"Second Master, there's no need to worry, isn't the Elder Brother still here? It has always been unwavering in its loyalty to both you and the Feng Family. With it around, Xiaosheng won't be too badly off."
Looking in the direction of Xu Qing's gaze towards the hall's exterior, upon seeing the Elder Brother, Feng Second Master's trembling shoulders gradually calmed.
Outside the hall, Feng Xiaosheng's voice arrived before he did:
"Uncle, do you think the Elder Brother raised by your nephew looks magnificent?"
Xu Qing looked at the rotund, estimated twenty-odd pounds Elder Brother, and couldn't help but smile wryly in his heart.
This big white chicken looked remarkably like a miniature Golden Simurgh.
"Raised well, it's far more magnificent than when the Elder Brother was with your father!"
Feng Second Master was speechless, but Xu Qing was right in saying that Xiaosheng was indeed more attentive to the Elder Brother.
One must know that back then, to save his own life, he had eaten the "Elder Brother's" meat in front of Liao Jinzhong and Eunuch Liao.
If it were Feng Xiaosheng at the time, he would probably have flipped the table, preferring death over being coerced by that eunuch into surviving in disgrace.
As moonlight first appeared, Xu Qing, unable to refuse Feng Second Master's enthusiastic invitation, joined the Feng Family for another dinner.
At the time, old Feng Second Master, with a head of white hair, sat in the main seat; the thirty-something, graceful, elegant, and not overly coquettish Feng Family Matriarch sat beside him, followed by the seventeen or eighteen-year-old Feng Xiaosheng, in the prime of his youth.
Xu Qing found this meal more awkward than anything. Given that everyone in the Feng family was familiar, had it been someone unaware, they might have thought it was a family of four dining together, in a three-generation harmonious household...
Somehow, he managed to finish the meal, but later, no matter how much Feng Second Master might try to persuade him, he would absolutely not agree again!
Even as he fled out of the Feng family's doorstep, Xu Qing couldn't forget Feng Second Master's deeply disappointed and regretful gaze.
Why would an old man his age decide to dye his full head of grey hair some other color?
Is it appropriate!
Under the cover of night, Xu Qing arrived at Wang Lingyuan's home, where the lamps inside were still lit, and every couple of hours, Dou Yun or Song Tu would come to check, tucking in the corners of the quilt for the teacher, or trimming the excess lampwick.
Taking advantage of Song Tu's absence, Xu Qing slipped in front of Wang Lingyuan's bed and stood there for a while.
At the stroke of midnight, Wang Lingyuan, lying on the bed, suddenly opened his cloudy eyes; despite previously being too weak to easily sit up, he suddenly managed to straighten up on his own!
Wang Lingyuan even felt lighter than ever.
He turned his head to look inside the room, but apart from the flickering candlelight, there was no other shadow.
Before long, Song Tu walked back into the room carrying a lamp-stand, and upon seeing Wang Lingyuan sitting up, looking vigorous, he was clearly taken aback.
"Master, why have you gotten up, it's so chilly at night, you should quickly lie down!"
Wang Lingyuan spoke clearly, saying directly: "It doesn't matter, while I'm in good spirits, go and call Dou Yun over, I have instructions to give."
...
The next day, just before dawn.
After a busy night, Xu Qing was leisurely chatting with his cat, trying to relieve his boredom when suddenly he heard a knocking sound outside the shop.
"Knock, knock, knock," not too light nor too heavy, just thrice, but enough to make one's heart skip a beat.
Be aware that the Funeral Shop always left one door open at night, operating twenty-four hours to avoid someone needing services in the middle of the night.
Who would casually knock three times but not come in?
Xu Qing sighed softly, dusting off imaginary dust from his clothes, and stepped to the shop's entrance.
Just as he crossed the threshold, he saw Dou Yun and Song Tu standing at the door, wearing mourning cloths on their heads, dressed in coarse hemp clothing, and girded with hemp ropes, their eyes red.
Seeing Xu Qing appear at the door, the two men immediately knelt down outside the shop and wailed:
"Master! How could you bear to abandon your students and leave alone—"
"We are unworthy and foolish students! Otherwise, how could Master bear to leave us and journey westward on a crane..."
"..."
In funeral rites, it's customary to announce the death without entering the premises, to mourn the deceased outside.
Being in the funeral business, Xu Qing knew these customs inside out. He hurried forward, supporting both up.
"Fellow disciples, death is irreversible, you must contain your grief. If our master knew how saddened you are, he might not rest peacefully in the beyond..."
After some consoling, Xu Qing continued:
"You two should first go and inform family and friends in each household. Leave the master's funeral arrangements to me. Things like the Spirit Hall, coffin, burial clothes, and paper offerings are all on me; I assure you our master won't be wronged on his journey."
Dou Yun and Song Tu attempted to kneel to express gratitude again, but Xu Qing quickly prevented them: "Don't act sentimentally, we mustn't delay master's affairs, focus on the important tasks at hand."
The various rituals of funeral services are quite elaborate, yet Xu Qing wasn't bothered by them. For one, it was his duty, and secondly, because the one he was handling this time was his master, Wang Lingyuan.
...
Very early in the morning, even before the roosters crowed, the cries of Song Tu and his brother had already awakened people across several streets.
Last night, Chief Zhao Zhonghe had been investigating a case all night, and was taking a nap in Sibu Hall, when he heard crying and wailing outside the Government Office's side door.
Zhao Zhonghe grabbed his sword and, cursing, went to the side door, grumbling about who was crying over a death there; upon stepping out, he saw forensic doctors Song Tu and Dou Yun, who immediately knelt down before him.
"..."
Seeing them in mourning attire, crying so heartbreakingly, Zhao Zhonghe instantly became alert.
At this time, the constables on night duty at the Government Office also began to gather, and seeing the scene, their hearts sank as they guessed what had happened.
Wang Lingyuan had served as a forensic doctor at the Government Office for half his life, aiding in solving many cases. In the county, there were tales of three righteous men in the Linjiang Government Office: there's the people's advocate Chen Guangrui, the thief catcher Chief Zhao, and the forensic doctor Wang Lingyuan who could make the dead "speak".
Now that an upstanding elder of the Government Office had passed, everyone, both emotionally and logically, had to pay their respects.
At East Gate Alley, Xu Qing brought along the entire crew from the Funeral House, and a team of mages specializing in rituals; essentially, he summoned all the funeral personnel available from Underground Street!
This grand display, such pomp, that even the Emperor himself might not afford such magnificence!
Bai Qiuyue, along with the immortals from Phoenix Fairy Hall, was outside guiding souls, while Xu Qing was arranging the Spirit Hall inside the main hall.
White mourning drapes propped up the canopy, wooden plaques for the deceased were set at the altar, and the corpse was veiled with drapes, creating a solemn and mournful atmosphere.
At the same time, Iron Pillar took Wang Lingyuan's clothes from when he was alive, climbed onto the Spirit Hall's roof, facing north in the direction said to lead to the Netherworld, using the clothes as a flag to guide the deceased's return.
Meanwhile, Iron Pillar began calling out the deceased's name, hoping Wang Lingyuan's soul could be drawn back to his body.
This was the utmost human effort; if the summoning failed, only then would the funeral proceed.
While indeed rare, successful revivals are not unheard of in such rituals.
Xu Qing, clad in ritual robes, bore a solemn expression.
He had prepared many for burial, but never with this inexplicably mixed emotion as today.
Bathing, feeding, and clothing...
'Bathing' entailed washing the deceased, trimming nails, and shaving to ensure they departed cleanly.
'Feeding' involved placing rice, shells, pearls, or jade in the deceased's mouth, symbolizing that they wouldn't embark on their journey starving.
'Clothing' the deceased with burial garments.
The garments had to be in odd numbers, never even. If the deceased was under fifty, they could only wear three garments, considered an untimely death.
If over fifty, more garments could be added, with higher authority and older age allowing for more, symbolizing a fulfilled fortune and longevity.
Privately, Xu Qing dressed Wang Lingyuan in nine garments on top and seven underneath.
According to the rule of 'Seven above, five below' or 'Nine above, seven below,' the upper body should have more than the lower, and no one understood these customs better than him.
By the time Song Tu, Dou Yun, and the mourners arrived, Xu Qing had meticulously arranged everything within the Spirit Hall, from the Funeral Banner and elegiac couplets to the ever-burning lamps.
Even outside, he had placed seasonal paper flowers and funeral texts.