I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

...

Zhang Chun was wrong.

In this world, her body, even in her fifties, looked almost like she was in her twenties. The key point is that Li Lin, Ma Xiaojiao, Ye Shiyun, and Yuan Qingcheng were all like that, leading Zhang Chun to mistakenly believe that these transmigrators could live forever.

However, after Zhao Cheng defied her and refused to listen to her, returning to compete for the position of crown prince, Zhang Chun fell seriously ill.

Next, Zhang Chun's body began to age rapidly.

After Zhang Chun recovered from her illness, she looked noticeably older, aging by twenty or thirty years, and transformed into the appearance of a woman in her thirties or forties.

At this point, if Zhang Chun changed her mindset, let go of her obsession with becoming Empress Dowager, and started to focus on health preservation, although she might not be able to become as young as before, she should be able to stabilize her body from aging, or at least greatly slow down the aging process.

However, Zhang Chun's obsession with becoming Empress Dowager was simply too deep.

The key point is that Zhang Chun almost got the position of Empress Dowager; she was just a hair's breadth away from it.

The crucial point is that the position of Empress Dowager ended up in the hands of her "little sister," Ma Xiaojiao.

Honestly, Zhang Chun would feel a little better if she lost to Empress Wu Shaofen of the Southern Song Dynasty, Empress Xiao Tabuyan of the Western Liao Dynasty, Empress Pei Man of the Daoping Dynasty, Empress Ren of the Western Xia Dynasty, Empress Wang of the Western Xia Dynasty, Queen Melissant of Jerusalem, Queen Mathilde of Boulogne of England, Queen Helena of Serbia of Hungary, Queen Elvira of Castile of Sicily, and Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine of France.

Who the hell is Ma Xiaojiao?!
Even among the five women, Ma Xiaojiao was the least like an empress.

Moreover, back then, Ma Xiaojiao had always followed Zhang Chun.

She not only mentored Ma Xiaojiao but also served as her life guide, frequently offering advice and guidance to help Ma Xiaojiao embark on the right path in life.

Even after Ma Xiaojiao followed Zhao Yu and latched onto a powerful figure, embarking on her extraordinary path as the strongest inventor in the Song Dynasty, Zhang Chun was still her elder sister. Whenever she saw Zhang Chun, she would politely address her as "Sister Chun."

As it turned out, it was this very younger sister of hers who stole the position of Empress Dowager that she had wanted most.

What Zhang Chun found even more unacceptable was that after Ma Xiaojiao obtained the position of Empress Dowager, she simply changed her title and did everything the same as before, without doing any "real work," completely wasting the identity she had longed for.

Imagine this: you've devoted your entire life to this goal, striving relentlessly, making the position of Empress Dowager your sole obsession and the ultimate destination of wielding power. You've schemed and plotted relentlessly, almost touching the edge of that phoenix crown, only to ultimately fail and watch helplessly as it falls into the hands of Ma Xiaojiao, who once followed you closely, depended on you, and whom you regarded as your little sister.

Zhao Cheng's rebellion became the first crack.

A serious illness robbed Zhang Chun of her youthful appearance, which she had always been proud of, and her beauty aged overnight, dragging her back from her illusory dream of immortality to the cold reality.

Ma Xiaojiao's ascent to the top was the final straw that broke her back.

How could Zhang Chun not be greatly affected by this?
To be honest, Zhang Chun could have attributed her loss to any of the other women, such as Wu Shaofen, to bad luck or misfortune. But losing to Ma Xiaojiao was a truly humiliating and ironic defeat for her.

Ma Xiaojiao was originally a "junior" whom she mentored and guided, a "follower" and "dependent" in Zhang Chun's life trajectory, and the one among the five women who had the least empress's majesty and was the least like a candidate for empress. Yet, she effortlessly plucked the fruit that she had longed for but could not obtain.

What's even more cruel is that Ma Xiaojiao has no respect or appreciation for this supreme position of woman. She treats the title of Empress Dowager as an insignificant title and continues to do as she pleases, without seeking power, holding authority, or enjoying honor. She discards what Zhang Chun has dreamed of for two lifetimes and was willing to exchange everything for as if it were worthless.

This is an extreme absurdity and tragedy.

The deeper Zhang Chun's obsession and the heavier the price he paid, the more contemptible and laughable Ma Xiaojiao's possessions appeared, and the more his own life's scheming seemed like a huge joke.

Looking at her rapidly aging face, at the empress's position that was so close yet forever lost, and at her former "little sister" who sat comfortably with her dreams without caring, Zhang Chun felt a surge of bone-deep resentment, a breakdown of self-doubt, and an extreme distortion of wanting what she couldn't have and not cherishing what she had.

Unable to let go of this obsession, Zhang Chun could only let this resentment gnaw at her mind, watching as aging accelerated in the flames of her obsession. She hated Ma Xiaojiao for getting something for nothing, hated her own failure at the last minute, hated the injustice of fate, and hated that all her hard work in this life had ultimately come to nothing.

In just two or three years, time quickly etched the word "aged" onto Zhang Chun's face and body.

Zhang Chun once thought she was "immortal," but now that belief has become a thorn in her side. Every time she looks in the mirror, it seems to remind her that she is a joke.

That day, Li Lin, Ma Xiaojiao, Ye Shiyun, and Yuan Qingcheng came to visit Zhang Chun, who was ill again.

Unlike before, when Ma Xiaojiao was always on the "margins" among the five women, she has now become the center of attention. Whether it's Li Lin, the eldest sister among the five women, or Yuan Qingcheng, who has made the greatest contribution to the world among the five women, they can only obediently stand to Ma Xiaojiao's left and right.

As for Ye Shiyun, she could only stand to Li Lin's left.

Zhang Chun couldn't help but think, 'If I stood with them, I could only stand to Yuan Qingcheng's right... We've already transmigrated once, and my status is still the lowest among the five of us!'

This made Zhang Chun feel a tightness in her chest.

But Ma Xiaojiao was completely oblivious to this, and even stepped forward to ask with concern, "Sister Chun, are you alright?"

She was still wearing the same plain casual clothes, her hair was casually styled, and when she saw her, she still called her "Sister Chun" without changing her tone. But Zhang Chun had an urge to strangle Ma Xiaojiao.

Zhang Chun endured it again and again before finally struggling to get up, wanting to bow to Ma Xiaojiao.

Seeing this, Ma Xiaojiao quickly held Zhang Chun down and said, "Sister Chun, we don't need to do this."

Crucially, after saying this, Ma Xiaojiao added another blow: "Actually, everyone knows that if your Tang'er hadn't refused to come back, the throne would never have fallen into my Di'er's hands. My position as Empress Dowager should have been yours."

Honestly, Zhang Chun's urge to strangle Ma Xiaojiao was growing stronger.

If Ma Xiaojiao were really showing off to her or deliberately targeting or suppressing her, Zhang Chun would actually feel better.

But Zhang Chun knew perfectly well that Ma Xiaojiao's actions were unintentional, even well-intentioned; she was simply trying to comfort herself.

And that's what Zhang Chun finds most unbearable.

Even after becoming Empress Dowager, Ma Xiaojiao remained obsessed with wielding a hammer, constantly tinkering with this or developing that, completely disregarding the concubines in the harem and the power dynamics in the court.

In Ma Xiaojiao's eyes, these national and family affairs were not as interesting as the cold machinery in her hands.

In Zhang Chun's view, the "ultimate destination" she had planned for her whole life was nothing more than a "leisure job" that Ma Xiaojiao could easily put aside.

This realization caused Zhang Chun more pain than a knife cutting her heart.

Zhang Chun suddenly felt ridiculous.

Ma Xiaojiao's "lack of appreciation" is like a mirror, reflecting that her lifelong obsession was nothing but a mirage.

In fact, Zhang Chun had tried to let go, tried to have the imperial physician help her recuperate, and even tried to explore various religions, hoping to find a glimmer of hope in medicinal cuisine and meditation.

But whenever the night was still and quiet, the image of that phoenix crown, so close yet always out of reach, would appear before her eyes, and her resentment would grow wildly. This was not just simple jealousy; she had schemed and plotted every step of the way, yet she could not overcome Ma Xiaojiao's "go with the flow" attitude; she saw the position of Empress Dowager as her destiny, yet she had become a laughingstock, "wanting but not getting."

How could she possibly let this go?!

With this mindset, Zhang Chun grew older and her health deteriorated.

During this period, Zhang Chun suffered from insomnia almost every night and looked extremely haggard.

Before we knew it, it was time for the apricot blossoms to bloom again.

The apricot trees on Xinggang Hill in Chengde Mountain Resort have only blossomed sparsely this year.

This has never happened before.

Zhao Yu's concubines and palace servants were all whispering among themselves, saying that this was not a good omen.

Zhang Chun also heard some rumors.

Zhang Chun particularly liked apricot blossoms, and he even advocated for planting these apricot trees.

That evening, Zhang Chun quietly came to Xinggang alone to see what was going on.

As a result, one could see that the tall apricot tree was indeed sparsely covered with white petals, which made one feel melancholy and sad at first glance.

Zhang Chun suddenly had a premonition that his days were numbered.

After thinking it over, Zhang Chun decided to go and meet the other four women who had traveled to this world with him, to say goodbye to them, and also to ask them if they had such a premonition.

When Zhang Chun arrived at Ma Xiaojiao's residence, Xi Duo told her that Li Lin, Ye Shiyun, and Yuan Qingcheng were also there, and the four of them were talking in the Imperial Garden.

Zhang Chun didn't pay any attention, nor did he ask Xiduo to send someone to inform them. Instead, he went to the Imperial Garden alone to see the four women.

When they were still some distance from the Imperial Garden, Zhang Chun heard the four women arguing fiercely.

"We can't keep this from Chun-jie any longer. You've all seen it; she's in very poor health right now. If we don't tell her, she might die without ever knowing this, which would be too cruel for her!"

“I know Chunchun better than any of you. If you tell her this, it won’t help her at all, it will kill her. I bet if you tell her today, she won’t live past tomorrow.”

“I think so too. Zhang Chun has never been very magnanimous. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be so obsessed with becoming Empress or Empress Dowager, and she wouldn’t have ended up like this. In my opinion, we should just keep this a secret and not provoke her any further.”

"This isn't about whether it's upsetting Zhang Chun or not. In my opinion, Zhang Chun's days are numbered. Didn't Consort Chen say that if she still can't let go, she only has three to five months left to live? What difference does it make whether she lives a few more or a few less months? Besides, I've been kept in the dark by you all before, so I understand Zhang Chun's feelings very well. She definitely wants to know that the Emperor is also a time traveler..."

Just then, Zhang Chun's voice rang out: "What did you say?! The Emperor is also a time traveler???!!!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Zhang Chun, whose face was flushed from the surge of blood and qi, disregarded her old age and serious illness and rushed to the four women.

Zhang Chun's appearance startled the four women, especially when they saw that Zhang Chun's eyes were red, as if he wanted to devour them.

The four women instinctively shut their mouths. They really didn't know how to answer Zhang Chun's question, and some were even afraid to face him.

Seeing that none of the four women spoke, Zhang Chun roared, "Answer me!!! Is it true that the official is also a time traveler???"

The four women remained silent; one could say they truly didn't know how to bring it up.

At this moment, Zhang Chun had already realized that if Zhao Yu hadn't been a time traveler, the four women would never have had such expressions.

Iris Chang was struck dumb; all the blood in her body rushed to her head and then sank to her feet!
She stood frozen in place, as images from the past decades flooded back like a tidal wave...

Zhao Yu listened to the five women without question, never questioned their incredible modern knowledge, readily accepted the novel objects they casually presented, and even believed and followed their advice when they claimed they could predict the future and the changes in the world.

She always believed that it was her skillful methods and meticulous thinking that allowed her to manipulate Emperor Zhao Yu, the first emperor of the Song Dynasty, at will. She believed that she was the one who led Zhao Yu by the nose, and that she was the one who, step by step, used Zhao Yu's power to control the Song Dynasty and even the world.

She thought she was the manipulator, and Zhao Yu was nothing more than a puppet on her strings.

As it turns out, Zhao Yu was also a time traveler.

It turns out that Zhao Yu knew everything from beginning to end. He knew they came from the future, he knew their ulterior motives, and he knew that Zhang Chun was scheming to curry favor, to seize power, to become Empress Dowager, and to rule the world.

Zhao Yu watched her scheme and plot, watched her exhaust herself, watched her act like a clown, putting on a show for him her whole life.

Li Lin, Ma Xiaojiao, Ye Shiyun, Yuan Qingcheng... all four of them knew the truth.

Of the entire world, only Zhang Chun was kept in the dark.

She thought herself incredibly intelligent, that she was in control of everything, and that she could defy fate and rise to the top as a woman. In the end, she discovered that the clown was herself.

The immense absurdity and despair instantly shattered Zhang Chun's mind, which had been taut for decades.

She suddenly let out a shrill and manic laugh.

The laughter was sharp, hoarse, and broken, echoing under the corridors of the Imperial Garden, sending chills down one's spine.

There was no joy in that laughter, only a bone-chilling sorrow, extreme mockery, and the collapse of being fooled by the whole world.

"Haha...hahaha...I see...I see..."

"So...so I was the biggest idiot all along!!"

"You all know... but I'm the only one who doesn't know... I'm the only one... like a clown..."

Zhang Chun's laughter grew hoarse and increasingly shrill, until suddenly it abruptly stopped.

Her chest heaved violently, her face turned from flushed to deathly pale, a sweet taste rose in her throat, and with a "pfft," she vomited a mouthful of blood!

Immediately, Zhang Chun's body went limp, like a puppet with its strings cut, and he fell straight backward, crashing to the ground with a "bang"!
The four women exclaimed in surprise and rushed forward to help him up...

...(End of this chapter)