The courtyard in the alley of the Northern Military Department was already beginning to look like it did in the past. The hole under the courtyard wall had been dug very deep, but the crabapple tree had still not been brought over.
To find an identical crabapple tree was not an easy task, even for the government of the Department for Purging Officials, whose power could overturn all levels of society.
Zhou Tong was well aware of this point, so he was not the least bit dissatisfied with his subordinates, especially when he heard the reports one after another.
"Assistant Minister Wei did not return. I heard that a great disturbance occurred in the estate last night."
"Before Lord Huang of the Imperial Astronomer left, he discovered that his clan's carriages had been borrowed to a relative of the Madam's clan. They said that they wanted to return to Wuzhou."
"Tianhai Shengxue has already boarded the carriage, but he was stopped by the Guardians of the clan. I heard that an intense conflict broke out between the two. In the end, it was Prime Minister Chenwu who personally appeared that calmed the situation."
"There was no sound from the Prince of Xiang's estate, but Prince Chen Liu has not appeared today. According to our analysis, he has probably been imprisoned in the divine hall in the back of the estate."
From the day before yesterday when he learned that Chen Changsheng had appeared to restrain Xue Xingchuan, Zhou Tong's complexion had never been good, especially when he heard that the Xue Estate was preparing to hold a sacrifice.
Although he had always appeared very calm, his subordinates and many people in the palace could see that he was in a terrible mood.
Only when he heard this news did his complexion gradually improve, the indifference in his eyes gradually relaxing.
No one dared to go to the Xue Estate to pay their respects. This was to be expected.
The Xue Estate's holding of a sacrifice gave many people in the capital an outlet for their emotions, but it also dug a hole.
Although it was said to pay respects to Xue Xingchuan, it was actually more like paying respects to the Divine Empress.
Today, the Imperial Court was watching the Xue Estate. Who would dare appear there?
"Chen Changsheng?" Zhou Tong suddenly asked.
A subordinate replied, "No one from the Orthodox Academy has gone."
"I didn't expect our Little Principal Chen to be so calm and have such a good grasp of propriety."
Zhou Tong walked out of the courtyard with his hands behind his back. "But it inevitably makes one sigh at the fickleness of the world. That's right, besides me, who could have any true affection for him?"
The subordinates were all shocked by these words, not understanding why their lord would say this.
Zhou Tong paused and turned to the crowd. "The entire world knows that he is my only friend. Do you not know?"
The subordinates saw their lord's smile and felt their bodies go cold. How could they possibly answer?
… …
…
On the lakeside of the Tradition Academy, Mao Qiu Yu looked at Chen Chang Sheng and said, "Now it seems that I was worrying too much. You are much more mature than your peers."
"So you came here early in the morning and kept looking at me." Chen Chang Sheng looked at the surface of the lake and said, "But I don't really understand what you mean."
Mao Qiuyu said, "What you did the day before yesterday was already enough. If you do it again, you might overdo it."
Chen Chang Sheng thought for a while and said, "How can I control this? Who makes the rules? "
He already knew that no other guests besides Daoist Siyuan and Linghai Zhiwang had come to the Xue Estate's funeral today.
"Control and rules originate from a unique will."
Mao Qiuyu looked at him and said, "When His Holiness the Pope was alive, the Orthodoxy only had one will, so it could only have one voice. But after His Holiness returned to the sea of stars? When Your Holiness succeeded as Pope, Your Holiness was not even twenty years of age. It is very difficult for Your Holiness's will to surpass the Orthodoxy. It can only be a coexisting relationship. "
These words sounded rather vague, but they were actually very clear. Whether the Orthodoxy could smoothly pass on its legacy, besides the Pope's will, also depended on the successor's own abilities and methods.
Maturity, steadiness, sense of propriety, patience, and sense of responsibility — these were all concrete manifestations of one's abilities and methods.
Mao Qiuyu added, "His Holiness the Pope's health is not very good."
Chen Chang Sheng said, "In a few days, I will go to the Li Palace to see him."
Mao Qiuyu added, "Presumably, His Holiness the Pope will be very gratified."
Chen Chang Sheng fell quiet for a while, then said, "I'm not sure if Martial Uncle will be happy to see me."
Mao Qiuyu said, "You are gradually learning the relationship between responsibility and silence. This in itself represents growth."
Chen Chang Sheng shook his head. "In truth, Your Holiness is wrong. I did not go to the Xue Estate today not because I chose to be silent because of maturity, not because I saw propriety in my sense of responsibility. It's just that I feel that the fickleness of the world is very common, and it doesn't have much to do with me. Just as you know, I truly am not familiar with Xue Xingchuan."
Yes, different from what Zhou Tong thought, different from Mao Qiuyu's gratification, Chen Chang Sheng's not going to the Xue Estate had nothing to do with patience or propriety. He just felt that he was not familiar with Xue Xingchuan, so there was no need for him to go. Moreover, he did not know what he should say when Madam Xue or those people were crying in grief.
"I'm not good at comforting people," he said to Mao Qiuyu.
At this moment, Su Mo Yu suddenly walked over.
Mao Qiuyu asked, "What happened?"
Su Mo Yu bowed, then said to Chen Chang Sheng, "Zhou Tong brought people to the Xue Estate."
Chen Chang Sheng glanced at the sky and asked, "What time did the Xue Estate set for the soul relocation?"
Mao Qiuyu's expression turned slightly solemn. "If you change your mind because of the actions of others, it is not compatible with your Dao."
This was advice, and also a warning.
Chen Chang Sheng replied, "The mind will always change. Only by acknowledging these changes can one be truly obedient."
Mao Qiuyu asked, "Because of what changes?"
Chen Chang Sheng replied, "I am not familiar with Xue Xingchuan, so I will not go to the Xue Estate. But I am very familiar with Zhou Tong, so I should go now."
… …
… …
The Xue Estate was very deserted, causing the white banner to seem even more lonely and pitiful in the autumn wind.
Deserted did not mean that there was not a single person. On the streets and at the ends of the alleys, there were many pairs of eyes gazing from afar at the gate of the Xue Estate.
Some of them were idlers of the capital who were not afraid of trouble, but even more of them were representatives of the various major powers of the capital.
From early morning until now, not a single guest had appeared in front of the Xue Estate, not even a few sparrows.
The sound of hooves suddenly came from the street, as well as the sound of clothes fluttering in the wind.
Several dozen officials and experts of the Department for Purging Officials, as well as an even greater number of redcoated cavalry, escorted Zhou Tong to the Xue Estate.
In a very short period of time, a dense mass of people had appeared in front of the Xue Estate, but there was still no sound, only a deathly stillness.
The street was too quiet. One could even faintly hear the crackling of paper threads burning behind the door.
Zhou Tong took a white cloth from a subordinate and tied it around his waist, then began to walk into the Xue Estate.
The steward of the Xue Estate, seeing this, wanted to stop him, but he lacked the courage. His legs had long since gone limp.
A beautiful woman dressed in mourning clothes stood in front of Zhou Tong and angrily yelled, "You actually have the face to come?"
Zhou Tong looked at her and asked, "Madam Wei has returned?"
He gazed into the cold and cheerless estate and shook his head, sighing, "There's no need for this. I've come to light some incense for Brother Xue so that he won't be too lonely in the sea of stars."
The woman's face paled as she yelled, "Father would never be willing to see an ungrateful scoundrel like you!"
"The friendship between me and General Xue is not something you women can understand."
After saying this, Zhou Tong calmly walked into the Xue Estate like he was returning home.
In this entire process, he did not even glance at Madam Wei.
The officials of the Department for Purging Officials pushed Madam Wei to the side, not letting her come over.
Seeing her enemy barge into her estate and thinking that her father's spirit in heaven would assuredly be unable to rest in peace, Madam Wei was filled with grief and indignation, but she was powerless to stop him, so she began to loudly curse.
Zhou Tong slightly creased his brow at the incessant stream of curses, somewhat displeased. "Your father was a hero of his generation, so how did he raise a shrew like you?"
A subordinate took out a ball of cloth and stuffed it into Madam Wei's mouth.
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