Word Number：241 Author：一曲雨霖铃 Translator： Release Time：2025-09-06

　　Said:　　By the bedside the roof leaks with not a dry patch; the rain falls like hemp fibers, never ceasing.　　Since the chaos I have had little sleep; long nights soak me through — how can they ever clear?　　After the Emperor’s passing, everyone followed his orders and soon returned to the capital Chang’an to inter him at Qianling. When those affairs were done, the Empress summoned Wu Chengsi and said, “The late sovereign has gone; the enthronement of the new ruler cannot be delayed. I have thought this through — among the court there are a few steady men; you are one of them. Arrange the accession ceremonies with the Ministry of Rites.” Wu Chengsi bowed to accept the mandate: “I will not disgrace the charge.” With that he set about preparing the enthronement.　　Wu Chengsi—courtesy name Fengxian, from Wenshui in Bingzhou (today’s Wenshui County, Shanxi)—was the Empress’s nephew and eager to make his mark. After Helan Minzhi’s death he had been recalled from Lingnan by the Empress, granted posts in the Palace Secretariat and later promoted to Director of the Secretariat; he inherited the ducal title of Zhou Guogong from his grandfather Wu Shixun.　　Two days later the ritual preparations were complete, but the auspicious date could not be forced; such matters depended on fate and the diviners of the Three Purities Hall. When Wu Chengsi grew impatient he hurried to the Three Purities