“…” Zhao Song asked, “Do you have prospects for Erlang’s marriage?”

Zhao Hanzhang gave him a guilty smile.

Seeing this, Zhao Song snorted coldly. “Not even a shadow of one, yet you dare guarantee that twenty years from now his son will be able to take over as clan leader?”

“Aren’t you afraid that twenty years from now he won’t even have a son?”

Zhao Hanzhang said, “Without a son, a daughter works too. When the time comes, she can marry a husband into the family, as long as he has good character.”

Zhao Song was furious. “Am I talking about the child issue? I’m clearly talking about his marriage! You haven’t even arranged a betrothal for him yet. Whether he can even get a wife in twenty years is questionable!”

Zhao Song asked her, “What kind of wife do you actually want to find for him? I think the ones I selected before were all quite good. If you had listened to me and arranged his betrothal two years ago, and had him marry before you went to war, by now the child would almost be born.”

This timeline left Zhao Hanzhang dumbfounded.

Zhao Song, after his outburst, felt much better. With a stern face, he pulled the conversation back. “Twenty years—you may be willing to wait, but the clan members can’t. Sanniang, it’s because we old ones are still here to keep things in check, but how many more years can we old folks live? Now more and more people in the clan favor Dalang succeeding as clan leader. If you don’t have Erlang start a family and have children soon, even I won’t be able to suppress them.”

The mountain servant came up with a tray to serve tea, saying to Zhao Hanzhang, “Sanniang, the sir and the master have suppressed dissent within the clan. Many people privately speculate that the sir wants to compete for the clan leader position. These days, our sir has been cursed quite a bit within the clan.”

Hearing this, Zhao Hanzhang felt deeply guilty. She swallowed back her words of refusal and instead said, “I’ll find Erlang a wife as soon as I get back.”

Zhao Song’s expression improved considerably.

Zhao Hanzhang picked up the teapot and poured tea for Zhao Song, saying, “For now, clan matters still trouble Grand-uncle and Uncle Ming greatly.”

Zhao Song stared at the tea she offered him, his expression becoming even more gentle. After taking it and drinking a sip, he said, “Don’t find us bothersome either. It’s just that you young people are too slow in handling things.”

“Marriage should be according to parents’ orders and matchmakers’ arrangements, but you young people nowadays like to find your own matches. You want good family background, education and propriety, and mutual affection—with so many requirements, who’s willing to accommodate you?”

Speaking of this, Zhao Song had a bellyful of complaints. “Zhao Shen is old enough but won’t marry. Zhao Kuan is the same. And you’ve made Zhao Yunxin follow their example. The young people of marriageable age in the clan have been influenced by you leaders and won’t marry. What are you trying to do—reproduce like grass in the future?”

Zhao Hanzhang quickly clarified, “Grand-uncle, I have a marriage engagement and will be married soon. I’m different from them.”

This would have been better left unsaid. Once she said it, Zhao Song became even angrier. “It’s exactly because you’re supporting them! Otherwise, where would they get the courage to repeatedly refuse the marriages arranged by their families?”

“Saying things like they want to be compatible like you and Tinghan, to achieve things together, and that career comes first—they’ll settle the realm before starting a family. What, does starting a family prevent them from settling the realm? Do you know what ‘start a family and establish a career’ means? First start a family, then establish a career. You’ve all thrown our ancestors’ teachings behind your backs.”

“What’s wrong with the marriages arranged by the family?” Zhao Song had been pestered by Zhao Dong and his wife these past few days and had been holding in his anger. The tea had just suppressed it, but now it gushed forth again. “Weren’t you and Tinghan arranged by the family? Aren’t you compatible?”

“Your father and mother were also married by parents’ orders back then, and weren’t they deeply in love? Why is it when it comes to Erlang, it won’t work?”

“You won’t let us press Erlang, so Zhao Shen and the others use this as an excuse not to let us press them either. Do you know that because of one thing you said, only sixty percent of the usual number of people in the clan have married these past two years!”

Zhao Hanzhang wiped her face and explained with difficulty, “Grand-uncle, Erlang hasn’t awakened yet. He’s still like a child. I can’t harm some other family’s good daughter. Cousin Shen and the others are different from Erlang. You can’t blame me for their not marrying.”

“Once he has a wife, he’ll naturally awaken. Once he becomes a father himself, he’ll naturally stop being childish. Open your eyes and look around you—how many single people are around you?”

“From the Director of the Secretariat and the Chief Censor down to county magistrates and registrars, count how many around you are married. What, are you trying to build a court of monks and nuns? Married people can’t be officials?”

Zhao Hanzhang was shocked and quickly said, “Grand-uncle mustn’t say such things. We’re currently strongly encouraging the common people to marry and have children.”

The Great Jin needed a birth rate and needed laborers.

“So you know that! Then do you know what leading by example means?” Zhao Song said, “First arrange a marriage for Erlang, then have those around you—Scholar Ji, Scholar Ming—all get married. Zhao Shen, Zhao Kuan and the others, all marry and have several children. The higher-ups set the example, and those below will naturally be inspired. When they see how well you’re doing after marriage, they’ll naturally aspire to it too. Then without your encouragement, everyone will get married naturally.”

The mountain servant standing nearby nodded deeply in agreement, siding with Zhao Song. “A wife, children, and a warm bed—how many people seek this joy their whole lives but can’t obtain it.”

When Zhao Hanzhang was released from the door, she was in a daze. Zhao Song had pulled her aside and force-fed her an hour’s worth of marriage philosophy, then forced her to agree to find wives for Ji Yuan, Ming Yu, Zhao Shen, Zhao Kuan and others, and to find husbands for Zhao Yunxin, Fan Ying, Chen Siniang and others.

If she hadn’t still had her wits about her, she almost would have agreed to let him choose two cousins for Ji Yuan and Ming Yu.

Close call, close call—the two scholars nearly became her brothers-in-law.

Standing outside the door, Zhao Hanzhang raised her hand to wipe the cold sweat from her forehead, then quickly fled with Zeng Yue and Ting He.

Riding halfway, Zhao Hanzhang suddenly reined in her horse and looked back at Zeng Yue and Ting He.

Zeng Yue and Ting He were startled by her gaze and asked quietly, “My lady, what’s wrong?”

Zhao Hanzhang asked slowly, “You two aren’t married either, are you?”

Zeng Yue and Ting He: …Don’t you know whether we’re married or not?

That’s what they thought, but neither dared say it, so they quietly shook their heads.

Zhao Hanzhang exhaled, and that very day issued a notice that the next day she would hold a grand court assembly, and all officials who met the criteria must attend.

Thus, even Xie Shi, who was training troops outside the city, rushed back to the city and entered the palace early the next morning to attend the court assembly.

At the assembly, after discussing the recent national affairs that needed handling, Zhao Hanzhang announced, “This general and Minister Fu are about to be married. The date will be set in a few days, and if all goes well, we should be married before the year’s end.”

The entire court erupted in celebration. Everyone joyfully raised their hands to congratulate Zhao Hanzhang, then turned to congratulate Fu Tinghan.

Fu Tinghan, completely bewildered, bowed in return, instinctively replying, “Congratulations to you as well, congratulations…”

He was full of doubt. Zhao Hanzhang wasn’t one to show off, nor would she mix public and private matters. Why would she announce this at a court assembly?