Chapter 8 - Grandfather

Chapter 8 - 2 GrandfatherZhao Hanzhang took the medicine handed over by the maid and drank it in one gulp. She casually took a piece of candied fruit, returned the medicine bowl to her, and asked, "Have you found out if anyone among the injured has amnesia like me?"

The maid, Ting He, shook her head, "Third Lady, I haven't heard of such a case."

"Has the news of my injury and amnesia been spread?"

Ting He looked at her with some worry, "We've followed your instructions and told people outside, but... they don't seem to believe it much."

Zhao Hanzhang didn't care whether they believed it or not. She just wanted Professor Fu to know that there was an amnesiac girl in the Zhao Family.

She wondered if Professor Fu had her luck. Was he still... floating around here, or had he possessed a body like she did?

Indeed, she had possessed a body. After waking up ten days ago, she tried various methods to verify that she had indeed inhabited the body of a girl who looked very similar to her.

The girl also had the surname Zhao, ranked third in the family, known as Third Sister, and had just turned fourteen this year.

She was too young. Zhao Hanzhang felt bad monopolizing her body, calling out to her at night, hoping she would come back to continue her own life.

After living for twenty-eight years, Zhao Hanzhang had endured hardship but also enjoyed blessings. Although her untimely death was unfortunate, she believed any consequences should fall on her in this new world; she couldn't continue to occupy someone else's body.

The cause and effect were too significant for Zhao Hanzhang to bear.

But no matter how she called out, the child wouldn't appear; the body felt empty, without a remnant of the original soul.

Zhao Hanzhang could only shift her focus to Professor Fu.

Even though she only looked back once that day, the man in a suit, who saw her and called her Teacher Zhao, must definitely be Professor Fu who got involved in the same incident as her.

He was really handsome; no wonder the students always gossiped privately about his good looks.

She wondered if he was lucky. If he had possessed a body, what identity might he have? Could he hear the messages she sent out and come looking for her?

If he hadn't possessed a body, now that she was alive, could she see him?

Zhao Hanzhang maintained her daily worries as usual. After setting the medicine bowl aside, Ting He returned, "Third Lady, Second Sister and Fourth Sister are outside asking to meet."

"Not meeting them," Zhao Hanzhang refused without raising her head, "Just tell them I get a headache whenever I see them."

Ting He paused, nodded in acknowledgment, then withdrew.

Lying on the bed, Zhao Hanzhang sighed. Although she wasn't the original owner, she still retained her memories, so she couldn't be considered to have amnesia.

When she didn't actively think about things, she was unaware. But whenever she did, relevant memories would appear in her mind, and when encountering people the original owner once knew, past memories would gradually emerge, almost like a Baidu search.

However, Baidu searches also require time, and there's also the time needed for reading and acceptance, hence she couldn't always immediately recognize people. Her response was somewhat delayed, so Zhao Hanzhang outright declared having amnesia since she indeed had a head injury and really... couldn't recall things well.

Unfortunately, everyone didn't seem to believe she had amnesia.

Third Sister's maiden name was Hezhen. She just turned fourteen not long ago. Her father was not noteworthy, having died early without great fame.

Her grandfather, however, was noteworthy.

Her grandfather Zhao Changyu was famous nationwide, holding the noble title Shangcai Marquis, and served as Secretary of the Imperial Secretariat, noted for his clear and simple policies. He had only one son, her father, who had died.

He also had only one grandson, her younger brother Zhao Yong, who was merely twelve years old, but... was not a very clever child.

This was an understatement; at twelve, besides knowing his own name, he also only recognized his father's, his mother's, his sister's, and their grandfather's names.

Notably, these names repeated the character "Zhao."

Thus, Zhao Changyu planned to hand the title to his nephew, Zhao Ji, Third Sister's cousin.

Lately, rumors spread within the mansion that Zhao Changyu intended to arrange a prestigious marriage for Third Sister to ensure his grandson Zhao Yong would inherit the title, preventing the family wealth from shifting elsewhere.

As the rumors started, Zhao Changyu hadn't had a chance to respond before the twelve-year-old Zhao Yong took people out of the city to hunt.

A new emperor had just taken the throne; chaos reigned outside the city, with rebel soldiers and refugees everywhere. At this time, a noble young boy of limited intelligence leaving the city was akin to delivering himself right into danger.

Upon hearing her brother had left the city, the girl immediately led people out to find him. She encountered chaos outside the city, and to save Zhao Yong, she fell from her horse, and was brought back devoid of life.

Zhao Hanzhang had an incident in the elevator. One blink, and she was in this world; a second blink, and she awoke in this body.

Over the past ten days, Second Sister and Fourth Sister, who persistently sought to meet her, were Zhao Ji's daughters, her cousins. Zhao Hanzhang hadn't decided her future course, hence didn't want to meet them.

She wanted to find Professor Fu first.

Traveling through time was already amazing, and she had possessed a body. Perhaps the extremely intelligent Professor Fu could find some pattern in this incident, allowing them to travel back?

She wondered how their bodies in the elevator were. If they returned, could they live again there?

Zhao Hanzhang felt some anxiety, her limbs laid flat, feeling disinclined to move.

Ting He's hurried footsteps approached, prompting Zhao Hanzhang to close her eyes, "Didn't I say not meeting anyone?"

"Third Lady, it's the Magistrate who wants to see you."

Zhao Hanzhang opened her eyes, sitting up from the bed, "Grandfather?"

"Yes, Uncle Cheng has come to escort you."

Uncle Cheng was her grandfather's confidant, always by his side. The mansion's head steward was only his brother.

Zhao Hanzhang pondered for a moment before saying, "Bring me clothes to change into."

She could avoid others, but she couldn't avoid Zhao Changyu; he was the Family Head.

Ting He quickly rummaged out an older set of everyday clothes for Zhao Hanzhang to change into.

Satisfied after looking at it, Zhao Hanzhang gave her an approving glance. Once dressed, four strong matrons came in to carry a sedan chair, lifting Zhao Hanzhang onto it to carry her out.

Oh, she forgot to mention, she had fallen from the horse, injuring both her head and leg. It wasn't too serious, but as a noble lady, muscle and bone injuries required bed rest; moving even slightly would make her mother cry so much she could cry for a full day and night.

Thus, Zhao Hanzhang was especially obedient these days, if she could lie down, she absolutely wouldn't sit; if she could sit, she absolutely wouldn't stand.

This was her first time going out (not walking, but being carried) of her courtyard. Along the way, flowers bloomed brightly, spring was in full swing, butterflies flitted about, showing that this family's garden was well maintained.

All the way through, any servants they encountered along the path bowed their heads and waited on the side, only daring to slightly stand upright to continue their work once the sedan chair had passed far beyond.

The closer they got to the main courtyard, the more respectful the servants they encountered became.

The gate to the main courtyard opened, with a plane tree planted inside. At this moment, the tree was lush and leafy, with a table beneath it, beside which sat a lean and elegant... middle-aged man.

As soon as Zhao Hanzhang saw him, images of her previous interactions with her grandfather surfaced in her mind.

My goodness, this graceful middle-aged man was actually her grandfather.