The Liu Manor Samples Melons

Master Liu's mourning hall was set up in the center of the main hall. According to funeral rites texts, the main hall is the most sacred and inviolable place in a residence, where ancestors and deities are enshrined.

If someone in the household dies, the deceased's relatives would move the body to the main hall and place it on a temporarily set-up plank bed. The purpose was to prevent the deceased from lying in bed for too long.

This was because people spend half their lives with their eyes closed in bed. If a deceased person were to lie in bed for too long after death, their soul might become bound to the bed and unable to reincarnate.

Therefore, whenever a family felt an elder was nearing their end, they would move the elder to the main hall to be attended to. This was known as a natural death in one's own home.

As soon as Xu Qing entered through the door and reached the outside of the main hall, he immediately recognized that the family had someone knowledgeable.

Even if they weren't from the Yinmen profession, they must have dealt with the deceased before and had practical experience!

However, despite their experience, they had still violated taboos.

Just look at this scene: who would be shouting and shoving each other in front of the mourning hall?

Xu Qing looked closely and realized that the two people arguing were Su Hongxiu, someone he knew, and another noblewoman also dressed in white and wearing mourning attire.

"You slut, how dare you show your face here! You're the one who ruined my master and killed him, and now you're here crying crocodile tears and pretending to be sad. I know you've had malicious intentions all along, just waiting for the master to die so you could take our Liu family's fortune!

I'm telling you now, as long as I have a breath left in me, you won't get a single cent!"

With that, the two women couldn't help but start fighting again.

Xu Qing watched with amusement and decided to stop walking forward. He stood outside the mourning hall, watching the drama unfold inside.

Inside, one was a courtesan from the pleasure quarters, with a seductive and delicate figure, who had seen all sorts of people and strange things. The other was the wife of a wealthy official from a scholarly family, well-maintained.

At this moment, they were pulling each other's hair and clothes, and it looked like the situation was about to escalate into a heated confrontation. But just then, the servant who had led Xu Qing in suddenly shouted.

"Eldest Madam, Second Madam, please stop fighting! I've invited the gentleman from the street office. Let's send Master off first..."

As the voice faded, the bustling mourning hall instantly fell silent.

The Eldest Madam of the Liu family stopped pulling Su Hongxiu's clothes. She casually smoothed her disheveled hair with her little finger and walked towards the entrance of the main hall as if nothing had happened.

Judging by her composure, even the Sichuan Opera face-changing artists wouldn't be that fast!

Xu Qing reached out to stop the servant from shouting, but he was too late.

'No! Just pretend I'm not here and keep going. I can get a small stool and wait until you've finished your personal matters before I start working. I'm not in a hurry at all!'

Xu Qing felt a pang of regret. Su Hongxiu's inner garment had been exposed, and Madam Liu's shoulder was so smooth. Why did it have to stop so abruptly?

"You are the gentleman from the office?"

"Indeed."

Madam Liu, with her smooth shoulders, was named Li Xiangyun. She was around thirty-five or thirty-six years old. However, due to her wealthy background and good self-care, she didn't show many signs of age, instead exuding a mature charm.

Although she was sweating profusely and her hair was disheveled, her posture as she walked still possessed the modesty of a lady from a prominent family.

It was as if the person who had been spewing curses and pulling clothes just moments ago was someone else...

"Sir, you've finally arrived. I'm just a woman; I'm good at needlework and raising children. But all the outside affairs were managed by Master and the steward. Now that Master has left me, I feel lost, with no idea what to do..."

As she spoke emotionally, Li Xiangyun took out a handkerchief, wiped her tears, and sobbed.

"Now I must ask you, sir, to make the decision so that my unfortunate husband can be laid to rest peacefully..."

Xu Qing looked at her, appearing as a pitiable widow, and thought, 'This woman is truly terrifying. One moment she's a fierce, possessive tigress, and the next she's a delicate, timid house cat.'

But thoughts were thoughts; business was business!

"Madam, please accept my condolences. I will arrange everything from here on."

As they were speaking, the Liu family steward, who had gone to the mortuary to find people to carry the coffin, came back to inquire.

Upon learning Xu Qing's identity, the steward, Song Cai, frowned. Although he didn't say anything, he was somewhat skeptical.

As the saying goes, "A smooth chin means unreliable work."

This young man's face was completely smooth; could he really handle all these funeral matters?

Xu Qing was unaware of Song Cai's thoughts. Otherwise, he would never have shaved off the fine hairs on his face that morning. Then, let's see if this steward would dare to judge him by his appearance!

Upon arriving at the mourning hall, most of Master Liu's relatives and friends who could come had arrived. Even those who couldn't make it had sent letters and gifts as a token of condolence.

The only son of Master Liu and Li Xiangyun, Young Master Liu, was kneeling on the ground keeping vigil.

In front of Young Master Liu, a fine nanmu coffin had been lacquered black. The front of the coffin was covered with a white cloth to conceal the deceased's face, with a large character "Offering" written on it.

"A person who dies without burial is offered condolences; a person who is buried is honored with sacrifices."

In simple terms, "奠" is for the deceased before burial, and "祭" (jì - sacrifice) is after burial.

These were the most basic aspects of funeral rites.

Arriving at the coffin, Xu Qing took off his satchel and took out the makeup and grooming supplies. Just as he was about to powder Master Liu's face and comb his hair, the steward Song Cai suddenly stepped forward to stop him.

"Do you even know how to do this? Your master already performed the embalming two days ago, why are you bothering with it again?"

Xu Qing, like a technician installing air conditioning, turned and stared at Song Cai for a moment.

When Song Cai frowned and felt uncomfortable all over, Xu Qing asked a soul-piercing question: "You washed your face two days ago, so you don't wash it today? Why don't you do it then?"

Song Cai, finding himself at a disadvantage, decided to stop bothering him.

He dismissed the extraneous people, and Xu Qing calmed his mind, the Duren Sutra in his mind flipping its pages.

Master Liu, whose original name was Liu Fuchun, was once a humble temple keeper in a poor village. His only income came from the meager offerings left by worshippers seeking blessings or fulfilling vows.

One day, the young lady of the Li family, who owned a cloth shop, passed by the small temple in her carriage and offered a stick of incense to the deity enshrined within.

As the temple keeper, Liu Fuchun was instantly smitten with the young lady. He felt that every part of her, from her legs to her hips, was exactly what his heart desired!

He wanted to pursue a relationship with the Li family's young lady, but he was poor and had no background. How could he win her heart?

What could he do?

Liu Fuchun tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep. In the end, he decided he could no longer suffer alongside the gods and plunged himself into the mortal world.

Perhaps his years of diligent service to the temple deities had earned him some good luck. As soon as he left his village, he encountered a wandering Taoist priest.

The priest saw that he had potential for cultivation and, after much persuasion, a bit of trickery, and even some deception, managed to lure him up the mountain to become his disciple.

Initially, the wandering Taoist taught him two skills: the Crane Body Cultivation Technique and the Four Seasons Qi Drawing Method.

Liu Fuchun practiced for two months, but his mind was always elsewhere, constantly thinking of Miss Li's legs and hips...

In the third month, the wandering Taoist suddenly summoned him. With a sigh, he said that their master-disciple bond was weak, and his disciple's worldly desires were still strong. Even with great fortune, he could not be held back.

However, out of consideration for their shared time as master and disciple, the Taoist taught him one more skill that could bring him wealth and status in the mortal world: the Art of Civil and Martial Geomancy.

This was a skill in Feng Shui and geomancy. The "civil" aspect involved using auxiliary items to enhance luck and prosperity for homes, while the "martial" aspect involved altering the flow of mountains and rivers, and geographical locations to channel "waters" from all directions into one's ancestral graves and residences, thereby increasing fortune and luck.

With this secret technique, the first thing Liu Fuchun did after descending the mountain was to divert the "yin and yang waters" from the ancestral graves and residences of the local gentry and wealthy families to his own. After accumulating some money, he added auspicious items to his home, such as beasts that symbolized literary talent and good fortune, and pairs of Pixiu that attracted wealth and treasure. He acquired anything that could be useful...

In the short span of the next two years, Liu Fuchun, now blessed with good fortune, passed the imperial examinations and became the magistrate of a county.

Unfortunately, he was unaware that the Art of Civil and Martial Geomancy placed great importance on one's own destiny and cultivation level. If one's cultivation was low and their destiny insufficient, even if they gained wealth and glory through this method, there would be unknown future costs.

As expected, as soon as Magistrate Liu took office, he sent a matchmaker to propose, and married the cloth shop's young lady, Li Xiangyun, with whom he had fallen in love at first sight.

At this time, Liu Fuchun was full of pride and all his affairs were going smoothly. If there was one regret, it was that he had no children.

What could be done? The first thing Liu Fuchun thought of was to change the Feng Shui of his residence. But strangely, no matter how he altered it, Li Xiangyun still did not conceive.

Liu Fuchun became increasingly suspicious and began to suspect his wife had a "sterility" condition.

So, he took Li Xiangyun to seek medical advice and consult diviners everywhere. He even considered taking a concubine.

Strangely enough, two months after he mentioned taking a concubine, Li Xiangyun became pregnant.

Liu Fuchun didn't think much of it, believing that heaven had seen his sincerity and answered his prayers!

As the days passed, the young master Liu, spoiled by his parents, became a good-for-nothing. He spent his days indulging in brothels and gambling, or bullying the innocent.

As the saying goes, raising a son without discipline is like raising a donkey, and raising a daughter without discipline is like raising a pig.

Liu Fuchun felt this could not continue and began to discipline his son strictly. He even resigned from his official post to focus more on educating his offspring. He moved to Linhe to engage in business, becoming a wealthy landowner.

His former secretary, who had resigned with him, transformed into the Liu family's steward.

From then on, Liu Fuchun's focus was entirely on educating his child. However, every time his son made a mistake, before he could even begin to reprimand him, his wife and the steward would intervene and try to dissuade him.

In the long run, his son became even more unruly than when he was a magistrate.

However, children and grandchildren have their own destinies. Liu Fuchun eventually grew tired and simply stopped bothering with his unfilial son, deciding to enjoy himself instead.

He played chess and amused birds during the day, and in the evenings, he would join his business friends to listen to music at the pleasure quarters, living a life as carefree as an immortal!

Later, he even spent a fortune to buy out Su Hongxiu, a popular courtesan from Cuiyun Tower, and brought her into his household.

At this point, Liu Fuchun had completely forgotten his master's warning. He felt that even if he neglected his cultivation, he was strong enough to bear the blessings brought by the Art of Civil and Martial Geomancy, and that there would be no such thing as a price to pay.

Xu Qing saw this and found nothing unusual. However, just as he also thought the Art of Civil and Martial Geomancy had no side effects, Master Liu's life suddenly came to an abrupt end one day!

And it was an abrupt end in a very literal sense!

On this day, Master Liu heard that a new bathhouse had opened in Shitang. As the weather had turned cold, he decided to take his wife, son, and his loyal steward to cleanse themselves.

Upon arriving at the bathhouse, Li Xiangyun found a private room and was attended by her maids. Master Liu, however, booked a large pool with his steward and his son. He thought it had been a long time since the three of them had spent such close time together. Now that they were all undressed, they could sit in the pool, give each other back scrubs, and chat to deepen their bond.

But to his surprise, as soon as the steward, Song Cai, took off his clothes, Master Liu's expression changed drastically!

He sprang up from the pool with a roar, abandoning all pretense of decorum, and said angrily, "You surnamed Song! How dare you seduce my wife and make me raise your son for so many years for nothing! I will flay you alive!"

Song Cai, having been a secretary, was quick-witted. He immediately realized—

He had the exact same twin beauty marks on his buttocks as Young Master Liu!

Adultery was a serious crime in those days. Seeing that Master Liu was truly enraged and intended to punish him, Song Cai decided to go all in and planned to drown Master Liu in the bathhouse!

Young Master Liu was watching from the side and couldn't let that happen. This was his father!

But just as he was about to step forward to intervene, Song Cai shouted, "Don't come any closer! I am your biological father! If you don't believe me, look at the beauty marks on our buttocks. Your master never had the ability to have children, and your mother knows this!"

"If I don't kill him today, and this matter is exposed, do you think any of us will get away with it?"

Upon hearing this, Young Master Liu immediately stopped.

Not his biological father? Then it's fine!

And so, Master Liu drowned in the bathhouse. When the authorities came to investigate, Young Master Liu and the steward, Song Cai, had remarkably consistent stories, both claiming that Master Liu had been killed by a ghost!

In the mourning hall of the Liu residence, beside the heavy camphorwood coffin, Xu Qing, having just finished digesting the juicy gossip of the Liu family, took a long time to recover.

The story was too big, and he almost choked on it!

Who would have thought that Master Liu, who had a smooth life for most of his days, would face such a calamity on his very last?

The aftermath of this calamity was even more devastating than a bolt from the blue!

However, no one could be blamed for this. As the saying goes, even a wise official can't settle a family dispute, and even an immortal can't wash away worldly troubles.

If Liu Fuchun had diligently followed the wandering Taoist's teachings and stayed away from the mortal world, none of these events would have occurred...

At this moment, the Duren Sutra finished reviewing his life and gave the corpse a rating: Human-grade High.

The rewards were a Human-grade MediumArt of Civil and Martial Geomancyand a Human-grade High Qi Gazing Technique.

After absorbing the knowledge from the Art of Civil and Martial Geomancy, Xu Qing understood.

The essence of geomancy lies in correcting bad layouts and making appropriate beneficial additions; too much is as bad as too little. If one were to try and arrange their own feng shui to a level higher than even a royal palace, they might suffer harm due to insufficient personal fortune.

Liu Chunlai was a typical negative example, suffering such a severe backlash because of this.

In comparison, although the Human-grade High Qi Gazing Technique couldn't reveal the wickedness in people's hearts, it could reveal the transformations of humans and demons, as well as the purity and impurity hidden between heaven and earth.

Xu Qing cleared his mind, circulated the Qi Gazing Technique internally, half-closed his eyes, and entered a state of meditation, looking without seeing, his gaze reaching his heart.

The next moment, he opened his eyes and saw wisps of ethereal, colorful mist rising from everything within his sight.

It contained all five elements and all five colors.

Looking again at the people in the hall, each person had mist of different colors and depths above their heads. Among them, Su Hongxiu and Li Xiangyun had a lot of ambiguous colors around them, while the butler, Song Cai, had a faint aura of bloody evil above his head, clearly indicating he had killed someone recently.