Chapter 583: Saying Goodbye to the Old and Welcoming the New, Getting Rid of the Old and Introducing the New

The eighth day of the twelfth lunar month was the day for the Zhang family to send off the deceased. As it was deep winter, with snow falling in the preceding days, the city was still covered in white. Although the descendants accompanying the coffin wore cotton-padded clothes over their hemp garments, they were still frozen blue. Many guests came to pay their respects along the funeral procession, from Xisi Pailou to Xuanwumen Street, with memorial tents lining the way. From the Zhu family, the Duke of Cheng, to the Meng family, the Marquis of Baoding, the Liu family, the Marquis of Anyuan, the Xu family, the Marquis of Yongkang, and many other noble families and those granted imperial titles, along with Zhang Yue’s teachers, colleagues, relatives, and peers, the scene was truly grand.

Due to the extreme cold, most of the officials attending the funeral had prepared large sedan chairs and official vehicles—no fewer than thirty or forty. Together with the attendants before and after the procession, the entire convoy stretched for a long distance. Once outside the city, family members waited with prepared vehicles to take them to a small temple arranged in advance for temporary storage of the coffin. After another night, Zhang Xin and Zhang Zhuo, along with a few of their nephews, set off again. As for Zhang Chao, Zhang Qi, and Zhang Yue, who still held positions, they had to wait until Qingming Festival to return to Kaifeng due to the holiday, leaving only these three families in the capital for the Spring Festival. Naturally, Zhang Fu, the Duke of Ying, was the same.

Before long, New Year’s Eve arrived. With the whole family still in mourning and not all members present, this New Year’s Eve was much quieter and lonelier than previous ones. After offering sacrifices to the ancestors in the afternoon, the family separated into men’s and women’s groups, with all meals consisting of vegetarian dishes. Zhang Yue sat across from Zhang Chao and Zhang Qi. Seeing that neither of them spoke, he cleared his throat.

“According to what Uncle and Father calculated earlier, Grandmother’s coffin should have arrived in Kaifeng by now.”

Zhang Qi used to be even more carefree than Zhang Chao, but after going through such a loss, he became much quieter. Seeing Zhang Chao just lowering his head without saying anything, he hesitated for a moment before speaking, “Uncle and Third Uncle are very meticulous people; they should be able to arrive by the New Year. It must be tough for everyone to carry the coffin in such cold weather. We haven’t returned to the old house in years, so it will take some time to get it ready. The younger siblings are still small, while Uncle and the others are already old.”

By this time, the Yellow River and many rivers along its course had frozen over. The group traveling back to Kaifeng with the coffin could only take land routes, which was naturally extremely difficult. Upon hearing this, Zhang Yue and Zhang Chao immediately showed worried expressions. Realizing it was New Year’s Eve, one of the most important festivals of the year, Zhang Yue quickly changed the subject. But since things were different from usual, none of the three brothers had the mood to joke around as they normally would. After dinner, they each went back to their rooms to spend the night.

Normally, various colored lanterns would be hung everywhere, but now only white lanterns were in use. Even inside the rooms, flashy luxuries such as jade screens had been removed. When Zhang Yue entered his own courtyard, he saw that only the main house was lit up, while the side rooms were completely dark. He hurriedly stepped inside. Sure enough, a dozen people of all ages were crowded in the warm room. The maids wore plain green clothes, and Jingguan wore a green velvet hat, quietly playing with two walnuts in the nurse’s arms.

Zhang Yue usually loved hustle and bustle and didn’t care much about propriety. Seeing the quiet atmosphere in the room, he felt at a loss for words. After sitting on the kang, he sat motionless, like a clay or wooden statue. Du Wan, seeing his state, also had nothing to say. Qiu Hen and Hupo whispered to each other for a while, after which Hupo signaled the nurse to carry Jingguan onto the kang and then helped the little boy stand up straight. As Jingguan staggered toward Zhang Yue, she narrowed her eyes, thinking it would be best for this little troublemaker to take action now.

“Dad… Dad… Dad…”

Although he had heard his son call for him many times before, hearing this childish voice at a time when he was restless filled a huge void in his heart instantly. Seeing his son stumble over while holding up the two walnuts toward him, he quickly picked him up and patted his forehead firmly. To his surprise, Jingguan started giggling and nudged his head twice—his adorable, simple-minded appearance was incredibly cute.

Most of the people in the room had never seen Zhang Yue act so childishly before and exchanged puzzled looks. It wasn’t until the little boy suddenly started crying loudly, probably because of a headache, that those who had been distracted snapped out of it. Amidst his clear cries, the room finally felt a hint of festive cheer for the New Year.

Although there was a funeral at home and the elders were not present, once the hundred-day mourning period ended, the social obligations during the New Year could not be neglected in the slightest. Starting from the first day of the first lunar month, Du Wan could still find some time to relax due to having children, but Li Yun and Zhao Fen, as sister-in-laws, were busy receiving visits from various high-ranking officials, keeping themselves extremely occupied. The three Zhang Yue brothers were also constantly on the go, as they had to visit relatives and friends in the capital one by one; the holidays proved even more exhausting than serving in the government office.

On the fifth day of the first lunar month, at Meng Ying’s repeated requests, Zhang Yue went to the Marquis of Baoding’s residence. Although Marquis Meng Ying, who was in charge of transporting military provisions during the northern expedition, had not been blamed when the emperor was initially furious, he only received an ordinary banquet as recognition for his efforts. He had been extremely cautious these past few months, fearing of angering the emperor. Two years had passed since those events, and the last trace of concern in his heart had long disappeared. That’s why he personally met with Zhang Yue and chatted for a while before getting down to business.

According to tradition, Zhang Qing should observe a full year of mourning for her grandmother, Lady Gu, while Meng Jun did not need to observe mourning, and as an elder, Meng Ying had no such restrictions. Yet, when meeting Zhang Yue this time, he still deliberately put on a light blue robe with no other accessories. Since Meng Jun had been promoted to the position of Deputy Commander of the Xuanfu Left Guard due to his merits, Meng Ying was quite pleased, and this showed in his tone.

“Your brother-in-law is now in a stable position in Xuanfu. Although he is a few years older than you, he often writes in his letters saying he has learned a lot from you. As my eldest son, I’ve always thought he was fine except for being too lazy. It seems he has changed greatly now, thanks to you. As for what happened before… Well, I actually knew from the start that you couldn’t be blamed, and in fact, you handled things promptly. But as an old man, I couldn’t let it go, which has caused me distress these past two years. It’s really my narrow-mindedness as an elder.”

Zhang Yue had also been sent to the Meng family by his grandmother during holidays before, but he had rarely seen Meng Ying in the past two years. Hearing the Marquis of Baoding speak like this, he was quite surprised. After a brief pause, he simply said, “Uncle Meng, please don’t say that. My brother-in-law is originally a careful person; he just didn’t focus on that before. His promotion now has nothing to do with me. How could I take credit for it? As for what happened earlier… It’s in the past. Why bring it up again?”

“It indeed is in the past. If not for the emperor’s boundless grace and your early discovery, which prevented a greater mistake, even the entire Marquis of Baoding household might not have been saved.”

To this day, Meng Ying still often has nightmares, and waking up in the middle of the night drenched in cold sweat is not uncommon. Taking a deep breath out of concern, he stopped beating around the bush. “I invited you here today because of Anggeer. You mentioned before to your elder sister that it would be good to gather the children from various families together for mutual support. I also heard that your fifth brother studies at your family’s academy. However, in these past two years, your family’s academy has gained a lot of fame, but it’s become too crowded.”

The original intention of reestablishing the family academy was to help the children studying there to strive for progress, so they wouldn’t end up as infamous as they were in Kaifeng back then, rather than for the sake of his own brothers and nephews. In fact, he preferred to set up something like a kindergarten for these children, allowing them to get along from a young age and build trust among each other. So, it surprised him that Meng Ying brought this up on his own, and he couldn’t help but smile.

“Uncle Meng is right. The family academy was originally meant to motivate the clan’s descendants to make progress and to support some poor boys who were dedicated to studying. As for Anggeer, Tianci, my fifth and sixth brothers, and Jingguan, I intend to establish another institution next to the academy, carefully selecting a teacher who is both learned and of good character.”

“That would be great!”

Only then did Meng Ying feel relieved. He thought that if the Duke of Yingguo was willing to send his only legitimate son there, he wouldn’t have to worry about his eldest grandson. Growing up among other noble children of similar ages would be better than being spoiled at home by women. Since Zhang Yue was still in his mourning period, they talked for a while before Meng Ying stood up to leave. At that moment, he suddenly remembered another important matter.

“In two months, my nephews and niece will finish their mourning period. Since their father was exiled for a crime and his imperial decree was never recovered, they don’t have to start over. I thought that while other military units aren’t very prominent, serving in the Front Guard of the Imperial Army for two years might allow them to secure some official position in the future. The Front Guard isn’t under the command of the Five Military Commanders but directly reports to the Imperial Guard Command. I can’t provide support for them. I heard you currently serve under the Crown Prince, and the Front Guard often goes there. If possible, I would appreciate it if you could look after them. Other than that, it’s fine, but I’m worried that someone might say something harmful, and if they get upset, they might cause trouble.”

Zhang Yue had been quite close to the Meng Tao and Meng Fan brothers at first, feeling quite fond of them. He never expected such a major incident to occur in the Meng family later on. When Meng Ying spoke earnestly, he pondered for a long time, asked a few more questions, and then formed some ideas in his mind. After leaving the hall, someone led him to the back courtyard of the Meng residence. He first went to pay his respects to Lady Lu before meeting his eldest sister, Zhang Qing.

With her biological grandmother deceased and her husband far away in Xuanfu, with no idea when he would return, even the usually cheerful and generous Zhang Qing could not hide her sorrow. Her thin face was marked by red, swollen eyes. Yet, she still retained her role as the elder sister—after hearing a few words of comfort from Zhang Yue, she immediately began to worry about him, before seriously saying something else.

“A while ago, when I took people to Tanze Temple to offer incense, we happened to run into Princess Yongping and her entourage. Princess Yongping held a ritual for her son at Tanze Temple and spoke very angrily to the monks there. When she saw me, her eyebrows furrowed and she gritted her teeth. Weren’t you the one who personally captured Marquis Li Maofang back then? If she treats me like this, she must harbor even deeper resentment toward you. Third brother, you must be extremely careful—such noblewomen can be terrifying when they seek revenge.”

Hearing this, and recalling what Lu Feng had revealed about the assassination at Jiming Post, Zhang Yue couldn’t help but frown. There was no way there could be any reconciliation between him and Princess Yongping, and being targeted by a woman filled with hatred was the worst thing that could happen. Once he had time, he would have to find a permanent solution.

To welcome the new and bid farewell to the old, old things must be removed and replaced.

Volume 13: The Collapse of the Dynasty
The end of one era, the beginning of another.