front of the gate of the Duke Hengguo's Mansion.
Zhang Xiaojia stumbled out of the carriage, carefully supported by her personal maid. Her body was shaky, as if a breeze could blow her down. She clung tightly to the maid, almost putting her entire weight on her.
Standing in front of the mansion, Zhang Xiaojia could no longer suppress her inner grief, and tears burst out like a flood. She cried several times with her heart breaking, her voice choked and shrill, making everyone who heard her feel pity.
Soon the area was filled with people watching the excitement.
Zhang Xiaojia knocked on the door, but no one came to open it for a long time.
Nonsense, she ordered people to knock out everyone in the mansion. If they opened the door, how could she complete her plan?
Zhang Xiaojia spoke softly, "Prince Hengguo, I know I was wrong. I shouldn't have secretly held a funeral for my sister in my county lord's mansion. I just saw that my sister's yard was shabby and dilapidated, and I just wanted to give her a decent funeral. I beg you, Prince Hengguo, for the sake of your marriage to my sister, to go and see her off. After the funeral, you must accept the beating and punishment, and I will not hesitate."
After hearing what Zhang Xiaojia said, the people around began to talk about it.
"This Prince Hengguo is such a scoundrel! When his first wife passed away, he refused to even send her off."
"Yes, I heard that Princess Anguo was gentle and virtuous when she was alive. I didn't expect that she would be treated like this after her death." Another voice echoed indignantly.
"See how sadly this county lady is crying, she must be sincere to Princess Anguo. How can the prince of Hengguo be so cruel?" A young girl was overwhelmed with sympathy and stood up for Zhang Xiaojia.
"Poor county lady. She had good intentions and wanted to give the princess a decent funeral, but she still had to come here to suffer." Another woman also felt sorry for Zhang Xiaojia.
"Yes, the Prince of Hengguo should come out and give an explanation. He can't bully people like this!" Someone in the crowd shouted loudly, and everyone echoed him.
As the discussions grew louder, more and more people gathered in front of Duke Heng’s mansion.
Everyone expressed dissatisfaction with the behavior of the Prince of Hengguo and sympathy for Zhang Xiaojia's experience.
Seeing this, Zhang Xiaojia felt that her whitewashing plan seemed to have begun to show results.
However, there was no movement in the Duke Heng's Mansion, as if it was deaf to the noise outside.
Zhang Xiaojia stood in the snow, crying and apologizing.
An hour passed,
Two hours passed
Three hours passed
The people around were also waiting with Zhang Xiaojia. Zhang Xiaojia had already arranged people to prepare food and distribute it to the people around.
It was already dark, and lights were on all around. Zhang Xiaojia was covered in snow.
Zhang Xiaojia's voice was hoarse, and she cried, "Prince Hengguo, please tell me where the funeral hall you prepared is. The dead are the greatest and should be buried in peace. If you are angry with me again, please let my sister rest in peace."
At this moment, the sound of a horse was heard, and everyone made way. Zhou Panni said angrily, "Lin'an, don't beg this bastard. The prince of Hengguo originally built a longevity hall for Princess Anguo, but three years ago, the name on the tombstone in the longevity hall changed. It's no longer Princess Anguo, but the name of the prince of Hengguo's cousin, the concubine."
Zhang Xiaojia's eyes widened, staring at the person in front of him in disbelief. Her voice trembled as she spoke, "What did you just say? Yes! If it weren't for this, how could my sister, a princess of the imperial family, with such noble status, live in such a shabby, dilapidated, and desolate courtyard? Why did my sister's generous dowry when she got married end up in the hands of that concubine? You begged me to marry you. If you really don't love me anymore, you can just divorce me, or even divorce me directly. Why torture me so much and force me to death?"
After Zhang Xiaojia finished speaking, he spat out a mouthful of blood and fainted.
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