Zhao Hanzhang sighed, “My face isn’t thick enough yet. After all, I’ve just acquired one province, so I should give back some benefits.”

Zhao Ming glanced at the boxes being loaded onto the carts, counted them, and said, “You want to exchange just a few carts of money for an entire province? Shameless!”

With that, he turned and left.

Zhao Hanzhang touched her nose and hurried after him. “Uncle Ming, I can send money to His Majesty, but what do you suggest I send to Gou Xi?”

Zhao Ming pulled back his sleeve and smoothed it out. “You send gifts to His Majesty because you feel guilty. Why are you sending gifts to Gou Xi? Are you planning to seize his Yanzhou?”

“Don’t talk nonsense. It’s daytime now. If someone overhears and misunderstands, that would be bad,” Zhao Hanzhang said. “I want to repair my relationship with Gou Xi. After all, we serve in the same court together. It’s better to help each other.”

Hmph, can’t say it during the day, but can say it after dark?

Zhao Ming gestured for her to continue.

Only then did Zhao Hanzhang say, “News came from Youzhou and Jizhou that some counties have suffered locust plagues. I’m worried the locust disaster will expand and eventually affect Bingzhou.”

Zhao Ming’s expression turned grave. The relaxed and pleasant atmosphere around him disappeared, replaced by a dark aura. “You’re worried that once the locust plague reaches Bingzhou, Liu Yuan will mobilize troops?”

Zhao Hanzhang nodded.

“Ordinary people and virtuous leaders would think to deal with the disaster first before going to war, but Liu Yuan is neither ordinary nor virtuous,” Zhao Hanzhang said. “The Han Kingdom is riddled with internal conflicts. Right now, Liu Yuan is barely holding things together. If the locust plague reaches Bingzhou, to prevent internal collapse, he’s very likely to raise troops and divert the conflicts externally.”

As long as there’s war, the Han Kingdom’s internal conflicts will have to be set aside. Otherwise, the locust plague could very well cause their internal conflicts to spiral out of control.

Zhao Hanzhang continued, “Once war breaks out, even if Gou Xi can’t be trusted to watch our backs, I hope he won’t drag us down. We can share some of the pressure mutually.”

So while the Heaven Worship Ceremony provided an opportunity to meet, she wanted to repair their relationship. After they get through this difficult time, they could fall out again if needed.

Zhao Ming was silent for a long while, then pointed at her vaguely and said, “When giving gifts, naturally you should give what the person likes. Gou Xi loves beautiful women, and also loves gold, silver, and glass. Choose from these few things.”

Zhao Hanzhang made her decision immediately. “Let’s send glass then.”

Zhao Ming said, “…Haven’t you sent him enough glass over these years? Sending glass every time, don’t you think that’s negligent?”

Zhao Hanzhang looked serious. “I don’t think so. I’m very sincere with my gifts.”

Zhao Ming asked, “Does Gou Xi think so too?”

Zhao Hanzhang immediately fell silent. If someone kept giving her spears as gifts every time, even if each spear was different, she would still feel the other party was being careless and perfunctory.

This would be fine with ordinary people—after all, receiving any gift would make one happy—but her relationship with Gou Xi was not ordinary.

Between them, most of the time they had a colleague relationship with somewhat intense competition, but occasionally they needed to cooperate sincerely. To complete their performance targets, Zhao Hanzhang needed to repair the rifts created by their intense competition.

Perfunctory gifts clearly wouldn’t be enough to express her sincerity.

Zhao Hanzhang reluctantly said, “Then I’ll send him gold!”

She continued, “I remember Grandfather once had a golden Buddha statue. Although Gou Xi doesn’t believe in Buddhism, he loves to show off. Since it’s also gold, giving him the golden Buddha will definitely please him.”

It just hurt too much. The value of that one golden Buddha statue alone was comparable to the several carts of money she was sending to the Emperor.

Compared this way, the Emperor’s gift seemed a bit cheap.

Zhao Ming said, “Compared to the golden Buddha, Gou Xi should prefer beautiful women more, especially knowledgeable ones.”

Zhao Hanzhang waved her hand dismissively. “Forget it. Any beauty I send would just gather dust without being appreciated. Why waste the person?”

Besides, Gou Xi was harsh and cruel, not a good superior. Even Ming Yu had run over to her side. How could she bear to send a beauty to Gou Xi?

Zhao Hanzhang made up her mind. “Let’s send the golden Buddha.”

There wasn’t much left of the inheritance Zhao Changyu had left behind. Zhao Hanzhang had basically used up all the ready cash, and the easily liquidated items had been spent seventy or eighty percent. What remained were either things that could be passed down through generations or items difficult to sell.

As soon as Zhao Hanzhang had someone search the storeroom, Wang Shi found out. When she saw Ting He carrying out the golden Buddha, her heart ached beyond words. She hurried after her daughter. “This golden Buddha was given to your grandfather by a merchant from the Western Regions. It’s worth a fortune. Back then, after your grandfather received it, he said this thing should be kept for Erlang. In the future, even if we fall into poverty, breaking off a piece from this golden Buddha would be enough to support the household. Are you really going to sell it now?”

She continued, “If you need money urgently, Mother still has some. I’ll give it to you. Can you give me this golden Buddha?”

Zhao Hanzhang said, “I’m giving it away as a gift. Since it’s Erlang’s, I’ll note it down first. When I’m wealthy later, I’ll make him another one. But let’s not make it in the shape of a golden Buddha—it’s not easy to break off pieces, and it won’t look good after breaking. I’ll have a golden tree made for him instead, with leaves, fruits, and branches all made of gold. If he really falls into poverty, it’ll be easy to break off, and no matter which part he breaks off, the rest won’t look ugly.”

Wang Shi asked, “…Who are you giving it to?”

“Gou Xi.” Zhao Hanzhang had someone weigh the golden Buddha, had Ting He record it, then had it packed in a box. She put her arm around Wang Shi’s shoulder and walked her out. “Mother, out with the old, in with the new. Don’t worry, Tinghan is already looking for gold mines. I can’t casually mint coins with the copper from the copper mines, but finding a gold mine will be different. Then I can refine gold as I please. From the first batch of gold, I’ll make you a golden Buddha to display in your room. How about I make Erlang a golden tree as the second one?”

Wang Shi was pushed outward while chattering endlessly, “You’re just sweet-talking me. You always tell me sweet words. You promised me before that you’d handle Erlang’s marriage and find him a good wife, but you’ve all been out of mourning for almost a year. Forget about marriage arrangements—he hasn’t even met a single young lady. He spends all his time in the military camp, focusing only on training troops…”

Zhao Hanzhang apologized repeatedly and coaxed her to the courtyard entrance, handing her over to Qinggu. Just as she was about to slip away, Wang Shi suddenly grabbed her, narrowed her eyes, and asked, “Never mind about Erlang for now. When will you and Tinghan get married?”

She looked around, pulled Zhao Hanzhang close, and lowered her voice to ask, “Tell Mother honestly, the reason you and Tinghan keep delaying the wedding—is it because your Fifth Grand-Uncle and Uncle Ming don’t want you to marry out and want to break the engagement? Or have you fallen for someone else?”

“No, no, Mother, you’re overthinking it,” Zhao Hanzhang said hurriedly. “Tinghan and I are just too busy. Look, he hasn’t returned to the city for three days straight. When he comes back, I might have to go to Yuncheng. How can we get married when we’re this busy?”

Wang Shi pressed her lips together. “The world’s affairs can never be finished. Marriage doesn’t take that much of your time. How about this—you just nod your agreement, and I’ll handle the rest. All you two need to do is show up on the wedding day. How about it?”

Wang Shi held her hand and said, “I know you’re very capable now and different from other young ladies who simply support their husbands and teach their children. I just want someone close by your side who can share some of your burdens. You work until the third watch every night before putting out your lamp. Mother feels sorry for you.”

Although she and Fu Tinghan weren’t married, Fu Tinghan was already sharing her burdens. Even if they got married, he couldn’t do political work he wasn’t good at—she would still have to handle those matters.

Zhao Hanzhang met Wang Shi’s gaze and nodded. “Alright, I’ll listen to you. You go ahead and handle it.”

Hearing this, Wang Shi became happy. “Then I’ll go ahead with it.”

“Go ahead, go ahead.”

Wang Shi left happily, completely forgetting about the golden Buddha she had been concerned about.