Funeral Music Band

"Then let's go."

Since Griseo had said she wanted to go, Nangong, as the captain, made the decision on the spot.

Besides, they had come to Weifei Land to gather inspiration. Folk music was music too, wasn't it?

And it was the most authentic kind!

They could even experience it firsthand. Why not?

Sunna hesitated. "But, Nangong... can we really do this? We don't know how to use any of these instruments, do we?"

"What do you mean? I can! Aria's database should have the information too. We can learn as soon as we pick them up."

Nangong looked at Sunna with clear schadenfreude. "Don't tell me Sunna's the only one who can't..."

"Hey, little Sunna, what's the big deal?"

Yuzuha threw an arm around Sunna and immediately chimed in, her tone full of matter-of-fact confidence.

"For Celebratory Mourning and funeral music, the main thing over here is having lots of people and making it lively! And you're idols. You'll get the hang of these instruments after practicing a little."

"Erhu, suona, cymbals, gongs, drums... To make it more elegant, add a guzheng and a flute. That makes exactly six people."

Yuzuha counted heads on her fingers, muttering under her breath.

Watching Yuzuha get more and more fired up, Mato could only take a deep breath and give the others a look that said, Sorry, she's just like this.

Once they had decided to do it together, Yuzuha rushed over to the pile of instruments and started pulling them out one by one.

"I'll take the hardest one—the suona! Nangong, you play the erhu. Mato, you're strong, so the gong and drums are all yours."

"Little Sunna, cymbals are easy. Here! Don't know how? It's fine. As long as they make noise, that's enough. Hit them hard when it's time to hit them. Trust your musical instincts!"

"Aria, you're an intelligent construct, so pick either the pipa or the flute. Hum a few lines while you're at it, and send the old man off with a blessing or something."

Yuzuha finally looked at Griseo and tilted her head. "Little Griseo, what can you play?"

Nangong spoke up. "Other than painting, Griseo is like me—she can play pretty much every musical instrument."

Yuzuha nodded. "That works. Then you can draw something for the family—???"

Yuzuha froze. When she came back to herself, her eyes widened. "Wait... what do you mean, 'pretty much every one'?"

Her face was full of disbelief, mixed with an accusation that Nangong had used that conjunction far too well.

Was your language teacher a gym teacher or something?

Griseo seriously looked around, then pointed to a xiao among the remaining instruments.

"Alright, then it's settled?"

Yuzuha held out her hand, palm down. Nangong was the first to place her hand on top. "Settled!"

Sunna and Aria exchanged a glance and stacked their hands on top as well. "Mm, settled!"

Mato sighed, but ultimately placed her hand on the pile. "Just don't mess it up."

Finally, Griseo stretched out her small hand and gently laid it on top.

Yuzuha grinned, abruptly threw her hand upward, and declared, ""Let's go—the Funeral Music Band!"

The group set off in grand fashion.

Yuzuha walked at the front with the suona slung diagonally over her shoulder, while Mato followed behind carrying the gong and drums.

Nangong held the erhu and walked behind Yuzuha with Griseo. As for Sunna and Aria, the two were squeezed together, their expressions rather complicated—both nervous and excited.

Sunna couldn't help asking, "Um, Yuzuha, are we just going over like this? Shouldn't we rehearse first?"

"No rehearsal needed! If it's rehearsed, that's called a performance. If it's improvised on the spot, that's called sincerity! The old man's watching from up above. As long as the sentiment is there, that's enough!"

"...There seems to be something wrong with that logic," Aria muttered softly.

"Come on, trust me!" Yuzuha turned back and gave a thumbs-up. "Mato and I have performed so many times. Nothing has ever gone wrong!"

"That's because even if something did go wrong, no one would be in the mood to settle scores with you..."

Mato said gloomily. Who in their right mind would go looking for trouble at a funeral or wedding?

The address Songxi had given them was deep within Chenghui Plateau's old district, a small two-story building with a courtyard.

A canopy had already been set up in the courtyard. Several round tables were scattered beneath it, with friends and relatives sitting around in small groups chatting. The old man's portrait sat on an offering table in the center.

Songxi came out to greet them from the courtyard, already changed into dark red clothing accented with touches of yellow.

"Miss Yuzuha, we've finally been waiting for you!"

"Of course!" Yuzuha hoisted the suona onto her shoulder. "Leave the old man's send-off to me!"

"Good. I can rest easy with Miss Yuzuha handling it. The old man loved a lively occasion when he was alive. He'll definitely be happy to see you all here."

Songxi then led them into the courtyard. Griseo followed among the group, quietly observing.

She saw the colors on the family members—warm orange-yellow and soft grass green, like an autumn field, carrying the steadiness and satisfaction that came after a harvest.

"Big Sister Yuzuha, why isn't there even a trace of sorrowful gray on them?"

Griseo suddenly asked.

Yuzuha, who still did not understand Griseo, looked thoughtfully at the little girl. Though puzzled, her instincts still led her to give Griseo the answer she wanted.

"Little Griseo, where we come from, Celebratory Mourning is a positive attitude toward life. It respects death, while also emphasizing the value of a life brought to completion."

"And the colors on Songxi and the other relatives don't merely signify the family's recognition of the blessings received by the deceased. They also represent the deceased's protection over their descendants."

"It's precisely because death is usually accompanied by sorrow that a 'Celebratory Mourning,' where the deceased leaves without regrets, is especially precious."

"I see!"

After hearing Yuzuha's answer, Griseo asked no further questions and silently absorbed her words.

Death was not always sorrowful gray. When a life came to a fulfilled end, it took on the golden hue of an autumn harvest.

When life had been rich enough, farewell could also be a warm celebration.

When the performance was about to begin, Yuzuha gathered everyone in a corner of the courtyard for an impromptu meeting.

"Alright, everyone, we're about to go on. Our program is simple. The first piece is 'Hundreds of Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix,' a classic must-have! Starting with the second, improvise according to the atmosphere."

"Improvising is a little too..." Sunna wanted to say unreliable, but seeing Yuzuha's perfectly natural expression, she forcibly swallowed the words.

Yuzuha lowered her voice, and her expression became unusually serious.

"Celebratory Mourning isn't mourning at a funeral. We're giving the old man our blessings. The old man was ninety-two, free of illness and disaster, with children and grandchildren all around him. That's a blessing! What we need to do is blow out that blessing, beat it out, and play it out!"

As Yuzuha said this, Mato beside her was unusually serious as well. Though the two often bickered, they were still good partners when it came to serious matters.

Yuzuha clapped her hands. "Partners, take your places—"

Once the meeting was over, the people in the courtyard gradually fell silent, their gazes gathering on the temporary stage.

Yuzuha stood at the front in the center position, suona in hand, as though the world belonged to her.

Nangong sat to her right with the erhu resting across her knees. Sunna and Aria stood to the left, Mato stood at the back, and Griseo sat at the side of the stage with the xiao laid across her lap.

Yuzuha took a deep breath, then suddenly began to speak. Her voice carried a sense of solemnity as it rang through the hall.

"To the local earth god of this land, and to wandering spirits from every direction... May the departed rest in peace... We respectfully present these rites, that the phoenix may return to its nest—!"

Yuzuha's lengthy eulogy rang out with force. The instant its final note fell, the suona, gongs, and drums behind her sounded, immediately falling into rhythm!

Suona, sheng, gongs, drums, and wooden clappers all sounded together, the waves of noise rising ever higher, nearly blowing the roof off the hall.

When the performance finally ended, Yuzuha left behind a dashing doggerel verse—

Deaf to all affairs beyond the coffin, All I care for is dancing in the underworld.

Party all the way to the King of Hell's court, Never again longing for the mortal world.

Dear readers, you really are ruthless. You said there'd be bonus chapters for reviews, so you really went all out writing them.

Three updates for today first. This chapter counts as the bonus for reaching seventy-eight reviews, even though it's only at seventy-six right now. But I can afford to play along—whether it reaches eighty-eight or ninety-eight tomorrow, there'll still be more bonus chapters.

Lastly, I'm still writing away, so please send some free little gifts.