Chapter 826: Funeral Rites

Baifeng's guards stepped forward to clear away the crowded people, opening up a path for Baifeng. Once Wu died, Shaohe immediately notified all of his family members; counting the married-off women, their husbands, and children, there were already over a hundred people. This large courtyard was almost unable to hold them all.

Passing through the weeping crowd, Baifeng arrived before Wu, who had already closed his eyes. He still maintained a seated posture, no different from when Baifeng had left.

Placing his hand on Wu's pulse, Baifeng did not feel a single beat. Wu's hands were already cold and slightly stiff.

Baifeng let out a long sigh: "The Changping Marquis has passed away. Legitimate Son Shaohe, come out and prepare to handle the funeral arrangements."

Shaohe was clearly having a hard time accepting his father's death, but he could be considered the oldest and most capable person in this family to shoulder the responsibility. Moreover, he was no longer young; he was not a child.

Baifeng gave him instructions: "Zhigui from the Ministry of Rites will come over in a moment; you will listen to his arrangements. For now, do as I say: find the Hemp Cloth in your home. Every man is to sew a small piece of Hemp Cloth onto the chest of his garment. The women in your home are to tie a strip of Hemp Cloth in their hair. It doesn't need to be much, just a tiny bit will do. Save some; this is a requirement of ritual."

Huaxia had never had such a practice before, but whatever Baifeng said, went. Shaohe could only comply. Fortunately, in a family like his, there was no shortage of Hemp Cloth, so he quickly arranged for people to find it. Then, they cut up the whole bolts of Hemp Cloth—some sewing, some tying—though it was still a bit heart-wrenching to see the Hemp Cloth used this way.

Zhigui was brought over by a speeding carriage. Before getting out, he carefully straightened his clothes before rushing over. He had already received the news of Wu's death. This matter still had some impact on him; as his former superior and a founding hero of Huaxia, Wu dying just like that left him with some mixed feelings, though he was not exactly heartbroken—after all, his relationship with Wu had not been close enough to warrant his own tears.

At this moment, Baifeng was personally presiding over the handling of the funeral. There would likely not be many such occasions, and this was also because Wu's status was relatively special. If an ordinary official died, Baifeng could completely avoid going in person and just send a message.

Now, it was also a way to show the importance he placed on Wu, as well as a kind of remembrance for a friend.

Once Zhigui arrived, Baifeng could hand the matter over to him. Baifeng called Zhigui over and then had Shaohe find paper and a brush in their home so that Zhigui could write down the things that needed to be prepared.

"Zhigui, Wu is our Huaxia's Changping Marquis, so his funeral must be solemn and standardized. I will tell you some of the etiquette; you record it carefully, as it must be followed from now on."

Zhigui hurriedly squatted down, spread the paper out on a chair next to Baifeng, and prepared to record.

"First, regarding Wu's body: it must be kept in his home for two days for his relatives and friends to come and pay their respects. The coffin must be made in two layers—that is, two nested together. The outer layer is called the 'outer coffin', and the inner layer is called the 'coffin'."

"But except for those above the rank of Count, everyone else can only use one layer, which is just a coffin. The Ministry of Works should have some ready; have them rush to make one more. The old coffin can be used as the outer coffin, and a larger coffin can be built for the outside. Time is tight, so it doesn't matter if it's rough, but the ritual standards must be met."

"Another thing is what they wear on their bodies; that is called 'Filial Mourning'. We don't have much hemp now, so it won't be that complete; just have them wear a small piece. The meaning of wearing Filial Mourning is to tell others that an elder in my family has passed away."

"As for how long to wear it, let's say one hundred days. After one hundred days, they can take it off. Even if they change clothes, they must sew a new one onto the new garment. After one hundred days, they can remove it."

"Ordinary families need to wear it too, but they wear it for thirty days. Only the biological sons, daughters, grandsons, and granddaughters need to wear it; more distant relatives do not need to."

Baifeng explained the funeral rites, which he had simplified significantly, to Zhigui bit by bit. Zhigui knew that, like a wedding, this was an equally important matter, so he recorded it meticulously, not daring to be the least bit distracted for fear of making a mistake.

Once the ritualistic aspects were recorded, Baifeng said: "Now let's talk about burial goods. You have Shaohe bury some of the utensils his father liked during his lifetime in the grave, so that Wu can use the things he liked after death. For furniture like tables and chairs, have the people at the Ceramics Factory make a set out of Pottery. Hmm, just make them this big; they don't really need to be that large. They must be made before Wu is buried; they must work overtime through the night if they have to."

Baifeng gestured with his hands. Burial goods were definitely necessary, but there could be no extravagance or waste. The wealth that had been accumulated with such difficulty could not just be buried in the dirt.

"Oh, and record this too: everyone, regardless of whether you are a Noble with a title or a common tenant farmer, is strictly forbidden from using living beings as burial goods. Once discovered, it will be severely punished. The items buried must not be excessive either."

"Your Ministry of Rites must pay attention to supervising this in the future. I will add it to the laws. As for the Royal Family, you don't need to worry about that; I will set those rules myself."

Zhigui was sweating profusely as he wrote, but he still nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, very good, very good."

Fortunately, Baifeng would notice when he couldn't keep up with the writing, so he would slow down to wait for him, and repeat things he hadn't heard clearly. Because of this, Zhigui's handwriting became particularly sloppy for the sake of speed.

When Baifeng felt that everything that needed attention had been said, he then said: "Alright, now you go and preside over the funeral. The music troupe should come too; have them prepare some relatively sad music. If there isn't any, then so be it. If there is anything you don't know how to handle, have someone come and ask me. Don't mess it up."

Zhigui felt a sense of relief; he had finally finished recording. There was so much! He hurriedly stood up, preparing to go and arrange the tasks, but he had to find a few of his colleagues first, otherwise he wouldn't be able to handle it all.

Looking at the somewhat chaotic courtyard, and the people passing by outside who occasionally poked their heads in to watch the excitement without knowing the truth, Baifeng always felt something was missing.

So he had Shaohe find two very long sheets of white paper—when making paper, long sheets that hadn't been cut were still kept.

Afterward, Baifeng wrote on the long paper: "The deceased ascends to Heaven, to reach ultimate bliss early."

He then cut some small strips at the bottom of the paper so it could flutter in the wind, and finally hung it up with a long bamboo pole. It was a very simple Banner.