Funeral of Law

Not long after Ren Tingting departed from Qiusheng's side, the entire procession soon came to a halt.

As it turned out, just as Ren Wei had said, they had truly arrived at the location in no time.

Once they reached the site, Uncle Nine smoothly took over the direction from Master Ren and began instructing everyone to prepare for the exhumation.

Qiusheng and Wencai began assisting their master, first setting up the incense altar and ritual platform.

Exhuming a coffin is a major undertaking; the preliminary preparations must be flawless. Otherwise, if the corpse inside were disturbed and rose as a jiangshi, it would be no laughing matter.

Once the incense altar was set up, everyone present followed Uncle Nine's instructions and offered a stick of incense to Old Master Ren.

"Everyone, remember: when you offer the incense, you must be sincere and respectful."

After Uncle Nine finished speaking, he was the first to hold the incense and bow, then stood to the side to watch as everyone else paid their respects one by one.

Soon, everyone present had finished offering their incense.

Among the crowd, Qiusheng spotted an uninvited guest.

It was none other than Four Eyes, the martial uncle who had been on bad terms with his master these past few days; he had actually followed the main group here in secret.

Seeing his martial uncle, Qiusheng naturally couldn't pretend he hadn't noticed.

He approached his martial uncle with a smile and said, "Martial Uncle, why did you come here?"

"Heh, I've been eating and drinking for free at your Public Mortuary for a while now, so naturally, I had to tag along to see if there's anything I can help with while you're working."

Hearing his martial uncle's words, Qiusheng just grinned silently, then returned to his master's side and whispered, "Master, Martial Uncle is here too."

"I know. I saw him just now. No need to pay him any mind."

Uncle Nine shot a sidelong glance at his junior brother before speaking directly to Qiusheng.

"Uncle Nine, the feng shui master back then said this grave site was hard to find—that it's a good grave."

While Qiusheng and Uncle Nine were whispering, Master Ren, accompanied by Ren Wei and Ren Tingting, walked over to Uncle Nine and spoke.

"Indeed, this grave is truly a fine one. It is called the Dragonfly Skimming Water Grave."

"The grave is thirty-four feet long, but only four feet are usable. It is thirteen feet wide, but only three feet are of any use."

"Therefore, the coffin cannot be buried horizontally; it must be buried using the Dharma Burial method."

Hearing Master Ren bring up the Dragonfly Skimming Water Grave, Uncle Nine sensed he was being tested, so he immediately and somewhat ostentatiously recounted the origins of the tomb.

As soon as he finished speaking, Master Ren gave him a thumbs-up in sincere admiration.

"Excellent, Uncle Nine! You are truly remarkable. What you said is exactly the same as what that feng shui master said back then."

"Master, what is a 'Dharma Burial'?"

Wencai, who had been following Uncle Nine, suddenly asked, then answered his own question.

"Is it a French-style funeral called a Dharma Burial?"

The moment Wencai finished speaking, he received a sharp glare from Uncle Nine.

"Hmph, hold your tongue. If you're ignorant, don't talk nonsense."

That single sentence left Wencai standing there, unable to catch his breath for a long while, and after saying it, Uncle Nine walked away on his own.

"Uncle Nine, the rites are finished. Can we break ground and exhume the coffin now?"

Just as Uncle Nine was observing the grave site, a group of young men suddenly approached him to ask.

"You may. Be careful."

"Understood, Uncle Nine! Brothers, let's get to work!"

Having received Uncle Nine's permission, the group of young men rushed toward Old Master Ren's grave like wolves, kicked the tombstone, and began their violent demolition!

Master Ren, Ren Tingting, and Uncle Nine stood not far away, watching the young men's actions.

It was at this moment that Ren Wei, who had been standing to Master Ren's right, suddenly squeezed in beside Qiusheng, separating him from Ren Tingting.

Qiusheng didn't think much of Ren Wei's move and just shifted slightly to let him squeeze in, but Uncle Nine, who had been standing to the side, couldn't stand for it.

Uncle Nine bumped his body against Ren Wei, sending him stumbling to the side.

Ren Tingting, having returned to Qiusheng's side, naturally tugged on his sleeve and asked in a low voice, "Brother Sheng, what exactly did Uncle Nine mean by 'Dharma Burial' just now?"

Seeing Ren Tingting's curious expression, Qiusheng exchanged a look with his master.

Seeing the confident look in his eldest disciple's eyes, Uncle Nine nodded slightly, signaling that he was yielding this chance to shine to him.

Seeing his master nod, Qiusheng gave a slight nod of his own and began to speak.

"The so-called Dharma Burial means to bury the coffin vertically in the grave. Master Ren, I wonder if I am correct?"

Qiusheng, smiling brightly, led Ren Tingting over to Master Ren and spoke softly.

"That's right. The geomancer who chose the site for my late father once said that if the ancestor is buried vertically, the descendants will surely prosper."

Master Ren listened to Qiusheng's reply, a look of appreciation appearing in his eyes as he spoke.

"So, did it actually work?"

Uncle Nine was also satisfied with Qiusheng's answer. After Master Ren confirmed it, he asked this question.

Unexpectedly, the moment Uncle Nine finished asking, Master Ren replied with a bitter smile on his face.

"Alas, for these past twenty years, the Ren family business has been going from bad to worse. I have no idea why."

"I suspect that geomancer held a grudge against your family."

Watching Master Ren's confused and clueless expression, Uncle Nine couldn't help but offer a hint.

"A grudge?"

Upon hearing Uncle Nine's question, Master Ren appeared very puzzled.

"Yes. Tell me, did Old Master Ren have any conflict with that geomancer while he was alive?"

Listening to Uncle Nine's inquiry, Master Ren avoided a direct answer and spoke slowly instead.

"This plot of land was originally scouted by that geomancer, intended for his own use after he passed away."

"However, my late father found out about it, so he paid a large sum of money to buy the land."

Hearing Master Ren's words, a strange expression appeared on Uncle Nine's face as he continued.

"Just bribery? No other methods were used?"

As soon as Uncle Nine said this, Master Ren's face was filled with embarrassment. He didn't speak, only offering a constant, bitter smile.

"Oh, looking at it that way, it must have been coercion then."

"That explains it. No wonder that geomancer would want to harm the Ren family."

"He even told you to cover the entire Dragonfly Skimming Water Grave with cement."

Uncle Nine pointed at the grave, shaking his head gently.