I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

...

The thought that the proud and arrogant Zhang Chun still didn't know that Zhao Yu was also a time traveler, and still regarded Zhao Yu as a native, believing that Zhao Yu was always under her control, made Li Lin feel a little better.

The key point is that Zhao Yu looked at Li Lin and said, "Now that you know who I am, shouldn't we settle the score for you running me over?"

At the time, the car that hit and killed Zhao Yu belonged to Li Lin, and Li Lin was also the driver. The other four women could also be considered victims.

This is something Li Lin can't deny no matter what.

Therefore, Li Lin felt uneasy when Zhao Yu brought this up.

However, Li Lin soon said indignantly, "I killed you, but I also gave you my whole life. Over the years, I let you play, taught you yoga and convict conditioning, gave birth to eight children for you, and even helped you build the world. Isn't that enough to repay what I owe you?"

Zhao Yu pulled Li Lin close and said, "That's enough. You've done so much for me. Even if you kill me again, let alone once..."

Li Lin quickly covered Zhao Yu's mouth and scolded, "Don't talk nonsense. We can all travel through time, so what is absolutely impossible? What if your words come true?"

Yes.

Li Lin was originally a strong woman, independent and self-reliant, who never relied on men and never entrusted her fate to any man.

In her past life, she lived with clarity and sharpness, controlling her career, bottom line, and life rhythm all by herself.

Who would have thought that a car accident would take her pride and integrity with her and plunge her into this unfamiliar world, into Zhao Yu's arms.

Then, the strong-willed Li Lin slowly revealed her more feminine side in front of Zhao Yu.

Now, in front of Zhao Yu, Li Lin is no different from any other woman. She no longer struggles and defiantly leans softly into his arms; her nose tingles slightly, her eyes droop, revealing a hint of docility; she gently buries her head on his shoulder, shedding all her sharpness; she breathes softly, quietly letting him hold her, no longer being forceful; she even stops straightening her back, becoming soft and dependent; and in his arms, she gradually puts away all her pride, becoming only his little woman.

At this moment, Li Lin, who had regained some of her strong, independent personality, instantly reverted to being a timid woman when facing Zhao Yu.

Zhao Yu gently removed Li Lin's hand and said to her, "When I said I was going to settle accounts with you, I didn't really mean it. I just wanted you to calm down so I could explain why I didn't let them reveal that I was also a time traveler."

Seeing that Zhao Yu had so casually dismissed the matter of her hitting and killing him, Li Lin, who had previously acted very tough, finally felt relieved. She then symbolically shrugged her shoulders, making a gesture as if she wanted to break free from Zhao Yu's embrace.

However, how could Li Lin possibly break free from Zhao Yu's embrace with such negligible movements?
Crucially, Li Lin struggled only symbolically for a moment before letting Zhao Yu hold her.

Having lived together for nearly forty years, how could Zhao Yu not be able to figure out Li Lin's little thoughts?
With a slight exertion of force from Zhao Yu, Li Lin became completely obedient.

At this point, Zhao Yu said, "Actually, I wasn't doing this to guard against you, but to guard against Zhang Chun. In my previous life, I was an online novelist. I was just delivering food to experience life. When I was writing novels, I often watched Zhang Chun talk about history. I know that her idols were empress dowagers like Empress Lü, Empress Liu, and Empress Dowager Cixi, who became the highest leaders of the country. She had a nickname: Empress Dowager Chun..."

After hearing what Zhao Yu said, Li Lin realized that Zhao Yu had always known that Zhang Chun's goal was to replace her.

How could Zhao Yu possibly let Zhang Chun know that he was also a time traveler? Of course, he would watch from the shadows as she cleverly revealed all her schemes and ambitions, thus securing her invincibility.

After hearing Zhao Yu's explanation, Li Lin was still somewhat bothered that Zhao Yu hadn't told her he was also a time traveler. However, after hearing Zhao Yu say that he had discovered Yuan Qingcheng, Ma Xiaojiao, and Ye Shiyun on his own and hadn't told anyone about it, she forgave him.

As for Yuan Qingcheng, Ma Xiaojiao, and Ye Shiyun, the matter was temporarily dropped after their repeated apologies. Whether or not they would be forgiven would be decided later.

In short, several years ago, only Zhang Chun remained unaware that Zhao Yu was also a time traveler.

Now, Zhang Chun is spouting nonsense, saying that they will all have to rely on her in the future, and even threatening them, implying that no one else can protect them except her.

The four women really wanted to laugh at this. 'We have officials with us; why would we need a stupid woman like you to protect us?'

Unbeknownst to Zhang Chun, the four women, seemingly nonchalant, were actually all trying their best to suppress their laughter. How could they not laugh at Zhang Chun, who was acting like a clown, still engaging in pointless scheming?
Seeing that her mouth was dry from talking, but the four women still wouldn't budge, Zhang Chun was furious. She said coldly, "If the five of us can't work together to win the crown prince position for our children and grandchildren, we will all come to a bad end. I've said all I have to say. What is your attitude? Give me a straight answer!"

At this point, Zhang Chun, somewhat unwilling, threatened the four women again: "If you don't help me, I'll take matters into my own hands! But let me make this clear: if you don't help me at this crucial moment, don't expect me to look after you all these years of friendship!"

Seeing that Zhang Chun was still indulging in wishful thinking, Ma Xiaojiao, who was closest to Zhang Chun, couldn't help but remind her, "With the officials around, how can we women make decisions about such matters? Let's just wait and see."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Chun looked at Li Lin, Ye Shiyun, and Yuan Qingcheng and asked, "Is this your attitude too?"

All three women nodded. Li Lin, who had also suffered from being kept in the dark, reminded Zhang Chun, "This matter is entirely up to the Emperor. Let's not worry about it."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Chun angrily retorted, "Don't you understand what I'm saying? When the Emperor is alive, he can protect us, but what about after he dies? He can't live forever like us!"

Thinking that Li Lin was the second to last to find out that Zhao Yu was also a time traveler, and that she had never completely forgiven the three of them, Yuan Qingcheng gave Zhang Chun a hint: "Our ability to live forever is just your guess. What if we are just a little more resistant to aging than ordinary people?"

Seeing that the other three women had given Zhang Chun some hints, Ye Shiyun couldn't remain silent, so she also spoke up, saying, "The Emperor looks very young; perhaps we won't outlive him."

Zhang Chun was almost laughing in exasperation at the four women. She said sarcastically, "How can a mere native like the official compare to the five of us transmigrators?!"

Before anyone else could speak, Zhang Chun continued, "Oh, I see. You just don't want my son to be the crown prince, and you don't want me to be the empress. Why say so much!"

“We really didn’t want to compete with you,” Ma Xiaojiao said.

"Alright, alright, we're all seasoned foxes, what are you playing at, trying to be funny!" Zhang Chun said angrily. "Since you all have no sense of propriety, then let's have a fair competition. I don't believe that your mortal children can compare to my Tang'er!"

Having said that, Zhang Chun, utterly disappointed in the four women who were "completely oblivious to their own shortcomings," turned and left, giving them no chance to "explain." The four women were speechless.

Ye Shiyun said, "There must be something hateful about a pitiful person. Let her be."

Yuan Qingcheng said, "Anyway, we've already warned her. Even if she finds out the truth in the future, she can't blame us."

Li Lin said, "Sigh! I'm stubborn enough, how can Zhang Chun be even more stubborn than me? Even with our hints, he still can't see that the Emperor is also a time traveler?"

Ma Xiaojiao said, "Perhaps... Over the years, the Emperor has listened to her every word, which has made her overestimate her own abilities and given her the illusion that she can control the Emperor. Subconsciously, she doesn't believe that the Emperor is also a time traveler. She thinks that the Song Dynasty has become what it is today entirely thanks to the five of us, and that she herself deserves the greatest credit."

Yuan Qingcheng said slowly, "Overconfidence ruined her."

Ma Xiaojiao asked, "So we're just going to keep watching Sister Chun act like a monkey, jumping around in front of the officials every day, thinking she's making progress every day?"

Li Lin said, "Otherwise what? If we tell her the truth, can she accept it? Even if she can accept it, how will she get along with the emperor? Will she tell the emperor that it was all a misunderstanding and that she never intended to seize his throne?"

Ma Xiaojiao said, "The officials probably won't hold it against her; otherwise, they wouldn't have tolerated her for almost forty years."

Ye Shiyun said, "The problem isn't the government, but whether Chunchun can get over this mental hurdle. What if she suddenly finds out the truth, can't accept it, goes crazy, or vomits blood and dies?"

Li Lin said, "Zhang Chun shouldn't be that fragile, right?"

Ye Shiyun said, "That's not necessarily true. Psychology says that once a person lives in extreme arrogance and a closed cognitive loop for a long time, taking 'I am the smartest and I control everything' as the basis for their existence, it will trigger a serious cognitive collapse once the truth is exposed. For so many years, she has treated the officials as locals and herself as the behind-the-scenes manipulator. All her pride, calculation, and confidence are built on this illusion."

When she suddenly realized that in front of the emperor, she was like someone who had stripped naked and was playing cards openly, all her forty years of cleverness had become a joke, and her ambition had become a clown. Not only could she not control anyone, but she was also constantly being looked down upon by the emperor. This shock of falling hard from the 'peak of ignorance' was more painful than killing her.

It's hard to say; at best, she might lose her mind and go insane, her personality might drastically change, and at worst, she might suffer a stroke and collapse on the spot.

Yuan Qingcheng also said, "Her pride might not be able to withstand such a big contrast, so let's not provoke her."

Ma Xiaojiao asked, "So we're just going to keep it from her? Just watch her make a fool of herself like this?"

Li Lin thought for a moment and said, "Zhao Cheng is indeed the most suitable prince to inherit the throne. If the emperor chooses Zhao Cheng as the crown prince, he will inevitably choose Zhang Chun as the empress. Then we can tell Zhang Chun about this, and the impact on Zhang Chun will not be so great."

After a pause, Li Lin added, "Furthermore, if the Emperor chooses Zhang Chun's son as the Crown Prince, it means that the Emperor no longer wants to hold a grudge against Zhang Chun."

Ma Xiaojiao, Ye Shiyun, and Yuan Qingcheng all nodded in agreement, agreeing with Li Lin's assessment that if Zhao Yu could choose Zhao Tang as his successor, it would be enough to show that Zhao Yu had forgiven Zhang Chun's long-standing ulterior motives. Otherwise, Zhao Yu would not have passed his throne to Zhang Chun's children and grandchildren. This was indeed the best opportunity to tell Zhang Chun that Zhao Yu was also a time traveler.

After thinking for a moment, Ma Xiaojiao asked again, "Then... what if the Emperor doesn't pass the throne to Zhao Cheng?"

"This……"

……

Zhao Yu did not select more than twenty princes and grandsons to help him handle state affairs, and then he stopped selecting princes and grandsons.

In fact, this is just the beginning.

Soon after, Zhao Yu issued an imperial edict:
Since assuming the throne, I have worked tirelessly day and night, governing diligently and caring for the people, with the sole aim of ensuring the stability of the nation and the well-being of its inhabitants. Now, as I grow older and my energy declines, I am no longer able to bear the burden of the demanding affairs of state, and I fear that my declining health may lead me to neglect the affairs of the nation.

The rise and fall of a nation depends on its virtuous and capable officials; the prosperity and decline of a dynasty rests on its descendants. Among my sons and grandsons are many intelligent, upright, and exceptionally talented individuals, well-versed in learning and etiquette, and knowledgeable in government affairs, capable of serving as pillars of the state. In order to consolidate the foundation of the nation and manage all affairs, I hereby issue this edict to widely recruit virtuous and capable individuals.

I hereby order all princes of the imperial clan and all civil and military officials, both inside and outside the court, to recommend any of my sons and grandsons who possess the talent to govern the world, so that they may be brought to court to assist me in managing state affairs and to participate in important matters.

The selection must be impartial and based solely on merit, without regard to personal relationships or favoritism. The chosen person should be able to perform their duties diligently, assist the Emperor in sharing his burdens, and work together to bring peace to the realm.

The proclamation was made known both domestically and internationally.

This is it.

When Zhao Yu issued such an imperial edict at this time, who could not tell that Zhao Yu was selecting a successor?
Thus, those princes and grandsons who harbored ambitions and aspired to the throne began to stir. Some secretly cultivated relationships with important officials in the court, discussing their aspirations and showcasing their talents in hopes of being recommended; others simply abandoned their reserve and went directly to the palace to meet the emperor, offering their own recommendations and presenting their talents, insights, and strategies for governing the country to Zhao Yu, fearing that they might fall behind others.

Meanwhile, in the imperial court, the civil and military officials, as well as the imperial relatives, who were concerned about the future of the Song Dynasty and the country, did not uphold impartiality and carefully screen the princes and grandsons who were virtuous, talented, and cared about the people.

In an instant, memorials poured into the palace like snowflakes, and all eyes, both inside and outside the court, were focused on this selection process that concerned the very foundation of the nation. The atmosphere was both tense and enthusiastic.

Zhao Yu didn't mind the time and effort involved. He gathered all his sons and grandsons with high prestige around him and personally selected the crown prince.

The chosen princes and grandsons, whether they were in Asia, Europe, Africa, Oceania, or the Prince's Continent, all returned to the Song Dynasty to prepare for the election.

However, there are always exceptions.

One of the most popular princes, who should have returned to the Song Dynasty to participate in the crown prince election, submitted a memorial to Zhao Yu, clearly stating that he was giving up his candidacy for the crown prince position.

This prince is Zhao Cheng, Zhang Chun's eldest son...

...(End of this chapter)