Princess Ngaman gave some thought to the fact that all these attempts to meet with her brother again ended in disappointment. On the other hand, Mychon had told her quite clearly that her brother had come to Rong State with King Gesar. Was this Gesar a fake? Perhaps, she thought, if we threaten to destroy Gesar’s camp then they will hand over my brother.
Ngaman mobilised her father’s army and prepared to wage war against Gesar’s camp.
While Gesar was resting in his tent, Ngaman’s troops appeared in front of the camp. The Lion King became furious, and scolded Chin’en with a voice full of irritation:
“You guided us the wrong way last time, so that we came to Rong State. Now the army of that state is ready to fight with us. What’s wrong with you? Can you give me any reasonable explaination?
The Lion King’s extreme anger scared Chin’en into silence. Dainma stepped forward and told Gesar that he had a countermeasure.
So Gesar ordered Dainma to deal with the enemy. For his part, Dainma wrote a letter and tied it onto an arrow, which he then shot into the Rong troops. The letter said that Chin’en had indeed reached Gyayo with King Gesar, and that Chin’en was so homesick that he had led the Lion King and his followers to the area of the Rong. The Ling State and Rong State were good neighbors, the letter continued, and they should not go to war.
After reading the letter, Ngaman knew her brother was fine, and ordered her army to withdraw. For himself, Chin’en became filled with pleasure, because he thought he would finally be reunited with his parents, wife and sister.
The next day, the ministers of the Rong State went to welcome King Gesar and his entourage. Before they came, Gesar ordered Chin’en to stay behind and look after the camp. Chin’en was deeply unhappy at this, but he did not dare to disobey the king.
King Gesar and his closest aides went forward to the palace of Rong State with great strength and vigor. Chin’en wept. He had been far from home for 50 years, but now, virtually back on his own doorstep, he was still denied the reunion of his dreams. Why was King Gesar so merciless? The more he thought about it, the sadder he became. Finally, Chin’en decided that he must meet his parents, wife and sister, no matter what the consequences might be. After thinking for a while, he got an idea.
During the feast, an itinerant actor was heard singing near the palace:
“People of Rong State,
I come here for eating,
and in return bring many good tidings to you and your king.”
Hearing the voice, Dainma quickly realised that this fellow was none other than Chin’en in an actor’s disguise. Furthermore, he thought it unfeeling not to grant Chin’en his dearest wish of meeting his family once again. With this thought uppermost in his mind, Dainma slipped away from the feast and confronted Chin’en:
“Shush,’ he said, ‘keep your voice down. Come quickly and enter the palace with me.”
Chin’en entered the palace, and dared not raise his head. Gesar knew Chin’en had come, heedless of his explicit orders. But Zhaotoin wished for Chin’en to stay in the Rong area, so he feigned anger and scolded the travelling player, knocking his hat askew. When Zhaotoin whisked the actor’s hat completely away, the king and queen of the Rong State immediately recognised their long-lost son. They were so overcome with joy that each fainted with emotion. It was left to Princess Ngaman and Chin’en’s wife to embrace Chin’en with tears of happiness.
For his part, Gesar felt very unhappy, and thought that now Chin’en would not return to the State of Ling. In his sorrow at this, he was swift to blame Dainma and Zhaotoin. Chin’en quickly begged Gesar for forgiveness:
“My Lion King, you have enabled me to be reunited with my family. In order to repay your favors, my father will contribute the entire treasure of the Rong State to you. At the same time, I will continue to follow you as before.”
Gesar’s anger turned into joy. In this mood he suggested a celebration in the form of a horse racing competition. The king of the Rong State readily granted permission for this, and furthermore promised that the winner would receive the hand of Princess Ngaman in marriage. No sooner had Zhaotoin heard this news than he steeled himself to the careful preparation of his own victory.
Zhaotoin tried his very best in the race, but it was always a hopeless task to surpass the Lion King. When Zhaotoin was just about to reach the finishing point, his horse stumbled and he fell. Needless to say, King Gesar won the race.
Gesar said to the king of the Rong State:
“You have now met with your son. Because Chin’en is my friend and has promised me three times, I can not leave him in Rong. Prince Zhalha, who is acting on my behalf in government affairs, does not of this moment have a concubine. If you grant it, my Prince Zhalha will marry your Princess Ngaman.”
The king and queen of the Rong State consented, and all the officials of the royal court were also satisfied with the prospect of this marriage. On May 3, King Gesar prepared himself, his men and his horses to escort Princess Ngaman back to the Ling State for her wedding.
