Chapter 104: A white bouquet for his mother’s grave

Today was Qingming, a day to remember those who had lived and died before them and to pay respects to the ancestors who had laid the foundations of the prosperous Bai family they now inherited.

The Bai Patriarch stood before the ancestral tablets and opened the genealogy book. After reading the names of the departed ancestors, he led the family in offering incense.

Everyone knelt in turn, lowering their heads in solemn respect.

The ritual was rigorous, from the placement of the offerings to the order in which each family member paid their respects.

For the Bai clan, such strict traditions were not merely formalities. They symbolized the family’s roots, its obligations, and the blood ties that connected everyone, uniting them to contribute to the clan’s prosperity.

The more prosperous the clan became, the higher its status in the capital’s high society.

Outside, a breeze passed through the courtyard, swaying the tender green leaves on the old branches. The drizzle left droplets on the umbrellas opened across the courtyard.

Lin Feng offered incense, knelt, and bowed his head, his forehead touching the ground. His movements were more solemn than those of the other members of the younger generation, which helped alleviate the elders’ dissatisfaction.

’To the ancestors of the Bai family.’

’Having passed through the gates of the underworld, I was granted another chance by the gods because of my merits. In this life, I promise not to harm others without reason. I promise to help those in need. I promise to accumulate good karma for the Bai family, Lin family, and everyone I cherish.’

’I only ask that you forgive the real Lin Feng’s soul and not punish him too harshly. Now that I have taken over his body, I will do my best to resolve the karmic debts he owed.’

Everything had its cause and effect, and karmic ties were formed through karmic debts.

Madam Lin of the Song Dynasty had unwittingly taken over Lin Feng’s identity, and thus, a karmic debt was owed.

The moment the youth pressed his forehead to the ground for the last time, everyone watching quietly from around the hall sighed, each lost in their own thoughts.

In the end, they could only accept that the boy was still one of their own.

They could only console themselves with what the Bai Patriarch had told them earlier, that the boy was willing to compensate the family and use a substantial portion of his inherited dowry money to support the Bai family.

At least, the Bai family did not completely lose out.

...

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The formal ancestral rites concluded on the first day of Qingming.

On the second day, everyone was busy traveling around the capital to visit both their maternal and paternal family mausoleums. They swept the graves, presented offerings, paid their respects, and burned paper money so that the deceased would have enough to enjoy a comfortable and prosperous life in the underworld.

It was only on the last day of Qingming that Lin Feng finally managed to visit his mother’s grave.

Unlike during his visits to the mausoleums, when he had carried sacrificial offerings, incense, and paper money, Lin Feng brought only a small bouquet of white chrysanthemums.

According to traditional folk beliefs in the country, the gates of the spirit world opened during the Qingming period, and cemeteries became especially active with souls. It was said that the older, more powerful spirits were already wandering around, watching over their descendants as they paid their respects.

If these older spirits saw that a newbie was being so generously favored by the descendants they had protected with all their might, receiving sacrificial offerings before those newbies had even had a chance to bless those descendants, they might take offense and bully the newbie.

Bai Yufei had died just over three months ago, around January of that year, so Lin Feng could not yet offer incense or sacrificial offerings to her during Qingming.

Since waking up, Lin Feng could not offer incense even if he wanted to, because he missed the proper timing.

Bai Yufei’s hundredth day after death had fallen in mid-March, just a few days before this year’s Spring Community Day, when people offered sacrifices to the God of the Land and paid their respects to their ancestors.

According to custom, the graves of those who had just passed away had to be cleaned before Chun She, or the Spring Community Day.

At that time, the Bai family had still been unaware that Hou Yizhen’s men had already found Lin Feng.

By the time Lin Feng arrived in the capital, the family had already cleaned Bai Yufei’s grave, presented offerings, and burned paper money for her on the hundredth day after her death.

Lin Feng knelt down and gently placed the bouquet of white chrysanthemums in front of the clean, newly built grave.

The Bai family mausoleum was quiet and deserted. Everyone else had already paid their respects, leaving him alone with his mother.

"Mother," Lin Feng whispered softly. "I know the person you truly wanted to see was someone else. I’m sorry that I can’t even give him a proper tombstone."

"Perhaps the two of you have already met on the bridge over the Yellow Springs. Perhaps you’ve already stood before the King of the Underworld, or even drunk Old Lady Meng’s soup and begun a new life in the endless cycle of reincarnation."

"But even so, I still wanted to come and pay my respects to you on his behalf."

"I’ll take care of everything here. I’ll help untangle the knots left behind in his heart, so that he can let go of his regrets and live a happier life in his next life."

"I’ll also keep a close eye on Grandpa’s health, so you don’t have to worry about him."

"Mother, I hope you can finally put your heart at ease and have a good rest. Please don’t worry about the people you’ve left behind. We’ll take good care of ourselves."

The wind blew in the air, colder than usual, and the hair on Lin Feng’s forehead swayed with the wind.

It was as if someone had reached out to pat the solemnly kneeling youth’s head.