I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

...

Zhang Chun left with a smile.

Although Zhang Chun did not actually achieve her dream of ruling the world as Empress Dowager, she did become the Empress Dowager she had always dreamed of before her death, which can be considered as eliminating some or even all of Zhang Chun's obsession.

Crucially, this represents Zhao Yu's attitude. The fact that Zhao Yu could make Zhang Chun the Empress Dowager is enough to show that Zhao Yu truly forgave Zhang Chun's actions over the years, and it is also enough to show that Zhao Yu still loves Zhang Chun, and that her efforts for Zhao Yu and her feelings for him over the years were not in vain.

In short, for Zhang Chun, this life, though not perfect, was still acceptable.

Zhang Chun set a bad precedent.

The year after Zhang Chun's death, Ye Shiyun, who was usually lazy and loved to eat, also began to have health problems.

Initially, none of these problems were serious; they were simply common age-related illnesses.

If Ye Shiyun exercises more every day and pays attention to her diet, eating foods with less salt, oil, and sugar, this minor ailment will definitely be relieved.

After Zhao Yu learned of this, he would specifically invite Ye Shiyun to practice Convict Conditioning, Yoga, Taoist health practices, and even martial arts.

In the beginning, Ye Shiyun would also pretend to move around with Zhao Yu.

But after only a few movements, Ye Shiyun felt tired.

Later, Ye Shiyun used the excuse that "I traveled to this era not to suffer" to completely give up and continued to eat, drink, and have fun every day, living a carefree life.

Perhaps due to her excellent physical condition or her positive mindset, Ye Shiyun lived to the age of sixty-nine before passing away.

Before her death, Ye Shiyun said to Zhao Yu, "I have enjoyed everything I should have in my life. I eat the best, play the best, and am happy every day. The key is that in my previous life, I was a barren woman and never experienced the relationship between men and women. I have had my fill in this life. I have no regrets. Your Majesty does not need to be sad because of my death. Everyone dies eventually. I just died a few years earlier than you."

Seeing Ye Shiyun's open-mindedness, Zhao Yu, who had seen off tens of thousands of concubines over the years and had long since become indifferent to life and death, asked Ye Shiyun, the smartest among them all, "Won't you blame me for being too fickle? Hmm... Let me put it another way, have you ever thought that if I only had you as my woman in my life, wouldn't your life be more perfect?"

Ye Shiyun said irritably, "I'm about to die, and you're still deliberately trying to annoy me?"

Zhao Yu shook his head: "No...it's probably because I'm getting old and a bit sentimental..."

Perhaps because he hadn't had many girlfriends in his previous life, in this life, Zhao Yu was born as a prince and later became emperor. He had countless beauties around him, and they were all at his disposal. In addition, after witnessing Zhao Xu's tragic end due to his childlessness, Zhao Yu pursued the idea of ​​having many children and blessings. As a result, Zhao Yu built a large harem. At the time, the number of women in his harem might not have ranked first in the world, but it was definitely in the top three.

This allowed Zhao Yu to acquire far too many women.

Because this was a feudal society, women had a low social status; and because Zhao Yu was the emperor, he inherently believed that he deserved a harem of three thousand beauties. This made Zhao Yu feel that there was nothing wrong with what he was doing. He didn't even consider the feelings of these women.

It wasn't until Zhao Yu accidentally saw that some palace maids had only served him once, and he didn't even remember what they looked like, yet they waited for him from their youth until their beauty faded, and even until they died, wasting their lives for him, that Zhao Yu couldn't help but wonder if he was committing a sin.
Zhao Yu wouldn't tell anyone about this, as it would make him appear indecisive.

Even though Zhao Yu is no longer the emperor of the Song Dynasty or the ruler of the world, he does not want to give people that impression.

Like Zhao Yu, Ye Shiyun is a time traveler, an anomaly whose modern soul fell into this feudal imperial power. Ye Shiyun has witnessed Zhao Yu's most primal desires and understands the thoughts of the thousands of women in the harem living under feudal imperial power. More importantly, Ye Shiyun is extremely intelligent and can see through Zhao Yu's decades of indulgence and the sudden guilt that has arisen at this moment. She understands Zhao Yu's contradictions and confusion as an emperor and as a time traveler.

More importantly, Ye Shiyun is nearing the end of her life. With a clear and open mind, she will take Zhao Yu's weakness and confusion at this moment to the ground and never reveal it to the outside world. She will not damage Zhao Yu's imperial dignity, nor will she allow Zhao Yu's confusion to become a handle for others to manipulate him.

Only when facing Ye Shiyun like this did Zhao Yu dare to shed his layers of pretense and speak out about the deep-seated guilt he was so unwilling to confront.

After listening, Ye Shiyun comforted Zhao Yu, saying, "This is a feudal society, not the world of our later generations that talks about equality and human rights. In this world, women have no human rights to speak of, let alone in this most feudal palace."

After a pause, Ye Shiyun continued, "Although I don't know much about history, I know that most emperors throughout history had three palaces, six courtyards, seventy-two concubines, and thousands of beauties in their harems. You were just more capable of unifying the whole world, which is why you had more than other emperors."

“I remember Chun Chun once told us that Hong Xiuquan of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, before he had truly succeeded, had more than two thousand concubines in his harem in a corner of the country. He even had to assign numbers and names to the concubines he served. That’s human nature.”

At this point, whether to comfort Zhao Yu or because she truly believed it, Ye Shiyun added, "If I were a man with your achievements and opportunities, I would do the same, perhaps even more ruthlessly and unrestrainedly." "You are the emperor who unified this world, you brought peace to all humanity, you ensured everyone had enough to eat, you initiated the Industrial Revolution, you greatly increased the average lifespan of humankind, you are the master of the world. With your contributions, everything you have received is rightfully yours. Don't feel pressured."

"Don't even mention those women from the feudal era. Haven't we five time travelers stayed by your side for a lifetime?"

After Ye Shiyun's dying words of comfort, Zhao Yu suddenly understood.

At the same time, Zhao Yu, who was not short of money and lacked nothing, once again improved the treatment of all his women, allowing them to live better lives.

Four years after Ye Shiyun's death, Yuan Qingcheng also passed away.

Yuan Qingcheng likely died of a heart attack. Her passing was swift and sudden, so much so that Zhao Yu didn't even get to see her one last time.

Fortunately, Yuan Qingcheng had her personal maid, Xu Poxi, tell Zhao Yu: "She has no regrets in her life. If she has to say what she regrets, it is that Zhao Yu is too fickle. He has never been hers alone. If there is an afterlife, she hopes that Zhao Yu will marry her alone. She will cook Zhao Yu's favorite dishes for him every day, and the two of them will live a simple and peaceful life."

Five years later, Ma Xiaojiao also passed away.

Before she passed away, Ma Xiaojiao kept pestering Zhao Yu, saying she was scared and asking him if there was any elixir of immortality. She said she hadn't had enough of Zhao Yu and wanted to stay with him for another five hundred years.

Zhao Yu did not laugh at Ma Xiaojiao. After all, before death arrives, no one can be sure that they can truly overcome the fear of death.

Even Qin Shi Huang, who unified the six kingdoms and dominated the nine provinces, was once obsessed with the legend of Penglai Mountain;

Even a man of great talent and ambition like Emperor Wu of Han was deeply entangled in the pursuit of immortality and Taoist practices in his later years.

They spent their lives looking down on the world and wielding the power of life and death, but in the face of the end of their lives, they were ultimately just ordinary people powerless to defy fate.

Those great scientists who are famous throughout history, who devoted their lives to studying the truth and deconstructing the world with logic and experimentation, regarded theology as a foolish old doctrine, turned to theology when they were old and facing death.

Newton spent half his life exploring the mysteries of the universe, but in his later years he devoted himself to the study of theology, trying to find the ultimate answer to the world in the will of God.
Einstein is regarded as the wisest man who came closest to the truth of the universe. Before his death, he also admitted that science is just a fingertip knocking on the door of God, and one may not be able to touch the truth behind that door even if one spends a lifetime.
Darwin's theory of evolution broke the shackles of creationism, allowing humanity to see the trajectory of life's evolution. However, in his later years, when faced with the ultimate questions of the origin of life and the destination of the soul, he ultimately developed a sense of awe for the unknown deities.

As for Ma Xiaojiao, aside from her identity as a time traveler, she is actually just an ordinary woman with strong practical skills. How could she possibly see through life and death?

During the last period of Ma Xiaojiao's life, Zhao Yu stayed by her side, telling her, "Even if you go first, I will come to join you in a few years. Besides, you are not alone. Chun Chun, Shi Yun, and Qing Cheng are waiting for you ahead."

Ma Xiaojiao died in Zhao Yu's arms, her arms still tightly wrapped around his waist before she died.

Because Ma Xiaojiao is the true Empress Dowager of the Song Dynasty, and the current Emperor Zhao Di is her biological son, and because Ma Xiaojiao has made great contributions to the development of the Song Dynasty, the world, and all of humanity, her funeral was held in a particularly grand manner.

It can be said that overnight, Beijing was draped in white mourning clothes. White banners and drapes were hung on palace walls, halls, and long streets. When the cold wind blew, thousands of white silks fluttered like waves, and the world was immersed in a solemn and sorrowful atmosphere. From the imperial family and court officials to ordinary people, everyone wore white clothes and fasted. Music and banquets were suspended. No laughter or merriment could be heard in the streets and alleys, only low sobs and heavy footsteps.

The scale of this national mourning was unprecedented. The amount of paper money burned alone was piled up like mountains, amounting to tens of millions of strings of cash. The silver foil paper money turned into ashes that drifted from the inner palace to the outskirts of Beijing, covering the long streets and alleys, as if paving a silver road to the other side for Ma Xiaojiao.

Ma Xiaojiao's coffin was placed in the main hall of the Imperial Ancestral Temple. During the hundred-day memorial ceremony, Zhao Di personally led civil and military officials and envoys from various vassal states to prostrate themselves and weep in worship. He posthumously conferred upon her the title of Empress Dowager Mingsu Ciyou Dasheng, a posthumous title that was extremely honorable.

On the day of the funeral, from the palace to the mausoleum, the thirty-mile-long street was lined with kneeling people, incense tables stretched endlessly, and the sound of weeping shook the earth as tens of thousands of people came to see him off.

Zhao Yu did not like Zhao Di's extravagant celebration, but he could understand Zhao Di's intentions.

Therefore, Zhao Yu tacitly approved of Zhao Di's actions, and only after the state funeral was completed did he send his trusted confidants to deliver Ma Xiaojiao's coffin to his own imperial mausoleum.

Of the six people who traveled through time, only Zhao Yu and Li Lin remained, relying on each other for survival...

...(End of this chapter)