Outside Mingde Gate are flat and spacious streets and squares.

She looked at the curb of Tianjie Street and seemed to see Yin Jin'an sitting by the roadside, stretching out her long legs, waiting for Xie Zhaozhao to summon her in the wind and rain.

She is now the emperor, and unlike before, she can no longer go out for a stroll or ride in her carriage to teahouses or restaurants at will.

Now she sits in the palace, and may not leave the palace even once every year or two.

He sat on the curb waiting for her, but he really only saw her once a year.

Zhou Shaoyu noticed that she was staring at the roadside and asked, "What are you looking at?"

Xie Zhaozhao pointed to the curb and said, "In the future, let's build a pavilion every 150 zhang along the roadside to shelter people from the wind and rain, so that people can take shelter when it rains or snows."

Zhou Shaoyu immediately instructed the Ministry of Works to make the arrangements.

Thinking that the statue of Yin Jin'an was so lifelike, Xie Zhaozhao asked Zhou Shaoyu, "The statues of the Prince of the same rank and the Duke of Xun are exquisitely crafted. Is this the work of the Ministry of Works?"

Zhou Shaoyu said, "Would you believe me if I said I sculpted it myself?"

"You?" Xie Zhaozhao was taken aback. "You're good at this?"

Xiu Ning interjected, "Your Majesty Emperor An, Your Majesty Emperor Chen personally commissioned the statues of the Prince of Bingjian and the Duke of Xun. This servant witnessed it with my own eyes."

Xie Zhaozhao suddenly remembered that after announcing the construction of the temple, he would leave the palace mysteriously every day after court.

“It’s not that I’m hiding it from you, it’s that I’m afraid you’ll be sad. Jin’an and Duke Xun are heroes of the Jade Dragon Kingdom. Only by making their statues myself can I show them enough respect.”

Xie Zhaozhao reached out and took his hand, squeezing it gently three times.

Zhou Shaoyu, thank you!

As soon as the two returned to the palace, the Empress Dowager (Madam Xie) came to see them on her own, and Princess Changping also came with her twin siblings Xie Xingye and Xie Xingwan.

The Empress Dowager arrived, leaning on her cane. Upon seeing Xie Zhaozhao, she examined her from head to toe and said, "You and Emperor Chen really are something, going away for so many days!"

"I've worried my grandmother."

The Empress Dowager stopped arguing with her and hurriedly went to hug Xiao Heng'er.

Grandparents and grandchildren love each other dearly!

"Heng'er, you've grown taller again! How were you doing outside? Did you have fun?"

"Ancestor, it was so much fun outside! We rode horses, sailed boats, shot rabbits, and met so many people."

"Little Heng, look what this is!" Cousin Xie Xingye proudly handed a small wolfhound to little Heng'er. "Don't underestimate it now, it'll be fierce when it grows up, woof~"

Xiao Heng'er was speechless for a moment.

She's incredibly powerful; she even dared to compete with him for the Empress!

Zhou Shaoyu had already sent a message to Huguo Temple in Lizhou, inviting Living Buddha Yuanji to come to the capital.

The Ministry of Rites and the Imperial Observatory both said they had not yet found Yuanji, while envoys from Nanzhao, Pyu, Xiandou, Dongli, and Tubo had arrived in Daming Prefecture one after another.

The Ministry of Rites directly took everyone to the post station.

The guesthouse verified the identities of the envoys based on the list and assigned them courtyards.

Princess Chizhen of Pyu Kingdom, and the Royal Preceptor Zhe Rinpoche;

Duan Rui, the third prince of the Nanzhao Kingdom, and the Grand Preceptor, the Venerable Wuyan;

The Venerable Master Zantuo Jialuo;

Naren, the crown prince of Tibet, and Dingzhe, the national preceptor;

The Third Prince of Dongli Kingdom was under three trees, and the Imperial Preceptor was under a pine tree.

They were expected to stay quietly in the courtyard, but the national advisors of these countries couldn't sit still.

Once they settled in, they held their own small meeting without waiting for an audience with Emperor An or Emperor Chen.

Their purpose in coming here is to find someone.

Pyu Khyentse Rinpoche was among the first group to arrive in Daming Prefecture.

He said excitedly, "Several years ago, Princess Chizhen was rescued by Tian Yaozu, a merchant from Lizhou. I saw that Tian Yaozu's eyebrows were shining, so I gave him a consecrated and incantated Six Paths of Reincarnation painting. This January, the soul array began to fluctuate, which means that the painting must have sensed the aura of the Holy Buddha."

The Nanzhao Kingdom, Xiandou, Tubo, and Dongli all looked at him with envy. Over the years, he had consecrated and blessed the Six Paths of Reincarnation Chart with mantras, giving it to countless people who had taken a liking to it. But many, many years had passed, and there had been no response.

Matsushita said anxiously, "After you arrived in Yulong Kingdom, have you made any new discoveries? I found that the fluctuations intensify with each step we take closer to Daming Prefecture."

Wu Yan of Nanzhao Kingdom and Ding Zhe of Tubo Kingdom were both very excited, and the soul arrays they had set up also felt the fluctuations.

“The reincarnation of the Holy Buddha must be in the Jade Dragon Kingdom, or even the Daming Prefecture,” Jialuo declared definitively. “We must inform His Majesty of the Jade Dragon Kingdom and find the Holy Buddha as soon as possible.”

Matsushita had something to hide, so he could only nod repeatedly with a straight face.

They are foreign state advisors and envoys; without His Majesty's permission, they cannot roam freely within the Jade Dragon Kingdom.

The people sent to Huguo Temple to invite the Living Buddha Yuanji have not yet returned, and the Ministry of Rites is getting anxious.

Zhou Shaoyu glanced at them indifferently and said, "Since they have come to pay their respects, they should follow the host's lead. Do they think they can just see the Living Buddha Yuanji whenever they want?"

Xie Zhaozhao glanced at them briefly, and Minister Liu of the Ministry of Rites broke out in a cold sweat.

His Majesty's contempt was palpable, almost as if he were saying, "What are you afraid of? At worst, I'll either annex them into my territory or turn them into vassal states!"