A few days later.
The memorial service for the Old Dragon King was held at the Babao Mountain Funeral Home.
Although the Old Dragon King's will expressed that the funeral should be kept simple and not wastefully extravagant…
but given the Old Dragon King's status as the Tiance True Dragon of the Dragon King Hall, his passing could not merely be arranged simply following Su Zijin's wishes, in accordance with the Old Dragon King's instructions.
The main hall of the funeral home was now swarming with people, teeming to the point of overflowing, all of them dusty and travel-worn, having come from all over the country—peers and descendants of the Old Dragon King, as well as former subordinates and their children.
These people had hardly ever seen the Old Dragon King's face while he was alive, yet now, without exception, they all arrived in the Capital City bearing faces full of sorrow.
Some came with the intention of networking, while others were genuinely heartbroken, mourning the loss of such a hero to the nation.
In the hall, before the black cloth, there was a portrait of the Old Dragon King. He was dressed in green military uniform, his expression stern and commanding, and his eyes shining with a fierce light. Even through the photograph, the mourners dared not gaze upon it too boldly.
Those with a guilty conscience, upon meeting his gaze, suddenly felt ashamed as if they had desecrated the spirit of the departed and quickly averted their eyes, feeling much relief thereafter.
The memorial service had just begun when a senior military official took the stage. He first bowed deeply to the black nanmu coffin at the center of the hall, then picked up the microphone and began to read the eulogy in a somber tone. He started by thanking the leaders, guests, friends, and so forth, then went on to praise the Old Dragon King's life, his battle achievements, his merits, his contributions…
Among those who attended the Old Dragon King's ceremony, aside from the elderly officials who had once been acquainted with him, most of the rest were unaware of the Old Dragon King's impressive feats and were therefore deeply moved and astounded upon hearing them.
As the senior official finished his eulogy, he stepped down and shook hands with Su Zijin, who stood aside in a black suit, uttering a few words of comfort before leaving. He then cast a curious glance at the three young women standing next to Su Zijin and, after offering them some comforting words as well, departed.
These three young women were naturally Gu Xiyan, Mei Yinxue, and Wen Rou who had clearly established their relationships with Mu Jinyu.
They attended the memoriam as granddaughters-in-law.
After all, for such a large Su Family, to only have Su Zijin as a female relative to thank the guests coming to offer condolences, was indeed a bit of a loss of face…
But having a few more people, although not many, at least proved that their Su Family was not just left with Su Zijin as the sole survivor; they were still quite prosperous and could continue to grow and thrive, with a full and lively house of descendants!
With the departure of that senior official, the memorial service officially began. The visiting guests lined up in turn to bow gently to the Old Dragon King lying in the coffin, saying a few words of comfort before turning to leave.
Allowing the next in line to come forward to pay their respects.
Su Zijin, time and time again, tirelessly greeted the stream of mourners, her eyes sad yet strong as she occasionally turned to look at the door with a hint of hope.
Since the day Mu Jinyu learned of the Old Dragon King's death at the Su Family Old House and, as if overwhelmed by the shock, had run out of the courtyard, she had lost all news of him.
Even though Su Zijin had called Gu Xiyan and the others to the Capital City for the Old Dragon King's funeral, they hadn't seen Mu Jinyu make an appearance.
And after learning of the death of Mu Jinyu's grandfather, Gu Xiyan and the others, following their initial shock, had wanted to contact Mu Jinyu to offer consolation but were unable to reach him no matter what.
He seemed to have vanished from the face of the earth.
Which made them very worried.
Su Zijin did not know whether he would appear at today's memorial service, and if he didn't show up in the end, although she wouldn't blame him, she would inevitably feel very disappointed.
Although Mu Jinyu was the grandson of the Su Family by marriage, in the eyes of the Old Dragon King, he was just like a biological grandson, as he had no sons or grandsons of his own.
Moreover, the Old Dragon King was not someone who placed much importance on surname inheritance; if he did, he would not have had just one daughter, Su Zijin, and even after failing to find Mu Jinyu, he still allowed Su Zijin to remain unmarried without seeking to spread the family lineage for the Su Family.
Therefore, in his heart, the Old Dragon King regarded Mu Jinyu as his own grandson, and he chose Mu Jinyu to succeed the Tiance True Dragon not just because he was his grandson by marriage.
It was only after learning about Mu Jinyu's whereabouts that he carefully investigated his character, integrity, as well as his strengths before deciding on this act of promoting the capable over kin.
He felt that compared to the Seven Great Hall Masters of the Dragon King Hall, Mu Jinyu was the most suitable candidate to succeed as the leader of the Dragon King Hall.
So Su Zijin felt that if Mu Jinyu did not come today to see the Old Dragon King off on his last journey, his old man's spirit in heaven would definitely be sad.
In his lifetime, he had never heard Mu Jinyu call him "Grandfather," and now after his death, Mu Jinyu not even coming to send him off on his last journey would indeed be heartbreaking.
Gu Xiyan and Mei Yinxue also looked towards the door from time to time, hoping to see Mu Jinyu appear with expectant gazes.
They believed that Mu Jinyu was not a person who held grudges, nor was he heartless, and that he would surely come for his great-grandfather's funeral affairs.
It was just that he was delayed by some matter at the moment.
...
Outside Babao Mountain Funeral Home, a group of young men dressed in black suits were walking out, their faces no longer solemn from attending the mourning ceremony, but now with smiles that bordered on irreverence.
"Wow, I really didn't expect that. They say Su Zijin is over forty years old, but she looks so young and beautiful. Plus, her three daughters-in-law, each one is just as gorgeous. If only I could get close to them!"
"Yeah, it's like the modern-day Yang Family generals. If I could pluck all four of those flowers, I would have wealth, beauty, and power. I could practically stride across all of Shenzhou."
Indeed, if someone now could marry Su Zijin, or become a son-in-law of the Su Family, it could almost be said that they would ascend to the heavens and become a person above others.
Although the status of the Su Family had drastically declined after the death of the Old Dragon King, the contributions he made throughout his life to Huaxia were so great. His subordinates and students were spread all over, and if the Su Family encountered any issues, almost everyone would give them face.
But...
Who could possibly marry Su Zijin?
After being widowed for more than a decade, she didn't even consider Shen Cangsheng of the Shen Family; how could an ordinary person catch her eye?!
So, these Great Young Masters of the Capital were actually just boasting, simply indulging in their fantasies.
They roamed wantonly through Capital City, and after meeting the wives and ladies of the various great families, they would often boast in the same way behind their backs. After all, it was harmless, and even if others knew, they wouldn't take offense over such trifles.
But today...
A young man with a sullen expression was walking towards them and then he reached out his hand!
"Smack!"
He delivered them a harsh slap, even knocking out several of their teeth!