| TBBOTOF | 215
Logically speaking, for a young man in the family, even if it’s not a grand feast, the family should at least gather together. The Tang family would also be happy about it and would make a fuss in town. This is reasonable.
However, with the passing of Old Xu, Tang Xu did not have the heart to do those things, Old Wen was quite open-minded and even offered some words of comfort.
The three children were only aware that they hadn’t seen their great-grandfather for a long time and had asked about him several times.
Upon receiving the news from the Xu family, Tang Xu hurried over and managed to arrive just before the coffin was sealed and buried.
Xu Ze knelt facing the coffin and performed three deep bows.
Tang Xu and Wei Dong also went to bow, then pulled Xu Ze away to the side, watching as they sealed the coffin.
The coffin was to be buried in the Xu family graveyard, and the tablet would be placed in the ancestral hall. Tang Xu and Wei Dong didn’t follow, as they were outsiders. Xu Ze also didn’t go; he was just a grandchild.
When sorting through Old Xu’s belongings, they found a nearly new down comforter neatly folded aside. When Tang Xu entered the room and saw it, he asked, “Aren’t you going to burn it?”
“It would be a shame to burn something so nice,” replied Xu’s daughter-in-law. There were too many people in the Xu family for him to keep track of their relationships.
“It was made for the old xu to use. Now that he’s gone, this comforter should definitely be burned too, so he won’t be cold down there,” Tang Xu said bluntly.
He actually had many grievances against the Xu family. Just a few days after they brought the old man back, he passed away.
Before he left, he had repeatedly urged them on so many things—how could it happen so suddenly!
Moreover, shouldn’t the body be kept for three days for the family to mourn? Why did they have to rush to bury him?
Fortunately, they came over that night; otherwise, they wouldn’t have even seen his remains.
Xu's daughter-in-law was taken aback by his words. Before she could respond, Tang Xu opened the drawer of the kang cabinet and took out the clothes he had made for Old Xu over the past few years, saying coldly, “These should all be burned too.”
Xu's daughter-in-law frowned slightly, glancing at the pile of clothes—there were more than ten sets, all in good condition and made of fine fabric.
In rural areas, it doesn’t really matter if the clothes were worn by the deceased. Although the Xu family had earned some money from the herbal business with Tang Xu, it was hard-earned money.
Producing medicinal herbs was labor-intensive; all the families had to contribute, and it required not only food but also maintaining the herb fields. When calculated, they didn’t make much profit.
So, they felt it was a pity to burn good clothes. They had already burned some of the old clothes left by the old man, but they planned to keep these nearly new ones.
Who would have thought that Tang Xu would turn everything out now?
Not only did he want the clothes to be burned, but also the comforter!
That comforter had already been mentioned by her father-in-law to take to his room. If it were burned, how would she explain it to him?
Tang Xu could easily see the hesitation on her face. He didn’t say much, but loudly called out, “Ah Dong, come in for a moment and take these out to burn for Old Xu. He loved these the most when he was alive, and now that he’s gone, burning them for him would fulfill his wishes.”
For Wei Dong, whatever his husband said he would listen—he did whatever he was told without question.
So, he didn’t utter a word and directly stepped inside, scooping up the comforter and clothes in both hands, then turning to stride out of the room. He tossed the items into the fire pit set up in the courtyard for the memorial.
There had already been quite a bit of yellow paper burned in the fire pit, and Wei Dong laid the down comforter on top. Before long, it started to burn in the middle.
The Xu family’s men had all gone up the mountain, and the women present were momentarily stunned by Wei Dong's actions.
By the time they came to their senses and tried to stop him, it was too late.
Down feathers are highly flammable, and Tang Xu had mixed in some cashmere threads, so as the fabric caught fire, the entire comforter began to burn from the inside out. The flames grew stronger and higher as the fire crackled.
Wei Dong’s face was scorched by the flames, but he remained unflinching as he threw the clothes into the roaring fire, one by one.
Tang Xu walked over, picking up a thick stick he had found from somewhere, and poked at the scattered clothes to push them toward the center of the fire. He muttered, “Old Xu, we rushed over and didn’t buy you any paper figures. We’ll make it up to you when we get back and buy some more. Let them serve you down there. If you’re missing anything, just send me a dream to let me know, and I’ll make sure to burn it for you. We’re family, so there’s no need to be polite.”
The women of the Xu family were terrified by Tang Xu's few words; who would dare to be so outspoken in front of the deceased?
They had initially wanted to stop him from burning those clothes, but now no one dared to step forward.
Xu Ze stood by, wiping the tears from his face as he looked at his aunts and uncles, then lowered his gaze.
There were a few gers in the Xu family about the same age as him. When they were at home before, they had never been very close, and now seeing Xu Ze return dressed in fine clothes and looking well, unlike someone who had been serving others, they couldn’t help but feel a bit of jealousy.
Taking advantage of the elders not paying attention, one of the more good-looking gers moved closer to him and whispered, “Ze’er, are you close with that young master from the Wei family?”
Xu Ze was taken aback for a moment and then realized who he was referring to—it should be Wei Xi.
However...
He frowned and turned to look at the other boy. “What do you mean?”
“What do you mean ‘what do you mean’? I’m asking you a question!”
“Pretty good, what’s it to you?”
“Oh, so you were there to serve him meals and help him sleep?” The boy’s eyes sparkled with gossip and a hint of jealousy.
Xu Ze pressed his lips together and looked at him. After a long moment, he finally said, “Wei Xi doesn’t need me to serve him.”
“If he doesn’t need you, then why are you shouting so loudly?”
Xu Ze ignored him and walked over to Tang Xu, taking his hand. “Brother Xu, let’s go home.”
Tang Xu looked at him and nodded slightly.
He had burned everything he had prepared for the old Xu, and aside from the medical texts left in the main residence, he only had a piece of medicinal jade; nothing else belonging to Old Xu remained.
Perhaps there were still some things left in the Xu family, but it was no longer relevant to them.
Without even waiting for Xu Ze’s father to return from the mountain, Wei Dong and Tang Xu greeted the women of the Xu family and left, not wanting to say another word.
“If you’re angry with them, then don’t do business with them,” Wei Dong noticed that Tang Xu was in a bad mood and turned to look at him while sitting on the carriage.
Tang Xu shook his head, “I was just feeling anxious for a moment. When the Old Xu suddenly said he wanted to go home, I realized something, but I didn’t expect it to be so soon.”
He let out a sigh. “When we get back, I’ll buy some paper figures for the old Xu to burn, and also get a big house.”
Wei Dong nodded. “Okay.”
Noticing that Xu Ze had been silent and not speaking, Tang Xu understood that he was feeling sad, so he reached out and gently patted his head. “Don’t think about it.”
Xu Ze shook his head, meaning he wasn’t thinking about those things. He looked up at Tang Xu and asked, “Brother Xu, why do you think there are always some people who can't bear to see others live well?"
Tang Xu immediately understood and frowned as he asked, “What happened? Did someone say something to you just now? Or did you overhear something?”
“Someone asked if I was there to serve the young master, dressing him and feeding him. They laughed when they asked, and it was pretty ugly,” Xu Ze replied, pouting.
Tang Xu looked confused. “Serve what young master? What young master do we have in our family?”
Xu Ze shrugged. “They probably heard something from their family. I could see they were all quite afraid of Brother Dong.”
Wei Dong turned to glance at him, and Xu Ze forced a smile at him, though it was a rather dry smile.
“Who doesn’t fear your brother-in-law?” Tang Xu chuckled lightly, patting Xu Ze’s shoulder.
Meeting his gaze, he spoke earnestly, “Don’t worry about what others say. You live your own life. Whatever you become is your own business. They can say whatever they want and think whatever they want—don’t let them affect you.”
“I know. Great-grandpa told me not to go back to the Xu family. He said there were too many people there and that they wouldn’t miss me,” Xu Ze replied.
He didn’t mention the other things—how only his great-grandfather had treated him well in that family. Now that his great-grandfather was gone, he naturally had no expectations or attachment to that family.
Tang Xu squeezed his soft cheek and smiled, “Right, my family needs you. You can’t leave us; otherwise, I’ll be heartbroken.”
Xu Ze smiled shyly, pressing his lips together and leaning closer to him.
They stopped at a small noodle shop along the way for a meal, and by the time they got home, it was already evening.
Wang Cuicui hurried over to greet them, asking, “Did nothing happen?”
“No, everything’s fine. Aunty, is there any food? I’m hungry,” Tang Xu replied as he picked up Xiao Bao, who had run over to hug his leg. He sniffed him, “You smell good! Did you take a bath?”
Xiao Bao giggled, wrapping his arms around Tang Xu’s neck, “Daddy, I missed you~”
“Mm, Daddy misses you too.” Tang Xu rubbed his face against Xiao Bao's before putting him down. Xiao Bao then ran over to hug Wei Dong, saying the same thing, “Father, I missed you~”
Wei Dong smiled and leaned his face close to him. “Where’s your brothers?”
“They’re playing.” Xiao Bao pointed towards the courtyard.
It was already dark outside, and they were still playing in the yard. Wei Dong felt something was off and carried Xiao Bao toward the courtyard.
Wang Cuicui said to Tang Xu, “You two go wash up. I’ll heat up some food. Xiao Bao has already taken a bath, but those two are still playing in the mud.”
“Playing in the mud?” Tang Xu furrowed his brows. “How did they end up playing in the mud?”
“It was originally Old Wen who was playing with the mud, saying he wanted to make a clay chicken. They thought it was fun and started playing with the mud too. I called them back several times, but they didn’t listen, so I just left them be.”
After all, they were already dirty; being dirtier wouldn’t matter. Once they were done playing, they could just wash up.
Tang Xu didn't want to face his muddy little monkeys, so he went inside to get clean clothes and took a shower. He specifically went to the courtyard to take a look and then called Xiao Bao back.
The already clean baby shouldn’t join in the fun.
“Ah Dong, you take them to wash up later. Aunty is heating up the food, so hurry and wash up to eat,” he said.
Wei Dong replied with an acknowledgment.
The chubby boy and Er Bao had already seen their dad, but Tang Xu stopped them from rushing over, saying disdainfully, “You’re dirty!”
The little guys weren’t disheartened at all; being dirty didn’t matter to them—they were just happy!
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