The Song Dynasty was the king for thirteen years before he knew that he was Tianlong.

Chapter 258 Going up the mountain
Not long after, Duan Zhengming arrived, and a banquet was held. They drank and chatted until the moon rose above the willow trees.

After the banquet ended, Zhao Ti called Duan Zhengchun aside and recounted A Zi's experiences growing up in the Xingxiu Sect, which led to her developing a terrible personality.

Duan Zhengchun pondered and said, "Your Highness, rest assured, as she is Xingzhu's and my daughter, we will certainly discipline her properly and prevent her from repeating our mistakes and doing anything bad."

Zhao Ti looked at him for a moment: "Your Highness, you'd better keep this in mind and remember to discipline him strictly, or you'll regret it in the future."

Duan Zhengchun, realizing the seriousness of the matter, nodded and said, "Thank you for your reminder, Your Highness. I will take your words to heart and write to Xingzhu to inform her."

Zhao Ti said, "Tomorrow I will go to the mountains near Shanju County. Prince Zhennan, please find two people to guide me."

Duan Zhengchun said, "I will lead the way for Your Highness myself."

Zhao Ti shook his head: "The Prince of Zhennan can rest for a few days and have someone else lead the way. Even if you go, it won't be of any further help in this matter."

Duan Zhengchun said with a look of shame, "It's all my fault. I couldn't even find my own daughter."

Zhao Ti looked at him and said, "Since A Zi is here, let's not call the Princess of Zhennan back for now. It doesn't matter whether she knows or not, it's best to avoid them for the time being."

Duan Zhengchun hesitated and said, "Your Highness, with Your Highness in charge of this matter, Bai Feng wouldn't dare to say anything. She'll probably be treated like your own daughter, and her family certainly won't allow her to cause trouble."

Zhao Ti remained silent for a few moments after hearing this, then said calmly, "Actually, I'm not worried about what will happen to the Princess; I'm worried about Azi."

Duan Zhengchun was taken aback. Seeing Zhao Ti's serious expression, his heart skipped a beat for no reason. He said, "Okay, I understand..."

Early the next morning, Zhao Ti summoned Azi. Azi, with an innocent look on her face, whispered, "What does Your Majesty want with me?"

Zhao Ti said coldly, "I'm leaving to handle some business. You can stay here and live your life here. The scenery is beautiful, and you'll have no worries about food or clothing. Can you do that?"

Azi nodded: "I can do it."

Zhao Ti then asked, "Following your father's advice, you studied with your brother, learning flower arranging, tea ceremony, music, chess, and needlework. Can you manage that?"

Azi nodded: "I can do it."

Zhao Ti continued, "You are not allowed to cause trouble, stir up trouble, or invite disaster. You must do good deeds. Can you do that?"

Ah Zi's eyes were bright and she looked obedient: "I...I understand."

Zhao Ti frowned: "You can do the first two, so why do you only know about this one?"

Azi lowered her head: "I... I don't know if I can do it, but I'll try my best."

Zhao Ti looked at her and pondered for a moment: "If you do well, it will be of endless benefits to you. You are the daughter of the Prince of Zhennan, so I don't need to say more. If you don't do well... even if your father is reluctant to take action, don't blame me for slapping you to death."

Azi looked up at him and said, "I'll try my best..."

Zhao Ti looked at her for a few more moments, then got up. Duan Zhengchun sent Chu Wanli and Zhu Danchen to lead the way, and they left the palace and Dali City, heading straight north.

Shanju County was located directly north of Dali City, adjacent to the territory of the Tibetan Guanghu King. The Guanghu King was one of the Tibetan kings, whose first ancestor was the son of Langdarma, the last Zanpu of the Tibetan Dynasty, and whose mother was Caibangsa Zanmopan, one of Langdarma's concubines.

After Langdarma, the last Zanpu (king) of Tibet, was assassinated by the monk Lhalung, Queen Nanang supported her brother Shangyanli's three-year-old son, Qilihu, as Zanpu, with the queen acting as regent. However, the ministers were dissatisfied, and to protect him, the mother of Guanghu Wang, Caibang, fled to the Shannan region and established her own kingdom there. She subsequently engaged in numerous battles with the Lhasa royal family, and it took many years for the kingdom to gradually stabilize.

The group continued north into the territory of Shanju County. The continuous mountains where Qin Hongmian lived were further north, bordering the Kingdom of Guanghu. Across from those mountains lay the Snow Plateau, which was the territory of the King of Guanghu.

On the way, Zhao Ti chatted with Chu Wanli and Zhu Danchen. Duan Zhengchun went to the mountains to find Mu Wanqing, accompanied by four retainers. Two of them followed behind, knowing everything.

Zhao Ti listened to the same thing over and over again and came to the same conclusion: there were no clues whatsoever. Mu Wanqing had been missing since then, and in the process of searching for her, there was not a single trace to follow.

In other words, for such a long time, neither Duan Zhengchun nor Huo Linglong's Thirty-Six Caves and Seventy-Two Islands had any real clues. Even after expending countless efforts, they had not found any trace of anything.

This was the last resort, the most rudimentary method, to search by people traversing the mountains. But the mountains were so vast and deep, and human resources were limited. It was likely that it would take one or two years to complete the search.

This is assuming there are no omissions. In fact, even searching small hills and isolated mountains cannot prevent omissions, let alone such a large mountain range. Besides the possibility of omissions, people might leave one place and then come back from another. Unless a massive human wave is used to spread the search across the entire mountain range, this situation can not be avoided, but that is simply impossible.

Zhao Ti pondered for a moment, then felt there was another possibility and asked, "What if Wanqing has already left this mountain?"

Chu Wanli was taken aback and said, "Your Highness, the Prince of Zhennan also mentioned this possibility on his way back, but he didn't find any clues inside the mountain. The area outside the mountain is vast and in all directions, so we don't know where to look."

Zhao Ti nodded. Indeed, it was true. The clues were hidden in the grass and the threads were concealed on the outside. If the initial traces could not be found, and the clues could not be unraveled, then even if it was thought that Mu Wanqing had left the mountains, it would be very difficult to find her outside the mountains.

A few days later, we finally arrived at the continuous mountain range. It was indeed a magnificent mountain, with lush trees, layer upon layer of green, and under the sunlight, the scenery was beautiful and majestic.

Next, we found the way up the mountain. There weren't many paths on the mountain. Dali was sparsely populated, and the other side of the mountain was even more so, so most people only took this one path when entering the mountain.

As you walk up the mountain, you'll find yourself surrounded by lush, verdant trees, their canopies forming a canopy. Vines intertwine among the branches, and wildflowers and grasses dot the landscape. A gentle breeze rustles the leaves, creating a serene and beautiful scene.

Gradually, some mountain houses appeared in the distance. Chu Wanli introduced, "Your Highness, this is the place. There are about a few dozen families living here, all of whom make a living by the mountain. The princess's house is right next to it."

Emperor Duan Zhengming of Baoding bestowed upon Mu Wanqing the title of Princess Yiqing.

Zhao Ti nodded: "What about Kufan ​​Temple?"

Chu Wanli said, "It is very close. You can see each other from both sides. You can see it after walking a few more steps."

They continued forward, and sure enough, after only a dozen or so breaths, they saw a small temple in the mountains. Zhu Chuyi said, "Your Highness, this place has excellent terrain. When this temple was built, there must have been a master who was watching over it. It was built in a place where clouds can breathe and air can rise."

Zhao Ti stopped, stared for a moment, and narrowed his eyes: "What's your explanation?"

Zhu Chuyi said, "This is a suitable place for cultivation. If one practices martial arts here, the air is refreshing and the true qi is pure. Cultivating internal strength here is far superior to the turbid world. Other places in the mountains are generally no match for this place."

Zhao Ti asked, "How does it compare to the thirty-six Taoist grotto-heavens?"

Zhu Chuyi said, "This is indeed not as good as it seems, but it's hard to find such a place in ordinary mountains."

Zhao Ti nodded and said, "Then let's go and take a look at this temple first."

(End of this chapter)