THE funeral lasted three full days. Each morning, the family gathered at the hall before guests arrived. They received visitors who came to pay their respects to the departed. Business associates came. Old friends of the family came. Distant relatives Luo Yan had never seen before came. They all approached the altar, lit incense, and bowed before Bai Zhen's photograph. Then they offered their condolences to Bai Chen and the rest of the family before taking their seats along the walls.
The room filled and emptied and filled again over the course of each day. Flowers piled up around the altar faster than the staff could arrange them. The smell of burning incense never left the air.
On the morning of the fourth day, the family held the final ceremony before cremation. They gathered around the coffin one last time. Bai Chen stepped forward and placed his hand on the dark wood.
