I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 343 Little Woman Ma Xiaojiao
...

Ma Xiaojiao's words, "If that day ever comes, it won't be in vain that we traveled through time," made Zhao Yu a little sleepless.

Zhao Yu thought to himself:

Does she include me in this "we" category?

"So, does she know, like Qingcheng, that I'm also a time traveler?"

"If that's the case, when was I exposed?"

"..."

Zhao Yu had kept this a secret for sixteen or seventeen years. Apart from the extremely shrewd and meticulous Yuan Qingcheng finding a flaw once, he had never exposed it again.

The reason why Zhao Yu was able to hide for so long and so deeply was...

Firstly, it must be because Zhao Yu rarely made the mistake of revealing his identity, so the five women simply couldn't find any flaws in him;
Secondly, Zhao Yu spent too much time with the five women, and they became too close to each other. As a result, they completely lowered their guard around Zhao Yu and dared to say anything to him, including many things from their previous life. When problems arose, they used "Dream Enters the Divine Machine" as a shield, which meant that even if Zhao Yu was exposed, he could still shift the blame onto them.

The most ingenious thing is that the five women are five people, not one person. Each of them has a lot of opportunities to spend time alone with Zhao Yu. This makes it impossible for them to keep guessing that Zhao Yu is also a time traveler based on the words or things he says or does that contain elements from later times. Especially after Zhao Yu often imitated them by using elements from later times in his speech and actions, they could no longer distinguish what Zhao Yu had learned from them. In fact, they could say that they could no longer see any difference between Zhao Yu and them.

It's worth mentioning that this was also intentional on the part of the five women. Deep down, they actually looked down on the natives of this era, considering themselves "superior beings" who had transmigrated from the future. They also found it difficult to accept the fact that they had been used by a native and had borne him a bunch of children. To make themselves feel more at ease accepting all of this, they deliberately "trained" Zhao Yu, attempting to turn him into a "superior being" like themselves.

The male rabbit's feet twitch, the female rabbit's eyes are blurred; the two rabbits run side by side, how can one tell which is male and which is female?
That's why Ma Xiaojiao realized from Zhao Yu that Zhao Yu was also a time traveler, which seemed unlikely.

That's how I learned from Yuan Qingcheng that Zhao Yu was also a time traveler.
That's also unlikely.

Yuan Qingcheng is tight-lipped, meticulous, and leaves no room for error in her actions. The key is that she is unwilling to share this secret with Zhang Chun, Li Lin, Ma Xiaojiao, and Ye Shiyun, but wants to be the only woman who knows Zhao Yu's background.

Therefore, Yuan Qingcheng would not take the initiative to tell Ma Xiaojiao that Zhao Yu was also a time traveler.

This can be easily seen from the fact that Yuan Qingcheng had kept this secret for Zhao Yu for several years.

Besides, Yuan Qingcheng's closest friend is Li Lin, not Ma Xiaojiao. Even if she really couldn't hold it in anymore and wanted to share this secret with someone, she would share it with Li Lin, not Ma Xiaojiao.

In short, neither Zhao Yu nor Yuan Qingcheng will likely reveal to Ma Xiaojiao the secret that Zhao Yu is also a time traveler.

However, apart from Zhao Yu and Yuan Qingcheng, no one else knew that Zhao Yu was also a time traveler. If Ma Xiaojiao knew that Zhao Yu was also a time traveler, it could only be from them.

Zhao Yu thought about his whereabouts over the past few days.

"I visited Qingcheng a few days ago to see her three-season rice cultivation... We even chatted casually about our past lives... I also told Qingcheng a funny story about when I was delivering food in my previous life..."

Thinking of this, Zhao Yu called out to the door, "Someone come here."

As soon as Zhao Yu finished speaking, Liu Mingda, who was on duty, pushed open the door and walked in.

Liu Mingda tiptoed to Zhao Yu's side, and then, as if on cue, put his ear close to Zhao Yu's mouth.

Zhao Yu whispered a few words to Liu Mingda.

After listening, Liu Mingda left without asking any questions.

A short while later, Liu Mingda returned and whispered in Zhao Yu's ear, in a voice only Zhao Yu could hear, "Empress Ma went to Empress Yuan's place..."

This time, Zhao Yu had no lingering hope. 'Jiao Jiao must have overheard my conversation with Qingcheng and guessed that I was also a time traveler…'

After dismissing Liu Mingda, Zhao Yu looked at the sleeping Ma Xiaojiao and thought, 'I really didn't expect that the second person to know this secret would be you.'

Ma Xiaojiao's emotional intelligence is arguably the lowest among the five women, and she's also rather careless. Crucially, she's completely focused on her research, single-minded and undistracted. In Zhao Yu's mind, unless he actively reveals that he's also a time traveler, Ma Xiaojiao will definitely be the last to guess that she's a time traveler. In fact, she might never guess that she's a time traveler herself, waiting for Zhao Yu or someone else to tell her.

Unexpectedly, Ma Xiaojiao lacked emotional intelligence but had good luck, and she accidentally stumbled upon her talking to Yuan Qingcheng.

That said, it's also because Zhao Yu treated the five women too well, especially Ma Xiaojiao, his beloved darling.

In addition, the five women do not have a strong sense of boundaries with each other.

This allowed Ma Xiaojiao to easily break through all the defenses around Zhao Yu and get close to Zhao Yu and Yuan Qingcheng, where she overheard their casual conversation.

Knowing the truth, Zhao Yu was relieved.

Since Ma Xiaojiao has known about this for some time and hasn't shown any unusual behavior, and is still as enthusiastic about scientific research as before, and just now when she served him, she was as diligent as before, even though there were many other women in the bed, it is enough to show that she has completed her mental preparation and accepted the fact that she is also a transmigrator.

The key point is that Zhao Yu had already completely won over Ma Xiaojiao sixteen or seventeen years ago. She had given birth to six children for Zhao Yu, making her the woman who bore him the most children.

Ma Xiaojiao has already helped Zhao Yu initiate the Industrial Revolution, even laying the foundation for its explosive growth. For example, she has proposed Ma's three laws of motion, Ma's law of universal gravitation, Ma's three laws of thermodynamics, Ma's four laws of electromagnetism, Ma's three laws of optics and wave motion, Ma's theory of relativity, and so on…

It is no exaggeration to say that even without Ma Xiaojiao, the Song Dynasty could have experienced a major industrial revolution based solely on her research achievements.

However, without Ma Xiaojiao's guidance, this process may take several years or even decades longer.

Therefore, if Zhao Yu lost Ma Xiaojiao, he would definitely feel sad, even heartbroken, but it wouldn't be completely unacceptable.

The crucial point is that, judging from Ma Xiaojiao's appearance, she probably still wants to pretend she doesn't know she's also a time traveler and continue her original life, without pursuing the idea that Zhao Yu deceived her. However, her acting skills and emotional intelligence are lacking, which is why she was exposed so quickly without realizing it.

This made Ma Xiaojiao realize that Zhao Yu was also a time traveler. How big of a problem could there be?
Ok.

There is actually a problem here.

That is, Zhao Yu feared that he could not hide it from Ma Xiaojiao, who was in the best position, nor from Zhang Chun, Li Lin, and Ye Shiyun.

Zhao Yu would have to teach Ma Xiaojiao a lesson. Without much hesitation, Zhao Yu pulled Ma Xiaojiao into his arms again and drifted off to sleep…

……

The next morning, Ma Xiaojiao woke up first.

This was actually the first time Ma Xiaojiao and Zhao Yu met after Ma Xiaojiao discovered that Zhao Yu was also a time traveler.

To be honest, Ma Xiaojiao was completely stunned! She never expected that Zhao Yu was also a time traveler like them, and that Zhao Yu was the delivery guy they had run over and killed!

This is incredible.

In their previous lives, they were enemies, and they were the ones who caused the trouble.

Unable to accept this fact and unsure how to face Zhao Yu, Ma Xiaojiao fled in panic.

Back in her palace, Ma Xiaojiao paced back and forth in her bedroom, feeling restless and agitated.

Ma Xiaojiao's footsteps were hurried and disordered on the soft carpet, each step seeming like a struggle against the turbulent waves within her heart. Her mind kept replaying every moment she spent with Zhao Yu. Those behaviors that she had once thought were somewhat abnormal, when explained by the fact that Zhao Yu was a time traveler, everything became reasonable.

"Liar! Big liar! You deceived my feelings! You deceived my body! You deceived me into having your child!!!"

'You must be getting revenge for us running you over?!'

"But it's not my fault! The car wasn't mine, and I wasn't driving it. I'm a victim too, okay?"

"You're incredibly patient! You've endured it for sixteen or seventeen years, until I bore you six children and worked for you for sixteen or seventeen years! If I hadn't accidentally discovered your secret, were you planning to lie to me for the rest of your life?!"

Why did you tell Yuan Qingcheng but not me? What makes me worse than her? I love you more than anyone else, okay?!

'...'

After venting her anger, Ma Xiaojiao began to feel anxious and insecure again:
'If I expose his lies, will he leave me?'

'Probably not. Qingcheng knows he's a time traveler, and she's fine, isn't she? He wouldn't target me.'

"But...it's better to be safe than sorry. What if he doesn't want me anymore? Who will I have children with? Will he still support my research and development so unconditionally? If he doesn't support me, won't all my skills be wasted? And our children, they can't live without him as their father!"

Ma Xiaojiao unconsciously clutched the hem of her clothes, her eyes revealing deep confusion and unease. One moment she felt that Zhao Yu's deception was unforgivable, and the anger in her heart burned like a raging fire; but the next moment she couldn't help but think that for the past sixteen or seventeen years, Zhao Yu's doting and care for her had been real, and those gentle eyes and thoughtful actions, were they all fake?

"No, that's impossible! His kindness towards me wasn't faked!"

Ma Xiaojiao murmured to herself, but then she thought of the grudges between them in her previous life, and her heart felt heavy as if a big stone was pressing down on it.

"But we were enemies in our past life. Could it be that he still harbors resentment towards us and is doing everything he's doing now just to get revenge? Once this secret is out, will his revenge against me end, and will he abandon me after taking advantage of me?"

Ma Xiaojiao became increasingly confused. She didn't know how to face Zhao Yu, nor did she know what would become of her relationship with him.

"If I had known he was a time traveler, the delivery guy we hit and killed, would I still love him like this now?" Ma Xiaojiao couldn't help but ask herself.

But Ma Xiaojiao found that she couldn't answer this question. In the sixteen or seventeen years they had spent together, Zhao Yu had become deeply integrated into her life and an indispensable part of it. She had never thought that anything or anyone could make her stop loving Zhao Yu, and she had never thought about how she would live after leaving him.

It's as if she was originally a free, happy, carefree child who did whatever she wanted and wholeheartedly pursued what she loved. Suddenly, she had to face the complexities and disturbances of the adult world. The responsibilities and concerns that she had once forgotten surged in like a tidal wave, overwhelming her and leaving her unable to extricate herself.

Ma Xiaojiao once thought that her feelings for Zhao Yu were pure, without any impurities, a match between souls, a fusion of hearts, even though Zhao Yu was her only one, and she was just one of Zhao Yu's many.

But now, when Ma Xiaojiao learns that Zhao Yu is also a time traveler and has such a deep grudge against them in their previous life, she can't help but wonder if this relationship is really as pure as she thought.

'Perhaps I should have a serious talk with him?'

Ma Xiaojiao wanted to face this reality. No matter the outcome, she wanted to give herself an explanation and give this relationship an answer.

But the thought that if things fell apart with Zhao Yu, she might lose him and the life she loved so much made Ma Xiaojiao chicken out. She really didn't want to lose Zhao Yu, and she didn't know how she would survive in this unfamiliar world without him.

After much thought, Ma Xiaojiao suddenly realized that if she hadn't discovered that Zhao Yu was also a time traveler, she wouldn't have had to make this decision that could have cost her Zhao Yu and her current life.

Ma Xiaojiao wanted to win without losing, so she chose to be a coward. No, she was just a little woman, why should she face such a complicated and cruel choice?
And so, Ma Xiaojiao became an ostrich, and she even made careful preparations for it so that nothing would go wrong.

At that moment, Ma Xiaojiao glanced at Zhao Yu, whose hands were still fidgeting even in his sleep, and made a cute but fierce expression. She wanted nothing more than to bite him, 'You big liar! You've lied to us for so long, making us work like slaves for you, making us bear your children, deceiving our feelings, and you might even abandon us, leaving your wife and children behind! There's no one worse than you, you scoundrel!'

But when Ma Xiaojiao looked closely at Zhao Yu's handsome face, she felt even more that Zhao Yu was good-looking, the kind of person who had no bad angles.

Thinking that she might never be able to get close to Zhao Yu again in the future, Ma Xiaojiao secretly kissed Zhao Yu.

'fragrant!'

Ma Xiaojiao closed her eyes and savored the wonderful feeling.

Then, Ma Xiaojiao slowly withdrew her lips and slowly opened her eyes.

Immediately, Ma Xiaojiao saw Zhao Yu looking at her with a half-smile.

Ma Xiaojiao was startled. Feeling guilty, she stammered, "You...you're awake..."

……

(End of this chapter)