Gou Xi sneered, “This is all thanks to your subordinate Zhao Ju. If not for him blocking the road, I might have fought alongside General Zhao and taken Wang Mi’s head together.”

“General Gou must be mistaken. I sent Zhao Ju to patrol the commanderies to suppress bandits. How could he block General Gou?” Zhao Hanzhang turned with a smile, “However, this might be heaven’s will. Heaven’s will had me enter Luoyang first, heaven’s will had me rescue the Emperor, and it was heaven’s will that had me kill Wang Mi.”

Zhao Hanzhang’s boasting made Gou Xi’s anger flare again, but he suppressed it and sneered, “Indeed it’s heaven’s will. Congratulations to General Zhao on establishing such tremendous merit. I just wonder whose side heaven’s will will favor next.”

Fu Zhi rode between the two, listening to their verbal sparring, sitting stable as Mount Tai, though his heart kept sinking.

Previously the Prince of Donghai and Gou Xi were at odds, and Gou Xi was upright and loyal to the sovereign. He had thought that with the Prince of Donghai’s death, the situation would improve. But now it had become Gou Xi and Zhao Hanzhang at odds.

Alas~~

Fu Zhi sighed deeply, both for himself and feeling sad for His Majesty. In such chaos, who knew when stability would come.

Zhao Hanzhang and Gou Xi arrived at the palace gates together, not entirely harmoniously. The ten thousand troops Gou Xi brought filled half the street, but when Gou Xi and Gou Chun looked around, they saw soldiers gradually standing up from the main street’s side alleys, all wearing Zhao family army and Yuzhou army armor.

One side of the main street’s buildings had almost all been burned down, making it even clearer to see. Some soldiers still held bowls in their hands, not in formation, just casually watching them, yet they felt a murderous intent.

Zhao Hanzhang’s expression darkened as she shouted, “What is this? Do you think you’re at home celebrating New Year, taking this long to eat a meal?”

Hearing this, Xun Xiu immediately bellowed, “Form ranks—”

The soldiers immediately handed off their bowls and assembled in units of ten, forming ranks in the streets and alleys in just a dozen breaths, all solemnly staring at Zhao Hanzhang.

Zhao Erlang had snuck back after Zhang Tao led his troops away. Finding his sister and the others moving slowly, he was in the middle of his meal when he heard the shout. For a moment, he didn’t know whether to stuff the bowl in his chest or strap it to his back. He could only grab the rice, ball it up, and stuff it in his chest, then cover it with the bowl before quickly running to the front of the army.

There was no help for it—he was a general now and had to stand at the front.

His cheeks were bulging on both sides, full of rice he’d just stuffed in and hadn’t had time to chew or swallow.

His position happened to be directly across from Zhao Hanzhang and Fu Tinghan.

Zhao Hanzhang saw him like this and immediately looked away, not wanting to watch.

Fu Tinghan thought he looked like a rabbit and couldn’t help smiling. Seeing him standing stiffly with innocent eyes staring, Fu Tinghan said to Zhao Hanzhang, “Hurry and enter the palace. The Emperor is still waiting.”

Only then did Zhao Hanzhang turn to Gou Xi, “General Gou, please.”

Fu Zhi said, “Neither of you may bring troops into the palace, and you must remove your weapons before entering the great hall.”

Gou Chun felt these demands were excessive. These ministers were clearly using a feather as an arrow of authority. He was about to speak when he saw Zhao Hanzhang had already tossed her long spear to Zeng Yue, then said with a half-smile to Gou Xi, “The last person who didn’t follow this order was Wang Mi. Then he died.”

Gou Xi then removed his weapons and strictly ordered Gou Chun to remove his sword.

Gou Chun glanced at Zhao Hanzhang and Fu Zhi, his face dark as he removed his sword. He felt Zhao Hanzhang was doing this to help Fu Zhi.

Entering the imperial palace, someone had long since reported to the Emperor and ministers.

The Emperor personally led the ministers to stand at the great hall entrance to welcome them. Zhao Hanzhang looked up at the Emperor standing high on the steps, her lips curving slightly as she stepped forward to follow Fu Zhi and Gou Xi.

When she had previously entered the great hall, the Emperor hadn’t come to welcome her. When she and Wang Mi went to the Ministry of Works to see the Emperor, he had sat comfortably in the seat of honor.

It seemed this Emperor truly trusted and valued Gou Xi. But did he know that the current Gou Xi was no longer the upright, incorruptible, frugal, and loyal Gou Xi of the past?

The Emperor, seeing Gou Xi again after so many years, couldn’t help but have tears in his eyes.

The last time they met, Emperor Hui was still alive, and the current emperor was just a trembling crown prince. No one thought he could safely ascend to the throne—the Emperor himself didn’t think so.

Among hundreds of court ministers, few could earn the Emperor’s trust. Fu Zhi was one, and aside from Fu Zhi, there was Gou Xi.

But Fu Zhi could only manage internal affairs, with no troops or power. Everything he planned required painstaking effort. He had always wanted a powerful minister like Gou Xi whom he could trust by his side for support.

Unfortunately, he had been controlled by the Prince of Donghai, only getting this opportunity today.

Seeing the Emperor, Gou Xi was also moved. He swept his robe aside to kneel, but the Emperor quickly stepped forward to support him. Gou Xi stubbornly knelt to the ground, “Your Majesty, this subject arrived late to rescue you. Please punish me!”

“Beloved minister, rise quickly. I know you did your utmost. How could I blame you?” The Emperor, deeply moved, pulled Gou Xi up and asked, “I heard there are still thirty thousand of Wang Mi’s troops outside.”

Gou Xi said, “They have already withdrawn.”

The Emperor breathed a great sigh of relief, gripping his hand. “The beloved minister is still formidable. You have merit in repelling the enemy. I…”

“Your Majesty,” Gou Xi quickly explained, “Wang Mi’s great army withdrew due to a stratagem by General Zhao.”

The Emperor paused before immediately looking at Zhao Hanzhang, also full of smiles. “Minister Zhao is indeed unmatched in wisdom and strategy.”

Zhao Hanzhang smiled and accepted this praise.

“Then is Luoyang’s crisis completely resolved?” The Emperor said joyfully, “Then today we must hold a feast to celebrate, and let all the ministers meet Minister Zhao and Beloved Minister Gou.”

Both smiled and agreed.

Though called a feast, it was actually much like a court assembly, with many matters to discuss—such as rewarding Zhao Hanzhang and the generals, and the matter of relocating the capital.

There were people in the palace, just little food, but Empress Liang still used all her abilities, leading the palace staff to prepare a reasonably acceptable banquet.

Both the Emperor and Empress attended in full regalia. The first seats below them were for Zhao Hanzhang and Gou Xi—but who should sit on the left?

Over this matter, avoiding Zhao Hanzhang and Gou Xi, the court ministers argued in the rear hall for a full two hours.

Even Zhao Hanzhang, who had returned to the Zhao residence to wash and change clothes, heard about it.

Officials led by Zhao Zhongyu naturally all insisted Zhao Hanzhang should sit on the left, but more people believed that Gou Xi’s merit to the nation was no less than Zhao Hanzhang’s. Moreover, the Emperor would certainly rely more heavily on Gou Xi in the future, so he should sit on the left.

Finally, Fu Zhi said, “But today is a celebration feast. Zhao Hanzhang executed Wang Mi and entered the capital to rescue His Majesty—these are all primary achievements. Her merit is unrivaled throughout the nation.”

Wang Xing, who had been quietly standing outside the circle, also said, “Currently the military power in the capital is also led by Zhao Hanzhang. I see that she acts with restraint but is extremely decisive. Why provoke her over such a small matter?”

“How can this be a small matter? Seating represents hierarchy. If we let her sit on the left today, then in the future General Gou will be half a step behind her, and nothing will be proper or justified.”

Fu Zhi became angry. “What does Gou Xi need to be proper and justified for?”

He said, “As a Jin minister, one need only follow His Majesty’s commands. Why compete over such trivial matters?”

Zhao Zhongyu said leisurely, “Gentlemen, there isn’t much time left before the feast begins. Haven’t you determined the seating yet? Surely you can’t wait until they both arrive to decide?”

Because Fu Zhi and Zhao Zhongyu supported her, Zhao Hanzhang still obtained the left-first seat by a narrow margin of votes.

The most wonderful part was that she learned of this not from Fu Zhi or Zhao Zhongyu, but from a Ministry of Rites official named Chen Fulin who came to find her. He detailed the palace’s seating dispute to her, saying, “In my view, the General’s meritorious achievements are absolutely beyond discussion for the left-first position. But precisely because the General is a woman, this has attracted criticism.”

Zhao Hanzhang had already changed clothes and eaten her fill. At this moment she was just sleepy, not very aggressive, so she lazily sat in the seat of honor and asked him, “So what?”

“In this subordinate’s view, the General has absolutely no need to compete with General Gou for this seat, because as long as you wish it, you can sit in an even higher position.”

Zhao Hanzhang, upon hearing this, looked Chen Fulin up and down in surprise. “Good! So you’ve come to urge me to rebel? What kind of people has His Majesty kept around him? Someone come, drag him down and…”

“No, no,” Chen Fulin broke out in cold sweat, hurriedly explaining, “The General misunderstands. This subordinate doesn’t want the General to rebel, but rather thinks the General could completely sit alongside His Majesty.”

“This suggestion is even bolder. A nation with two rulers—this disrupts the foundation of the state. You deserve execution even more. Someone…”

Seeing that Zhao Hanzhang kept missing the point, Chen Fulin couldn’t help crying out “Aiya!” and knelt down. “General, this subordinate means that with your dragon bearing and phoenix bearing, you could completely ascend to the position of Empress and share the realm with His Majesty.”

The faint smile that had always been on Zhao Hanzhang’s face completely fell away. She lowered her eyes to look at the kneeling Chen Fulin, staring until he was drenched in cold sweat. Only then did she give a mocking laugh, leaning forward and propping herself on her knees to look at his lowered head. “Chen Fulin, you are indeed bold. This suggestion not only puts His Majesty and me in an unjust position, harms Empress Liang’s life, but also ruins the friendship between my Zhao family and Fu family built over generations, and further damages my Zhao clan’s reputation.”

Zhao Hanzhang’s expression darkened as she heavily slapped the armrest. “Speak! Who sent you to execute this poisonous scheme?”

Chen Fulin’s face stiffened as he hurriedly explained, “The General misunderstands. This subordinate is wholeheartedly thinking of the General and Great Jin! If the General could become Empress and bear a Crown Prince for His Majesty, then Great Jin’s current situation of fragmentation, internal troubles and external threats could all be reversed!”

The current emperor’s greatest weakness was his lack of power and influence.

Zhao Hanzhang perfectly made up for this.

Zhao Hanzhang just stared at his head, hesitating between chopping it off or not.

If she chopped it, she would seem too cruel and might frighten future little darlings who wanted to give her suggestions.

If she didn’t chop it, keeping such a person was useless to the nation and might leave future troubles.

Zhao Hanzhang squeezed her fingers, just about to order someone to drag him away for execution when Fu Tinghan suddenly called her name. “Hanzhang.”

The kneeling Chen Fulin could feel the killing intent pressing on him, making him unable to breathe, pause for a moment before gradually dissipating. He immediately breathed a sigh of relief, raising his sleeve to wipe the sweat from his face.

Zhao Hanzhang looked up smiling at Fu Tinghan walking in, asking, “How long were you listening outside?”

Fu Tinghan: “You should have heard me long ago.” He hadn’t deliberately softened his footsteps, and with her hearing, it wouldn’t be difficult to detect.

Still, he explained, “From when he said you should become Empress.”

“His words were unpleasant to hear. You don’t need to listen to his suggestion. Just drive him out,” Fu Tinghan glanced at the sky outside, saying, “Looking at the time, it’s about right. Let’s prepare to enter the palace.”

“Very well.” Zhao Hanzhang descended from her seat. Fu Tinghan saw her feet drilling around as if trying to get into her shoes like that, so he helplessly crouched down to help her put them on.

Zhao Hanzhang’s mood improved somewhat. Looking at Chen Fulin slumped on the ground, she wasn’t as intent on killing him. She waved her hand, “Please escort Minister Chen out.”

Someone immediately came forward to help Chen Fulin up. Seeing him trembling, barely able to stand, they carried him out and tossed him. Zeng Yue spat at him, “Treacherous sycophant!”

Chen Fulin’s face flushed red, but under the watchful eyes of the Zhao family guards, he dared not act rashly.

Though Luoyang’s crisis was resolved, whether because their houses were burned down or because too many soldiers were stationed in the city, the court ministers and noble descendants hadn’t left the palace to return home, but rather still clung to the palace.

Half of the Zhao residence’s buildings had been dismantled, next to a street burned black. Because the fire started in the north city, this area near the imperial palace was mostly inhabited by officials and noble clans.

As Zhao Hanzhang was about to leave, she looked at the half-burned Zhao residence, clicking her tongue twice and shaking her head. “Building this house will cost quite a bit of money. Never mind, I’ll leave it for Zhao Kuan to figure out. In the future this residence can also be lent to him to live in.”

Fu Tinghan: “Your calculations are quite precise.”

Zhao Hanzhang raised her head to smile at him, extremely proud. She took his hand, “Let’s go, enter the palace!”

Today both Zhao Hanzhang and Fu Tinghan were dressed formally, wearing wide-sleeved ceremonial robes. These clothes were both warm and lacked the rigidity of armor, quite comfortable to wear.

Fu Tinghan helped her into the carriage before bending to board himself. The two sat facing each other. Fu Tinghan then said, “You’re already sufficiently forceful in military matters, so in other things you should show some flexibility. Otherwise, being constantly forceful will only make people fear you. With only fear and little respect, you will certainly become too rigid and break easily.”

Zhao Hanzhang nodded obediently, “I’ll remember. Just now I simply couldn’t control my temper for a moment.”

She stared curiously at Fu Tinghan, “You’re not angry at him?”

Fu Tinghan nodded, “He’s just an outsider, and a petty person at that. Why would I be angry with a petty person?”

“What if I had actually listened to his suggestion?”

“Then I should be angry at you. What does it have to do with him?”

Zhao Hanzhang paused before saying, “I think you could transfer some of the anger you’d give me onto him. Of course, I’m not saying I would make that choice. I’m just following the conversation to make that suggestion.”

Fu Tinghan looked at her gently. The carriage suddenly stopped, and Zeng Yue reported from outside, “Miss, Mr. Ji has arrived.”

Zhao Hanzhang immediately lifted the curtain, “Quickly, invite him in.”

Ji Yuan boarded the carriage and, after exchanging brief courtesies with Fu Tinghan, sat in the lower seat and said quietly, “I’ve already arranged some people in the palace and selected some soldiers to fill the guard vacancies. I just don’t know if they’ll be replaced later.”

Zhao Hanzhang nodded, also lowering her voice, “The seeds have been sown. What they grow into will depend on fate.”

Ji Yuan lowered his voice, “However, there is an inner attendant by the Emperor’s side who is willing to devote himself body and soul to the young lady.”

Zhao Hanzhang looked at him in surprise.

Ji Yuan whispered, “He’s someone the young lady rescued from Wang Mi’s hands last night, named Cai Hou. Unfortunately he’s too young, only fourteen, and his position is low. Normally he just runs errands and delivers messages in the Hall of Diligent Government…”

Zhao Hanzhang tapped her knee, “This is already enough. Have someone prepare some loose gold, silver, and pearls to send to him, and instruct him to first do his assigned duties well and grow up first before anything else.”