After transmigrating into the book, I helped my mother reconcile with her divorced husband.

On the fifth day of the tenth lunar month, it is auspicious to prepare the body for burial, break ground, move the coffin, and bury it.

As dawn broke, the palace gates remained tightly shut, and a group of ministers dressed in white, led by the Minister of Rites, stood on the main road outside. Grand Tutor Wei, with his eyes slightly closed, and Xie Yubai, looking radiant, stood side by side before the gate, quietly awaiting the Empress Dowager's coffin to be brought out.

The ministers had risen before dawn and stood there for an hour, their bodies stiff with fatigue. A gust of cold wind helped them clear their heads, and one by one they looked at Grand Tutor Wei and Xie Yubai, who were at the head of the group. One was an old minister, the other a rising star; one was cunning and shrewd, the other a man of deep thoughts. They were clearly at odds, yet they could still talk intimately and exchange toasts in public.

Those who attain high positions and are favored by the Emperor as his confidants are indeed different from ordinary people. As they whispered among themselves, the palace gates opened. The ministers turned to look inside, and saw a troop of imperial guards in silver armor, carrying long, silver spears, filing out. Following them were eunuchs, then palace maids, then the Empress Dowager's coffin, and behind that, the Crown Prince and his filial sons and grandsons.

The Crown Prince's presence at this event was perfectly natural, but the person standing to his right surprised the civil and military officials. A girl of about seven or eight, dressed in plain white clothes, not wearing mourning attire, but with two white ribbons tied in her hair. The girl's face was clean and serene, and she seemed drowsy as she rode. Leading her horse was a boy of sixteen or seventeen, dressed in the same plain white clothes as her, and like the palace attendants at the funeral, with a white cloth tied around his waist. The boy stared ahead, emanating an inexplicable and indescribable murderous aura. This murderous aura was far beyond what one or two lives could possess.

Grand Tutor Wei tilted his shoulder slightly and asked Xie Yubai, "Is that Lord Xie's niece? She comes from the Lu family, just like my adopted daughter. Judging from today's situation, the Xie family is probably going to produce a Crown Princess."

Grand Tutor Wei's voice wasn't loud, but everyone around him could hear it clearly.

The young girl was none other than Lu Zhiyuan, the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Pingnan, who had recently become famous throughout the capital. At the Empress Dowager's funeral, princes, grandsons, and relatives of the emperor came to pay their respects; the filial sons led the way, followed by the filial daughters, and even Princess Pingle followed obediently behind. Yet this legitimate daughter was able to walk side-by-side with His Highness the Crown Prince. Tell me, who in the world could walk alongside His Highness the Crown Prince, especially at such a time?

The woman from the Pingnan Marquis's residence is probably, as Grand Tutor Wei said, the future Crown Princess.

As dawn broke, the wind in the capital grew stronger. Sitting on horseback, Lu Zhiyuan shivered and looked at the Crown Prince with a reproachful expression. Heaven knows, those two little devils had kept her up most of the night. She'd barely gotten into bed when she was dragged out, told that the Emperor had decreed that she and the Crown Prince accompany him to bury the Empress Dowager.

She thought she was just following behind, pretending to be someone else, and would turn back after leaving the palace. But she was unexpectedly put at the very front, and suddenly all the eyes of the royal family, officials and military officers were on her.

Unable to fathom the Emperor's thoughts, she was forced to become the scapegoat—a foregone conclusion. Since she was already there, she might as well make the best of it. If it weren't for the strong wind today, she would have pretended to be half-asleep, slacking off until the funeral was over.

"Are you cold? I'll have someone send A-Yuan a cloak."

"Stop pretending to be kind." Lu Zhiyuan curled her nose: "If it weren't for you, would the Emperor have let me come here to freeze? I even called you Crown Prince Brother, but you're not like a brother at all, you're just a scoundrel."

As she spoke, she sneezed, rubbed her nose, and found the tip of her nose was red.

The Crown Prince couldn't bear it, but with all the royal relatives present, he couldn't make any big moves. He whispered, "It was the Empress Dowager's idea. I only learned that the Emperor had issued the decree after seeing you. A-Yuan and I don't need to go to the Imperial Mausoleum. Once we leave the city, we can change to a carriage."

"That's more like it." Lu Zhiyuan tightened her clothes and looked straight ahead.

The route taken by the hearse was guarded by the Imperial Guards, and the officers from the Commandant's Office and the Garrison Command were also patrolling in various places. There were no onlookers on the road, but many doors and windows on both sides of the street were open, and heads of all sizes were sticking out from inside.

The imperial procession was strictly regulated, far beyond what ordinary families could match. But with so many things and so many people, how much silver must it have cost? Just as the little beggar hiding in the corner was about to speak, the old beggar covered his mouth.

Under heaven, all land belongs to the emperor; all the money in the world belongs to the royal family. It's only natural that the emperor's mother's funeral would cost as much silver as it could. Unlike them, beggars, who, if they had descendants or apprentices, were simply wrapped in straw mats. Those without descendants or apprentices depended on luck. The lucky ones were discovered by patrolling officials shortly after death and given a makeshift burial. The unlucky ones rotted and stinked, their remains gnawed to pieces by wild dogs and rats.

Just then, a silver pouch landed in front of them, with a piece of paper money still clinging to it. The beggar looked up and saw Lu Zhiyuan nod to them. Looking at the pouch again, it was small, embroidered with peach blossoms. Opening it, they found not only loose silver coins for spending, but also some small pills of different colors and a note.

The old beggar had received some education in his youth and knew a few characters. He recognized the names and effects of the medicines on the label. The white one was for treating colds, the black one for treating heatstroke, the green one for treating diarrhea, and the small red pills for treating injuries. These medicines meant nothing to a wealthy person, but to the beggar, they were life-saving treasures.

Seeing that the important person was about to pass by, the old beggar quickly grabbed the young beggar and kowtowed to express his gratitude.

The little beggar was puzzled and asked the old beggar, "Did this silver fall from the sky?"

The old beggar lightly slapped him and said excitedly, "Those gods in heaven don't care about us beggars. Even gods need to be worshipped. The silver was given by that little benefactor."

The little beggar looked up and could only see a dense crowd: "Among so many benefactors, which one is the little benefactor who gave us the silver?"

The old beggar stared at the character "鸢" (Yuan) on the purse and murmured, "It's Lu Zhiyuan, the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Pingnan."

The procession had already gone far away. The little beggar stood up, tiptoed, and looked ahead. He could see nothing but a sky full of white and a sea of ​​heads.

He knew Miss Lu; it was Miss Lu who stood up and saved the entire city when strange people were causing trouble in the capital. Not only that, she also waived their medical expenses and set up relief stations in the city, where they could receive rice and grain and be helped to find work. The old beggar was too old to stay at the relief station, while he, being younger and used to freedom, couldn't stand the constraints and followed the old beggar to continue begging. But they remembered Miss Lu's kindness.

Once outside the city gates, the funeral procession continued forward. Besides the Crown Prince and the civil and military officials, Princess Ping Le and the seventh princess who was being fostered in Ronghua Palace remained behind. Prince Yue, who had been attacked, was not in the procession today. To put it bluntly, those who needed to accompany the procession to the mausoleum were either unfavored princes and princesses or royal relatives eager to show their loyalty.

Princess Ping Le had intended to invite Lu Zhiyuan to ride in the same carriage with her, but immediately looked away when she met the Crown Prince's gaze. Lu Zhiyuan shook her head and walked straight to the carriage. Lu Yun and the Crown Prince vied to step forward, but Lu Zhiyuan ignored them and gracefully boarded the carriage. As soon as she lifted the curtain, the Seventh Princess rushed over, repeatedly calling out, "Mother, Aunt, Mother!"