Zhao Hanzhang chased to Zhao Hu’s home. That’s right—Zhao Song had no residence in the capital. Zhao Hanzhang had actually bestowed a mansion on Zhao Ming.

Ji Yuan and the others all received rewards. Zhao Ming’s merit was also considerable. Although he wasn’t in the capital, she couldn’t be partial.

Moreover, his father and son were there. Zhao Hanzhang didn’t mind them all living together in the Zhao residence, but the Zhao residence was being renovated and housed many personal guards, so there was no room.

But Zhao Song was a father who knew how to avoid suspicion. Although his son had a mansion in Luoyang, he felt since his son wasn’t there, it wasn’t proper for him to accept the court’s favor on his behalf, so he firmly refused to move in.

He brought his attendants to live at Zhao Hu’s mansion. Even Zhao Shen followed to mooch lodging at Zhao Hu’s home.

He really liked Seventh Great-Uncle’s home—it was even more comfortable and relaxed than living at his own house.

His father’s mansion in the capital had no advantages except size. They couldn’t even gather enough beds. He really didn’t want to live there, so he brazenly followed his grandfather to mooch lodging at Zhao Hu’s place.

When Zhao Hanzhang arrived with the imperial physician in a rush, Zhao Song had just awakened. Zhao Shen was advising: “At your age, you should properly enjoy your remaining years. These troublesome matters should be left for children and grandchildren to worry about. You just stay in the background directing—if you tell us to go east, we go east; if you tell us to go west, we go west. Why get angry with them?”

Zhao Song said weakly: “You father and son pair are always good at fooling me. If not for your father drawing those wedding garment sketches, Ji Yuan and the others wouldn’t have become so greedy, actually wanting to change the wedding garments into such auspicious garments. This is truly… truly outrageous!”

Zhao Shen: “Father’s drawing wasn’t wrong. Sanniang’s merit compares to princes and marquises—she’s entitled to wear dark ceremonial upper garment with reddish-yellow ceremonial lower garment.”

“Knowing full well that worldly people always take a mile when given an inch, why couldn’t he lower it by one rank when drawing? Then let them advance one inch to what it is now—wouldn’t that be fine?” Zhao Song said. “He had to draw it so well from the start, making them harbor delusions, advancing even further—that’s what created these disputes.”

Zhao Shen thought secretly: How do you know Father didn’t do it deliberately?

Now in the clan, except for Grandfather, who doesn’t hope Zhao Hanzhang will go further?

Even the Han imperial family—despite their power and status, some wanted to replace them, let alone the Jin royal family?

How many people in this realm are truly loyal to the Jin court? If not for the sake of the realm’s peace…

Zhao Shen sneered inwardly.

Similarly, he naturally wasn’t among those loyal to the Jin court either. He previously didn’t serve as an official, leisurely traveling and studying, acting as a wandering knight. Why was he now willing to enter the court to serve?

Could it be for the young emperor in the palace whom he’d never even met?

Zhao Shen was among those hoping Zhao Hanzhang would go further. He felt his father was also quickly becoming completely one of them.

He must have sensed it, right?

The realm could only return to peace in Zhao Hanzhang’s hands—it might even prosper magnificently.

Zhao Hu beside them poured himself a cup of hot wine, warmed himself, then said: “If you ask me, Fifth Brother, you just worry too much. You’re not even an official—what do court matters have to do with you?”

“Shut up! The nation’s rise and fall is every man’s responsibility. If it had nothing to do with us, what was all that previous hard work for?”

Zhao Hu quickly called out: “Mine wasn’t for the Jin court. I don’t eat the Sima family’s salary—why would I do it for them? That was for our Zhao clan, for my own family’s life and property. If Sanniang weren’t leading, I wouldn’t have given away so many things for nothing.”

Standing at the door, Zhao Hanzhang was just about to step inside when she heard him say: “Fifth Brother, you might as well not bother. I think Ji Yuan and the others are quite good. Don’t they just want Sanniang to replace the Jin emperor? I think it’s excellent. Otherwise, if she only serves as regent, after ten or twenty years when the young emperor grows up, won’t she have to return power?”

“Once she returns power, will our Zhao clan and those like Ji Yuan who risked their lives for her still have a way to survive?” Zhao Hu said. “They say each new emperor brings new ministers. For our Zhao clan to have long-term peace and stability, we must sit in that position. The successor must also be of our Zhao family blood.”

Zhao Hanzhang’s raised foot quietly lowered. She felt entering now would definitely be awkward, so she waited quietly for Zhao Song to scold him, deciding to enter after Zhao Song finished scolding.

But after waiting a good while without hearing Zhao Song’s scolding voice, she peeked inside and saw Zhao Song with tears streaming down his face.

Zhao Hu frowned, sitting without moving. Zhao Shen was busy wiping away his tears but didn’t speak.

Zhao Hanzhang’s heart immediately ached. All the ways Zhao Song had been good to her in the past flooded back.

When she had no money, he gave her money. When she had no people, he gave her people.

Counting it all, actually Zhao Song was truly the first person who had no ulterior motives toward her, yet always gave her things.

Zhao Hanzhang finally couldn’t stand it and hurried in, pushing aside Zhao Shen sitting by the bed, took the handkerchief to wipe his tears, and sighed: “Great-Uncle, please don’t be sad. I’ll use the wedding garments Uncle Ming drew for me. No matter how others pressure me to change them, I won’t change.”

But Zhao Song cried even harder, gripping her hand: “I know his mind has already changed—otherwise he wouldn’t have made these sketches, because these sketches tested how many people’s hearts?”

“He wasn’t testing you, but testing me, testing the Zhao clan’s various branch heads, and the court’s various ministers.” Zhao Song’s tears streamed down. “The result—except for you and Tinghan, everyone fell into his scheme.”

Zhao Hanzhang opened her mouth, finally saying after a long while: “Fifth Great-Uncle, this is my and Tinghan’s wedding. I truly only want to hold a simple wedding.”

“I know, I know.” Zhao Song cried even harder. “That’s why I resent those people. You’re clearly loyal, righteous, and filial, yet they all want to force you.”

“Before, I always blamed you in my heart, feeling that if you firmly upheld loyalty and righteousness, how could anyone move your will? But today I personally experienced that even though my heart is steadfast as stone, I’m still hurt by them.”

Zhao Hu couldn’t listen anymore. He threw down his wine cup, stood up, and incredulously approached Zhao Song to look at him. “Fifth Brother, you really believe she’s loyal?”

“She, she, she’s a… powerful minister! Which powerful minister is loyal?”

“Shut up!” Zhao Song fiercely rebuked him, angrily saying: “Duke Cao never wronged the Han court his entire life!”

Unlike later generations’ widespread view of Cao Cao as a villain, Cao Cao’s reputation in the Wei-Jin period was excellent.

So Zhao Song’s definition of Zhao Hanzhang had always been someone like Duke Cao—supporting the Jin court and stabilizing the realm!

Zhao Hu laughed in anger, shouting back without yielding: “Fifth Brother, wake up—Cao Cao’s son became emperor!”

Zhao Song said with a solemn face: “That was future generations’ doing. We’ll all be in the ground by then, no longer connected to us.”

Zhao Hu couldn’t understand him, stamping his feet: “Since someone will become emperor anyway, better the son than oneself, better now than later! And she’s getting married, you know? If we wait for her son to ascend, the surname will be Fu!”

“But if she takes it now, the imperial family will be surnamed Zhao! The Fu family will be the relatives by marriage, understand?”

Zhao Hu had long thought it through. Because of his previous behavior, Zhao Hanzhang had cost him the title that should have been his. So when she became emperor, shouldn’t she at least enfeoff him, this great-uncle who contributed to founding the nation?

He wanted his sons and grandsons to see that although their philosophies differed, he was no worse than them!

—