Chapter 373: Doctor Ma's Ceremony of Entering the Ancestral Hall Completed
Doctor Ma's name was smoothly entered into Zhao Lingmeng's family tree (mainly because no one dared to displease Zhao Lingmeng now). Finally, Zhao Lingmeng affixed the seal of Princess Funing to the place where Doctor Ma's name was written. The procedure was very strict, leaving no room for doubts from future generations.
If any unfilial descendants question the authenticity of this story, they will inevitably question Zhao Lingmeng. This branch of the Zhao family only exists because of Zhao Lingmeng. Since you question your ancestors, you are unworthy of being on the same family tree as them.
In this era, if you were expelled from your clan, you would have nowhere to stay. First of all, you would definitely not be able to pass the imperial examination or become an official. It was only slightly better than being an illegal resident!
Then Zhao Lingmeng personally took Doctor Ma's tablet with both hands and respectfully placed it at the top of the ancestral hall. This was the first tablet of their branch.
After Zhao Lingmeng placed the tablets, he looked at the one at the top and muttered a few words quietly, "Doctor Ma, you didn't expect that you would become my peer at such an old age. It's too late for you to regret it now."
I will give you one of my sons. If you need anything down there, just give him a dream! I am old and can’t stand being scared, so don’t come to me.”
Zhao Houyang was already kneeling not far from Zhao Lingmeng. When he heard his mother say this, he kowtowed and said politely, "Foster father, I am your son now. If you have any problems, come to me."
If Dr. Ma could really see this scene, he would probably be happy for a long time! But this kind of thing is, after all, just a comfort for the living.
Seeing that Zhao Lingmeng and her son had finished speaking, the host hurriedly said, "Princess Funing, the head of the Zhao family, please burn incense!"
Someone immediately handed the lit incense sticks to Zhao Lingmeng's hands. Zhao Lingmeng took the incense and bowed deeply. Everyone around was stunned. They thought that as the Princess of Funing, she would just place the incense sticks in front of the tablet. But she didn't expect such a big bow.
Zhao Lingmeng didn't think it was a big deal. Although she was angry at Long Lingguo for a reason, she admired Doctor Ma's character more than anything else. She sincerely wanted to have Doctor Ma in her ancestral hall. Zhao Lingmeng felt that Doctor Ma was fully worthy of her gift.
Zhao Lingmeng performed a great ceremony on her own before placing the incense in front of Doctor Ma's tablet.
The host had come to his senses by now and calmly shouted again, "Please ask Ma Xiaogou's adopted son to burn incense and bid farewell!"
Zhao Houyang first knelt down and kowtowed three times before he took the incense handed to him by the person next to him and respectfully placed it in front of Doctor Ma's tablet.
Then he kowtowed three times respectfully and said in a hoarse voice, "Your son respectfully bids farewell to your father."
This surprised Zhao Lingmeng. The boy actually called him "father" instead of "adoptive father." But Zhao Lingmeng didn't say anything. He believed that having such a great and loyal father was a blessing for his son.
Zhao Houjing, who was kneeling at the door, was also quite surprised. Although he was heartbroken by his biological father, he had not really thought about calling someone else father for the time being. When he heard his own brother calling him like that, he felt a little dazed.
Zhao Houyang's shout cheered Zhao Lingmeng up a lot, and she even felt like joking around. "Doctor Ma, I didn't cheat you this time, did I? This cheap son I found for you is pretty good, isn't he?"
The host beside him didn't lose his composure this time. After all, the eldest princess had already performed the formal ceremony, so it was nothing for her son to call her father. He still admired the family's character. They had entered the ancestral hall without hesitation, and the etiquette and procedures were impeccable.
Regardless of what the host was thinking, the process continued, "Please ask the Zhao clan to burn incense."
Zhao Houjing and Zhao Houming, who were kneeling at the door, heard the voice and immediately went in respectfully to pay their respects and burn incense. Since they were not the sons of Doctor Ma, the ceremony was not that heavy. They just kowtowed and lit the incense.
Finally, Zhao Lingmeng personally placed the family tree on the ancestral hall's worship floor and said, "The ceremony is complete!"
Then the sounds of trumpets and drums were heard outside, but Zhao Lingmeng and the others did not go out immediately. Instead, they waited for news from Chunshui.
Zhao Lingmeng and the others had already inquired in advance about the time when Guo Longlingguo would enter Yuanjing City today, so Zhao Lingmeng didn't have to wait long before she saw Chunshui standing at the door of the ancestral hall and making a gesture to her.
Then Zhao Lingmeng immediately understood, "Doctor Ma, you've been in Yuanjing for so many years, but you haven't really toured the city yet! This time, let your adopted son take you around! If you agree, just give me a hint!"
As soon as Zhao Lingmeng finished speaking, the sound of drums and trumpets outside immediately intensified. Zhao Lingmeng's surroundings could definitely hear the commotion, but this was also a special ritual of the Jing Kingdom. Many families would hold this kind of ceremony when faced with unresolved issues, asking their ancestors if it was okay.
After Zhao Lingmeng finished speaking, she did not personally toss the tortoise shell. It was Zhao Houyang who knelt in front of the tablet and tossed it. However, Zhao Houyang's hand was doubled, and the toss meant that he disagreed.
But Zhao Houyang was such a smart guy that he immediately said, "Father, you agreed! Let's go now."
The host next to him quickly read out the eulogy or something, a long list of words that no one could understand.
Before Zhao Houyang went to hold the tablet, he did not forget to turn the tortoise shell over to cover his ears and steal the bell.
Zhao Lingmeng was still laughing beside him, "Doctor Ma, this temper is just like you! Do you like it?"
Zhao Houyang walked in front holding the tablet, and Zhao Houjing and Zhao Houyang followed immediately. Then there were people holding the tablet to lead the way, as well as guards and people playing drums and trumpets, and they arrived at the door of Princess Funing in a grand manner.
When Zhao Houyang walked out of the gate of the Princess's Mansion holding the tablet, he saw the royal family led by the eldest grandson of the emperor Yang Chengchen and Prince Ruihe Yang Chengchen, as well as some children of nobles, all wearing white clothes and riding on horses, spontaneously waiting for Zhao Houyang and others at the gate of the Princess's Mansion.
When Zhao Houyang saw these people, his eyes instantly turned red. He dismounted quickly, holding the tablet and bowed: "I thank you all on behalf of my father!"
"Doctor Ma died on the battlefield. All of us here are blessed by the soldiers guarding the border. We are sending off not only Doctor Ma but also the millions of ordinary people who have blessed us. We are the only ones who are grateful to them."
As soon as the emperor's eldest grandson said this, Prince Ruihe was the first to agree, and others quickly followed suit.
Zhao Houyang quickly mounted his horse, holding the tablet steadily, and led his men to the pre-arranged route. Yang Chengchen and his men immediately followed on horseback, and then some knowledgeable people also tacitly followed in plain clothes.
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