“The letter wasn’t written by me.” Zhao Changyu passed the letter to Zhao Hanzhang beside him.

Zhao Hanzhang took it and opened it to read. Seeing the familiar handwriting, her brow twitched involuntarily.

Ma Jia’en’s gaze fell on Zhao Hanzhang. “The letter states clearly that it was written on behalf of the Earl of Shangcai by his granddaughter. This young lady must be the granddaughter mentioned in the letter.”

Zhao Hanzhang had already read through the letter once. She also calmly said, “This letter wasn’t written by me.”

“You say it wasn’t and that’s that?”

Zhao Hanzhang pointed to a character in the letter. “You may find this hard to believe, but the fact is I cannot write this character ‘ji’ (讥). Moreover, although the handwriting has been imitated, there are still differences. If you don’t believe me, I can fetch a draft I wrote for you to see.”

Zhao Hanzhang turned to Chengbo. “Go to Grandfather’s study and look in the waste basket—there should be draft papers I discarded in the past few days.”

Chengbo bowed and withdrew, retreating outside.

Soon he returned with seven or eight crumpled papers, spreading them out for Ma Jia’en to see.

Zhao Hanzhang smiled. “If General Ma finds it difficult to distinguish, you could invite someone to help. Master Wang is skilled in calligraphy and recently served as matchmaker for me and Master Fu. Perhaps he would be willing to help.”

Ma Jia’en flipped through these draft papers and lifted his eyes to glance at her before saying, “I will report this.”

With that, he turned to leave.

“Wait,” Zhao Changyu called out to him, his expression somber. “Though I don’t know who forged this letter, I can understand the scheme behind it. I am already at my last breath, and the Zhao family doesn’t have much left to scheme for. This person is not only sowing discord between me and the Prince but also between the Prince and His Majesty—killing three birds with one stone. What ruthless cunning. Please tell the Prince that Changyu will not make things difficult for him, and please ask the Prince not to fall for someone’s trap and do something that would pain our allies and please our enemies.”

Ma Jia’en turned back to look at Zhao Changyu before striding away.

As soon as he left, Zhao Changyu could no longer hold on and his body went limp.

Zhao Hanzhang, who had been supporting him, tightened her grip and caught him, lowering her voice to call out, “Grandfather…”

Zhao Zhongyu was greatly alarmed and quickly reached out to support his other side. “Elder Brother!”

“Quickly summon the physician.”

Everyone carried Zhao Changyu back to the room.

At this time they couldn’t leave, so they could only summon the household physician.

After taking his pulse, the physician was startled. He lowered his eyes and listened carefully to the pulse again before withdrawing to the outer room. In a low voice, he reported, “Second Elder Master, Third Miss, the master is at his last breath.”

“Nonsense! Didn’t you say before that he still had three months? How long has it been?”

“I dare not speak falsely. The pulse truly indicates this—it’s so weak it’s barely audible. If the family has anything to say, say it quickly, otherwise…”

Zhao Zhongyu opened his mouth and couldn’t help but look at Zhao Hanzhang.

Zhao Hanzhang’s emotions surged as she clenched her fists tightly.

She didn’t speak but turned and entered the inner room, sitting by the bed to look at the tightly-closed eyes of Zhao Changyu.

She had thought she wouldn’t be sad. Zhao Changyu was a historical figure—his death was predestined. But…

This was an unfamiliar world, yet in this unfamiliar world, he was the one who trusted her most and cared for her most. Even her original name was newly bestowed by him.

Zhao Hanzhang had thought they still had a long journey to walk together. After all, he wanted to see her married, see her gain a firm foothold in the Fu family, and then bring Wang Shi and Zhao Erlang over…

Her heart ached in waves, and her eyes were swollen and stinging. For a moment, she couldn’t speak.

Wang Shi had also heard the physician’s words and couldn’t help taking out her handkerchief to cry softly.

Zhao Changyu slowly opened his eyes and turned his head slightly to look at them. His gaze swept over Wang Shi and the grim-faced Zhao Zhongyu before settling on Zhao Hanzhang. He smiled. “It seems Grandfather will break his promise and cannot see you married.”

Zhao Hanzhang could no longer hold back—tears fell one by one.

Zhao Changyu reached out to pat her hand and sighed softly. “No need for such grief. Death may not be the opposite of new life.”

“Grandfather…”

“We’ve little time for idle talk—let’s speak of useful matters,” Zhao Changyu said. Speaking urgently made his face even paler. He had Zhao Hanzhang help him sit up leaning against something. “The letter wasn’t written by us grandfather and grandchild. With the drafts, the Prince of Donghai can naturally distinguish this. But having distinguished it, he may not necessarily withdraw his troops. Over the years, there have been many cases of making mistakes deliberately.”

Zhao Zhongyu and the others felt their spines turn cold. They understood all too well the consequences of such deliberate mistakes—not a single person in this household might leave alive.

“This is fate and destiny. It just happens to be such a coincidence that my life still has some use at the end.”

The others still looked confused, but Zhao Hanzhang and Zhao Zhongyu had already changed expression, saying in unison, “No!”

Zhao Zhongyu’s face turned ashen. “Elder Brother, the Zhao family is also descended from a distinguished lineage. We still have students and old friends, relatives and friends in the capital. How can we let them humiliate us like this?”

“Even if he’s the Prince of Donghai, so what?” He said somewhat angrily, pacing in place, his face turning green. “He’s not worthy of us paying with a life.”

Zhao Changyu said calmly, “He has soldiers in his hands. Even if he forces his way in, what can you do?”

Zhao Zhongyu opened his mouth but after a long moment slumped defeatedly beside the bed, striking it hard. “Then we die together. In the future, the historical records will surely note this incident.”

Zhao Changyu let out a deep sigh and turned to look at Zhao Hanzhang. “What do you think?”

Zhao Hanzhang said in a low voice, “The left side of the estate connects to the Jia family. Select a few guards to have them take Erlang and the four eldest ladies over the wall. Promise the Jia family a substantial reward to have them send the people out of Luoyang. Once they’re through the city gates, they can return home. We’ll stall here as long as we can.”

Zhao Changyu looked at her approvingly. “Good child. Your grand-uncle’s method is the worst strategy, yours is a middle strategy—both inferior to mine.”

Zhao Hanzhang’s eyes were red. “Grandfather, don’t do this. I’ll hate him to death.”

Zhao Changyu couldn’t help but laugh. “Foolish child, the physician said my time has come.”

Zhao Hanzhang shook her head tearfully. “Imperial Physician Chen said you could live until my wedding. As long as you want to live in your heart, you definitely can.”

“Living these extra two or three months would just mean suffering two or three more months,” Zhao Changyu reached out to grasp her hand and extended his other hand toward Zhao Erlang.

Wang Shi cried while pushing Zhao Erlang forward.

Zhao Changyu placed the siblings’ hands together. “Hanzhang, I entrust your younger brother to you.”

Zhao Hanzhang nodded through her tears.

Zhao Changyu caught his breath and looked at Zhao Zhongyu. “I know you resent me for scolding you in the past, feeling I treated you poorly.”

Zhao Zhongyu opened his mouth, his eyes reddening as he shook his head in denial. “No.”

Zhao Changyu sighed. “Whether there was or not, I’m leaving now. I gave Sanniang the courtesy name Hanzhang.”

“She has a temper like mine—a bit strong. You’re the elder—don’t quarrel with her over everything,” Zhao Changyu released Zhao Erlang and placed his hand on Zhao Zhongyu’s hand, his eyes also slightly reddening. “The entire Zhao clan will be entrusted to you. Having been clan leader, I know clan affairs are complex with many vexing matters. When you reach that position, you’ll understand. I didn’t fail to care for you—there were just many unavoidable circumstances. I always hoped you could strive harder and stand on your own.”

The emotion Zhao Zhongyu felt dissipated. He withdrew his hand and asked with tightly pressed lips, “In Elder Brother’s heart, have I always been incompetent?”