The Haozhou soldiers who had been escorting the captives had occupied this place and caused harm for many years.

Now, the women imprisoned in the slaughterhouse had mostly suffered persecution at their hands.

Today, the situation had turned.

These soldiers, who once held the power, had become the ones who would be slaughtered, laid bare on the chopping block.

Wen Yuesheng was not only there to rescue the many prisoners of war but also to give the women, who had been oppressed, the choice to act.

All the injustices they had suffered could now be avenged by their own hands.

This place, once known as the “slaughterhouse” by Haozhou, filled with humiliation, had now, on this night, become their own slaughterhouse.

One must understand that those who treat others as cattle will eventually become the cattle slaughtered by others.

The night in Yuwang Town was drawn out long.

The great fire in the slaughterhouse raged fiercely, burning until dawn, before it slightly faded.

And the fire, it wasn’t just limited to this place or even to Yuwang Town itself.

News spread quickly to the capital of Haozhou, that the town of Yuwang, which had been under Haozhou’s control for years, had been reclaimed by the Great Hui in a single night.

After their retreat, Haozhou had suffered considerable losses.

The generals gathered in the capital, but they couldn’t decide on the best strategy to attack. They never expected that the Great Hui would take action at this moment, directly seizing control of Yuwang Town.

The three main tribes, the Bor tribe almost wiped out, and the Jin tribe losing heavily, added to the unrest.

All these signs kept the aristocracy in Haozhou awake, unable to sleep.

The pressure from the Great Hui princess, whom the new emperor had once sought to marry, spread throughout the court and military.

Haozhou had never truly cared for Yuwang Town, a remote and barren place, but with the Great Hui taking it, that became another matter entirely.

This event not only signified the rise of the Great Hui’s military strength but also dealt a blow to Haozhou’s morale.

After all, Yuwang Town had been considered by Haozhou soldiers as a mere weak outpost.

This incident forced Haozhou to make urgent adjustments.

Originally, they had planned to cease military actions for a while, regroup, and formulate a new attack plan. However, the signs were clear that if they hesitated further, the formidable power they had spent years building would crumble.

Thus, a consensus was reached, and five of the greatest generals led the most elite forces from Haozhou to the frontier.

To boost morale, Emperor Yu Shun himself decided to lead the army into battle.

This news spread like wildfire, and the army was filled with excitement, dispelling the gloom that had lingered for days.

With Yu Shun personally leading the charge, the tactics also shifted drastically.

Before, because of the Great Hui’s perceived weakness, Haozhou had underestimated them. Their previous strategy had been to directly overpower them with brute force.

But after their recent defeat, Haozhou no longer dared to take the Great Hui lightly.

The army, upon reaching the frontier, split into three groups.

They abandoned the strategy of direct assault on cities and instead began capturing smaller towns surrounding the cities, aiming to encircle all the frontier cities of the Great Hui from these weaker settlements.

The five great generals under Yu Shun’s command were fiercer than the previous commanders, especially Nulie and Tairan.

In the team that split off from Haozhou, their forces were among the strongest.

Especially Nu Lie, the first general, who, upon entering the Great Hui’s territory, immediately took three towns and killed five of their generals.

His ferocity and battle prowess were unmatched, even within the Great Hui’s ranks.

After capturing three towns, Nu Lie also allowed one of the town’s defending generals to return to the Great Hui’s main city.

This wasn’t an act of mercy; it was a provocation.

Inside the city lord’s mansion, the wounded general, whose injuries were hastily bandaged, sat at the lower end of the table, looking grim.

He lowered his head and said to the generals present:

“I failed.”

He couldn’t defend the town or defeat Nu Lie. Worse yet, he had been let go as a challenge to Wen Yuesheng.

Though the strength disparity was enormous, he felt deeply ashamed.

Lu Zhengguo, looking equally grim, asked, “Why did he let you go?”

The general replied quietly, “… Nu Lie said that if you want to retake the town, Princess Xining must come herself.”

The room’s atmosphere shifted slightly.

This act was a clear challenge to Wen Yue Sheng.

In battle, aside from tactics and strategies, the most important factor is the morale of the soldiers.

If Wen Yuesheng doesn’t respond to the challenge, it would be seen as submission.

But if she accepts, she would fall into the trap set by Nu Lie.

With Emperor Yu Shun personally leading the charge, it was clear that all of Haozhou’s elite forces would be with him.

If Wen Yuesheng went to the battlefield herself and confronted Nu Lie, it would open up space for Yu Shun’s army to directly invade the capital.

For days now, soldiers had been guarding the lookout towers in the capital.

Previously, when Haozhou sent out its army, they had over 100,000 men, but this time, Yu Shun personally led an army of 300,000.

With additional forces sent to various towns, the total number of troops amounted to over 500,000.

From the highest lookout tower, one could see, as far as the eye could reach, rows upon rows of Haozhou soldiers stationed in their camps, forming a stark contrast against the Great Hui forces.

The mere presence of a person had already created an aura of coercion.

Under such circumstances, Wen Yuesheng could not casually leave the capital.

“We cannot let him rampage like this!” These words left her lips, and everyone around her raised their heads to look.

Upon hearing this, they saw the towering figure of Zhang Yulin, who was as massive as a small mountain, standing up without hesitation. He spoke loudly: “Princess.”

“I am willing to lead the army to Hengwu Town and crush Nulie’s forces.”

At these words, the room fell silent.

Zhang Yulin had taken the initiative to request the mission, yet Duke Zhongyong’s expression remained unchanged.

The men of the Zhang family had always been destined for the battlefield.

Regardless of victory or defeat, life or death, their duty was to defend the country.

Previously, when Zhang Yulin had led reinforcements, he had won a difficult battle against Haozhou’s army. But that battle had been exceptionally hard, and the enemy was not a warrior like Nu Lie.

Fortunately, Zhang Yulin was fierce, and on the battlefield, he was almost a one-man army.

It was this overwhelming strength that had barely allowed him to win that battle.

But this time, facing Nu Lie, not only Zhang Yulin himself, but everyone in the room felt a sense of unease.

Wen Yuesheng, sitting at the head of the table, raised her eyes. Her movement of turning the Buddhist beads paused for a moment, and then, in a calm voice, she said, “Alright.”

“Zhang Yulin will lead 30,000 troops to confront Nu Lie.” Thirty thousand, a force almost equal to Nu Lie’s.

Her eyes were devoid of emotion as she spoke softly: “Lu Hongying will accompany him.”

Standing by, Lu Hongying’s eyes lit up, and without thinking, she cheerfully said, “Lu Hongying accepts the order!”

That very night, Zhang Yulin and Lu Hongying arrived at Hengwu Town.

At the same time, the news reached Emperor Yu Shun of Haozhou.

“Zhang Yulin is the one heading to Hengwu Town to face the enemy?” Yu Shun’s eyes slightly narrowed.

“Send word to Nu Lie: do not underestimate the enemy. He must go all out,” Yu Shun’s gaze deepened. “Zhang Yulin is her first general.”

Had it been anyone else, Nu Lie might have underestimated Zhang Yulin, but Nu Lie had suffered greatly at Zhang Yulin’s hands in the past.

The first time Nu Lie was bedridden for half a year after a defeat was when he faced Zhang Yulin.

Thus, the prospect of Zhang Yulin leading the charge made Yu Shun take him more seriously than even Wen Yuesheng.

He prepared his forces with the utmost caution, unwilling to slacken even a little.

The battle at Hengwu Town became one of the most brutal confrontations between the two sides.

Both Haozhou and the Great Hui suffered heavy losses.

Zhang Yulin’s forces, though weaker than Nulie’s, fought against Nu Lie’s troops for three days at Hengwu Town. Even with Zhang Yulin standing like a mountain before them, the tide of battle could not be turned.

Nu Lie also struggled. This was the hardest battle he had fought in years.

But seeing the Great Hui forces weakening, he continued to press the attack. In his mind, this was his chance to recover his lost pride after the humiliating defeat in the Great Hui palace years ago.

However, after the final clash, Nu Lie and Zhang Yulin faced off, and with a mighty swing of Zhang Yulin’s giant hammer, Nulie was defeated.

The golden purple iron hammer, which had haunted Nulie’s nightmares countless times, came crashing down like a thunderclap, almost shattering his internal organs.

This wasn’t the Great Hui palace anymore, and this time, neither side would hold back.

Under Zhang Yulin’s relentless attack, Nu Lie had nowhere to retreat.

If it weren’t for the two ferocious deputy generals at his side, Nu Lie might have died beneath Zhang Yulin’s hammer.

But even though he survived, Nu Lie was gravely injured.

The hammer had broken three of his ribs, and it was only thanks to his deputy generals and his battle-hardened experience that he narrowly escaped the battlefield.

But after his retreat, the tide of battle turned in favor of the Great Hui.

Zhang Yulin led the forces to clean up, killing countless Haozhou generals.

At last, in a direct confrontation, Zhang Yulin defeated Nu Lie and drove back Haozhou’s forces!

Meanwhile, Lu Hongying, who had been trailing behind him, shot several arrows at Nulie’s retreating forces.

She killed one of Nu Lie’s deputy generals and severely wounded Nu Lie himself.

This battle, which began with such difficulty, ended in almost complete victory.

News of this reached the capital, and everyone was filled with joy.

After Zhang Yulin recovered, having fought through multiple battles, his strength only grew. Eventually, without Wen Yuesheng’s presence, he even defeated Haozhou’s fiercest general.

Amidst the cheering in the room, Wen Yuesheng, dressed in a simple black dress, stood atop the city wall of the capital.

March and April marked the season when grass grows and the birds return, when everything begins to revive.

But in the frontier, where trees were few and the vast desert dominated the landscape, the climate was far from pleasant.

The scorching sun blazed down, as if it would never tire.

Wen Yuesheng gazed out at the endless black army of Haozhou, but instead of focusing on the distant forces, she raised her head and stared directly at the sun.

Zhou Manniang, standing beside her, couldn’t help but ask curiously, “Princess, how did you know that Young Master Zhang couldn’t look directly at bright light?”

This condition was rare to see, and Zhang Yulin had never shown difficulty with bright light before.

Had Wen Yuesheng not pointed it out, Zhou Manniang would never have thought to examine him.

After a few changes of lamps with strong light, they discovered Zhang Yulin’s eyes were nearly bloodshot. After some time, his vision had become so blurred he could barely see.

It was only when the strong lights were moved away that Zhang Yulin’s condition improved within three hours.

When Zhou Manniang asked Zhang Yulin about it, he simply scratched his head and replied, “…This has happened before, but I thought I was just too tired.”