Proper Burial of the Emperor

Lu Zhe carefully swept up all the ashes and placed them into a plastic bag.

Then he washed the stone clean.

This had to be taken to the Panjiayuan Antique Market, as it was a national treasure-level antique vessel.

Sending it to a museum would also have some research value.

But there was no choice, it had to be destroyed!

Who would keep records of a few corpses lying around in their home?

No matter how precious, it was too much!

For Lu Zhe now, being able to live peacefully with the girls on the island was more important than anything else.

At most, he would help preserve the jade seal and silver items, allowing them to showcase their value again after being submerged for a few hundred years.

But what about this pile of ashes?

They were the remains of emperors, empresses, and eunuchs, so they had to be properly buried.

Should he dig a grave, erect a tombstone, and set up some traps?

Doing all that wouldn't be difficult, but he would have to conduct ceremonial rites on the 1st and 15th of every month, or it wouldn't feel right.

And having a tombstone for the dead in his own home would make it hard to sleep at night.

Years later, if the remains were discovered by an exploration team, what if they found that a descendant of Zhu Di was among them? Wouldn't that cause trouble for him again?

Was there an easy way that was also dignified and didn't take up space on the small island?

Lu Zhe listened to the distant sound of the waves and suddenly had an idea.

"Don't worry, Your Majesty! I will find the highest form of burial for you in the modern way!!"

Jiang Yao asked, "Hey Lu Zhe, what burial method are you planning?"

Lu Zhe looked at her: "A sea burial!"

Jiang Yao was taken aback: "Are you sure he would like that?"

Lu Zhe nodded: "It's mainly what I would prefer! Come with me, we should give the emperor a proper ceremony!"

Jiang Yao nodded: "Alright!"

Ning Shu said, "Wait for me, I'll write a prayer."

"Hurry up then!"

Then, the two of them carried the plastic bag to the sea, tying a rock to it.

Before the burial, they would read Ning Shu's prayer.

Lu Zhe cleared his throat:

"From now on, the mountain peaks will be your tombstones, and the ocean will be your grave.

From now on, the fish will keep you company, and the seabirds will sing for you.

From now on, you will become one with the sea, drifting and undulating, with the four seas as your home.

From now on, no one will be able to find you, including the descendants of the Zhengde Emperor of the Ming Dynasty!

Rest in peace, Emperor of the Ming Dynasty!

Rest in peace, poor child!"

Lu Zhe flipped through it, confirming there was no writing on both sides, and muttered, "What kind of nonsense is this?"

"Hey, stop complaining and get on with it!"

"Yes, rest in peace, Your Majesty!"

Then, Lu Zhe threw the bag of ashes into the sea thirty meters away!

Pulled by the rock, the plastic bag fell into the water, and its contents scattered, quickly becoming one with the vast ocean.

Having properly buried Zhu Di, Lu Zhe felt the oppressive feeling in his chest instantly disappear, and he suddenly felt refreshed.

Jiang Yao also let out a sigh of relief: "Finally at peace."

"Grab some supplies and cut some alligator meat, let's go back and have a barbecue!"

"Sure, I'm getting hungry just thinking about it."

The two fetched some supplies from the camp, then headed for the cave entrance.

The Malayan sun bear was lying on the ground, snoring away.

At this time, Shen Bing carefully used a cloth and water to clean the jade seal.

The jade seal was a deep green-black color, very old, but even someone who didn't know antiques could tell at a glance that this was no ordinary object.

After carefully examining it, she finally confirmed the sixteen characters engraved on it: "With a clear mandate and virtuous conduct, demonstrating righteousness to the world, maintaining focus on the essential, eternal prosperity for the universe!"

Shen Bing nodded: "If this were handed over to the state, it would undoubtedly be a national treasure no less significant than the Simuwu Ding, enough to shake the world!"

Ning Shu sighed: "But if those 'national treasure' experts were to authenticate it, they might just say it's a fake, then have someone buy it for a hundred thousand or so."

Lin Qianqian was surprised: "There are schemes like that?"

"You have no idea how deep the waters of the antique business run!"

Tang Xiaoguo was worried: "So what are we going to do with this thing?"

Lu Zhe pondered: "A national treasure like this would cause a huge commotion if it surfaced, no matter if it's real or not! Whoever brings it out would be plagued with troubles."

Jiang Yao said, "There would be all sorts of exploration teams visiting, historians making inquiries, and who knows what other related government agencies asking questions. Under the national spotlight like that, it would be hard to keep these treasures hidden."

Tang Xiaoguo asked, "So Lu Zhe, what are you planning to do?"

Lu Zhe thought for a moment: "Even if we go back, I hope no one mentions this. It would cause a huge mess!"

"But we can't just keep it either!"

"For now, we can only preserve it and wait until our children grow up. By then, this island will no longer be under scrutiny, and we can figure out what to do with it."

The girls looked at each other, all agreeing that Lu Zhe made a fair point.

Tang Xiaoguo blushed, her mind fixated on what Lu Zhe had said about "our children..."

With the emperor and his family properly buried, the ominous aura that had lingered in this deep cave completely disappeared.

Lu Zhe felt that this was likely just a psychological effect.

Further discussing this wouldn't be very useful, it was better to eat!

Chopping firewood, starting a fire, setting up a simple stove - the four girls were now quite skilled at these tasks, greatly reducing Lu Zhe's burden.

Lu Zhe used an axe to chop up the alligator meat, then threaded it onto bamboo skewers to roast over the fire, sprinkling salt and chili flakes as it cooked.

The remaining meat and alligator bones were boiled in a steel helmet with lemongrass, folded citrus peel, and small mushrooms to make a hot soup.

After the main course, they boiled water in a rice cooker, adding honey and lemon leaves to make a beverage.

Having eaten their fill, they leaned against the rocks, sipping tea, sunbathing, and playing Monopoly - the ultimate relaxation.

But then, dark clouds gathered again, casting shadows, and the rain grew heavier.

The moisture in the air made it feel suffocating at the cave entrance.

"When will this ever end?"

"A month of drought, followed by another month of rain, even immortals would be tormented to death."

Lu Zhe sighed: "No matter what, we need to prepare for this rain to last another month."

"If it really does last a month, that would be too cruel."

"That's nothing, there's a small island in Hawaii where it rains more than 300 days a year."

"Ah?" Jiang Yao frowned, seeming to remember something: "But what about our experimental crops? Constant watering would kill them!"

Lu Zhe sighed: "I placed broad leaves over the protective netting above the orchards, so the wind and rain won't affect them, they should survive the rainy season."

"What about the plants in the trash cans?"

"There's no time to care for them, the soil should keep them alive for two or three days, we can replant them after the rain stops."

"And the stone house?"

"It's two-thirds complete, but to fit all our supplies we need to work on the stone cave for a few more days. But not right now!"

Shen Bing nodded: "It's a pity we don't have much electricity left."

"Should we catch alligators?"

Lu Zhe shook his head: "No number of alligators would be enough!"

"Then what should we do?"

Lu Zhe pondered: "We'll have to build a real generator."