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Kazama argued a few points, while Spirit Hall was filled with sadness and seriousness. The family of the deceased was weeping bitterly to express their grief, lighting red candles, which felt out of place; a funeral is not a joyous occasion and should be handled with care.
Yan Dan found him pretentious. If he were truly loyal to his master, he should host the funeral himself instead of seeking her help.
She was in a bad mood, feeling terrible—absolutely awful. She had come to seek revenge, not to help, so how did it end up that she had to clear the court for Zhong Xue?
Thinking back to his earlier request for her help made her feel sick.
Just before the funeral preparations began, Kazama found her and immediately knelt down, crying out for help, pleading for her to save Zhong Xue's life.
Zhong Xue knew that her greatest weakness was her soft heart. If he confronted her directly or begged for mercy, there might be a higher chance of success. As for why he didn’t go himself, it was probably because he didn’t want to lose face in front of a woman.
Yan Dan indeed softened at Kazama's pleas. Zhong Xue understood her too well; he could guess all her psychological changes clearly.
He told Kazama to leave their grievances aside until after this matter was resolved and focus on helping Lord Jun through this crisis. The lives of hundreds in Fengling Duke's Residence depended on her decision. The steward Uncle Chen, the gardener Wang Qing, the flowers and plants in the yard, and even the old dog guarding the gate would all be affected by her choices.
Yan Dan felt compelled not because of anyone else but because of that old dog. It was pitiful that it was still guarding the gate at such an old age without being allowed to retire; being their dog was truly unfortunate.
She cried for the dog, and now she found herself in a situation worse than that dog’s. She had to help arrange Spirit Hall and prepare for the funeral while the person who had already died lay in bed, drinking nourishing soup and medicine, enjoying fruits and pastries as if nothing were wrong.
Yet every time she entered the room, he would immediately lie down pretending to be dead, eyes tightly shut as if he would rather die than see her. She wanted to throw fire onto his bed or splash cold water on him; if it weren't for Kazama stopping her, she would have wished for him to just die in bed.
With such a miserable state, how could she possibly feel good?
Kazama realized he couldn't persuade her and decided to let it go; after all, he wasn't really dead. Using two red candles would save them from further misfortune.
The issue of the red candles was secondary; she kept asking him when Zhong Xue would automatically get up by himself.
He smiled bitterly; could he really influence Lord Jun's situation? He gritted his teeth stubbornly, having no idea how many times his legs had been kicked but still maintaining a foolish appearance of defiance.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to; it was just that he didn’t know—or perhaps even Lord Jun himself didn’t know—because once he got up, he would definitely face Yan Dan’s stormy revenge.
The more he suppressed his resentment, the greater it grew. If he couldn't hold it in any longer, it would erupt like a landslide.
He shook his head and ordered a few maidservants to quickly carry the offerings inside. Then he hurriedly left; the longer he stayed, the more afraid he was of becoming a target for someone else's lesson.
*
Yan Dan had been enduring, and finally, the day of the funeral arrived.
On this day, the Junhou Mansion was bustling with activity, as if a silver mountain was descending from the north.
The coffin was also quite exquisite, made of pure golden silk nanmu wood that Chengyang Jun had prepared for himself before going to battle. The base was eight inches thick, with patterns resembling betel nut and a fragrance like sandalwood. Tapping it felt like striking gold and jade. To die in such a coffin was not a loss at all.
Rong Huan would take at least three to five days, or at most seven to eight days; this was indeed true.
On the fifth day of the mourning period, offerings were prepared and sent out, followed by a ceremonial carriage with umbrellas and gongs arriving for the rituals.
On the day of the funeral, Wei Wang also personally attended the Fengling Duke's Residence. He appeared somewhat timid, glancing at Rong Huan from time to time, leading one to suspect that everything in Wei Kingdom would be controlled by Rong Huan in the future.
During Wei Chengwang's lifetime, he had only three sons. The eldest was established as the crown prince, who was now Wei Wang's father. Unfortunately, he died too early; before he could ascend to the throne, he passed away, leaving behind a child who was timid and fearful—hardly able to avoid being bullied.
After reciting the eulogy, Wei Wang personally smashed a clay basin, marking the official departure of the funeral procession. As for the upcoming farce of pretending to be dead, Yan Dan had no desire to witness it; after all, she wasn't anyone important to him and had no need to hide among his concubines pretending to be heartbroken.
In fact, ever since Zhong Xue was injured, half of his concubines had already dispersed. After hearing about his death, nearly all of the remaining ones left as well. Now only a few remained, seemingly hoping to claim a larger share of the inheritance before departing.
As soon as the coffin was carried out, she entered the inner hall. Recently she had been feeling somewhat unsettled—not only because of Zhong Xue, but also due to her chaotic memories. For some reason, she kept recalling certain events—her experiences as San Chun, how she met Qing, how she interacted with Zhong Xue and Ji Xun, and even how she fainted in that mountain spring while in Jurong Mansion in Yan Country.
She had suffered temporary amnesia after hitting her head and forgot everything that happened recently. But now that she recalled those experiences, she suddenly didn't know how to seek revenge against Zhong Xue.
It was on that day when he pushed her away from the jaws of a Giant Python. He saved her without regard for his own life by pushing her away from danger. His severe injuries nearly cost him his life because of her. And then there were those events that occurred in the hot spring pool in the mountains; they were intertwined together like every couple does.
Thinking of this, it felt like a dream, with emotions fluctuating so intensely that she could no longer face him. Now that things had come to this point, she didn't know where to go. She had originally vowed to seek justice, but now... it was time for her to leave. He had harmed her once and saved her once; their debts were settled, and it was best if there were no further entanglements.
After packing her few belongings in her room, she had just stepped out with her bundle when she saw two women hurriedly approaching. Dressed in pure white mourning attire, anyone could guess their identities at this moment. Coincidentally, she recognized these two: one was Tsukihime, and the other was Dream Consort, the two most troublesome figures in Fengling Duke's Residence.
Each of them was holding a box that looked heavy, clearly filled with gold and jewels. At this moment, their intentions were obvious; they were attempting to escape with stolen goods.
In this era, a Concubine was also considered the property of the master, and if a Concubine attempted to flee, she would face severe punishment.
Yan Dan pondered whether she should stop these two. Perhaps she could stage a righteous robbery to prepare for her future.
With that thought, she stepped in front of the two and smiled, "Where are you two ladies headed?"
The two seemed surprised that someone would be here at this time. Dream Consort steadied herself and, seeing it was her, couldn't help but smirk slightly. "Spring Consort, why haven't you left yet?"
Spring Consort? Yan Dan raised an eyebrow; she had almost forgotten about that identity. No wonder no one had suspected anything during her time in the residence.
She smiled and replied, "Why should I leave?"
"In a little while, there will be chaos in the residence..." As soon as Tsukihime spoke, she suddenly realized she had misspoken and quickly added, "No, never mind. You should hurry and leave."
Yan Dan snorted lightly; it seemed these two were spies sent by someone else; otherwise, how would they know that Rong Huan's people would come soon? Those people were supposedly coming to handle Lord Jun's funeral arrangements, but in reality, they were there to raid the house. However, it depended on whether Rong Huan would still be alive in an hour; otherwise, the only house being raided would be his own.
With a sinister smile, she drew the long sword from her waist and shouted at the two women, "Drop your things and get lost."
No need for extra words; this was a robbery—just like Dong Dong's style of robbery. The two women screamed in fright; having seen the power of her sword before, they dared not linger and immediately dropped their boxes and ran away.
"At least they know what's good for them." With a cold snort, she picked up one of the boxes from the ground; it was heavy and definitely contained valuable items.
Since she had already robbed them, she might as well take them away. She carried both boxes out through the back door. The street outside was already in chaos, with people running past—likely heading to see the commotion surrounding the funeral.
Yan Dan found this scene absurd; a living person lying in a coffin, with almost everyone in the city coming to see him. Only someone like Zhong Xue, who was so shameless, could create such a farce.
However, all of this was no longer related to her. She had already planned her escape route and arranged for a carriage, along with a very professional driver, who could easily take her to Zhao Kingdom.
She stepped outside, and as expected, there was a carriage waiting at the door. Holding two heavy boxes, she got into the carriage. Before she could settle in, she heard the driver call out, "Where are you planning to go, sister?"
Yan Dan was startled; it was Dong Dong's voice. What was this little thief doing here? Did he catch a whiff of the money in her boxes?
She lifted the curtain to take a look and indeed saw Dong Dong. She couldn't help but exclaim, "Where did you come from? When did you pop up?"
"From Main Street, just now, about a tea's worth of time ago," Dong Dong chuckled lightly.
He had come to Daliang willingly, but upon arriving, he discovered that the person he intended to serve was already dead. He felt both like laughing and crying; laughing because he had finally escaped his constraints, and crying because his death meant he wouldn't live long either.
He cursed Zhong Xue for not finding peace even after death and wished for her to suffer in hell under severe torture. However, what troubled him more was what poison Zhong Xue had inflicted upon herself that no doctor could diagnose.
After crying and laughing, he planned to go to the Fengling Duke's Residence to enjoy some easy pickings; at least he could live a bit more comfortably in his remaining days.
Then he spotted a carriage and wondered who had parked it there. He thought it would be perfect for transporting stolen goods. He chased off the driver and took the driver's seat, preparing to drive the carriage to a hidden spot when he saw Yan Dan coming out with two heavy boxes.
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