I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 74: A young tree cannot grow straight without pruning, and a wife cannot grow straight without pruning

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The Emperor, by the grace of Heaven and the Mandate of Heaven, decrees:
Since I ascended the throne in accord with the Mandate of Heaven, I have diligently worked tirelessly, day and night, to the care of state, devoting all my energy to the pursuit of national rejuvenation. However, I am now plagued by a serious illness, and my strength is waning. I deeply feel that the heavy responsibility of governing the country must be entrusted to capable people.

Among all the princes, I have found Prince Jian to be the most benevolent, filial, generous, intelligent, and insightful. Well-read since childhood, he possesses a profound understanding of state governance and peace, and is renowned for his virtue both within and beyond the court. I have no doubt that he will inherit the throne, continue my unfinished work, and usher in a new era of prosperity and rejuvenation.

I hereby pass the throne to my thirteenth brother, Prince Jian, Zhao Si. Upon ascending the throne, I hope he will respect Heaven and follow the example of his ancestors, govern diligently and cherish the people, carry forward the virtues of our ancestors, and bless all people. All members of the court, civil and military, should unite in assisting us in this grand undertaking and must not disobey. This announcement shall be made far and wide for all to know.

Written by the Emperor on November 2, 11th year of the Yuanfu reign
After reading the imperial edict left by Zhao Xu, Zhao Ya could only say that ability was ultimately no match for intimacy.

"Did Zhao Xu really become ill and confused in the last stage of his life?"

"It's also possible that the pressure from Queen Mother Xiang and the royal family has made Zhao Xu rebellious, thinking that even if he wants to pass his kingdom to the uncertain Zhao Si, he would never pass it on to me, who has the potential to save the Zhao Song Dynasty?"

As for what Zhao Xu was thinking, it is probably sunk into the abyss of history forever with the moment of his death, becoming a mystery that has been the subject of endless speculation and comment by historians and literati in later generations.

Zhao Ya stood in front of the brazier, holding the thin imperial edict in his hand, feeling mixed emotions.

In view of Zhao Xu's final choice, Zhao Ya was very glad for his and Empress Dowager Xiang's decisiveness. They kept Zhao Xu under tight control at the last moment of Zhao Xu's life, so that Zhao Xu would not have the chance to send out the edict until his death. Otherwise, there might have been big trouble, and it might even be uncertain who would win or lose in the end.

After all, compared with Zhao Ya, Zhao Si, who was timid and weak in character, was obviously easier to control. The ministers would definitely prefer such an emperor. Then, as long as they continued to force and guide him, they could make Zhao Si the second Song Renzong who constantly gave up imperial power and compromised with his ministers, and even achieve their ultimate goal of ruling the world together with the power of the prime minister and the imperial power.

You must know that since Song Shenzong, the political arena of the Zhao Song Dynasty has formed a situation where all power belongs to the emperor. Many ministers with dreams are holding back their efforts and want to return to the period of Song Renzong, which they most want to return to.

Zhao Ya threw the imperial edict into the brazier with his own hands and watched it turn into ashes with his own eyes, thus eliminating the last threat Zhao Xu left in this world.

At this time, Zhao Ya looked at Zheng Xiansu who was kneeling beside him and apologizing.

Some people may be puzzled. Zheng Xiansu was very meticulous. When Zhao Xu was dying, she found the imperial edict of succession hidden by Zhao Xu, eliminating this major hidden danger for Zhao Ya and making a great contribution. Why did she still apologize?
There is no doubt that Zheng Xiansu's finding of this imperial edict was a great achievement.

But Zheng Xiansu's mistake was that he did not destroy such a deadly thing at the first time, but took it out on his own and kept it until now.

Just imagine, if something goes wrong and this edict is exposed, the consequences will be absolutely unimaginable.

Zheng Xiansu is so smart, how could he not know what the most correct approach is and what serious consequences her choice might have?
But Zheng Xiansu still did it.

The reason.

Of course, Zheng Xiansu had anticipated that Zhao Ya would become emperor and the embarrassing situation she might face, so he kept this backup plan.

Otherwise, Zhao Ya came to see her as soon as Zheng Xiansu looked for him, and Zhao Ya did not change his mind. Or to put it another way, if Zhao Ya had not taken advantage of her and used her, but did not want her after the job was done, making her the biggest joke of the Zhao Song Dynasty and leaving her no way out, would this edict have brought trouble to Zhao Ya?
From this perspective, after Zheng Xiansu took the initiative to hand the imperial edict to Zhao Ya, she knelt down and apologized, saying that she had no complaints if Zhao Ya wanted to beat her or punish her. Is this right?
Zhao Ya sat down in front of Zheng Xiansu and said with a serious face, "Come here."

After hearing what was said, Zheng Xiansu stood up obediently and stood in front of Zhao Ya.

"Lie down." Zhao Ya said.

Although Zhao Ya did not say where to lie, Zheng Xiansu understood and lay on Zhao Ya's legs.

Next, whether Zhao Ya lifted up Zheng Xiansu's skirt or took off her pants, although Zheng Xiansu was extremely embarrassed, she did not move at all and let Zhao Ya spank her buttocks.

Zheng Xiansu did not cry, nor did she feel wronged. On the contrary, she felt completely at ease after being beaten by Zhao Ya.

Zheng Xiansu knew very well that she was wrong this time. She had judged Zhao Ya with a mean mind.

So, let alone a spanking from Zhao Ya, even if he just didn't want her anymore, she would have deserved it.

Fortunately, Zhao Ya was still willing to punish her, which meant that he still wanted her.

Otherwise, why would Zhao Ya, an emperor with a myriad of affairs, waste his time on a useless woman like her? Was he really after her perky and round butt and wanted to take advantage of her?
To tell you the truth that everyone knows, now that Zhao Ya has become the emperor, as long as he gives an order, there will be thousands of beauties willing to take off their pants and let Zhao Ya do whatever he wants. Does Zhao Ya need one of them?

Zheng Xiansu has a very clear understanding of this.

It can also be said that it was not until this moment that Zheng Xiansu completely confirmed that Zhao Ya was really determined to marry her and make her the queen. Even if she made mistakes, he would not abandon her. She was truly the luckiest woman in the world and had met the best man in the world.

'I will spend my life atonement for this grave mistake I have made.'

Zhao Ya was indeed a little angry.

"I'm connected to you, and you're playing tricks on me?!"

"If a tree is not pruned, it will not grow straight; if a wife is not educated, she will be unhappy!"

"If you hadn't finally chosen to bear all the consequences that would be unfavorable to you and resolutely handed over this will to me, like many corrupt officials, and frankly handed me your own handle, instead of secretly disposing of it and pretending that this thing never happened, do you think I would have given you a chance!"

As a result, Zhao Ya spanked Zheng Xiansu's buttocks so hard that they became red and swollen, and his walking became deformed.

As a result, after Zhao Ya and Zheng Xiansu walked out of the room, Wang Yisu, Zhang Chun and the other four girls who were waiting outside the door thought that Zhao Ya had slept with Zheng Xiansu.

In this regard, Wang Yisu was not worried about Zheng Xiansu at all. On the contrary, she was very happy.

In her opinion, it doesn't matter if Zhao Ya really slept with Zheng Xiansu today.

Not to mention that there are only a few of them here, no one would tell this to anyone.

To put it another way, even if this matter leaks out, what can be done?

Do you really think that during the reign of Emperor Renzong of Song, ministers could still control the emperor's concubines?

Therefore, even if someone knew that Zhao Ya and Zheng Xiansu had had a relationship before marriage, most people would not make themselves unhappy.

As for Zheng Xiansu, even if Empress Dowager Xiang had not helped Zhao Ya to replace the moon with the sun, and Zhao Ya could not marry her in a short time, she would not have to waste more than two years of her youth in vain.

More importantly, as long as Zhao Ya sleeps with Zheng Xiansu today, he can sleep with her the next day, and she won’t have to waste more than two years of her youth in vain.

In contrast to Wang Yisu's mood, Zhang Chun was very unhappy.

Zhang Chun also wanted to take advantage of the time when Zheng Xiansu was not in Zhao Ya's harem to dominate the harem, give birth to a son for Zhao Ya, and snatch Zheng Xiansu's position as queen.

Who would have thought that Zhao Ya not only promised Zheng Xiansu the position of queen in public, but also impatiently killed Zheng Xiansu directly, leaving Zhang Chun no chance to seize the initiative.

Zhang Chun looked at the triumphant Zheng Xiansu and thought to himself, "My premonition was right! This woman is definitely my greatest enemy!"

Li Lin and Yuan Qingcheng were even more melancholy. They thought in unison, "Zhao Ya doesn't even let go of women who haven't even married him yet. How can we escape if we go to his side as his concubines?"

As for Ye Shiyun, she still had a look of astonishment on her face. No one knew what she was thinking...

……

(End of this chapter)