20demayo Chapter 885 The Empress's Burial
Chapter 885 The Empress's Burial
Zhang Ping'an didn't rush to expose this little trick. After glancing at Zhong Zheng, he calmly instructed, "Since it's a misunderstanding, it's best to talk it out. Xiao Yu'er, after you go to the Imperial Academy tomorrow, take your cousin with you and go talk to Lu Xiao Liu to clear things up. There's some face between the two families, and Lu Xiao Liu knows his limits."
"Oh, okay," Little Fish said, slightly surprised, but without objection.
Pengpeng felt warm inside and gained confidence.
"Uncle, let's just forget about it. It's no trouble at all. It's nothing for me to suffer a little."
"One thing at a time. Don't worry, Xiaoyuer knows how to handle this. But you should also have a few capable servants around you. I'll have your Uncle Xiaohu send a few servants over later. If you need anything later, you can directly ask your Uncle Xiaohu. We're all family here, so let's speak frankly."
"Yes, thank you, Uncle," Pengpeng said gratefully.
The family finished their meal and soon dispersed.
Zhang Ping'an was so tired that he washed up and lay down to rest.
The morning court session on the second day was uneventful; the main topic was discussing the timing of Empress Wei's burial.
Thanks to Zhou Ziming's frugality, the imperial mausoleum project was not particularly large compared to previous dynasties, and was therefore completed two years ago.
Therefore, the empress's burial did not have to wait too long. After a series of funeral rites were completed, an auspicious day could be chosen to place the coffin in the underground palace of the imperial mausoleum for the final burial ceremony.
After a day of rest in bed, the Crown Prince seemed to be in good spirits today and proposed that the body be laid to rest until after Zhou Ziming's death, and that he be buried in the same mausoleum as the Empress.
However, Zhou Ziming refused, citing the reason that "the Empress should be laid to rest as soon as possible."
Anyone with eyes to see knows this is just an excuse. Throughout history, the time it took for an empress's body to lie in state after her death could be as long as several years or even decades, as the imperial mausoleum was being completed.
In the most extreme case, if the emperor himself had not yet been buried, the empress might have to wait even longer.
Therefore, it is common for the body to be kept in state awaiting burial, and cases like Empress Wei's, where an auspicious day is chosen immediately after the funeral, are relatively rare.
Although the crown prince was somewhat disappointed, he could not refute it further.
Finally, after discussion between the Imperial Observatory and Abbot Yuantong, the burial was scheduled for half a month later, shortly after the forty-nine-day mourning period ended.
The imperial mausoleum is located in the far suburbs bordering Hebei Province, and Zhou Ziming was unable to personally escort it throughout the entire journey due to health reasons.
A large escort team, composed of princes, nobles, and high-ranking officials, was separately appointed as a sign of respect, and Zhang Ping'an was among them.
They were required to follow the hearse on horseback or on foot throughout the journey. When the hearse passed through the streets of the capital and the counties along the way, even local officials and common people who were not in the escort team had to wear mourning clothes and kneel down to greet and see off the hearse on the roadside until the hearse had completely passed before they could stand up.
The whole process was very complicated and took more than a day to complete. Therefore, the group needed to rest for a night along the way, and it would take several more days to reach the mausoleum and for the formal burial.
The Ministry of Rites assigned special officials to guide, protect, arrange accommodation, and provide food and supplies.
As the Empress's legitimate sons, the Crown Prince and the Second Prince naturally had to go along as well.
After the matter was settled, Zhou Ziming appeared somewhat exhausted and announced his resignation from court.
Zhang Ping'an felt that the sword hanging over his head probably wouldn't fall for quite some time.
First the Empress died, then the Third Prince, and then so many ministers were executed, along with their families.
While no one dared to say anything openly, everyone was in a state of panic. If, at this time, he, as the first-rank Privy Councilor, were to be easily taken down without any justification, it would likely arouse even more suspicion from other court officials.
Based on Zhou Ziming's modus operandi, Zhang Ping'an guessed that Zhou Ziming would probably only be able to deal with him after the Empress's funeral, so he still had time.
Within the Privy Council, apart from Lord Wang, who is relatively difficult to deal with, everyone else has their own weaknesses, and Zhang Ping'an is quite confident about this.
In particular, Zhang, the Chief of the Privy Council, was a member of the same family and had always had a good relationship with him. It was only because of Zhou Ziming's instruction that he began to secretly work with Wang to undermine Wang's power.
This person has always been second-in-command in the imperial court, never having been in a top position, always holding a deputy post, which makes him somewhat indecisive.
Zhang Ping'an didn't intend to alert the enemy now, fearing he might not be able to cover things up, and planned to contact him at a crucial moment.
Time flies, and Empress Wei's forty-nine-day mourning period has finally passed.
The Ministry of Rites was also making intensive arrangements for the burial.
Taking advantage of this time, Zhang Ping'an fulfilled his previous promise and took his family to Daxiangguo Temple to worship Buddha.
Mrs. Xu believed in this, and Xiaoyuer wanted to have his fortune told to get rid of bad luck. Zhang Lao Er also thought it was good to pray to Buddha. Pengpeng was a guest, so naturally he would not refuse. The whole family happily went out early in the morning.
For the first time ever, Xiao Hu also joined the procession, and Zhong Zheng, as his personal attendant, was also in the entourage.
Although Zhang Ping'an's real intentions were not what they seemed, he was in a pretty good mood because he rarely had free time to take his family out for a stroll.
Since it's not an important day like the first or fifteenth of the lunar month, there weren't many visitors at Daxiangguo Temple today.
Soon, a young novice monk led everyone inside and handed them incense and candles.
“Benefactor Zhang, the abbot said that your devotion to Buddhism is very sincere. If you want your divination interpreted, the abbot can personally interpret the divination for you today. He is in the meditation room in the backyard.”
"Oh, no rush. The weather is nice today. After we offer incense, we'd like to wander around the temple grounds," Zhang Ping'an said with a gentle smile.
After saying that, he waved to the servants following behind him: "You don't need to follow me every step of the way. It's a rare trip, so take your time to look around. We'll meet at the dormitory this afternoon."
The servants were naturally overjoyed to hear this. Daxiangguo Temple was a national temple, and people who sought divination and prayed to Buddha all felt that it was very effective. Naturally, they also wanted to pray there and ask for a peace charm or something.
In the end, only Xiao Hu remained by Zhang Ping'an's side to serve him.
"Uncle Tiger, why don't you go with them to pray?" Little Fish asked casually.
“Of course I’m coming out with your father. How can a high-ranking official like me be without anyone to serve him? I’m not like the others. If you want to pay respects, I can come alone another day.” Xiao Hu smiled.
He had been feeling inferior to the outsider, who was now the only one left by his side, and he felt a sense of pride in him.
"Oh, right," Little Fish said without giving it much thought.
After kowtowing and offering incense with Pengpeng, I closed my eyes and shook a fortune stick.
"Dad, it's a medium-to-high draw," Xiaoyuer said, not entirely satisfied.