Chinese New Year

Chapter 1399 Qingming Festival (Part 2)

The fine, silky rain gradually stopped, and the pine trees, willows, and flowers that had been watered looked even more beautiful.

Shao Xun and his group soon arrived at the tomb mound. The inscriptions on the spirit path stele, washed clean by the rain, were still clearly visible.

"It is said that the celestial pivot rotates, signifying change and renewal; the Qian Yuan Emperor reigns supreme, inheriting the lineage and continuing the dynasty. In the past, the Jin dynasty collapsed, the nine regions were in disarray, the common people suffered, and the imperial family was in turmoil. Prince Xiao of Fanyang died young in the chaos, leaving his widow, Lady Lu, utterly alone and helpless. The Emperor, having received the Mandate of Heaven, pacified the eight directions, pitied her orphaned state, and praised her virtuous character, so he specially took her into his court and bestowed upon her the title of Xiu Rong."

Xiu Rong was of virtuous and tranquil nature, and lived a life of propriety and benevolence. She served the Emperor with utmost diligence and reverence, and instructed her son with righteousness, combining kindness and strictness. When Prince Gui of Chu was young and precocious, Xiu Rong personally taught and cared for him, encouraging him with loyalty and filial piety, thus shaping his character. The Emperor was moved by her hard work and bestowed upon her favor daily.

Alas! Heaven's ways are unpredictable, and virtuous women pass away easily. Divine medicine and stone cannot preserve her fragrant soul. She passed away on the 20th day of the 12th month of the first year of Zhenming, at the age of sixty-one.

Xiu Rong was born during the calamity of Yang Jiu, and suffered the upheaval of her family and country. Fortunately, she was blessed by the Holy Dynasty and found peace within the palace. In her passing, she received the Emperor's grief and was granted a peaceful burial. The honors bestowed upon her in life and death reached their zenith. Though the past is like a dream, her future blessings are long-lasting…”

Shao Xun couldn't remember which scholar from the Court of Imperial Sacrifices wrote the inscription, but he had no objections after reading it.

When the people revising the Book of Jin found out, they were extremely troubled. Hadn't this exposed their mistake? They had originally planned to use subtle wording to make it seem as if Lady Lu, the wife of the Prince of Fanyang in Jin, and Lady Lu, the wife of the Empress Xiu Rong in the Xin Dynasty, were not the same person. Now, even the emperor himself didn't care, and they had to revise it all over again.

At the same time, they secretly cursed the Taichang Temple for having "traitors" who harbored feelings for their lost country. Or perhaps someone whose land had been confiscated was feeling resentful and subtly mocked the emperor, even though the first paragraph had already romanticized the emperor's actions.

Shao Xun was too lazy to think about these things.

What's wrong? Why are so many people gossiping about taking a widow as a wife? Countless men and women have remarried, why don't you mention that?

At this moment, he stood quietly in front of the tomb, gently stroking the spirit path stele, reminiscing about the past.

Shao Gui looked sorrowful. Without needing anyone's help, he carried over a huge, heavy incense burner by himself, and then put in precious spices and various herbs and mugwort.

Liu Xiaohe stepped forward slowly and placed several books of poems into the incense burner. Most of them were written when they were lonely, and some were even written by Lu Xun during her lifetime.

Wisps of smoke rose and slowly enveloped the spirit tablet.

“Xunniang, we went to Qilihe again last month…” Liu Xiaohe said softly.

Shao Xun took a few steps away and looked at the rolling hills in front of him.

Not far away, wisps of smoke rose; it was Wang Huiwan offering sacrifices to her mother, Sima Xiuyi.

It seems that the imperial son-in-law Xu Xuan is also there. This is not surprising, as the southern side of Luhun Mountain is the outer edge of Guangcheng Marsh. Xu Xuan took office as the magistrate of Guangcheng Garden four years ago, and the young couple usually live there, so it is normal for him to come.

Hearing sobs, Shao Xun looked away and saw Huan Lang kneeling before the grave, weeping uncontrollably.

Liu Xiaohe kept wiping away tears, her face growing paler and paler.

Pei Lingyan gently helped her up and softly comforted her.

Shao Xun looked at the pine and cypress trees swaying in the wind and sighed inwardly. He was a father; what could he not forgive?
For the sake of that bowl of water-based cake at Liuhua Academy, for the love and joy under the moonlight, for the sake of thirty years of companionship, he could forgive anything.

After a long while, the wind dispersed the last wisp of smoke.

A tiny lark landed on a branch, tilting its head. After chirping for a while, it flapped its wings and flew off towards the west.

Shao Xun patted his son on the shoulder, telling him to get up.

Badger stood up, looking utterly dejected.

"Are you getting used to living in Xuchang?" Shao Xun asked.

"Fortunately."

"Go back to Luoyang for a while, so that Grandpa won't worry about you so often."

"it is good."

“You are a husband and a father now.” Shao Xun continued, “Between father and son, what obstacle is truly insurmountable? When you were little, your grandfather accompanied your mother, walking back and forth along the long dike of Guangchengze. You were in Xunniang’s arms, staring at me with your big, dark eyes, often smiling at me. You may not remember, but your grandfather will never forget until his death. You are my child, and you will always be my child.”

Having said that, he turned and slowly left the tomb.

I've been here once, but I don't know when I'll be back.

Humans are strange like that; they are so close yet so rarely see each other.

Perhaps, only when he passes away and rests in peace in Luhun Mountain will we be able to see each other more often.

******
Since we've come all the way to Luhun Mountain, there's no reason not to visit Guangchengze next door.

On the tenth day of the fourth month, Shao Xun arrived at the iconic Yongjia Granary.

This city has undergone several renovations and expansions. The main granary can store more than one million bushels of grain, and there are several small garrison towns nearby, each storing hundreds of thousands of bushels of grain, hay, dried meat, cheese, and even wine.

Shao Xun glanced at it briefly, offered a few words of encouragement, and then went to the Cuiyou Garden of Guangcheng Palace to stay, where he summoned Xu Xuan and his wife, Wang Huiwan.

The meeting was held in a relaxed manner, in the form of a casual family dinner.

Huiwan grew up with her mother, surnamed Wang, and wasn't very close to him. She never made any requests of him, which left him feeling quite helpless.

She would occasionally send Fu Bao to visit her, but she would always say that she lacked nothing and that she had enough.

Left with no other option, Shao Xun had to promote the prince consort.

Yesterday, an imperial edict was issued appointing Xu Xuan as the Chief Secretary of the Left Valiant Cavalry Guard, a sixth-rank official, while the position of Director of Guangcheng Garden was given to the newly appointed Imperial Son-in-Law, Wen Yi.

Xu Xuan was very happy; he was already used to the idea of ​​a husband gaining status through his wife.

However, Wang Huiwan requested to continue living in Guangchengze, as she was used to it.

Shao Xun initially disagreed, but since his daughter rarely made such a request, he reluctantly agreed—he should have known better than to promote the prince consort.

"Is it truly your wish to stay here and tend to the flowers and plants?" Shao Xun asked. "Yes," Wang Huiwan replied softly, "Last year, I saw that the white peaches grown by the Shaofu were very sweet, so I started tending to them. Nianliu, seeing that I liked the flower bed, contacted a familiar Hu merchant and sent me twenty Hu sheep, which I raise outside Suyu Palace. I feel very comfortable spending my days surrounded by flowers, fruits, cattle, and sheep."

"Nian Liu has been here before?"

"Yes, I've been here twice," Wang Huiwan said somewhat shyly. "I came to see you, my sister, and you gave me quite a few exotic items from the Western Regions."

Shao Xun sighed with emotion, thinking that his third son was a truly kind-hearted child.

If... perhaps he wouldn't have had to go through all this trouble.

He quickly suppressed his thoughts and asked, "Are you going to raise sheep to spin wool?"

Wang Hui nodded and said, "I just keep them for my own amusement."

“Okay.” Shao Xun nodded.

"Did His Majesty go up the mountain again today?" Wang Huiwan asked.

Shao Xun looked at her without saying a word.

Upon seeing this, Xu Xuan made an excuse and left.

"Grandpa, you went up the mountain?" Wang Huiwan asked again, her head lowered.

Shao Xun nodded and said, "Go up the mountain with Consort Pei to visit your mother and talk to her."

Among her daughters who are now adults, Wang Huiwan is probably the most shy and morally upright. Her self-awareness is likely contradictory and conflicted.

The more this happened, the more heartbroken Shao Xun felt.

After all, it was his fault; his daughter was innocent. What he most wanted to see was for Wang Huiwan to call him "father" naturally, without him having to remind her, and then to become affectionate towards him.

"Do whatever you like," Shao Xun added. "You're my daughter, no one can bully you. As long as I'm here—"

He sighed and didn't continue.

“Grandpa.” Wang Huiwan looked up at Shao Xun and said earnestly, “Before Mother passed away, you were always by her side. From then on…”

Wang Huiwan didn't continue, but Shao Xun understood and was very happy.

The trip during Qingming Festival was quite rewarding.

On April 11, before leaving, he made a special trip to see the Guangchengze Duotian under the name of the Yang family.

The original rice seedling raising and transplanting techniques were born here. Many farmers have been transferred to the south, and Xuzhou has also sent a batch of people. Now there are not many people left here.

Upon hearing that Guangcheng rice had been widely introduced to Jingzhou, he nodded in satisfaction and ordered that the remaining less than two hundred households be given rewards, two bolts of silk per household, to encourage them to continue cultivating new rice varieties.

On April 16, Shao Xun returned to Luoyang.

The next day, he summoned the seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth princes and appointed them as the commanders of the four gardens: Lu Zi, Shang Lin, Zuo Guo, and Yan Shan. After all, it was not good to stay idle at home; they had to find something serious to do.

When the four men left, Shao Xun kept Wu Gong Shao Yong behind and instructed him: "Before you set off, escort a batch of goods for your third brother."

"Father, am I to lead the troops?" Shao Yong asked.

"The Right Valiant Cavalry Guard will send 1,200 cavalrymen to accompany them, along with 1,000 newly recruited soldiers from the Left and Right Flying Dragon Guards, to escort them together."

"Where are they going?"

Lingzhou County.

"Okay." Shao Yong agreed, while pondering how to close his business.

"Be careful on the road," Shao Xun couldn't help but remind him. "When we pass through Chang'an, Zhuge Hui will send some troops to accompany us. There shouldn't be any major problems, but don't let your guard down."

"Understood," Shao Yong nodded.

"It's alright, go back now," Shao Xun waved his hand and said.

Shao Yong bowed and took his leave.

Shao Xun then went to the map he usually looked at, his gaze wandering aimlessly.

The sons have all been sent out, each with their own duties.

The world is not entirely as he wished, but it is constantly improving step by step, and that is enough.

Shao Xun's finger traced across the ever-expanding map of the territory, flying over mountains, across plains, and across deserts, finally stopping at a certain place—the place he was most concerned about at this stage.

As if by telepathy, King Shao Xu of Zhao, who had already arrived in Shuozhou, stood on Mount Beiyi, also gazing southeast.

It was late spring, and the snow and ice on the mountain melted, forming streams that flowed westward into the vast desert, silently nourishing the first batch of grasses that turned green this spring.

On the east side of the mountain, the mighty river meanders northward, only reluctantly turning eastward when it encounters the Yinshan Mountains.

At the same time, he held a letter in his hand, which was a letter from the Yu family of Kuaiji and the Xu family of Jurong, brought back by the Shen family members after they traveled from Wuwei to Gaochang.

The letter mentioned that they, like the locals, used glacial meltwater for farming and dug underground wells and canals. The hardships they endured were almost overflowing from the letter.

After putting away the letter, Shao Xu went down the mountain and said, "Let's go and meet the guest."

(End of this chapter)