Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 4732: Tang Mansion Funeral
After Fang Jun returned home, he bathed, changed his clothes, had dinner, and sat in the pavilion in the garden to enjoy the cool air, waving a folding fan in his hand, acting like a playboy. He lifted Gao Yang's pointed chin with the fan, making Gao Yang look shy. The couple was in high spirits, so they decided to wash up and go to bed early to perform the ritual of family relationship.

Then a servant hurried over and informed the Tang family to come and report the death...

Gao Yang's tears immediately flowed down. She held her husband's hand in fear and said in a trembling voice, "How could she be gone so suddenly? Although Sister Yuzhang has always been in poor health, I have never heard of any incurable disease. This is too sudden."

Princess Yuzhang's biological mother was a concubine of low status. She died soon after giving birth to Yuzhang. Empress Wende adopted Yuzhang as her adopted daughter and raised her by her side, caring for her as if she were her own daughter. Emperor Taizong also loved her very much.

Gao Yang's life experience is similar to Yu Zhang's. When the two sisters were in the palace, they kept each other warm and comforted each other. They had a very good relationship. However, Yu Zhang's personality was more introverted and cold. After she got married, she didn't interact much with her sisters.

At this moment, Gao Yang suddenly heard that Princess Yuzhang had passed away, which made it difficult for him to accept it for a while...

Fang Jun held Gao Yang in his arms and consoled him, "Life and death are determined by fate, and wealth and honor are determined by God. If the King of Hell lets someone die at three o'clock in the morning, who can keep him alive until five o'clock? Life is like grass and trees, and there is a cycle of prosperity and death. It is beyond human power to reverse it. There is no need to be so sad. Pack up, go to the funeral, and send His Highness Yuzhang on his last journey."

The couple changed into plain clothes, Fang Jun rode a horse and Gao Yang took a carriage, and they left Chongrenfang surrounded by a group of personal soldiers.

When they arrived at the Duke of Ju's Mansion, there were already many carriages and horses on the streets in front of the gate, and people coming and going to pay their respects. A string of paper money was hung on one side of the gate, and the entire mansion was decorated with white flags fluttering, and everything was in mourning.

Tang Jiahui stood at the door in mourning to welcome the guests. When he saw Fang Jun and his wife arrive, he quickly stepped forward and bowed. Princess Gaoyang entered through the side door and was received by the women in the palace and taken to the mourning hall. Fang Jun patted Tang Jiahui on the shoulder and sighed, "What's going on? There was no news beforehand and it suddenly happened?"

He had not received the news in advance, and the same must have been true in the palace. However, Princess Yuzhang was a royal daughter and the bloodline of the emperor. Even if she died, it had to be clear and explicit. Such a sudden and unexpected death without any signs would inevitably be criticized. If he could not give a suitable reason, it would not end well.

Tang Jiahui had a bitter face: "His Highness only complained of heartache, chest tightness, difficulty breathing, lack of strength, and weakness all over the body. The doctor in the palace diagnosed that it was blood stasis in the heart. Before he could use acupuncture or prescribe medicine, His Highness had already passed away... It was only a cup of tea, who could have expected that the disease would be so serious?"

The nobles had heard and seen a lot, so they naturally knew that the sudden death of a princess was somewhat difficult to explain and would cause great trouble.

It was probably coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction, or something like that. Even in the later era of advanced medicine, if it was not treated in time, it would be incurable. How much more so now? If you get this kind of disease, you can only lament your bad luck, there is no other way.

Fang Jun was about to enter the palace to pay his respects when he heard a commotion behind him. Turning around, he saw teams of cavalrymen galloping towards him, followed by the rumbling of carriages and horses and waving flags. It turned out that the emperor's entourage had arrived.

Friends and relatives in the streets in front of the palace quickly moved aside to let the emperor's carriage go straight to the gate. When Li Chengqian and the queen got off the carriage one after another, everyone bowed to greet them.

Li Chengqian's face was cold, and he gave off an aura that said "keep away from strangers". Fortunately, he did not lose his temper in public. When he saw Tang Jiahui, he also saw Fang Jun standing beside him and nodded slightly: "Erlang just arrived too?"

Fang Jun hurriedly said, "Yes."

Then Li Chengqian ignored Tang Jiahui and said to Fang Jun, "Let's go in together."

He and the Queen walked into the main gate surrounded by palace servants. Fang Jun pulled the shivering Tang Jiahui and followed them into the main gate.

When everyone in the palace learned that the emperor and empress had arrived, they held their breath and stepped aside. Duke Tang Jian of Ju, dressed in plain clothes, personally led the emperor and empress to the mourning hall to burn incense.

Li Chengqian respectfully lit a stick of incense, and as he looked at the curtain with the smoke curling and floating, his eyes turned red. He did not go to the back to see Princess Yuzhang for the last time, but said to Tang Yishi who was kneeling in the mourning hall: "Kneel here, I have something to say to the Duke of Ju."

Accompanying Tang Jian to a side room, several princes-in-law including Shi Renbiao, Dou Huaizhe, Gu Dumou, Chai Lingwu, Du He, and Fang Jun followed closely.

The Queen and the princesses who arrived earlier went behind the curtain to mourn...

Arriving at the wing room, Li Chengqian sat down and took a sip of tea, then angrily threw the cup to the ground, glared at Tang Jian, gnashed his teeth and shouted: "Emperor Taizong married his beloved sister Yuzhang to your family because of your merits, but now you have died suddenly and inexplicably. I am heartbroken! You'd better give me an explanation, otherwise don't blame me for being ruthless!"

Everyone in the mourning hall and the courtyard outside was silent, not daring to make a sound.

Generally speaking, when a woman dies suddenly, her family will ask for a reason, which is human nature. However, Princess Yuzhang's family is from the royal family. Now the emperor has come in person to question the cause, which is too serious. If the Tang family cannot explain clearly, or if there are other reasons for Princess Yuzhang's death, the entire Tang family may suffer.

Tang Jian knelt on the ground, and his sons followed suit.

Tang Jian bowed his head, tears streaming down his face, and choked up, saying, "Your Majesty's anger is something I feel for you. Since marrying into our family, Your Highness has been filial to her parents-in-law, loving to her brothers, and getting along well with her sisters-in-law. She has never used her noble status to bully others. She is tactful, dignified, and intelligent. It is an honor for our Tang family to marry a princess. Your Highness has passed away due to the Tang family's poor care for her. I feel so sad and regretful. Your Majesty, you have a deep love for my family and are heartbroken. You can punish my family. No matter what the punishment is, the Tang family will accept it and will never complain."

Li Chengqian glared at Tang Jian, but could not speak.

If Tang Jian kept making excuses, he could still take advantage of the situation and punish him severely. But now Tang Jian was kneeling on the ground with tears streaming down his face, admitting his guilt. As the emperor, it would be difficult for him to pursue the matter. Otherwise, he would give people the impression that he was mean and ungrateful, which would damage his dignity.

But I came here with such a fierce momentum. If I let him go so easily, wouldn’t I be laughed at?

Fang Jun whispered, "Your Majesty is accompanied by an imperial physician. You can ask him to diagnose the cause of death of His Majesty Yuzhang, and then make plans."

Li Chengqian turned around and told Wang De: "Go and find out the cause of death quickly."

He came with the imperial physician in the last glimmer of hope, but when he arrived at the Tang family and found that the mourning hall had already been set up, he knew that his last hope was gone. In his rage, he lost his composure and acted a little recklessly, and his anger made the situation a little awkward. Fortunately, Fang Jun's suggestion eased the atmosphere and gave him a way out.

"Here."

Wang De hurried out to make arrangements.

Li Chengqian then said to Tang Jian who was kneeling on the ground: "Duke Ju, please stand up first. Don't blame me for blaming you. It was really because I was so sad that I lost my composure."

Tang Jian did not dare to stand up: "I am ashamed of the trust and love of the late emperor. How dare I blame Your Majesty?"

Li Chengqian pointed at Du He and Dugu Mou and said, "Help the Duke of Ju to stand up. If you have anything to say, wait until the imperial physician reports back."

Du He and Dugu Mou hurried forward to help Tang Jian up, but the other Tang family members were still kneeling there, each with a panicked look on their faces and a worried heart. Princess Yuzhang died suddenly, and everyone in the palace had not yet recovered from the panic. Who knew if the imperial physician would find anything remarkable? If so, today would be the end of the Tang family...

Everyone in the room had different thoughts and no one spoke.

After a long while, Wang De returned and came to Li Chengqian's side and whispered, "The imperial physician has examined it. His Highness Yuzhang died of blood stasis in the heart. The disease was so severe that the heart vessels were blocked and the blood flow was cut off. There were no other symptoms."

The Tang family members all lowered their heads and breathed a sigh of relief.

Li Chengqian said to Tang Jian: "I have wrongly blamed the Duke of Ju."

Tang Jian stood up and bowed again, crying, "Your Majesty is not wrong. It is my fault that I failed to make His Majesty Yuzhang healthy and live a long life. No matter how Your Majesty punishes me, I am willing to accept it."

The crying of a baby was heard again from outside, and the cry of "Mom" was heartbreaking. It turned out to be the two children of Princess Yuzhang and Tang Yishi.

Li Chengqian rubbed his face, sighed, and shed tears, "The person is gone, what's the point of talking about punishment? I only hope that the Tang family can treat the princess's two children well, and not despise and abuse them just because they lost their mother and have no one to take care of them. Their mother is dead, but I, their uncle, am still alive!"

The Tang family members kowtowed in unison, trembling with fear.

Li Chengqian then stood up and said, "I still have urgent state affairs to deal with. The funeral will be handled by the officials of the Zongzheng Temple and the Ministry of Rites. They must handle it carefully according to the regulations and must not be too simple or slack!"

"Here!"

The official standing outside the door quickly responded.

When Li Chengqian left in a car surrounded by eunuchs, the Tang family finally put their hearts at ease...

The lights in the Duke of Ju's Mansion were bright, and the disappeared crying sounds were heard again. The rows of white flags fluttered in the night breeze, and there was a sad atmosphere.

The nobles who came to pay their respects were placed in the east and west wing rooms and the cross courtyard respectively, while the princes-in-law returned to their original wing rooms.

It was almost midnight, and the Tang family prepared vegetarian dishes for everyone's midnight snack. After all, staying up all night to keep vigil was the most stressful.

Dugumou glanced at Chai Lingwu who was far away from Fang Jun, then brought his plate to Fang Jun to eat together, and asked in a low voice: "Will the 'committee' have any rules in the near future? You might as well reveal them, otherwise I'm itching like a cat scratching."

Although the others were eating, they all pricked up their ears at the same time.

The biggest issue in the court right now is the so-called military reform. Every regular meeting of the "committee" established in the Ministry of War concerns almost everyone, but because the confidentiality level is too high, most people do not know what has been discussed and decided, so they are more and more concerned. After all, many people here hold military positions, and military reform is related to their personal interests.

Fang Jun chewed a mouthful of food and swallowed it, then drank a sip of tea and asked curiously, "No matter how much reform is done, it won't affect a consort like you. Even if you are transferred to another position, you will definitely be properly resettled. What are you worried about?"

Dugu Mou almost choked to death on a mouthful of food. He stretched his neck to swallow it, and said with wide eyes, "You really met me? Tell me quickly, are you going to remove me from my position or transfer me to another place?"