Under Lu Beichuan's arrangement, Old Master Lu's funeral was grand and perfectly in order. On the day the news came out, the ancestral home was decorated in mourning white. The countless people that came to offer condolences came from all walks of life. There was weeping, regret, and sorrow.

Lu Beichuan was taking charge outside while Ye Zhen was taking charge inside with the help of Mrs. Lu. There were no mishaps until Old Master Shen came.

The members of the Shen family and the Lu family had been friends for generations. Old Master Shen and Old Master Lu had also been friends for a long time. They had grown up under the eyes of the elders of their families. That his old friend had passed away overnight was a big blow to the aging Old Master Shen.

Shen Weiyin helped the sad Old Master Shen into the mourning hall.

Old Master Shen stood by the coffin and took his last look of his friend.

"It's my fault. If only I had persisted in getting this old guy to go to the hospital for a physical, he would have been cured by now!"

Shen Weiyin tearfully persuaded Old Master Shen, "Grandpa, don't be too sad. Take care of your body."

"Take care of my body…" Old Master Shen remorsefully patted the coffin. "We worked hard together in our youth, but now, time has taken its toll. I thought I would go before you. How could I have anticipated that you would go before me?! I've always told you to take care of your body in these past years. You wouldn't listen to me when I told you to take more trips to the hospital. You said you knew your body well. Take a look at yourself. There's no traces left of that confident man of our youth!"

He said many grief-stricken words. The mourning hall was filled with the sound of crying and sobbing.

Lu Beichuan walked over to Old Master Shen and offered him three incense sticks. "Grandpa Shen, take care of your body."

Old Master Shen wiped his tears and nodded. He took the incense and walked to the photo of Old Master Lu. He respectfully bowed three times before sticking the incense into the incense burner.

"Grandpa Shen, go take a rest in the living room. I'll go see you after I'm done with this side. Please excuse me for the poor hospitality."

Old Master Shen sighed and patted his shoulder. "I understand. You're the eldest grandson of the Lu family. Now that Old Master Lu is gone, the burden of the Lu family has been placed on your shoulders. It's not a light burden. You have to stand firm. Don't falter in your responsibilities!"

Lu Beichuan was neither haughty nor humble. There wasn't much sadness on his face. Instead, there was all the more tenaciousness and impassiveness. "I understand."

Shen Weiyin also put incense into the incense burner for Old Master Lu. "Beichuan, sorry for your loss."

Lu Beichuan nodded and motioned to a servant next to him to take them to the living room.

In the huge living room, they could hear the crying from the mourning hall. Even with a garden between the living room and the mourning hall, the smoke from the incense had made its way here. The smoke from the incense could be seen from a distance. Other than the mourning hall and living room, the rest of the ancestral home seemed deserted.

Ye Zhen was dressed completely in black. In coordination with Mother Lu, she entertained guests who had come here to pay their respects. After being busy all day, she didn't even have the idle time to grieve.

Old Master Shen and Shen Weiyin came to the living room with a servant leading them here.

Although Ye Zhen didn't want to see Shen Weiyin, she knew that it was inevitable to see her on an occasion like this one.

Fortunately, on an occasion like this one, no one would say anything if she didn't look happy seeing her.

Without a trace of a smile, Ye Zhen greeted, "Old Master Shen, Miss Shen, please take a seat over here."

A servant brought over two cups of tea. Old Master Shen didn't take the tea. He only surveyed the room and sighed. "Things have remained the same, but the people are no longer here... The years have flown by. The people that should have left and the people that shouldn't have left, they're all gone. I'm the only one left…"

Old Master Shen fell silent. He looked at Ye Zhen. "Sorry for your loss."

Mrs. Lu was on the other side greeting other guests. When she saw the members of the Shen family, she hastily excused herself and walked over.

She had watched Shen Weiyin grow up. No matter how well children disguised their thoughts, an adult could see right through them. The Shen family and the Lu family used to be equals. If Shen Weiyin and Lu Beichuan had become a couple then, it would have been considered a match made in heaven. However, no one could help with unrequited love.

Mrs. Lu had also read the gossip about Lu Beichuan and Shen Weiyin, so she naturally knew why Ye Zhen didn't want to see Shen Weiyin.

"Old Master Shen, you're here." Mrs. Lu was a sentimental person. Seeing Old Master Shen, who was around the same age as her deceased father-in-law, she was reminded of Old Master Lu. The rims of her eyes gradually reddened. Smiling, she turned her face to wipe her tears. "The weather is so bad. Don't keep standing and hurt your body. Sit down."

Old Master Shen sighed, sat down, and offered condolences. "At his age, even if he didn't get cancer, he would have died a natural death. No one can accurately grasp fate. I used to always think I would go before him… The world is unpredictable."

"Don't say that. With your good health, you still have many years to enjoy blessings. When Weiyin finds a boyfriend, you have to watch her get married and have children!"

Old Master Shen glanced at Shen Weiyin. "I can't control this child. Whether I can see her getting married and having children, it'll depend entirely on how long my old bones can last." He looked around. "Oh right, how come I haven't seen Shaoyan yet?"

"After Old Master Lu passed away in the hospital, Shaoyan locked himself in his room and won't see anyone."

Old Master Shen furrowed his brow. "This child… Well, it makes sense. That old man spoiled him so much. It's normal that he can't accept his passing for a period of time."

Then, he looked at Shen Weiyin. "If you don't mind, let Weiyin go see him. Weiyin ah, you should know how to persuade him and talk sense into him. It won't be good for him to continue like this."

Ye Zhen was sitting next to Mrs. Lu and quietly listening to their conversation. She couldn't help furrowing her brow when she heard those words from Old Master Shen.

When did Lu Shaoyan form such a close relationship with Shen Weiyin? Based on Old Master Shen's tone, it wasn't as simple as them being ordinary friends.

Mother Lu was about to have someone bring Shen Weiyin to Lu Shaoyan's room, but Ye Zhen stood up. "I'll take Miss Shen over there."

Mother Lu was surprised, but she didn't refuse after seeing Ye Zhen's expression.

"Then I'll have to trouble Mrs. Lu." Shen Weiyin followed behind Ye Zhen and left the living room. When they were walking through a covered corridor, there was a gust of howling wind. It felt like an icy knife that scraped to the bone.

Ye Zhen didn't say anything. Shen Weiyin also kept silent, but Ye Zhen could still feel Shen Weiyin's burning gaze on her back. It felt like the tip of a sword was touching her back.

Neither of them said a word the entire way there.

When Ye Zhen led Shen Weiyin to Lu Shaoyan's room, she knocked on the door. "Little Uncle, Miss Shen is here to see you."

There was no movement inside the room.

Ye Zhen said to Shen Weiyin with a solemn expression, "Miss Shen, this is Little Uncle's room. From what I heard of Old Master Shen's tone, you seem to be friends with him?"

Shen Weiyin lightly nodded. "En."

Ye Zhen found the situation even stranger after hearing Shen Weiyin's short reply.

She couldn't see any of that jealousy and resentment in Shen Weiyin's eyes from two years ago. Those eyes directly looked at her as if she was a mere stranger. Did she really give up that resentment, or did she hide it too deeply, so she couldn't see it?

"Mrs. Lu, don't worry. I'll do my best to persuade him. If there's nothing else, you can leave first to attend to the other guests. Don't worry about me."

Ye Zhen deeply looked at her then smiled and said, "Then I'll be going."

Shen Weiyin moved to the side. It looked as if she had really let go of her former enmity and grudges. She watched Ye Zhen leave and then knocked on the door.

"Open the door, it's me."

Shen Weiyin stood outside and waited for a while. And then with a click, the door opened a crack.

***

The guests that came to extend their condolences didn't leave until late evening. As they departed, their countless sighs dissipated into the cold and empty air.

The candles in the mourning hall hadn't gone out yet.

After settling Zhouzhou down to sleep, Ye Zhen came to the mourning hall. She worked hard all day, and she was sure that Lu Beichuan must have worked even harder than her.

Sure enough, when she walked to the mourning hall, Lu Beichuan was the only one left keeping a vigil in front of Old Master Lu's photo. The other people that had been stationed in the mourning hall during the day had left.

It was drafty in the mourning hall. There was a howling wind in the courtyard, causing the branches of a large tree to constantly sway under the dim lighting.

Ye Zhen added incense to the incense burner for Old Master Lu, then she knelt down next to Lu Beichuan and held his cold hands.

"Mom is watching Zhouzhou. They're already asleep. You haven't eaten all day. I prepared food for you in the dining room. Go eat. I'll stay here to keep vigil for you."

Lu Beichuan's dad, Lu Shaoren, was a useless jerk. Therefore, Lu Beichuan had grown up under the knees of Old Master Lu. His every word and action was influenced by Old Master Lu's teachings. Perhaps, Old Master Lu had slightly different thoughts about him. Regardless, he had been meticulous and paid a price in his cultivation of his grandson.

On the road of Lu Beichuan's growth, Old Master Lu had played a pivotal role.

Ye Zhen understood that regardless of Lu Beichuan and Old Master Lu'ss prior disputes and hostility, his grandfather's position in his heart remained unshakeable.

"I'm not hungry. Go to sleep. I'll keep the vigil for Grandpa." Lu Beichuan's voice was indescribably tired and hoarse.

She had heard gossip when she was attending to the guests in the living room.

Everyone else had cried their hearts out in the mourning hall. Lu Beichuan was the only one that didn't shed a tear. He was someone that grew up under Old Master Lu's knees. They gossiped that he had a heart of stone.

She knew the truth. It wasn't that Lu Beichuan didn't want to cry, but that he couldn't allow himself to cry. The heavy burden of responsibility on his shoulders didn't allow him to show weakness in front of others.

Seeing the lack of inner peace in Lu Beichuan's eyes, Ye Zhen tightly gripped his hand and quietly said, "I'll keep you company."

Lu Beichuan's gaze slightly moved. He had been as still as a rock for a long time, and it took effort to turn his head to look at Ye Zhen.

Ye Zhen didn't want him to refuse her offer. "I want to do this last act of filial piety to Grandpa."

Lu Beichuan's Adam Apple rolled up and down. He wanted to say something, but in the end, he stayed silent.

The wind in the courtyard grew louder, and the candles in the mourning hall flickered.

It was too cold in the mourning hall. He couldn't resist the pervasive cold by himself.

Lu Beichuan reached out and pulled Ye Zhen closer. He kissed the top of her head. "Okay, let's send Grandpa off together."

Ye Zhen clung to Lu Beichuan and firmly held his cold hand. She passed the heat of her palm to his.

in their family graveyard five days after his funeral.

The Lu family graveyard was surrounded by mountains and near the ocean. It was a very scenic place.

On the left and right of Old Master Lu’s grave, there were two identical graves, which belonged to his two late wives.

It was drizzling a little the day he was buried. The sky was grey and had been overcast for days.

Lu Shaoyan didn’t attend the ceremony.

Lu Shaoyan had locked himself up in his room for five days straight after Old Master Lu had passed away. Even Shen Weiyin wasn’t able to get him to leave his room.

The Lu’s relatives all called him unfilial when he did not show up at the funeral. They said that it was outrageous that he didn’t attend Old Master Lu’s funeral even though he had always been Old Master Lu’s favorite!

Others expressed that they understood Lu Shaoyan’s absence from the funeral. He must be too sad to face others after the passing of his father who loved him like nobody else. It wasn't a big deal for him to not attend the funeral in light of that.

There were all kinds of speculations, but nobody really knew the real reasons behind it.

It was getting dark outside, and the Old Master Lu’s coffin was lowered into his grave slowly as everybody watched on.

Ye Zhen, standing next to Lu Beichuan, was saddened when she heard the sorrowful crying. Old Master Lu had been such a prideful man in his lifetime and was still reduced to nothing more than just a coffin and a grave after his death.

Lu Beichuan held her hand and could feel how cold it was. Frowning slightly, he said, “I’ll have someone bring you another jacket.”

Ye Zhen, feeling the warmth coming from his hand, said, “I am fine. My hands are cold, but I am not that cold.”

Lu Beichuan looked at the coffin that had already been lowered. There were dark circles under his eyes and weariness that could not be wiped off.

Lu Beichuan was the one responsible for Old Master Lu’s funeral and took care of everything that had to do with it. In addition, he had his work from Lu Corporation waiting for him on his desk every night. Come to think about it, he had gotten less than 10 hours of sleep in the past 5 days.

He said to Ye Zhen in a low voice, "We are more or less done over here. Why don’t you go and rest up in the car? I will be over shortly.”

Those who gathered around the grave dispersed in groups of twos and threes. Standing next to him, Ye Zhen did not walk away. “I’ll stay and keep you company.”

Physical exhaustion wasn’t the worst; that of the psyche was. Lu Beichuan, having stretched himself thin over the 5 days, was already at the end of his rope. She needed to stand by him and keep an eye out on him.

Lu Beichaun gave her hand a squeeze and didn’t say anything else.

The sun began to set, and Lu Beichuan, Ye Zhan, and a few workers were all that were left standing there in the drizzle.

Lu Beichuan put his arm over Ye Zhen’s shoulder, pulled her closer to him, and said, “Let’s head back.”

Ye Zhen, taking a last look at the grave that had now been filled, followed Lu Beichuan toward the car.

On their way back, Ye Zhen asked Lu Beichuan out of the blue, “Do I have to be buried there as well after I die?”

“You are my wife, which makes you a part of the Lu family. Of course you will be buried there after you die.”

Ye Zhen recalled the two other graves next to Old Master Lu’s. Recalling everything that had happened in the past, she asked, “I heard from my mom that your dad had three wives. The two graves next to his were the first two wives, right? And his third wife was Lu Shaoyan’s mother, right? What happened back then?"

She still felt that Old Master Lu’s illness was too odd.

Old Master Lu did not die from liver cancer in the novel. He peacefully died 10 years later in his sleep. Allegedly, Lu Shaoyan avenged his mother, but no details were mentioned.

What the doctors said at the hospital made Ye Zhen feel even more dubious. Did Old Master Lu’s illness have something to do with Lu Shaoyan?

Nevertheless, if Old Master Lu’s illness really had something to do with Lu Shaoyan, that would make him borderline psychotic.

Lu Beichuan was still very young at the time when Lu Shaoyan left the country. In the days to come, nobody else dared to bring them up in front of Old Master Lu again, and all of them chose to selectively forget about the incidents. Mother Lu had witnessed everything as they unfolded and had occasionally mentioned some of that information to Lu Beichuan in private.

Lu Beichuan told everything to Ye Zhen in detail, and Ye Zhen, after listening to them, remained silent for a long while. She now had a rough idea about Lu Shaoyan.

There are usually reasons behind one’s actions. It seemed logical that Lu Shaoyan, who grew up with hatred toward the Lu family due to events from his childhood, had chosen to make the Lu family his number one enemy.

It is alright for one to hate. And there is no need for one to repay bad deeds with good. That being said, there were still lines that should never be crossed no matter what.

There should still be a bottom line as a human being as well as that of the law.

“Are you telling me that Lu Shaoyan’s mother is the woman that Old Master Lu spend his entire life loving and thinking about?” Ye Zhen sighed. “So what if he had spent his entire life thinking about her? He never got to see her again, not even her grave…”

Ye Zhen remained silent for a little while. She looked over at the grave that was quite some distance from them now. She could see green mountains and babbling brooks through the misty rain. Perhaps, when the sky was clear, this would be a good location for hiking and getting some fresh air.

“Lu Beichuan, if I pass away before you, can you dig me up so we can be buried together?”

Lu Beichuan’s hand that was resting on Ye Zhen’s shoulder paused, and he didn’t say anything for a little while.

“Never mind.” Ye Zhen sighed. “If I pass away early like Old Master Lu’s two wives and if you marry someone else… that would be so awkward in the afterlife. I’m afraid there will be fights.”

What she said made Lu Beichuan burst out laughing. “What nonsense are you talking about?”

With Ye Zhen in his arms, he said in a deep voice and enunciated each word as though he was making a promise, “You are my only for this lifetime.”

Ye Zhen leaned against his chest. She could hear the beating of his heart inside his chest as he spoke. A smile crept onto her uncontrollably.

“You have reminded me in the past that Lu Shaoyan is a scheming and evil person. He is probably going to become bolder now that Old Master Lu has passed away. You should stay away from him in the future.”

Ye Zhen nodded. “Old Master Lu’s previous doctor had mentioned some oddities surrounding his illness. Have you asked about them afterwards. Did you find out more about it?”

“We are still looking into it. I’ll let you know when we find out more. That being said,” Lu Beichuan’s voice was firm and there were worries in his eyes. “I don’t want you meddling in this one.”

Even though it was just the doctor’s speculation for the time being, Lu Beichuan could tell from the doctor’s eyes that the doctor was just being cautious. They had no proof, but he knew what he was talking about from his years of experiences alone.

If there really was more to Old Master Lu’s illness, then Lu Shaoyan would truly be a psychopath.