Given Fu Zhi and Zhao Changyu’s prestige, inviting the Prince of Donghai to be matchmaker truly wasn’t difficult.

Zhao Changyu hesitated only briefly before nodding. “Excellent.”

Zhao Hanzhang didn’t particularly like the Prince of Donghai, but seeing that Zhao Changyu had agreed immediately, she didn’t speak up.

Zhao Zhongyu frowned and glanced at Zhao Changyu imperceptibly.

Fu Zhi happily exchanged the eight characters and seals with Zhao Changyu. He wanted to discuss the marriage matters between the two children more deeply, such as the upcoming formal proposal and betrothal gifts, but before he could speak, a servant rushed in and bowed. “Master, the imperial messenger has arrived with an edict.”

Fu Zhi held his words.

Zhao Changyu stood up and said to Zhao Hanzhang, “You’re injured, so there’s no need to receive the edict. Please take our honored guests to Xingzhi Courtyard and entertain them well.”

Zhao Hanzhang stood and acknowledged.

Zhao Changyu said to Fu Zhi, “I apologize for the poor hospitality today.”

Fu Zhi smiled. “Go ahead and attend to it. You and I need not stand on such ceremony.”

Only then did Zhao Changyu call to Zhao Zhongyu. “Come, let’s go receive the edict.”

Wang Shi felt bitter inside and reluctantly followed them out. Zhao Hanzhang patted her hand and gave Qinggu a look, signaling her to watch over Wang Shi.

Zhao Hanzhang watched them leave before turning back to smile at Fu Zhi and Fu Tinghan. “Assistant Minister Fu, please.”

Fu Zhi had been observing her expression all along. Seeing not the slightest change in her face—even her mother couldn’t remain unmoved, yet she showed no emotion whatsoever—he inwardly praised her character.

Fu Zhi was even more satisfied and followed her to Xingzhi Courtyard with a beaming smile.

However, being very considerate, seeing his grandson constantly turning to look at her, once they reached Xingzhi Courtyard, Fu Zhi casually found an excuse. “I remember your family grows Chinese roses. At this time of year, cutting a few branches to arrange in a vase would be quite interesting.”

Zhao Hanzhang led Fu Tinghan to cut flowers.

Fu Zhi stood by the window watching them walk away, stroking his beard with a smile. “Not bad, not bad.”

The steward stood behind him, craning his neck to look. “Zhao Sanniang’s leg has healed?”

Fu Tinghan also looked at her leg.

Zhao Hanzhang said, “Much better. If I walk slowly, you can’t tell. In a couple more days, it should be completely fine.”

“But you came on a sedan chair just now.”

Zhao Hanzhang looked at his head. “Where did the bandage you had yesterday go?”

Fu Tinghan coughed lightly and touched his head, turning his gaze away. After thinking about it, he turned back confidently. “I did this to achieve your goal. If I came injured, would your grandfather have agreed to this marriage?”

Zhao Hanzhang pointed to her own leg with a smile. “This is also for our benefit. With my leg injured, I can get more things. Who knows when we can go back? We need to accumulate resources.”

Fu Tinghan heard this and pondered. “It sounds like your dowry will be substantial, but I don’t seem to have any private property on my side.”

Zhao Hanzhang waved her hand. “This isn’t mine either. In the end, it still needs to be left for the original owner’s mother and brother. We need to earn what we need ourselves, though we can borrow their resources for now.”

Zhao Hanzhang casually pulled over a red Chinese rose branch and snipped it with a click, asking, “Do you want to go to the city gate to see where we landed? I don’t know if space-time travel has specific location requirements. We’ll have to leave Luoyang eventually, so we need to investigate early.”

“Why do we have to leave Luoyang?”

Zhao Hanzhang said, “We have no choice. Luoyang will descend into chaos—it’s not suitable for survival.”

Fu Tinghan knew this was a chaotic era, but he wasn’t very familiar with the history of this period. He asked Zhao Hanzhang, “Warfare? Didn’t the emperor just ascend the throne?”

Zhao Hanzhang said, “You don’t know. In this era, apart from the South which remains relatively stable, in the North, there’s no place that can remain peaceful for long. Luoyang is the capital of the Great Jin, so it’s even more chaotic.”

“That’s why I want to determine whether space-time travel is related to location.”

Fu Tinghan reached out to take the Chinese rose she had cut. “Do you really believe we can go back?”

Zhao Hanzhang looked up at him. The two silently locked eyes for a long while before she pressed her lips together. “We have to try.”

Here, she had no sense of belonging.

Fu Tinghan stared at her fixedly. After a long moment, he nodded. “Alright, I’ll go take a look. But I haven’t researched this much—I can only do my best.”

Zhao Hanzhang reached out her hand to him. “Then we’ve reached an agreement—cooperate to find a way back. Here’s to a pleasant cooperation.”

Fu Tinghan looked down at the hand extended before his eyes, then reached out to grasp it. “Pleasant cooperation.”

Zhao Hanzhang looked at Professor Fu with his downcast eyes and calm expression, puzzled. “Professor Fu, have we met before?”

Fu Tinghan lifted his eyes to look at her. “Of course. We’re from the same university and colleagues. Even if we’re not from the same department, we’d still run into each other. Besides, Teacher Zhao is always at the library.”

Zhao Hanzhang looked at his face. Something seemed to emerge from deep within her memory. She shook her head. “No, that’s not right. That way I should only recognize Professor Fu’s voice. But I feel like I should have seen you too, before I went blind.”

Fu Tinghan looked down at her hand that was still holding on, reminding her, “Teacher Zhao.”

Zhao Hanzhang looked down and saw, quickly withdrawing her hand. “I’m sorry.”

Fu Tinghan smiled at her, wanting to take advantage of this opportunity to skip past the topic.

But Zhao Hanzhang’s curiosity was piqued. She wanted to continue probing, but her ears caught an unusual sound.

Zhao Hanzhang tilted her head to listen, then lowered her head to search on the ground.

Fu Tinghan followed her gaze downward. “Looking for what?”

Zhao Hanzhang said, “A rock.”

Fu Tinghan looked baffled as he dug out a rock about the size of a baby’s fist from under the Chinese rose bush. “It’s a bit small. Will it work?”

Zhao Hanzhang reached out to take it, smiling. “It’s enough.”

She weighed it in her hand. Without seeming to use much force, the stone flew out lightly, tracing a graceful arc through the air before landing with a thud behind a nearby artificial mountain.

Along with this sound came a cry of pain, followed by a series of exclamations.

Fu Tinghan: …

Zhao Hanzhang dusted off her hands and waved to Ting He, who had fallen behind. When she came up, Zhao Hanzhang leaned on her. “Tell them to bring the sedan chair. Say I was frightened and twisted my ankle—injury upon injury. In a moment, we’ll go to the treasury to get some precious medicinal herbs.”

Ting He cheerfully replied “Yes” and tiptoed to look toward the artificial mountain.

No one came out from behind the artificial mountain for a long time. Zhao Hanzhang frowned, about to send servants to check, when a small maid finally emerged from behind it, trembling and kneeling on the ground, not daring to move.

Zhao Hanzhang saw blood stains on her collar but no injury on her person, so she knew the main culprit wasn’t her. Moreover, based on her judgment, the person behind the artificial mountain should be from the second branch.

Zhao Hanzhang stared at her for a moment and asked, “Who else is behind the artificial mountain?”

The little maid stammered, “No, no one else. Only this servant.”

Zhao Hanzhang didn’t make things difficult for her and nodded. “You may go. It rained a few days ago and the rocks on the artificial mountain are loose. Be careful when walking past it—don’t get hit by falling stones again. Otherwise, next time you won’t be so lucky.”

The little maid hadn’t expected Zhao Hanzhang to let her off so easily. She froze for a moment before repeatedly kowtowing. “Yes.”

Chapter 17: Wild Talk

“My grandfather hired Imperial Physician Chen for me, and I think his prescribed medicine is quite good. However, talking is still important. So I’d like to invite Young Master Fu to visit our home. My younger brother isn’t particularly outstanding at other things, but he’s extremely talkative—cheerful and lively. When the time comes, I’ll have him talk with Young Master Fu, walk around and play together. Perhaps he’ll remember things from the past.”

Zhao Hanzhang spoke with complete seriousness, making things up as she went. “The reason I was able to remember my past memories so quickly was because of my younger brother. After I saw him, my memories gradually returned.”

Wang Fourth Miss listened in complete astonishment. You recovered your memory after seeing your brother because he’s YOUR brother!

Fu Changrong and your brother aren’t even close—no wait, they’re so different in age, do they even know each other?

Wait, that’s not right either. Wang Fourth Miss’s eyes widened. “You lost your memory? Then how do you still remember me?”

Zhao Hanzhang said, “Because of Erlang, I recovered some memories, and I just happened to remember Fourth Miss.”

Wang Fourth Miss looked skeptical. Wang Xuan was smiling on the surface, but behind his back, he poked his sister unceremoniously, telling her to talk less when she had nothing useful to say.

Fu Zhi didn’t know whether to believe it or not, but he nodded with a face full of smiles. “Good, good. Then I’ll personally bring Dalang over tomorrow.”

He also needed to have another talk with his old friend about this marriage alliance.

Fu Zhi personally escorted them to the gate with a face full of smiles, watching them leave before turning back to look at his grandson. Seeing that he was still gazing in the direction of the Zhao family carriage, he couldn’t help but smile. “Feeling better now?”

Fu Tinghan withdrew his gaze and looked at Fu Zhi. After a pause, he imitated Fu Changrong’s movements from memory, bowing in greeting, then stepped back two paces and was about to turn to leave.

“Wait,” Fu Zhi called out to him, staring into his eyes. “I assume you already know that our family intends to form a marriage alliance with the Zhao family. I haven’t had a chance to ask if you’re willing. If you’re unwilling, Erlang…”

Fu Tinghan frowned and nodded to Fu Zhi.

Fu Zhi felt somewhat disappointed. “Can’t you speak with your grandfather? The steward told me you talked with Zhao Sanniang for quite a while today.”

Fu Tinghan pressed his lips together. It wasn’t that he couldn’t speak—he was afraid that the moment he spoke, you’d suspect I wasn’t your grandson. Then what should I do—admit it or deny it?

Seeing that Fu Changrong pressed his lips together and remained silent, Fu Zhi sighed. “Very well. When you’re ready, you can speak. You still have injuries. Go back and rest. Tomorrow, get up early—I’ll take you to the Zhao residence.”

He paused and added, “We’ll go early. The Zhao household will likely have some commotion tomorrow. You should stay with Zhao… Zhao Erlang and just play with him. Don’t go to the front courtyard.”

Fu Tinghan raised his eyebrows, nodded to show he understood, and still didn’t speak.

Fu Zhi watched him walk away and sighed. “Is this child resenting me?”

The steward quickly consoled him, “Young Master has always been filial. How could he resent you, Master?”

Fu Tinghan found his way back to his courtyard and sat on the couch in a daze.

The book boy saw that he wasn’t sitting cross-legged but instead letting his legs dangle, and quickly brought a small stool for him to rest his feet on.

Fu Tinghan looked down at it, arranged his robe properly. After more than ten days, he still hadn’t been able to adapt to the lifestyle here, but Teacher Zhao seemed to have adapted very well.

Then again, she had always been like this. No matter how great the difficulty, she could quickly adapt.

Even when the car accident caused her blindness, she only felt dejected for a very short time before pulling herself together, then becoming more diligent, harder working, and more resilient and capable than before.

Thinking of her blindness, Fu Tinghan’s ears turned bright red. He knew that because of her blindness, her hearing had always been very acute. He just didn’t know if this trait had carried over when she changed bodies. She probably… didn’t hear it, right?

Fu Tinghan thought somewhat self-deceptively—after all, he had spoken very quietly at the time.

Sitting in the carriage, Zhao Hanzhang was also wondering: Could it be that Professor Fu knew me before? Or did he hear about it from someone during the arranged meeting?

But that tone didn’t seem like it either.

Zhao Hanzhang tried hard to think but couldn’t remember whether she had known Professor Fu before. Could it be that they met after I went blind?

What a pity—he’s so handsome, and I never got to see him.

However, if she looked like Zhao Sanniang at age fourteen, then Professor Fu when he was young should look similar to Fu Changrong, right?

Zhao Hanzhang came back to herself and suddenly found herself face to face with someone. Startled, she fell backward but managed to catch herself with her hands just in time.

Seeing it was Wang Fourth Miss, Zhao Hanzhang couldn’t help but pat her chest. “What are you doing?”

“What are YOU doing? I’ve been talking to you the entire ride, and you haven’t acknowledged me once. Tell me, who were you just thinking about? Was it Young Master Fu?”

Zhao Hanzhang didn’t deny it. “Yes.”

Wang Fourth Miss looked puzzled. “What’s so good about him? He’s just a bit paler and more handsome. He doesn’t even say a single word, and he injured his head—who knows what his character is like. How can he compare to my brother?”

Zhao Hanzhang asked, “Do you want me to be your sister-in-law that badly?”

Wang Fourth Miss glanced outside, saw her brother riding a horse in front, and leaned close to Zhao Hanzhang’s ear to whisper, “My father wants to seek a marriage for brother with the daughter of the Prince of Donghai.”

Zhao Hanzhang raised her eyebrows. “One emperor, one court of ministers. Your father’s considerations aren’t wrong. With the new emperor’s ascension and the Prince of Donghai wielding great power, among the remaining princes, few can rival the Prince of Donghai.”

But they forgot that beyond the Great Jin, there were the Xiongnu, and countless refugees. The Great Jin was beset by troubles both internal and external. Unless all these parasites above died off, revival would be very difficult.

The Prince of Donghai’s power wouldn’t last long either.

Wang Fourth Miss slumped her shoulders. “Even you say so. I just feel so unfair for my brother. Someone of my brother’s caliber deserves only someone like you.”

Fu Zhi was also telling his steward, “I’d only heard before that Zhao Changyu’s granddaughter was intelligent, resilient, and virtuous. Today, upon meeting her, I didn’t see much virtue, but she is indeed very intelligent and resilient, and quite bold. If we could win her as the mistress of our household, the Fu family wouldn’t need to worry for three generations.”

The steward immediately said, “Master has excellent judgment. This servant saw that Young Master was also very pleased. We were quite far away at the time, so this servant couldn’t hear what they were saying, but they seemed to be conversing very happily and stood quite close to each other.”

Fu Zhi was somewhat puzzled. “Were they very familiar before? Dalang went to Chang’an five years ago. He was only just over ten then, and Zhao Sanniang was only nine. They shouldn’t have had a very deep personal relationship.”

“Perhaps it was love at first sight,” the steward said with a beaming smile. “When Zhao Sanniang and Young Master first met, their gazes fixed on each other’s faces and didn’t move. Master, if you had been there, you would have known how taken they were with each other.”

Fu Zhi stroked his beard, thinking that tomorrow’s mission would very likely succeed. He quickly said to the steward, “Go open the treasury and prepare generous gifts. Select more valuable items like gold and silver ornaments for Zhao Sanniang. And,” he gritted his teeth, “find ‘The Lecture Diagram’ and put it in a fine box to bring tomorrow.”

That was a painting from the Han dynasty that Fu Zhi treasured greatly.

The steward understood and bowed in acknowledgment.

—