With the cannon fodder script in hand, it is easy for the king to change his fate

After watching the guests leave, Zhou Hanyi put down his teacup, his eyes full of smiles, showing no anger at the Empress's actions these past few days.

The Zhou family could afford to wait for an empress who had less than ten years left to live.

They'll just wait until her body can't hold on any longer, and then the fate of the Zhao Kingdom will be sealed. That will be the time for the Zhou family to make their mark.

Given the current situation, the Zhou family naturally wants to support all policies that benefit the country and its people.

Even if the Zhao Kingdom falls in the future, their reputation can be salvaged.

If one were to assist a ruler who quells chaos, the plagiarism committed by one's ancestors would have little impact. Perhaps, those deeds wouldn't even be passed down.

Isn't that how the traces of the once proud nation disappeared into the long river of history?
The reappearance of the Ao Kingdom's traces was merely an accident. This time, with precautions in place, such a thing will not happen again.

“From now on, we, the Zhou family, will support any policies that benefit the people and speak up for His Majesty,” Zhou Hanyi said to Zhou Huo. “Especially when policies achieve good results, we should publicize them more to show that we, the Zhou family, have the world at heart.”

"Understood, Grandfather." Knowing everything, Zhou Huo naturally didn't care whether an empress with less than ten years left to live would leave behind a good reputation.

So what if you have a good reputation?

The Zhao Kingdom can only prosper for one lifetime, after which its fate will be sealed.

With such a reputation, the Zhou family will only prosper for generations to come.

"Does Zhengzhi have any thoughts on his marriage?" Zhou Hanyi asked. Princess Ping and Chen Fangjin had already tied the knot, so there was naturally no future for Ji Zixing and her. Besides, since his trip to Wenling Mountain, he was even less inclined to let Ji Zixing get involved with the Xie family.

Although Ji Zixing didn't achieve the top scholar title this time, he was still second place, one in a million. He wasn't young, but he wasn't old either. With such good looks and a good reputation, it would certainly be even better for him to marry into the Zhou family, strengthening their kinship.

Zhou Huo and Ji Zixing are cousins ​​and have a close relationship, which is why Zhou Hanyi asked that question.

Zhou Huo understood what he meant and shook his head with some regret: "My cousin seems to be out of sorts lately. I've tried to gauge his feelings."

“I see. It’s okay if he doesn’t have any plans right now. Just keep an eye on him and make sure to seize the opportunity when he does,” Zhou Hanyi said.

Given Ji Zixing's circumstances, he was a good match. Zhou's daughter wouldn't have lost out by marrying such a man; she was just a bit too infatuated.

But for the Zhou family, it wasn't a bad thing.

"Do you have any plans for marriage?" Zhou Hanyi asked.

The previous incident involving Zhou Huo had affected his reputation, and the engagement they had arranged had fallen through.

Seeing that Zhou Huo's expression was not good, Zhou Hanyi comforted him, "The Xu family is nothing. The second daughter of the Xu family has already been engaged, so don't think about it anymore."

The Xu family also comes from a scholarly background, and ever since Zhou's plagiarism incident, their attitude has become somewhat hostile. After Huo'er's incident last time, won't they use that as an excuse to annul the engagement?
It turns out the two families had a good relationship and were on the same side.

In such a short time, Xu Shi has somehow sided with the person above her. According to that person, they aren't exactly friendly towards aristocratic families. It's truly baffling what Xu Shi is thinking.

Could it be that they think the Empress is unstoppable, so they're trying to curry favor in advance to ensure their future survival?

Without the ancestor, Zhou Hanyi would have to worry about the future, but with the ancestor, the Zhou family only needs to wait less than ten years before the Xu family has their turn to cry.

"It's one thing for the Xu family to be ungrateful." Zhou Huo thought of his own family situation and sneered. Remembering that his grandfather was still here, his expression became serious. He seemed to recall something and said with a hint of longing, "Grandfather, I think Jiang Bilan is very good, but I'm afraid the Prime Minister will not agree."

Zhou Hanyi frowned. Jiang Bilan, the daughter of the Prime Minister, would never marry her off to the Zhou family, given the cunning nature of Jiang Shengqin.

In the past, he really had no way to deal with it.

The marriage of one's own grandson should not be taken lightly, as it involves considerable interests. However, Zhou Shi no longer needs to concern herself with such matters.

With their ancestors in charge, that's enough for them.

Besides, his grandson suffered greatly before, so what's wrong with choosing a wife he likes? If it really doesn't work out, he can just change. With the Zhou family's resources, doing these things isn't difficult. Even if Jiang Bilan is the daughter of the Prime Minister, the Zhou family still doesn't care. "Do you really like Jiang Bilan and can't live without her?" Zhou Hanyi asked.

Zhou Huo said, "It's not that she's indispensable, but among all the girls in the capital, Jiang Bilan is currently the one who best suits my taste."

"But the Prime Minister cherishes this daughter the most, so he probably won't agree."

In the past, Zhou Huoti would never have mentioned this matter, as he would probably have been scolded if he had.

Although the Prime Minister did not support the Empress in everything, he did not give the Zhou family a friendly look, especially given their current reputation.

Isn't this because we have a formidable ancestor in our family?

Even his mental retardation has been cured, so surely the daughter of a mere prime minister can be cured?
Thinking of this, Zhou Huo felt a surge of excitement. His ancestor must have had methods that ordinary people couldn't imagine, otherwise how would he have known the future of the Zhao Kingdom?
His ancestors must have possessed divine abilities.

“Alright, since you like Jiang Bilan, Grandfather will think of a way,” Zhou Hanyi smiled with narrowed eyes, “that way we can make that old fox Jiang Shengqin suffer a loss.”

Didn't the other party dislike the Zhou family? They watched their daughter marry into the Zhou family; I wonder what their expression was like.

"The time for ancestor worship is coming soon, so let's make good preparations," Zhou Hanyi said.

Zhou Huo was overjoyed, but in his heart he thought, "Let's see how Jiang Bilan can perform now that she's in my hands. Didn't those siblings look down on him? Ha."

The fact that Zhou strongly supported his policies is indeed somewhat unusual.

I don't know what Zhou is up to. If they don't cause trouble, Azhen can save herself some trouble.

Whatever they are waiting for, the outcome will certainly not be what they want.

"I heard that Zhou went back to pay respects to her ancestors?" Azhen asked.

“Yes, we’re returning to Wenling Mountain earlier than in previous years,” Yuan Qi said. “Recently, the Zhou family has been unusually quiet. I heard that many people who came to our door left looking dejected, and some even lost their temper and cursed at the door before leaving.”

A-Zhen laughed out loud, but the question she asked next puzzled Yuan Qi even more.

Has the Prime Minister's daughter, Jiang Bilan, been engaged?

Yuan Qi paused for a moment, then shook her head: "It shouldn't be. If something this big were true, it would have spread by now."

Why has Your Majesty come here again?
Azhen felt she had quite a lot to do, and as time came, she naturally thought of the Prime Minister's daughter, Jiang Bilan.

In the client's previous life, the Zhou family's reputation was not damaged. However, for some reason, the Xu family's daughter broke off her engagement with Zhou Huo, and her attitude towards breaking off the engagement was very firm.

Not long after that, first, the Prime Minister's son, Jiang Jingzhuo, fell off his horse and broke his leg, making him unable to walk again. Then, Jiang Bilan got drunk at a banquet and, disregarding her image, threw herself into Zhou Huo's arms, insisting on marrying him.

This incident became a joke at one point.

Some say Jiang Bilan has become infatuated, while others say she's gone mad because of Chen Fangjin. After all, she had feelings for Chen Fangjin before, and then he had an accident. Seeing the person she loved like this, coupled with her own brother's accident, she was devastated.

Ultimately, Zhou Huo married Jiang Bilan to protect her reputation.

Looking back now, there must have been other hidden reasons behind Jiang Bilan's madness.

Because the client had an excellent reputation in that lifetime, no one would suspect that the Zhou family had done anything, and all blamed Jiang Bilan herself.

I just don't know if the Zhou family will do anything to Jiang Bilan in this life.

Was Jiang Jingzhuo's fall from his horse an accident, or was there another reason? (End of Chapter)