A Young Woman's Heart

This was a funeral ceremony that was full of modern elements and contained almost no feudal superstitions.

The 'master of ceremonies' standing on the stage did not say any words of blessing for the deceased. All he said was that he hoped the living would remember his achievements and cherish his past.

Unless they are historically famous, most people will gradually be forgotten.

After all, those who remember him will also die, until no one remembers them anymore.

A Chinese song with a Soviet tune was playing in the lobby, but Mo Xueyao, in her daze, couldn't make out what the lyrics were.

After everyone on stage finished speaking, the great-grandfather went up and said a few words from his prepared remarks, which was the final farewell.

The closer the relationship, the later they are placed in the queue. On the way here, the grandparents would smile from time to time, but when it was time to see them for the last time, their expressions began to become somewhat uncontrollable.

It was a deep, inescapable sorrow.

The sky in the distance was tinged with yellow, as if it were about to brighten, but it hadn't yet.

Snowflakes drifted haphazardly, each one pattering against the railing at the door, forming a thin layer of frost.

The line was very long, but it was finally Mo Xueyao's turn.

This is the last time I will pay my respects to the remains.

My great-grandfather lay quietly inside, his face still covered in makeup, as if he were simply asleep.

Mo Xueyao stood in front of him, thinking of a hundred-year-old man who had spanned a century and witnessed the changes of the world, lying quietly in front of her, no longer breathing. She felt a little sad, but perhaps her great-grandfather himself did not feel any regret.

Actually, the funeral of a centenarian can be considered a joyous occasion.

Most importantly, his biological son, grandson, and great-grandson are all still alive.

Some centenarians can only have their grandchildren see them off in the end.

After the final bow, my aunt instructed everyone to place the candles next to the coffin and wait until they burned out.

There weren't many candles inside, and they were almost all burned out in just a few minutes.

Stepping out of the hall, Mo Xueyao couldn't help but take a deep breath of the cold, dry air, her shoulders hunched high before slowly relaxing.

"Little Yao Yao!"

"what……"

"I just got these wafer biscuits from my dad. Do you want some?"

"...You have a good appetite." Mo Xueyao muttered helplessly, but still took the biscuits she was offered.

"What else do we need to do later?"

"It's just waiting to be cremated and then sent to the cemetery. Oh, right, while you're at it, burn those paper money flyers that look like promotional materials."

Do we need your help?

"Just watch, okay? There are so many adults, there's no way we can help."

Mo Xueyao stood behind the railing, watching the large brazier used for burning paper money for relatives and friends. The yellow 'leaflets' were burned to ashes one by one, and then the ashes were scattered everywhere by the north wind.

The snow seemed to have stopped, and the sun finally broke through the thick clouds, casting a beam of golden sunlight.

Its daybreak.

Before I knew it, it was already seven o'clock.

Most of the people who came to attend my great-grandfather's funeral, especially the young people, seemed to be chatting and laughing, after all, such a "joyful funeral" doesn't require too much sadness.

Everyone dies eventually.

It's already quite good that he passed away at a hundred.

"Hmm, have the ashes been taken out?"

"It should be, right?" Hua Yinyin's gaze fell on the iron-gray urn, which was not made of wood but of iron.

"Hey, this is what your great-grandfather asked for." The father appeared behind Mo Xueyao at some point, arms crossed, a cigarette dangling from his mouth—since I saw him today, it seems that he has never stopped smoking except on important occasions.

You could smell the cigarette odor on him from a great distance.

"Iron?"

"Stainless steel."

"Aren't they usually made of wood?"

"So it was your great-grandfather who specifically requested it. He wrote it in his will, specifying that he wanted a stainless steel urn, and that it shouldn't have any decorations, just a plain box with his name engraved on it."

"Great-grandfather... ah, really..."

“An interesting old man,” the father added from behind, “isn’t he?”

"Hmm, more or less!"

"Let's go, it's time to bury him."

Is it far?

"It's a bit far, you'll have to take a car to get there."

But we don't have a car!

"It's okay, we rented a bus to come."

One bus wasn't enough to squeeze everyone in, so the others called over a few more vans, and then they all set off together.

Mo Xueyao and Hua Yinyin sat in the two seats next to the bus exit door. Mo Wenli and Hua Jiankai, having no seats available, squatted down next to them, each with an unlit cigarette in their mouths, chatting.

The car wasn't going fast, perhaps because the roads were slippery due to the snow, or perhaps they were deliberately driving slowly to see the driver off.

It took almost an hour before we finally arrived at our destination.

This is a cemetery on the outskirts of the city.

The three characters "Shoumingyuan" are particularly eye-catching on the plaque at the entrance.

The cemetery has a beautiful view, nestled against a high mountain with rivers flowing into it on both sides. Evergreen trees are planted everywhere, their branches covered in snow, with only a few dark green leaves peeking out occasionally.

Grandpa held his great-grandfather's ashes and walked forward step by step. His steps were not unsteady, but rather very light. Only when he lowered his head did he reveal a little bit of deep affection.

My great-grandfather's grave was placed in the most spacious area. The graves here are far apart, and each grave is quite large.

Many of the tombstones nearby were empty, without any inscriptions.

The cemetery is in the left corner, a spacious and quiet place, with many cedar trees standing proudly nearby.

Several grandfathers hurriedly picked up the urn and placed it into the grave together.

The tombstone is already inscribed with the names of my great-grandfather and his immediate family members, while his life story is inscribed on the back.

Staff members came to help cover the grave, and no one burned incense or paper money here. Instead, people who bought flowers walked forward one by one and placed the flowers on the platform in front of the tombstone.

Everyone else could only stand and watch from a distance, but Mo Xueyao, a direct descendant, could get closer.

The grandfathers stared at the tombstone, speechless for a long time.

During those long five minutes, no one spoke; everyone just stood there, motionless.

Even Hua Yinyin put on a serious expression and didn't wink at Mo Xueyao.

Finally, the great-grandfather took the lead in bowing, and the others followed suit.

Everything is understood without words.

When they returned to the entrance, the wreaths that had been loaded onto the truck were unloaded once again and taken one by one to a designated incineration site to be burned.

The thick black smoke dispersed the scattered snowflakes, causing them to melt into water—if you didn't look closely, you might really think the snow had stopped falling.

Mo Xueyao saw that the wreath her father had given her was also thrown in, and then burned to ashes along with it, until even the bamboo frame was gone.

The funeral ended just like that.

While it was described as grand, everything was actually kept simple; while it was described as quiet, there were still quite a few people who came…

"It's over," her father said to her, his words carrying a double meaning.

"Oh, so where are we going for lunch later?"

"Hmph, Little Yaoyao is criticizing me, but she's hungry too!"

"It's all your fault! You've infected me!"

"What? You can blame me for this? Little Yaoyao—" Hua Yinyin went around behind her and pinched her cheek hard, pulling it like she was pulling rice cake.

"Okay, let's get on the bus and go back to the city. We'll have lunch at the hotel, then pack our things, and we should head to the airport around six o'clock."

"Phew—" Mo Xueyao stretched out a big yawn, "I haven't had class for two days, I wonder if I've fallen behind on anything..."

"It's alright, just let Wanyan teach you, won't that solve the problem?"

"Hey, what day of the week is it today?" Hua Yinyin suddenly asked.

"Friday."

"Does that mean we don't have to do homework anymore?" Hua Yinyin exclaimed excitedly. "We don't have to do homework on weekends anymore!"

"You're overthinking it... We might even have to make up for the homework we did the last two days."

"Wait—that can't be!"

"...I think Wanyan will definitely keep an eye on you."

"Well!"

……

Chapter 149 A Drowsy Night

The plane took off from Longjia International Airport at 9:30 a.m., but arrived at Hangzhou Jianqiao Airport at 12:40 p.m.

In other words, it was already past midnight.

There's not much to see on a night flight. At first, you can see brightly lit cities, but once you get higher, you can't see anything at all. It's all pitch black, and you can only barely make out a few clouds, some high and some low, by looking at the indicator lights on the wings.

It's like walking through a dream world, and it has a very hypnotic effect.

When Mo Xueyao opened her eyes again, she found that she had already arrived at her destination—she had been woken up by Hua Yinyin.