Proofread by Claire.KK
Song Fu felt so surprised when Mu Nanzhi said that she would like to go to the back yard to mourn. Then he bowed his body and led Mu Nanzhi to the backyard, his eyes gradually filled with tears. Mu Nanzhi was the first person who had ever offered to mourn Marchioness Duan in the backyard,
Seeing the bleak yard, empty buildings as well as those stark trees, Mu Nanzhi couldn’t help feeling a dull pain in her heart.
As they arrived at the main room, Song Fu was about to report. However, Mu Nanzhi slightly waved her hand and stopped him saying, “Just go to the foreyard to do your own business. I can go inside myself.” Song Fu hesitated for a while and finally agreed. Before he left, he sighed and uttered, “Princess, please talk with our marquess and comfort him for us. He really lived a hard life this year.”
Lu zhishan suffered the great failure of the war, physical disability, losing his wife during the spring festival. It was really too hard for a man to bear all the miseries.
Mu Nanzhi approached the main room step by step. Seeing the man silently sat in front of the memorial tablet and threw paper money to the fire basket. The burning fire made Lu Zhishan’s face more clear. Seeing that Mu Nanzhi stopped walking forward.
“Cousin,” said Mu Nanzhi after hesitating for a long time. Her face got a bit hot when she called him, but she felt more comfortable in her heart. “I came here to mourn for my sister-in-law,” added Mu Nanzhi.
Hearing the voice, Lu Zhishan slowly raised his head. Lu Zhishan couldn’t see the young girl’s face clearly. He could only see the pure while dress and the simple hairdo which was decorated with no jewelry. Lu Zhishan didn’t say a word but slightly nodded to the girl in front of him.
Mu Nanzhi slowly walked to the memorial tablet and put aside the lunch-box before she knelt on the cattail ha.s.sock. She kowtowed to the memorial tablet three times, took several incenses and lighted them.
After doing that, Mu Nanzhi kept kneeling and didn’t move a bit. Then she stretched out her hand and took a handful of paper money and threw them into the fire basket one by one. The light of the fire moved, bring a different kind of warmth to them.
“You can go now,” Lu Zhishan said in a low voice, keeping his head down, “Go back home to wait for your award. Don’t go against the etiquette.”
It was the twenty eighth of lunar December. According the ancestral regulations, emperor was supposed to award all royal members today.
“I…I’ve given my order before I come here. The butler will wait on behalf of me for His Majesty’s bestowal. I don’t have to return early.” Mu Nanzhi Whispered. When telling the lie, she even dared not to look up, “Cousin, let me stay with you a bit longer,” replied Mu Nanzhi.
Lu Zhishan didn’t say any words to let Mu Nanzhi go away. In front of the memorial tablet, one of them sat silently while the other was keeping kneeling. None of them said a word more but threw paper money to the fire basket one by one. The ash flew into the air and then fell down their clothes, but neither Mu Nanzhi nor Lu Zhishan paid attention to it.
“Don’t worry.” Lu Zhishan suddenly looked up and averted his eyes to Mu Nanzhi saying, “She will be buried tomorrow. I can’t go out because of my leg. I’m afraid that I can hardly go to mourn for her later. So I want to stay with her as long as I can today.”
“Well, then... Then I will leave first.” Mu Nanzhi hurriedly threw all the paper money into the fire basket and tried to stand up. However, her legs were numb as she had been kneeling for a long time. She then quickly supported herself with her hands but she still fell down on the ground. He looked at Lu Zhishan, embarra.s.sed, saying, “I also... want to stay with my sister-in-law a bit longer.”
Lu Zhishan didn’t give a response and a smiled curved his lips. He took a handful of paper money and gradually threw them into the fire basket. Mu Nanzhi rubbed her legs, keeping his sight on the big, rough hands. Thinking of the white fingers and the delicate eyes of the other princes, Mu Nanzhi suddenly said, “Cousin, you really work hard.”
Lu Zhishan took a glance at her and smiled, “Is there any person who don’t need to work hard in the world?”
“But you live harder than anyone else,” Mu Nanzhi pursed her lips and said. Then she took some paper money and threw them into the fire basket, her attention were still kept on Lu Zhishan.