"The Consort of Prince Chen is quite familiar with this old servant. You know, this grand Weiyang Palace has more than just this old servant attending to His Majesty?"
A steady female voice chimed in. The person who had been adding paper money at the mourning hall turned around. It was indeed the head governess of Weiyang Palace, the Lady Jing Yu whom Consort Chen had mentioned.
Consort Chen was flustered. "Lady Jing Yu, I didn't do it on purpose..."
The woman, dressed in plain white and appearing to be around fifty years old, continued to add paper money after hearing this.
"Whether it was intentional or not, this old servant has no right to intervene. Everything that happens here, this old servant will report in full to the Censorate official. As for how the officials of the court and the Crown Prince will judge the matter, this old servant does not know."
Having caused trouble one after another, Consort Chen could no longer cause a scene.
Without caring about the bone-chilling cold of the winter bluestone slabs, and without even using a prayer cushion, she knelt on the ground.
Lu Qing Wan, clutching the white silk she had pulled back, wrinkled her nose, her small face scrunched up like a bun.
The noble ladies who had witnessed the morning's spectacle did not all emulate Lu Qing Wan. After all, Consort Chen was the future Empress, and there were plenty of people who wished to curry favor with her.
Daring not to offend Lu Qing Wan, the Regent Prince's Consort, openly, they each took away the prayer cushions from beneath their knees.
Thinking that they would neither offend Lu Qing Wan nor Consort Chen, they believed Consort Chen would not make things difficult for them once Prince Chen ascended the throne.
Little did they know, the events in the mourning hall could not be kept secret from those outside. By the time the three days of mourning were over, every trivial detail that had transpired in the mourning hall had already reached the ears of the civil and military officials.
However, during the funeral rites, Feng Qing Heng did not wish for any complications that might affect his enthronement, and Feng Xi Wu also did not want to desecrate Emperor Jing You's mourning hall.
For their own different reasons, they tacitly suppressed the incidents that occurred in the mourning hall, preventing them from escalating into an uncontrollable situation.
It was only when Emperor Jing You's imperial coffin was carried out of the Da Gan Gate that everyone finally let out a sigh of relief.
However, this did not include Lu Qing Wan. Thanks to the Prime Minister's wife's reminder, she had been on high alert, wary of anyone trying to make an issue out of Emperor Jing You's calligraphy or Feng Xi Wu's personal belongings.
After enduring the funeral of Emperor Jing You, the funeral procession had already left the Da Gan Gate, when Wu Ying sent word with astonishing news.
"Xie Shi Yu's men have mixed themselves into the funeral procession, attempting to sneak into the imperial mausoleum."
Upon hearing this, Lu Qing Wan dared not hesitate. "Ru Yue, Ren Dong, take the tokens and pursue them separately. Whoever finds the Prince should report this information to him first. Li Qing, immediately enter the palace and invite Fu An and Lady Jing Yu to the imperial mausoleum, quickly!"
After saying this, she herself bolted out.
Emperor Jing You's funeral was the most critical step in the national mourning. The entire city was under martial law, and no one was allowed to ride horses. She could only run in less crowded areas.
Yet, for the first time, she was grateful for the patriarchal dynasty where women were not allowed to participate in funeral processions or enter imperial mausoleums, otherwise, this crucial piece of information would have been missed.
Xie Shi Yu had just developed gunpowder and was already sending people to sneak into the Da Gan Imperial Mausoleum. If the Da Gan Imperial Mausoleum were to suffer any mishap, Feng Xi Wu would go mad.
The training on the Prince's mansion's training grounds proved crucial at this moment. Though she was exhausted, she managed to catch up.
Facing the Emperor's coffin, she dared not run and pursued the procession as if in a race walk. Fortunately, someone in the honor guard recognized Lu Qing Wan and reported it to Feng Xi Wu, preventing her from collapsing from exhaustion.
It had been eleven days since Emperor Jing You's death, and they had not seen each other for eleven days.
Upon their reunion, Feng Xi Wu, like Lu Qing Wan, bore signs of fatigue.
Seeing Lu Qing Wan, he hadn't even managed a greeting before he was stopped by the information she brought.
"There are spies from Western Liang in the funeral procession; they plan to sneak into the imperial mausoleum. Xie Shi Yu's gunpowder has already reached Da Gan; you must be careful. Prepare water in advance and bring Da Bai. On the way here, I had it sniff the gunpowder. If anyone has hidden any, Da Bai can find it."
Feng Xi Wu was indeed shocked by Xie Shi Yu's audacity, but he also felt heartbroken for Lu Qing Wan, who was so exhausted her lips were chapped and her legs were trembling.
He took the waterskin handed to him by Li Yang and gave Lu Qing Wan a few sips before saying with concern, "I will keep an eye on the imperial mausoleum. Wait here for a moment, and I will have someone escort you back."
Lu Qing Wan drank the water too quickly, hiccuping several times. "Horses are not allowed in the capital today, how will you send me back?"
"Don't worry, there will always be a way."
As Lu Qing Wan spoke, she leaned down and whispered a few words into his ear, then stood up. "I'm leaving. Wait obediently, the person to escort you will be here soon."
As she finished speaking, she was about to leave, but Lu Qing Wan quickly grabbed Feng Xi Wu's sleeve. "I've had some old palace staff brought over. They recognize most of the coffin bearers, banner carriers, and the honor guard. If there are any unfamiliar faces, at the very least, do not let them enter the imperial mausoleum."
Feng Xi Wu offered a comforting smile, patted Lu Qing Wan's hand, and strode away.
The black cat curled into a ball, tucked into his wide, plain robe sleeve, betraying no sign of its presence.
Lu Qing Wan retreated to the roadside, leaning against the wall, so tired she could barely stand.
The street was filled with mourners. No one paid attention to Lu Qing Wan's identity, and few recognized her. She leaned against the wall to rest.
A few guards, dressed as commoners, circled Lu Qing Wan at a discreet distance, preventing excited citizens from crowding her.
A moment later, she heard a guard's deliberately lowered voice. "Consort, we can return to the mansion."
Lu Qing Wan opened her eyes and saw a low-key, unassuming sedan chair parked in a nearby alley.
It dawned on her belatedly that most official wives and ladies, and even ministers, used sedan chairs.
It was only because Feng Xi Wu had been campaigning for years and prioritized speed, and even upon returning to the capital, couldn't stand the slowness of a sedan chair, that he had always ridden a carriage.
This had led her to forget about sedan chairs as the most basic mode of transportation.
She decisively entered the alley and got into the sedan chair. "Let's go, back to the mansion."
Emperor Jing You's funeral did not signify the end of the mourning rites. As the mistress of the Regent Prince's mansion, she still had to return and oversee things.
At a time like this, if she were caught making a mistake, whether framed or due to her own foolishness, there would be no chance of recovery.
Upon returning to the mansion, she personally added three incense sticks to the altar and confirmed that there was not the slightest hint of cheerfulness or festivity throughout the entire household before she felt at ease.
Li Su saw her sitting there, exhausted, her body sliding down. She couldn't help but advise, "Consort, the most crucial step of the late Emperor's funeral rites has passed. Please go back to your room and sleep. If anything happens, this servant will surely wake you."
Lu Qing Wan rubbed her eyes vigorously. "The most crucial step of the funeral rites has passed, but for us, the most critical part is the Spirit Soothing Ceremony. Once the Spirit Soothing Ceremony is completed, Feng Qing Heng will be the new Emperor. If he doesn't cause any trouble at this time, then the funeral rites can be considered safely concluded."
Lu Qing Wan, after understanding the Da Gan imperial family's funeral system, found these damn rules to be incredibly problematic.