I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 21 Dare to lie to me, I will cooperate with you

...

Zhao Ya has already paved the way for Zhang Chun. Logically, Zhang Chun should just take advantage of the situation and say what she wants to say, and then Zhao Ya and Zhang Chun can go their separate ways.

Who would have thought that when Zhang Chun thought about her purpose of having Zhao Ya choose her as a palace maid to teach Zhao Ya about matters between men and women, she became so nervous and guilty that she couldn't say anything.

Zhao Ya really didn't expect that the Queen Mother Chun, who usually talked about history and analyzed historical events on the Internet and looked down on the "marquis of the past", was so shy in reality.

If it was the original owner, he would have just walked away.

But Zhao Ya is different. He really wants to know what Zhang Chun and the other five are up to.

Based on this, Zhao Ya said with a smile: "No hurry, just send me out of the palace first, and it won't be too late to talk to me when you have thought about what to say."

Zhao Ya's understanding eased Zhang Chun's nervous mood.

Zhang Chun stole a glance at Zhao Ya's handsome face from the corner of his eye and couldn't help but think: "You are quite gentle, a little different from the ancient men I imagined."

Zhao Ya did what he said.

He quietly led Zhang Chun out of the palace and did not force Zhang Chun to speak along the way, fully demonstrating his patience.

Liang Shicheng was very tactful and stayed far away so as not to disturb Zhao Ya and Zhang Chun.

This made Zhang Chun feel as if she was taking a walk with Zhao Ya, and the two of them were enjoying the beautiful scenery of the palace in a loving manner.

As soon as this absurd thought came to her mind, Zhang Chun quickly stopped herself from thinking:
"For someone like him who aspires to the throne, family affection is nothing but a mirage, and love is even more of a distant fantasy."

"Throughout dynasties, fathers and sons have turned against each other, and brothers have fought against each other, all for the supreme throne. Within the imperial family, the lure of power far outweighs the bonds of blood. In this silent war, everyone casts aside family ties for the sole purpose of securing the throne, a symbol of absolute power."

"As for love, it's even more of a luxury in the imperial court. The three thousand beauties in the harem are merely tools to perpetuate the royal bloodline and consolidate rule. Within the palace, the youth and dreams of countless women are buried. Those selected for the imperial selections, believing their entry into the royal family would be a glorious journey, are unaware that what awaits them is endless loneliness and sorrow. Within these red walls, they scheme against and oppress each other for survival, for that glimmer of favor. Even those fortunate enough to receive the emperor's favor could fall from grace at any moment due to the slightest inconvenience, forcing them to spend the rest of their lives in the cold palace."

"I, Zhang Chun, absolutely cannot jump into this fire pit!!!"

"My goal, Zhang Chun, is to treat the world as a chessboard, with everyone as a chess piece. He is just one of my chess pieces. At most... he is a relatively special chess piece..."

No matter how long the road is, it has an end.

Although Zhao Ya did not walk fast at all, giving Zhang Chun enough time, Zhao Ya and Zhang Chun still walked to the front of Xihua Gate in silence.

Unless there are special circumstances, palace maids are not allowed to leave the palace.

So, at this point, if Zhang Chun doesn’t speak up, he will never have the chance to speak up again.

At this time, Zhao Ya stopped, looked at Zhang Chun, and said without any reluctance: "If you haven't thought about what to say, you can talk to me next time."

How could Zhang Chun possibly wait for the next opportunity which might take an undetermined amount of time to come?

Moreover, Zhao Ya's tolerance and gentleness made Zhang Chun feel much more relaxed.

Taking a deep breath, Zhang Chun stammered, "Your Majesty, do you know...the art of...deduction?"

Seeing that Zhang Chun was about to use metaphysics to deceive him, Zhao Ya played along and said, "I've heard a little about it, but I don't know the profoundness of it." Zhang Chun was secretly delighted: "The ancients were the ancients, their knowledge was shallow. With a little trick, I can make all the unreasonable things reasonable."

With this psychological advantage, Zhang Chun's nervousness eased significantly. She spoke out the words she had prepared long ago: "Since childhood, I have studied the Book of Changes with a great master, and I am adept at the art of deduction. I dare not conceal the truth from Your Majesty, but the prince born to Your Majesty... has only three months to live..."

Speaking of this, Zhang Chun's heart couldn't help but rise to his throat.

Zhang Chun knew how outrageous her words were. If Zhao Xu or Liu Qingjing knew about it, they would probably make her suffer the death penalty.

To be honest, Zhang Chun also hesitated, wondering whether he should tell Zhao Ya this.

But firstly, because she was too anxious, Zhang Chun spoke without thinking and had "leaked the secret". She had to give Zhao Ya a reasonable explanation, otherwise, not only would she fail to gain Zhao Ya's trust, but she might also bring trouble upon herself.

Secondly, Zhang Chun felt that she had to intimidate Zhao Ya and make Zhao Ya regard her as a "celestial being" or a "goddess", because only in this way could Zhao Ya pay attention to her and even "obey her orders", and then achieve her goal of realizing her political ambitions by controlling Zhao Ya.

For this reason, Zhang Chuncai made a shocking statement and gave Zhao Ya a head start in an attempt to take the initiative in the conversation.

Zhao Ya thought to himself: "It's because you ran into me. Otherwise, you would be seeking death by doing this."

Zhao Ya pretended to be serious and said, "Don't speak nonsense. The prince is great and beautiful. How can he be short-lived?"

Zhang Chun felt relieved when Zhao Ya said this. She thought to herself, "Pretend! Keep pretending! If you didn't believe what I said about you being able to become emperor, would you have suddenly decided to marry Empress Xiansu and Consort Yisu and actively fight for the throne? Also, if you didn't believe what I said, you would have called the guards to arrest me and make a clean break with me. Why would you have said such a probing word?"

Thinking everything was under control, Zhang Chun grew increasingly confident, even beginning to brazenly act like a sorcerer: "Human fate is determined by heaven, how can we ignore it? Moreover, not only will this child die young, he will also bring disaster upon his sister and father. I dare not conceal this from Your Majesty. I have already calculated that soon after his death, one of his sisters will surely die, and then... Your Majesty."

Zhao Ya feigned shock. He stared into Zhang Chun's beautiful almond-shaped eyes and said in a deep voice, "Do you know that you have committed a heinous crime punishable by the execution of your entire family?"

Zhang Chun gave an enigmatic smile: "If I am beheaded, who will help the king ascend the throne?"

Zhao Ya cooperated and asked, "What do you mean by that?"

Zhang Chun completely entered a state of ecstasy: "This servant has already told the king that he will become emperor soon."

Zhao Ya continued to cooperate: "Are you saying that I will inherit my brother's throne?"

Zhang Chun said with great conviction, "Indeed, Your Majesty is the one destined by heaven."

Zhao Ya thought to himself, "The person chosen by destiny is me, right?!"

Zhao Ya pretended to be silent for a while before asking, "Why should I trust you?"

Zhang Chun calculated with his fingers: "On the day of Jiaxu, an earthquake will occur in Taiyuan, and the Yellow River will flow north. On the day of Guisi, Taibai will be visible during the day. On the day of Gengzi, the people of Xia will come to apologize. If any of these three predictions are wrong, I will bring my head before you."

Zhao Ya sincerely admired Zhang Chun: "He can remember even these trivial matters so clearly. He is truly worthy of being called an encyclopedia of history."

This also made Zhao Ya even more determined to get Zhang Chun and the other five.

For this reason, Zhao Ya gave Zhang Chun another way out: "I have another question... Why are you helping me?"

……

(End of this chapter)