In days past, when I first met you, my thoughts of you never ceased.

　　Your heroic bearing and handsome visage, by the wine cup and candlelight—how could my soul not be lost?

　　Now again, we meet in Chang’an; the threads of affection still endure.

　　Who can know how many lifetimes of fate brought us to this moment’s reunion?

　　It is said that when Li Zhen entered the palace, the Son of Heaven merely went through the formalities and did not pursue the matter deeply. The NineTailed Spirit Fox, seeing Li Zhen return unharmed, sighed: “Truly, times are not as they once were. The relations among the Li Tang imperial clan are even more tangled than those of the Yin and Shang. Such scheming, and yet he returns unscathed!”

　　After his safe return, Li Zhen immediately led his guards to the residence of Song Lingwen. The officials of the Court of Judicial Review, seeing this, secretly sent word in haste. Di Renjie, upon learning of it, came with Song Lingwen and others to greet him. Song Lingwen, seeing Li Zhen arrive, quickly ordered tea to be served. When the tea was brought, Song Lingwen asked, “What matter brings Your Highness here today?”

　　After drinking, Li Zhen set down his cup and said: “I have come regarding Lord Di’s investigation.” Song Lingwen was inwardly startled, and thought to himself: “Why has His Highness involved himself in this case as well? When will the struggle for power between the Empress and the imperial clan ever cease?”

　　Li Zhen turned to Di Renjie and said: “Does Lord Di know why the Empress insists on this inquiry?” Di Renjie replied: “To seek the truth behind Emperor Xiaojing’s unexpected death.” Li Zhen sneered: “If that were so, why then do you, Lord Di, spend your days at the Song residence drowning your sorrows in wine?”

　　Di Renjie answered: “The case is complex, my thoughts yield no result. In sorrow I sought temporary refuge here.” Li Zhen said again: “A convenient excuse. Regardless of the intricacy, I ask only that you remember—whose realm is this, ultimately?” Di Renjie said: “This humble servant is ignorant; may Your Highness instruct me.” Li Zhen declared: “This empire must bear the surname Li, and no other.”

　　Di Renjie replied: “The late Emperor Taizong often said, ‘Water can carry a boat, but it can also overturn it.’ It shows that matters are not so absolute. This realm belongs to the people, the common folk of the world.” Li Zhen laughed: “Words meant to win hearts! Lord Di, adviser to the National Preceptor, how can you not see through such rhetoric? Remember well what I have said today.” With that, Li Zhen departed with his guards.

　　Watching him go, Di Renjie murmured to himself: “I do not believe that Taizong’s words were mere rhetoric. They carried a truth deeper than flattery.” He knew not how the case would unfold, only that its entanglements filled him with dread. Song Lingwen, looking at Di Renjie, asked: “Why would His Highness speak so today?” Di Renjie only shook his head with a sigh: “I do not know.”

　　Not long after, a group of Hu people arrived in Chang’an, bearing lavish gifts, and entered the Hall of Political Affairs through the Cheng Tian Gate. They were emissaries sent by the King of Tibet, led by Zhong Cong, to pay respects to the Emperor and Empress. Presenting the tribute, Zhong Cong said:

　　“Since Tibet and Great Tang established friendly ties, our nations have prospered together, and our peoples live in harmony. Now my king has a son of fine appearance and talent. We have heard that Your Highness’s daughter, the Princess, is as beautiful as an immortal. My king earnestly requests her hand in marriage. A union of beauty and talent would bind our two nations as kin, continuing the legacy of Princess Wencheng.”

　　The Emperor and Empress exchanged uneasy glances. The Emperor thought to himself: “Since ancient times, heqin marriages have always been with daughters of noble clans; why does this envoy press for a royal princess?” The Empress worried: “Tibet lies far away. If Yue’er marries there, how could we ever see her again? This must not be allowed.”

　　In haste, the Empress recalled that Li Lingyue had once taken vows in Daoism as a child, praying for her late grandmother. Thus she reasoned that Yue’er could be declared formally a Daoist nun, thereby exempt from marriage.

　　The Empress said: “The envoy speaks well, but the Princess long ago entered the Daoist path, severing worldly ties. A heqin marriage is thus impossible.”

　　Zhong Cong could not believe it, thinking: “Surely they jest! How can I return to my king with this answer?” He pressed further: “Then may we at least meet the Princess in her Daoist abode, so that I may report truthfully to my king?”

　　To sever his hopes, the Emperor and Empress agreed. “It grows late,” the Empress said. “Please accept our hospitality tonight. Tomorrow, we shall visit the Princess together.”

　　That very night, the Emperor ordered the Minister of Works to renovate an abandoned temple outside the capital. By dawn, it stood reborn as the **Temple of Great Peace**.

　　The next morning, Princess Li Lingyue was escorted secretly to the temple by Pang Tongshan and the Golden Guards. A palace attendant, following orders, lit the **Thunder Resonance Talisman** crafted by the National Preceptor. It burned not into ash but into drifting sparks of spiritual light, which gathered and shot like a meteor into the Xuanyuan Temple at Luoyang.

　　The Preceptor, receiving the omen, calculated and understood all. “The destined moment has come,” he told his young disciple, Lin Chaoyang. With a sweep of power, master and disciple were transported to Chang’an.

　　Years earlier, Lin Chaoyang had been an abandoned infant, taken in and later raised by the Preceptor. He once saved Li Lingyue’s life during a ritual. Now, as fate would have it, they met again in the Temple of Great Peace.

　　When Li Lingyue entered and saw him, her heart leapt. She restrained her joy under the weight of royal decorum, but her eyes grew moist as she said softly: “I am Li Lingyue, called Yue’er by my parents. And you?”

　　He replied: “This humble one is Lin Chaoyang, Daoist name ‘Cherisher of Fate.’ Thanks to my master’s rescue long ago, I yet live. Since our last parting, has Your Highness fared well?”

　　She answered: “All has been well.”

　　At that time, Li Lingyue was thirteen years old, and Lin Chaoyang was just a few months older. Truly it was as the poem says:

　　“A thousand times I sought him in the crowd;

　　And suddenly, at twilight, there he was.”

　　By a simple ritual of teaoffering, Li Lingyue formally became a disciple of the National Preceptor.

　　Soon after, the Emperor and Empress brought the Tibetan envoy Zhong Cong to the temple. Seeing Li Lingyue in Daoist robes, he lost all hope. Suspecting the temple too new, he pressed a pillar with his finger and left a mark—but he accepted the situation, saying: “Fate cannot be forced. Since the Princess has entered the Dao, there can be no marriage. We shall return at once.”

　　Thus the envoy departed with gifts, and Li Lingyue remained at the Temple of Great Peace.

　　Meanwhile, Di Renjie continued his investigation of Emperor Xiaojing’s death. After ten fruitless days, he confided to Song Lingwen: “The Empress already holds her judgment. She only uses my name to quell rumors. In such politics, truth and justice no longer matter.”

　　Song Lingwen urged caution: “You are too important to lose. Do not make enemies needlessly. Remember the fate of others who fell before.”

　　Just then, Pang Tongshan arrived with a summons: the Empress demanded a report.

　　When Di Renjie admitted he had no progress, she rebuked him harshly. He answered humbly, but left in turmoil. Pang Tongshan, walking with him, said quietly: “Why not seek the counsel of the National Preceptor? He is here in Chang’an.”

　　Overjoyed, Di Renjie went to the Temple of Great Peace. The Preceptor showed him visions of the common people living in peace. “Forget yesterday’s turmoil. Guard today. Await tomorrow with patience. The fate of justice rests in your hands.”

　　Enlightened, Di Renjie’s doubts lifted. Days later, he reported to the Empress, who then issued an edict declaring Emperor Xiaojing’s death natural, thus ending the rumors. Soon after, Di Renjie was appointed **CensorinChief**.

　　Indeed:

　　“Truth and falsehood matter little to men—

　　So long as the outcome pleases their hearts.

　　If the people know no worry,

　　Then let it be as they wish.”