High-class maid

"Uncle He, are you home?" Shen Xing'er asked from the courtyard when she saw the gate was open.

She was answered by silence.

"Strange, why is no one answering? Is Uncle He not home? I didn't see him on my way here," Shen Xing'er muttered to herself.

"Never mind, I'll put the things in the kitchen. I need to go home and eat hot buns." After saying that, Shen Xing'er turned and walked towards the kitchen.

"Make way, make way!" A hurried male voice interrupted Shen Xing'er. Several men had entered the courtyard, and they were actually pulling a coffin!

Shen Xing'er quickly stood in the corner, her eyes wide as she watched the coffin enter the hall, and then she saw the unshaven Song Wenyang.

"Brother Song! What happened? Where is Uncle He?" Shen Xing'er, disregarding any impropriety, ran up to him with wide eyes and asked.

"Xing'er, you're here. Uncle He is inside." Song Wenyang forced a smile that looked more like a grimace and weakly pointed to the hall with both hands.

"What do you mean? Why isn't Uncle He coming out?" Shen Xing'er's voice trembled unknowingly as she looked at Song Wenyang with red eyes.

At this moment, the man who had been leading the group walked up to Song Wenyang and said obsequiously...

"Young master, the coffin costs eighty taels in total, but we will kindly offer you seventy-eight taels. We will not charge you for the labor and equipment."

Song Wenyang expressionlessly took out a silver note from his purse and continued...

"keep the change."

The man checked the authenticity of the banknote. When he realized it was genuine, his smile became even more genuine. However, remembering that someone in the family had just died, he quickly suppressed his smile, clasped his hands in a gesture of respect, and said "please accept my condolences." Then he left with his men.

"Brother Song, what do you mean, He Bo?" Shen Xing'er asked incredulously.

"Xing'er, let me help Uncle He get dressed before you come in. I'm afraid I'll scare you," Song Wenyang said gently, then patted Shen Xing'er's head to comfort her.

After receiving confirmation, Shen Xing'er could no longer hold back her tears. She could no longer stand and squatted down on the ground, hugging her knees and crying like a pitiful child.

At this moment, the neighbors in the alley saw the coffin arrive and came one after another. Yuan Dali and Shen Kun volunteered to go inside and help Song Wenyang wash up.

Upon hearing the news, Ms. Wang rushed over. When she saw her daughter squatting on the ground, she felt heartbroken and hugged her tightly.

“I saw Uncle He out for a walk just two days ago. He was perfectly fine. What happened?”

"Uncle He has a chronic illness. Could it be that his old illness has flared up again?"

"Who knows? Life is so unpredictable. Uncle He was such a good man, and he's gone just like that."

The neighbors, wiping away tears, talked amongst themselves. Their alley had always been peaceful, and the neighbors got along very well. Now, the sudden passing of an elderly person they had known for many years had left everyone feeling sad.

A short while later, Yuan Dali and Shen Kun came out of the house.

The neighbors gathered around, asking with a mix of concern and gossip.

"What happened to Uncle He? How could he suddenly die?"

Yuan Dali and Shen Kun exchanged a glance, recalling Song Wenyang's instructions. Finally, Shen Kun spoke.

"Thank you for your concern, Uncle He died suddenly last night due to a relapse of his old illness. Please accept our condolences."

"It really is a relapse of an old illness, what a pity..."

"Who can argue with that? But a sudden death is better than torturing one's children in bed," someone in the crowd said.

This may sound harsh, but it is the reality. Many elderly people are sick and bedridden, needing their children to take care of them, day after day, year after year, until their children's patience is worn out.

"That's true, but He Bo is too young. In the future, only Young Master He will be left."

Everyone was talking in low voices.

The neighbors did not know that the person inside was Song Wenyang, the most famous scholar in the Qin Dynasty. They only thought of him as He Bo's nephew, so everyone called him Young Master He.

At this moment, Song Wenyang also came out of the house. His eyes were wet and he stared blankly ahead, as if he might faint at any moment.

Shen Xing'er wanted to go forward to help him, but because there were so many people around, she could only look at him with concern.

"Thank you all for your concern, but Uncle He... has passed away."

"Don't be sad, you have to cheer up!"

"Yes, Young Master, you're all alone now. If you need anything, just come find me next door!"

"Yes, let my wife stay here to help you. You're so young, you probably don't know how to handle a funeral." The neighbors' warm words reached Song Wenyang's ears, warming his cold heart a little.

Finally, Wang and Han voluntarily stayed at He Bo's house to help Song Wenyang with the funeral arrangements.

Because it was getting late, the rest of the villagers went home to rest. Before they left, they discussed that they would come back to offer incense to Uncle He when they had some free time the next day.

Weddings are not attended without invitation, but funerals are attended uninvited. This has been the rule since ancient times. Even the scholar's family, who usually do not associate with others, sent someone to ask if they needed any help.

Shen Xing'er went home with the rest of the group, and it wasn't until midnight that Wang Shi returned.

"Mother, how is it? Is Brother Song alright?" Upon hearing the noise, Shen Xing'er put on her coat and went into Wang Shi's room. She saw Shen Kun sitting on the bed with worry.

“I bought white cloth for Young Master Song, and Sister Han helped him arrange the offerings. I noticed that Young Master Song had a fever, so Yuwen prescribed him some medicine, which she just took.”

Wang felt a pang of heartache when she thought of Song Wenyang's appearance. Although she didn't know the exact relationship between Song Wenyang and He Bo, they lived in the same courtyard, so their relationship must be quite close.

"Why is only Young Master Song presiding over the funeral? Is no one from the Song family here?" Shen Xing'er couldn't help but ask the question she had wanted to ask for a long time.

"I suppose He Bo isn't a member of the Song family. Otherwise, Young Master Song would have already arranged servants for him," Wang said.

“That’s right. Actually, it’s not that Uncle’s old illness has relapsed, but rather…” Shen Kun hesitated for a moment, but still decided to tell his wife and daughter the truth.

"And what is it?" Shen Xing'er felt a chill run down her spine. Could there be another hidden story behind this?

“He Bo has a knife wound in his chest,” Shen Kun said in a low voice.

"What?! Could it be that Uncle He was murdered?" Madam Wang's eyes widened as well.

“That’s right. I saw it when I was helping Uncle He change his clothes. Young Master Song was afraid that the neighbors would panic, so he specifically asked Dali and me not to tell anyone,” Shen Kun said.

"This..." Wang didn't know what to say. It turned out there was a hidden story behind this matter.

“Since Brother Song has allowed Uncle He to be laid to rest, he must have already caught the murderer,” Shen Xing’er analyzed.

"I hope so. It's just that Young Master Song is so pitiful, keeping vigil for him all by himself. Now he even has a fever. It's probably because of the stress." Madam Wang sighed.

"Go to sleep, go to sleep. We'll go there at dawn tomorrow and see if we need any help," Shen Kun said, not wanting his wife and daughter to think about it anymore.