Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

News of Jia She's death immediately reached the Rongguo Mansion.

While the steward Lai Da ordered someone to inform Jia Zheng, Jia Mu, and others, he personally went to the second gate and, under the tense and astonished gazes of the servants, took down the chime hammer hanging under the eaves and struck it hard on the cloud-shaped board that was also hanging there.

"Ding~~~"

A deep, heavy sound immediately spread from the second gate throughout the entire Rongguo Mansion.

"Ding~~~"

"Ding~~~"

"Ding~~~"

At the same time, everyone throughout the Rongguo Mansion was awakened by this sudden sound.

Inside one of the three side rooms next to Rongxi Hall, in a secluded Buddhist shrine, Madam Wang was quietly worshipping Buddha. Suddenly, she heard the sound of a clapperboard, and the prayer beads in her hand stopped turning. Only after the clapperboard sounded four times, confirming it was a funeral dirge, did she continue to pluck the beads.

Sure enough, soon after, the sound of hurried servants rushing in from the outer corridor could be heard: "Madam, something terrible has happened! The master has passed away!!"

Madam Wang did not respond. After finishing the last round of dialing, she put everything down just before the servants rushed in, her face showing panic as she got up to tidy up.

West of Rongguo Mansion, in the main room of Grandmother Jia.

Just after Lai Da struck the clapper, Grandmother Jia froze. Upon hearing that Jia She had died, she became even more flustered, dropping the spoon she was using to eat the white fungus soup into the soup bowl.

"How could he have died...?"

Wang Xifeng rushed home immediately and summoned everyone except those who cared for her daughter, including Qingwen and Xiangling. Without bothering to tidy up or waiting for Grandmother Jia, they all went out through the second gate. Those with carriages rode in them, and those without walked, all heading towards the east courtyard.

Jia She held a high position in the Jia family, and his death would undoubtedly cause a great stir. Feng Jie knew even better that with Madam Xing's incompetence and the few useless servants in the other courtyard, they would be utterly incapable of properly receiving visitors from the front and back halls.

At this moment, she didn't want others to think that the main branch of the Rongguo Mansion was deserted...

Although Grandmother Jia did not delay, by the time she had finished packing and gathered everyone, it was still unknown how many groups had arrived.

The front and back courtyards were already packed with people, and the housekeeper, his wife, and others were busy making arrangements and taking care of them.

After passing through the inner gates, there were indeed even more people in the main courtyard.

When Wang Xifeng heard that Lady Wang was helping Grandmother Jia over, she quickly went out to greet them.

"What's going on inside?"

Grandmother Jia asked hurriedly, her eyes clearly filled with sorrow and grief, as if she wanted to shed tears, yet seemed to have no tears to shed.

Wang Xifeng wasn't surprised. Everyone was in a panic at the time, so she just clung to Grandmother Jia's arm, crying, and said sadly, "The master's appearance has been prepared. We're just waiting for you to take one last look at him before he's put to the coffin."

Fortunately, we had followed the imperial physician's instructions and prepared the coffin in advance, so there were no major problems.

What she heard and saw had become reality. Grandmother Jia, disregarding everything else, leaned on her cane and took Wang Xifeng's arm, and walked through the passageway, up the steps, and into Jia She's room.

All of Jia She's concubines, maids, and other female servants knelt down, weeping uncontrollably, their cries filled with sorrow.

Before the bed, Madam Xing and Jia Lian knelt, weeping.

Behind them, Jia Zheng, Jia Rong, Jia Cong, and others who had arrived earlier also knelt down in a row, some coughing and sighing, others burying their heads and looking grief-stricken.

When they saw Grandmother Jia enter, only Jia Zheng stood up to greet her; the others simply turned around and offered a greeting.

Grandmother Jia rushed to the front and looked at Jia She, whose face was dark and sallow, thin and bony, and who looked so withered that he was no longer recognizable. She thought of how he used to be a naughty child in front of her, and her heart ached. Tears fell and she began to sob.

Wang Xifeng and Madam Wang quickly helped the old woman up to prevent her from falling.

Even though Lady Wang had always disliked Jia She, seeing his pitiful state left behind, she couldn't help but feel a pang of pity. As the saying goes, "the rabbit mourns the fox's death," they were all from the same generation, and she never expected him to truly be gone.

That's how a few tears came to be.

"What a tragedy! I've raised you for over fifty years for nothing. I never imagined you would still outlive me..."

Grandmother Jia cried and scolded repeatedly, overwhelmed with grief.

Seeing Grandmother Jia like this, and finding no extra space, Yingchun, Tanchun, Xichun, Daiyu, and Jia Baoyu, who were all kneeling down next to her, also began to sob softly.

After being comforted by Jia Zheng and others, Grandmother Jia finally vented her emotions after a long period of time.

Once she had regained some energy, Grandmother Jia asked Madam Xing, "Did he say anything before he left?"

Madam Xing was even worse off than Grandmother Jia; she had cried so much that she had lost most of her energy and spirit, and she didn't even hear Grandmother Jia's questions.

Jia Lian then answered for her, "Reporting to Madam, when Master was on his deathbed, it was I who was there. He did indeed tell me some things..."

Without waiting for Grandmother Jia to ask any further questions, she said sadly, "Master said that he has enjoyed all the blessings in his life. Before he passed away, there was nothing he was worried about. The only thing was that he had not yet had the chance to show his filial piety to Grandmother."

So the old man instructed his grandson to be filial to the old lady in the future, and to repay the old lady's kindness in raising and giving birth to him...

The old man also asked his grandson to apologize to the old lady on his behalf, saying that he had failed to understand her good intentions and had done many things that hurt her. He asked her to forgive him for the sake of his passing.

Jia Lian spoke sincerely, and everyone who heard it was saddened. They all thought to themselves, "We never expected that the master would be able to say such things before he passed away. It shows that the old saying is true: 'A dying man's words are good, and a dying bird's song is sad.'"

As the protagonist who outlived her child, Grandmother Jia was naturally even more overwhelmed. She clutched her chest and, apart from crying, was speechless for a moment.

After Jia Zheng and Lady Wang offered further persuasion, Grandmother Jia finally asked, "What else did your father say?"

"Father also told his grandson to take good care of Cong'er from now on. He said that Cong'er was all alone and helpless, and apart from me, his older brother, no one else was willing to take care of him..."

This statement was not unexpected. Because of some previous events, some people even thought that Jia She favored Jia Cong more than his legitimate son Jia Lian. Therefore, it seemed natural that Jia She was worried about Jia Cong before his death.

As Jia Lian spoke, everyone turned to look at Jia Cong, who was usually barely noticeable, in the corner.

Tears streamed down Jia Cong's face, and he looked pale. Seeing the gazes of the crowd, he seemed very afraid and quickly lowered his head.

Grandmother Jia glanced at it as well, and sighed, "If only he had done this earlier, if only he had listened to a word of advice, none of this would have happened... Never mind... Never mind..."

Lian'er, your father is right. No matter what, Cong'er is still your own brother.

"Your master is gone, and his concubine is gone too. From now on, please take care of him as much as you can; it's your responsibility."

"Yes……"

Jia Lian respectfully agreed.

From beginning to end, no one suspected that there was anything fishy about Jia She's death.

Or rather, no one dared to have any doubts.

Several months have passed since Jia She fell ill, and everyone has made the necessary mental preparations.

Furthermore, since Jia She died of suffocation, even if there were some traces of the final struggle of his frail and dying life on his face, they could not be seen at all on his dark and unsightly face.

In addition, Jia Lian immediately had someone touch up Jia She's makeup...

Therefore, unless the most skilled coroner comes with a clear skeptical attitude to examine the case carefully, it would be impossible to find anything unusual.

But clearly, at this point, everyone was only thinking about burying Jia She as soon as possible. They didn't even bother to call a doctor, let alone a coroner to examine the body.

Isn't this blatantly implying that he murdered his father?

Who has the right to doubt him? In the Jia family today, who would dare to pin such a heinous crime on him?

If such a person truly existed, he would only be courting death.

Therefore, with Jia Lian's flawless performance, when he delivered Jia She's humane "last words" to Grandmother Jia, everyone felt that Jia She had come to a perfect end.

After giving Jia She one last look, Grandmother Jia shakily walked to the main hall and sat down.

At this juncture, discussing Jia She's funeral arrangements is the most urgent, and also the most important, matter.