Thinking of this, the emperor quickly spoke:
"Lord Shaoqing, please wait. This incident was indeed due to the royal family's lack of foresight. Fortunately, it hasn't been long since it happened, and the prince and princess are not too old. They are not yet thirty years old, so there is still room for redemption."
Zhao Xian sat down again, looked at the emperor, and asked, "What are Your Majesty's next plans?"
"This matter is not difficult. I will immediately send someone to the temple to persuade the prince to return to secular life and marry the princess."
"But the princess isn't in the palace. Shouldn't we bring her back first?" Zhao Xian asked.
"Of course. Given the princess's personality, it would be difficult for anyone else to bring her back. It seems that only if I go there in person and explain the whole story will the princess believe me and return to the palace with me."
It seems the prince will have to endure this hardship for a few more days. Once the princess returns to the palace, I will immediately send someone to the temple to bring the prince back.
“Very good. What does Your Majesty need me to do?”
"Of course there are important matters that need to be addressed by you, Lord Shaoqing. After all, this is a marriage between two countries, which is of great significance. You can serve as the witness."
“No problem, of course I’m willing to be their witness,” Zhao Xian said excitedly.
At this moment, the emperor remembered something and asked:
What is the relationship between Princess Li Xue and Prince Li Ru?
"Li Ru and Li Xue are both the prince's children. They are born of the same mother and are siblings."
When Li Ru went to Jindian Kingdom, Li Xue was only a few years old and didn't know what had happened. Perhaps the princess didn't expect that this visit to Jindian Kingdom would lead her to meet her own brother.
"That's wonderful. I will get to it immediately and decide to set off tomorrow morning to bring the princess back."
"In that case, I will wait for the Emperor's good news."
"There is one more thing. The Empress wishes to see Princess Li Xue. Could the Princess come and chat with the Empress?"
"That's no problem. I'll go back and tell the princess to come to the palace as soon as possible and chat with the empress."
In order not to delay the emperor's business, Zhao Xian immediately got up to take his leave and returned to the post station with Sun Heng.
Upon seeing Zhao Xian return, Li Xue eagerly went to greet him and asked:
"Brother Zhao, how's the matter going?"
Zhao Xian smiled and told Li Xue what had happened in the palace.
“That’s great. It seems the Emperor is even more anxious than we are. I’ll make some preparations this afternoon and go to the palace to see the Empress tomorrow morning. I can guess that the Empress will want to talk to me about these same things.”
The next morning, the emperor set off with his entourage. He did not take a carriage, but rode at full speed, and arrived at the temple where the princess was in less than three days.
It seems the emperor is still in good health. At his age, anyone else would have collapsed from exhaustion long ago. It seems the emperor is really pushing himself this time.
At this time, the temple received news that the emperor was coming to the temple in person. The abbot dared not be negligent and immediately led people out of the temple to greet him.
The emperor glanced around, but did not see the princess, so he asked:
"Why haven't we seen the princess?"
The abbot quickly replied, "The princess is practicing in the temple, and under normal circumstances, we dare not disturb her."
"Did you tell her that it was I who came to visit her?"
“As I have already said, the princess said she is praying and will come to see Your Majesty after she finishes praying. Please come to the temple to rest.”
The Emperor nodded; he was indeed very tired and needed to rest.
In a spacious meditation room, the emperor sat down, and the abbot immediately served him tea.
Although the emperor was anxious, he had to wait patiently.
Upon seeing the abbot, the emperor asked, "How has the princess been doing in the temple these past few years?"
"Your Majesty, since the princess came to the temple, she has been devoted to cultivation and has been relatively peaceful, but she is quiet and reserved all day long."
When the princess first arrived, we didn't know her identity, so we didn't ordain her. Later, when the empress came to the temple, we learned that she was a princess.
The princess's entry into the temple to practice Buddhism was a major event. Although the princess had been requesting to be ordained, the temple dared not do so.
Later, a wandering master came to the temple. When she saw the princess, she told me that this person's karmic ties were not yet severed, so she could not be ordained as a nun and could only practice with her hair intact.
From then on, the princess practiced Buddhism while keeping her hair intact, and never shaved her head.
Upon hearing this, the emperor immediately became excited, thinking that it was all the will of Heaven.
Just then, the princess came over and knelt down before the emperor.
"This humble nun pays her respects to Your Majesty."
The emperor was startled and quickly rose to his feet, approaching the princess and saying:
"Xue'er, no need for formalities. Quickly raise your head and let me have a good look at you."
The princess stood up and looked up at the emperor.
After several years, the emperor had aged considerably. At such an advanced age, he had gone to great lengths to come and see me.
The princess forced back her tears, knowing that as a cultivator, she should not reveal her emotions too much.
In the emperor's eyes, the princess hadn't changed much; she had just become a little thinner and her personality had become very calm.
The emperor felt a pang of heartache and said:
"Xue'er, your father has traveled so far just to bring you back to the palace."
After the emperor finished speaking, he looked at the princess. At this moment, the princess remained calm and composed, and said:
“I am a nun who has left home to become a nun. This temple is my home. I will not go anywhere else.”
"Xue'er, you may not know this, but your father has come to take you back to the palace to get married."
Upon hearing this, the princess couldn't help but laugh and said:
"Why did Father suddenly think of asking me to return to the palace to get married? Back then, I fell in love with the fool, and the royal family tried every means to stop it. I never expected that they would think of me again now. My heart is dead, and I am prepared to grow old alone. Father, please go back."
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