The head of the Red Mansion

Chapter 200 Disease

Rongguofu Lixiangyuan.

I heard that my elder brother was crying his heart out. Jia Zheng's heart was... half in the cold winter, half in the spring breeze.

If the entire Dong family of three is truly gone, then...

He was filled with both fear and anticipation.

Even Wang Shi in the small Buddhist shrine was wrapped in a quilt, leaning against the door, hoping to hear the good news she longed for.

"Sir, the old lady is not well, please go and see her quickly!"

The maid's voice outside was like heavenly music.

Is the old lady going to have a bad day too?

Wang couldn't help but clutch the quilt tightly.

It is said that a thousand-year-old road becomes a river, and a daughter-in-law who has endured many years of hardship becomes a mother-in-law.

She became a mother-in-law, but she still had to follow the rules set by the old lady.

For so many years, she has been served meals like a maid, managed the household, and raised the children of the first wife, but what has been the result?
Die, it would be better if you died.

Those who deserved to die were all dead, so no one could stop her from leaving this small Buddhist shrine.

So what if he's a master?
The old man's successful children were all born to her.

Mrs. Wang waited excitedly.

Waiting for good news about wearing mourning clothes.

Moreover, none of the Dong family members held any real positions, yet they were still assassinated. Surely the Emperor Emeritus must feel some guilt about that, right?
He cannot compensate the dead, so he will certainly compensate the living.

Both of her sons were legitimate children of the Jia family.

Wang couldn't help but imagine the future.

But not long after, Jia Zheng returned, dragging his leg.

After his buttocks became unsteady, the sound of his gait was different from normal.

Wang quickly perked up her ears.

"Master~"

Aunt Zhou greeted Jia Zheng, brushing the snow off him, "You're back so soon? Old Madam..."

"The old lady is asleep."

Jia Zheng sighed, "The eldest brother of the East Mansion is gone."

"..."

Aunt Zhou was stunned for a moment, but quickly realized that only Master Jing of the East Mansion was gone.

The First Madam and Uncle Zhen are still here. That's wonderful, truly wonderful!
In Aunt Zhou's opinion, since Master Jing spent most of his time at the Taoist temple, his passing wouldn't affect her much.

But what if the First Madam and Master Zhen are gone...?

"How could this be?"

She looked at her incredulously, "Sir, are you going to..."

"It's too late, I'll go with the old lady tomorrow."

Jia Zheng waved his hand and went straight back to his room.

Compared to his elder brother who was never home, he missed his sister-in-law in the East Mansion more.

Unfortunately, that person was too resilient.

Jia Zheng was very disappointed.

But with the return of Zhu Si from the Five Cities Garrison and the return of the dossier by Chief Constable Lu from Shuntian Prefecture, those in the capital with good connections knew that Jia Jing was dead, having chosen the same way to die as the Crown Prince.

That night, many people sighed in their studies, tossing and turning in bed, unable to sleep.

Princess Nan'an finally got up and went to the ancestral hall in the middle of the night to talk to her deceased husband.

The four kings and eight dukes of yesteryear are now just a thing of the past.

The most capable Jia Jing had been a coward all these years, but unexpectedly he still died such a tragic death.

What will their family be like in the future?

While she sighed in the ancestral hall, Shen Ning finally finished cleaning up the burned-down courtyard.

After Jia Zhen and Jia Rong moved the last broken beam, they could roughly see the body that had been burned and curled up.

"Father~, Father~~~~"

Jia Zhen's voice had become hoarse from crying.

Upon seeing his father's body, his body and spirit were pushed to their limits, and he trembled uncontrollably.

"...Someone, take this old man away."

Shen Ning swayed, and if Rong-ge'er hadn't been there to catch her, she might have fallen.

But no!

There are people from the Five Cities Military Command and Shuntian Prefecture here.

"Rong-ge'er, you go down too."

"grandmother……"

How could Rong-ge'er bear to leave his grandmother to face this alone?

"Grandma, let's help Grandpa together~~~"

His tears fell in large drops.

He was scared, but his grandmother was there.

“Honey, your grandfather probably wouldn’t want you to see him like this.”

Shen Ning took the tea that Cheng Luo handed her and slowly spilled it on the ground. "He and I are husband and wife, I have to make him look presentable..."

As Chief Constable Lu approached, she took off her cloak and covered the deceased with it.

“Go! Let’s go!”

Her voice trembled, breaking in the wind and snow.

No one has seen her shed a single tear so far, but everyone feels that she is much more heartbroken than Jia Zhen, who was crying so hard he was about to faint.

However, some people's sadness doesn't show on the surface.

Her sorrow was found in each and every brick and tile she retrieved...

She didn't let anyone else do it; even her children and grandchildren, in the end, only carried out the things she had collected.

Unless it's something as immovable as a main beam.

She asked Jia Zhen and Rong Ge'er to help lift it, but she did everything else herself.

She was concerned about Jia Jing's dignity and didn't want anyone to see his gruesome death...

At several campfires, the men warming themselves were all silent.

Everyone says that Madam Shen is the most shrewish woman in the Great Zhao Dynasty, but Jia Jing has such a wife... he has lived a worthwhile life!

There are plenty of noble ladies in the capital, and many of them boast of having a good relationship with their husbands, but who can be like Madam Shen?
Those with deep emotions couldn't help but want to shed tears for her.

"Mother, your son won't leave!"

Jia Zhen was heartbroken for his father and also felt sorry for his mother, so how could he leave?
"...Do you want your father to die with no peace?"

Shen Ning looked at him with a compelling gaze.

"..."

Jia Zhen inexplicably flinched.

He felt that if he tried to fight back, his mother would beat him.

"Or is it because your father just died that my words no longer carry any weight?"

"...My son is gone, my son is gone, sob ...

Jia Zhen, weeping, staggered away with the help of Jia Zhu and Jia Lian who rushed over.

"Auntie~"

Lan Zhi draped the cloak that Xing Shi had given her over Shen Ning's shoulders, saying, "You must also take care of yourself. Your uncle's spirit is still with you, and he would be heartbroken to see you like this."

"..."

Shen Ning nodded, "Take Rong-ge'er away."

Things always need to be done.

Shen Ning chased everyone away before lifting her cloak and, by the dim light of the lantern, began to collect the debris from the corpse.

It would be a lie to say I wasn't afraid.

Although I repeatedly tell myself that burying a corpse is an act of kindness, but...

Shen Ning picked up three tiles and bricks from the corpse. Using the sound of them, she finally managed to type out the secret code that she had agreed upon with Jia Jing in the original owner's memories.

A dull thud came from above, and Jia Jing sighed softly. He could vaguely hear the commotion above, and from the exit, he knew that quite a few soldiers had arrived.

But my wife...

Jia Jing actually wanted her to believe that he was really dead.

But she was so persistent, doing it all by herself, and his heart...

Jia Jing, holding the sword sheath, carefully struck back three times at the spot where Shen Ning had struck.

The sound was so faint that I almost missed it if I wasn't paying close attention.

Fortunately, Shen Ning heard it.

She plopped down on the ground, finally relieved.

At the same time, Jia She finally caught up with You Shi and Xiao Yueyue on the mountain.

The crying suddenly increased again.

Hearing his daughter's innocent cries coming from above, Jia Jing couldn't help but tear up.

Why bother bringing your daughter here in this cold weather?
Didn't he say that we could never see each other again in this life or death?
Why won't they listen to advice?
Are you afraid that someone will find out about this place?

No need. Once the soldiers leave, he'll find a way to fill in the tunnel.

The body belonged to an old beggar.

He froze to death in the snow two days ago, and then he was burned in the fire...

Although he suffered after his death, they at least managed to collect his body.

Jia Jing sighed softly.

But his ears still couldn't help but catch his daughter's voice.

Shen Ning ignored her daughter's crying today.

Even if her hands weren't dirty, she still couldn't lift her up.

Her arm was about to break.

Jia Min, Jia Wen, and Yuan Chun all came.

Fortunately, although they were meticulous, they hadn't seen Jia Jing for many years.

Moreover, the body had been burned beyond recognition.

"You've come at the right time. Let's send your elder brother off on his final journey!"

The pyre for the second cremation was already piled up. Shen Ning forced herself to stay upright and not collapse at this moment. "Zhen'er, You Shi, Rong Ge'er, come with me to see the master upstairs."

"..."

"..."

Jia She thought to himself, "Why don't we just leave it like this and stop burning his elder brother's body?"

But that one glance I just saw...

Jia She knew that his elder brother was a respectable man, and it was better to burn him to ashes and keep him clean than to bury him in such a gruesome and unrecognizable state.

Moreover, burned to that state, even the ancestors in the underworld probably wouldn't recognize it.

It would be better to burn him clean, freeing him from the constraints of his body, so that his uncle and father could still recognize him.

The body was huddled together and couldn't fit into the coffin, so Shen Ning and the others carried it and, amidst Xiao Yue'er's cries, placed it on the woodpile.

A fire was lit, and a second cremation was carried out in front of many officers and soldiers from Shuntian Prefecture and the Five Cities Military Command.

Amidst the raging fire, the Jia family wept uncontrollably.

Shen Ning was relieved.

Exhausted to the extreme, she finally passed out in a spectacular fashion.

In fact, she was indeed sick.

From being hunted down to committing murder on a long-distance raid through wind and snow, these were things I never even imagined.

What's more, she spent half the night on high alert collecting bricks and tiles, her clothes constantly getting wet and then drying again, and she even collected the body...

It got hot as soon as I fell down.

Although Dr. Bai had prepared the medicine in advance, Shen Ning's illness came on quickly and suddenly.

In her dazed state, she heard Grandmother Jia crying, felt the carriage shaking, and seemed to have returned to a familiar place.

Unbeknownst to her, memorials impeaching Prince Jin for filial impiety were flying everywhere in the imperial court.

Although everyone suspects that Prince Jin colluded with Japanese pirates and that he killed Jia Jing, the royal family cannot admit to this, even if there were direct evidence.

Although Jia Jing was a commoner, he came from a noble family, and everyone knew why he hadn't become an official.

The fact that the royal family murdered the descendants of meritorious officials would chill the hearts of the people.

The emperor, who ruled with benevolence and filial piety, recalled the deeds of the two Dukes Ning and Rong on behalf of the retired emperor in court. Remembering their grandfather's merits, he bestowed upon them the rank of second-grade official and ordered their descendants to escort the coffin through the north gate into the capital for burial in their private residence. Furthermore, after the descendants completed the funeral rites and escorted the coffin back to their hometown, the emperor ordered the Court of Imperial Sacrifices to conduct a grand sacrificial ceremony according to precedent, with princes and dukes of the court offering condolences.

Shen Ning was completely unaware of all of this.

She was very ill, with recurring fevers, unable to eat, and sometimes even vomiting after drinking water.

Helpless, Jia Zhen feared that after his father's death, his mother would also be gone. Despite his own illness, he submitted a memorial to the emperor, pleading for a royal physician.

The Emperor Emeritus was ill, and all the imperial physicians from the Imperial Medical Academy were at Shou Kang Palace.

But the Jia family...

The emperor sighed and immediately summoned two imperial physicians.

Shen Ning has clearly lost weight.

"Auntie!"

Lanzhi had helped out a lot these past few days, and seeing her like this, she couldn't help but sigh, "Are you going to leave with your uncle?"

Shen Ning: "..."

She felt unwell all over, her throat was dry and hoarse, and she couldn't speak.

"You're gone, you'll have peace and quiet now, but what about Xiao Yue'er?"

Lan Zhi said, "When I saw her that day, the little baby had a round face and was being taken very well. But since you've been sick these past few days, she hasn't been able to see you and has been crying every day."

Having been an orphan herself, she knew how pitiful children without parents were.

This is not a question of money.

The Lan family was once a high-class family in Ningxia.

But after losing both parents...

"She's lost weight."

Lan Zhi said, "She would also be taken to mourn her eldest uncle every day; there were always people coming and going there..."

She didn't finish her sentence, and Shen Ning said with difficulty, "I want to drink water."

The biggest problem when you're sick is that you can't eat or drink.

She really didn't intend to die.

Don't say she wasn't the original owner. Even if she was, Jia Jing didn't die, so why would she die?
"Add some salt."

"I'm coming."

Qingzhu's several head maids have been serving her day and night for the past few days.

Upon hearing that she wanted water, he quickly poured out what he had prepared.

A slightly salty taste slid down my throat.

To prevent her from vomiting again, Qingzhu and Qingping pressed down on the webs of both her hands, one on each side.

Fortunately, she didn't vomit this time.

Lan Zhi breathed a sigh of relief.

She was really afraid that after her uncle passed away, her aunt would also be gone.

She still needs to seek revenge on her so-called second uncle in the West Mansion.

Lanzhi came over several times, hoping to see what the person looked like, but unfortunately, she never saw him.

She felt that the person was avoiding her.

hum~
You can avoid the first grade of junior high school, but you can't avoid the fifteenth grade.

However, since her eldest uncle had just died and her eldest aunt was ill, she decided to let him stay for a few days, considering that the old lady next door had helped her eldest aunt that day.

"Bring Yue'er here."

Shen Ning felt a little better. "Let me take a look from a distance."

I'm sick, and I can't pass it on to my daughter.

But Lanzhi said that because she was genuinely worried.

Happy New Year!!!