When Liu Liu heard that it was Concubine Mei who took Zi'an to Zhenguo Temple, she waved her hand and smiled, "Princess, you are really paranoid. How could Concubine Mei harm Zi'an? She is relying on Zi'an now. If Zi'an gets into trouble, she will be the first to suffer."
"I think so too, but why did Concubine Mei lie?" Zhuangzhuang said.
Chen Taijun also felt that something was wrong, but in order to prevent everyone from panicking, she said, "Perhaps, Mei Fei wanted to go to burn incense herself, and in order to prevent people from saying anything about her, she said that it was the emperor's order. Assassins entered the palace and the Yueqing Palace was also attacked. As a woman, she thought that she escaped the disaster because of the Bodhisattva's blessing, so it was reasonable for her to go to the Zhenguo Temple to thank the gods for their grace."
Zhuangzhuang felt a little relieved after hearing Chen Taijun's comfort, "Yes, maybe I am really too sensitive."
"There have been a lot of things going on recently, so it's a good thing for the princess to be cautious. Don't rush to guess. Have you sent anyone to Zhenguo Temple?" asked Lady Chen.
"We sent someone there. We asked Qinzhi to send secret guards and told them to bring Zi'an back." Zhuangzhuang said.
"Well, it's not far from here to Zhenguo Temple. If you can walk quickly, you can go back and forth in one day. What time did you leave?"
"I left at 9:00 p.m."
"Then maybe we will stay in Zhenguo Temple for one night. Otherwise, it will be too late when we return to Duzi." said Chen Taijun.
"The secret guards were just sent out. They can reach Zhenguo Temple in half an hour at the fastest speed." Zhuangzhuang said, "Once we get to Zhenguo Temple, if we find Zi'an, we should bring him back quickly. It will take a little over three hours."
The secret guards went there on fast horses, while Zi'an and Mei Fei took a carriage. If they wanted to be comfortable and not bumpy, it would take at least three hours to arrive. If they wanted to go faster, it would take at least two and a half hours.
Chen Taijun said: "We can only wait now, for three hours."
The Night King also entered the palace later. After hearing what Zhuang Zhuang said, he frowned and asked, "Zhen Guo Temple?"
"You think it's inappropriate, don't you?" Zhuangzhuang asked.
"That's definitely not right." The Night King thought for a moment, "You sent a secret guard, didn't you?"
"Yes."
"No, I have to let the people from Su Yue Tower go. Su Yue Tower is familiar with the terrain of Zhenguo Temple." The Night King turned and went out.
Even Ye Wang said it was inappropriate, which made Zhuangzhuang feel even more uneasy.
They waited until the hour of Chou, when the secret guard came back with a report that the princess had indeed been to Zhenguo Temple, but had already left.
"Gone? Did you see their carriage on the road?" Zhuangzhuang asked.
"I haven't seen it all the way back."
"Look, look!" Zhuangzhuang was anxious, "Something must have happened."
"Princess, please be patient. We have left people at Zhenguo Temple. The monks there are also helping to look for him. I just came back to report the situation."
"When did Zhenguo Temple say Zi'an left?"
"I left at midnight."
"That means it's night time. She still insists on walking at night?"
"The abbot of Zhenguo Temple said that Concubine Mei came to say goodbye to him personally. The princess was waiting in the sedan chair and told the monk that she had something important to do early the next morning, so she had to rush back to the palace immediately."
"So, when they left, no one at Zhenguo Temple saw Zi'an?"
“No.”
"When did Zi'an and Concubine Mei arrive at Zhenguo Temple?" asked Lady Chen.
"In reply to the old lady, around three quarters past the hour of You."
"We arrived at You time and left at Hai time, staying for two hours in between. If we were in a hurry to come back, there was no need to stay for two hours. One hour would be enough to burn incense and scriptures. Zi'an is not the kind of person who doesn't make plans." Chen Taijun said.
She raised her head and said, "I have to go there in person."
"I'll go too!" said Zhuangzhuang.
Just like that, in the middle of the night, the old lady, Liu Liu and the princess rode away on horseback.
The old lady was a military general, so it went without saying that she was an excellent rider. When Zhuangzhuang was young, he also practiced riding with Xiao Xiao, and later he brought the riding skills taught by Xiao Xiao to the extreme.
Liu Liu, this noisy girl, was especially good at riding. A group of five people, plus Qionghua Qinzhi, rode five fast horses and left the palace.
When leaving the city, there was a curfew and the whole city was under strict search. Zhuangzhuang showed his token and asked casually, "Can Concubine Mei's carriage enter the city today?"
"Empress Mei? She's entering the city." said the guard.
"Entering the city?" Zhuangzhuang was very surprised and looked at Chen Taijun.
Chen Taijun was also a little stunned, "Did you see that the person sitting inside was Concubine Mei?"
"I didn't look at it, I just gave her the token of Concubine Mei."
"When?" Zhuangzhuang asked.
"Just a quarter of an hour ago!"
Zhuang Zhuang said to Chen Taijun, "You go to Zhenguo Temple first, and I and Qin Zhiqionghua will catch up and take a look."
"Okay!" Chen Taijun raised her whip and left the city with Liu Liu.
Zhuangzhuang took Qin Zhiqionghua back. Because he did not meet her when he came just now, Zhuangzhuang concluded that the carriage entered from the north road.
After chasing for about half an hour, they finally caught up with the carriage, and it was indeed Concubine Mei's carriage.
"Stop!" Qinzhi and Qionghua chased after and intercepted the carriage.
The carriage stopped and the coachman saw that it was Zhuangzhuang, so he quickly got off the carriage and saluted.
The curtain was opened, and Concubine Mei walked down, looking a little surprised, "Princess?"
"Concubine Mei, where is Zi'an?" Zhuangzhuang asked directly.
Mei Fei smiled and said, "Zi'an is still in Zhenguo Temple. She said she wanted to stay there for a few days."
"She wants to stay for two days? Then why don't you stay with her in Zhenguo Temple instead of rushing back overnight?" Zhuangzhuang asked.
"San'er is sick. I must rush back." Concubine Mei said.
Zhuangzhuang stared at her, "Mei Fei, you'd better tell the truth."
Mei Fei laughed awkwardly, "Look at what the princess said, why would I lie? The princess is in Zhenguo Temple, if you don't believe me, you can go look for her."
Seeing that she was still unwilling to speak, Zhuangzhuang said sternly: "I have already sent out secret guards, and they said that Zi'an is not in Zhenguo Temple. The abbot of Zhenguo Temple said that she came back with you, but now you say that she is in Zhenguo Temple. Do you think I should believe you or the abbot?"
Mei Fei was silent for a moment, then raised her head and said, "She is in Zhenguo Temple. She doesn't want to come back. It's useless for Princess to make things difficult for me. It's not like I tied her up in Zhenguo Temple."
"Okay, Mei Fei, you can evade me. I won't settle the score with you for now, but I'm making this clear. If anything happens to Zi'an, I'll be the first one to not forgive you."
After Zhuangzhuang finished speaking, he jumped on his horse and rode away with Qin Zhiqionghua.
When Chen Taijun arrived at Zhenguo Temple, everyone in the temple was still looking for Zi'an.
Chen Taijun went straight to find the abbot. When the abbot saw Chen Taijun coming in person, he hurried out to greet her.
"Amitabha, I haven't seen you for a long time, how are you?"
Chen Taijun bowed and said, "Thank you for your concern, Master. I am fine."
"Please come in quickly!" said the abbot.
Chen Taijun and Liu Liu followed the abbot into the temple. The abbot said first, "The princess's guards have been here. I know what happened. Concubine Mei and the princess did come here today, but around midnight, they insisted on going back. I even sent a disciple to escort them halfway up the mountain."
"Master, is it Consort Mei or the Princess who is saying goodbye to you?"
"It's Concubine Mei. The princess is in the sedan chair. Concubine Mei said she feels a little unwell." said the abbot.
(End of this chapter)