Wen Yuesheng agreed to the matter of returning to the capital, and soon it was spread to the capital along with the soaring news of the Haidong Qing.

Since the war began at the frontier, most of the affairs in the court had revolved around the situation at the border.

After Wen Yuesheng arrived at the frontier, her consecutive victories in battles brought immense joy to the court.

The day the peace letter from Hao Zhou arrived, the atmosphere in the court became especially lively.

For the first time in nearly two decades, Da Hui had gained the upper hand and even forced the enemy’s emperor to personally write a letter seeking peace. This was a great cause for celebration for anyone from Da Hui.

However, opinions about this peace letter were divided.

The peace faction naturally believed that the generous terms offered by Hao Zhou could end the war, which would be beneficial for both the frontier and the court.

The war faction, on the other hand, felt that the situation had finally turned in their favor after so many years.

If they recklessly accepted Hao Zhou’s peace offer now, it would set a dangerous precedent. If the enemy later tore up the treaty and attacked again, Da Hui would fall into a passive position.

The two factions could not reach an agreement, and at this time, the emperor issued an order for Wen Yue Sheng to return to the capital for discussion.

Once this imperial decree was issued, the debate came to an immediate halt.

Before the morning court, officials like Wang Jin Zhi and Lü Ge Lao stood together outside the palace gates, and for once, no one spoke, the atmosphere heavy.

An inner court scholar standing next to Lü Ge Lao sighed, “Since the princess left the capital, it seems the emperor’s thoughts have become increasingly difficult to understand.”

From the time they wanted to send King Yong’an to the frontier to now ordering Wen Yue Sheng to return to the capital.

Outside the Taihe Hall, several officials dared not speak, but all understood that the emperor’s decisions had increasingly become erratic.

Lu Ge stood silently to the side, observing with no comment.

In the past, the emperor was considered neither outstanding nor lacking, with good intentions but little ability. However, the decisions made in the past few months were clearly poor ones.

Wen Yuesheng had risen to prominence at the frontier, and it was natural for the emperor to be wary of her influence.

But even so, she had repeatedly been ordered to step down from her position of authority during the ongoing war.

These actions did not seem like something the emperor would have done, according to Lü Ge Lao’s past impressions.

“Speaking of which, it’s rather interesting,” Wang Jin Zhi said, hands folded in his sleeves, smiling lightly, “A few months ago, the harem was ruled by Noble Consort Yan, and in just a few months, Consort Liang has gained great favor.”

The Consort Liang he referred to was Liang Zhaoyi, the mother of Prince Jingkang.

After Liang Zhaoyi was released from the Cold Palace, she was quickly reinstated to the position of consort. Though her title was not as high as her previous one, she had certainly returned to an exceptional status.

Liang Zhaoyi had once been exiled to the Cold Palace.

The people beside him glanced at each other.

No one knew if these poor decisions from the emperor were being deliberately orchestrated by someone behind the scenes.

After all, Consort Liang had a feud with Wen Yue Sheng, and the entire Liang family had almost perished at her hands.

They exchanged glances, but no one spoke, though their thoughts were clear.

The court outside became quiet again, and morning court was about to begin. Many officials adjusted their robes, waiting for the Taihe Hall doors to open.

But before the doors had even opened, word came through: Princess Sinning had agreed to return to the capital.

This news caused an uproar throughout the court.

In fact, many officials had opposed the emperor’s decision to summon Wen Yue Sheng back to the capital. However, as the emperor insisted on his command, they had no choice but to comply.

They had hoped that, given Wen Yue Sheng’s personality, she would not return to the capital before the war at the frontier was resolved, leaving room for further negotiation. They could continue petitioning for the emperor to rescind the order.

But to their surprise, Wen Yue Sheng had agreed.

Her agreement directly set the court ablaze.

That day, countless officials stood up, discussing the turmoil that had started at the frontier, the conflicts of the past twenty years, and the current situation.

They argued that Hao Zhou’s peace offer was a treacherous scheme.

After all the effort to achieve victory, they could not afford to fall for the enemy’s trickery.

Some officials, holding vast amounts of information, were aware of all that Wen Yue Sheng had done since she entered the frontier—everything from the bloody scenes in Luo City to the horrifying slaughterhouses in Yu Wang Town, and even the trade in which a single person was exchanged for a whole town’s worth of citizens.

She had slain five great generals, destroyed three major tribes, and boosted Da Hui’s morale.

This hard-earned victory at the frontier was all thanks to Wen Yue Sheng’s defense. Now, for her to be summoned back without a second thought, it showed a complete disregard for the countless citizens at the frontier.

If the order for her to return had not been issued, many people would have only known that Wen Yue Sheng had achieved great success without understanding the full details.

But after today’s morning court, all her actions at the frontier would be known throughout Da Hui.

Some officials even said that these achievements were the result of joint efforts with Da Hui’s soldiers, not the sole accomplishment of Wen Yue Sheng.

Others, briefly intoxicated by the recent victory, claimed that the Da Hui army was impressive and that another general could have achieved the same result.

Such words were like poking a hornet’s nest.

Countless officials leapt to rebuke and scold those who spoke out, with Wang Jin Zhi, despite his age, pointing his finger and reprimanding them.

The morning court became a heated argument.

Almost half of the officials rose to oppose Wen Yue Sheng’s return to the capital.

But, for some unknown reason, the emperor, who had always been willing to listen to the majority’s advice, remained silent.

He had yet to speak even as the morning court came to a close.

In the current situation, the emperor was well aware that he could not trust Hao Zhou’s peace offer, but his insistence on Wen Yue Sheng’s return was simply aimed at weakening her influence at the frontier and reducing her military power.

As for the emperor’s favored candidate…

“After this victory over Hao Zhou, Wen Yuesheng’s name will certainly be remembered in history as Da Hui’s War God. Is this how the emperor plans to entrust the title to Prince Yong’an?” one official beside Lu Ge Lao said angrily after leaving the Taihe Hall.

Hearing this, Master Lu turned his head, casting a deep glance at a certain figure, and then spoke softly, “It may not be Prince Yong’an after all.”

After all, their emperor’s favorite tactic has always been the so-called balance of power.

Many in the court were dissatisfied with this matter, but the emperor still remained obstinate.

For three days, during the morning court sessions, no solution was found.

On the fourth day, after Yan Ling arrived in the capital, the situation had not changed at all.

It seemed that Wen Yue’s return to the capital had become a foregone conclusion.

On the fourth day of the morning court.

After Prince Jingkang entered the palace, his gaze immediately fell upon the person who seemed as clear and radiant as a bright moon.

He was really curious as to what method Yan Ling would use to help Wen Yuesheng escape her predicament.

However, from the moment Yan Ling entered the court until just before the morning session was over, the ministers in front had already debated three or four rounds, yet Yan Ling remained silent, even when others mentioned him. He only spoke of things he knew from the frontier, not engaging in their debates at all.

King Jingkang looked on and couldn’t help but pull at his lips.

Had he overestimated Yan Ling, or was this simply how Yan Ling was?

He could only be a knife in the emperor’s hand, and so could Wen Yue. When the emperor no longer wanted the knife, they were both helpless.

“The matter of Wen Yuesheng’s return to the capital is settled,” the emperor at the top of the hall said coldly, his voice firm. “From today on, do not mention it again.”

Upon hearing this, the ministers below turned pale.

The emperor continued coldly, “Any disobedience will be punished as treason.”

A final word was said.

The grand hall of Tahe immediately fell into silence.

The emperor finished speaking, his expression weary as he stood up. The palace attendants nearby began to announce the end of the court session.

At this moment, a palace attendant hurriedly entered the hall.

“Your Majesty,” the attendant said, kneeling, his face pale, “news has arrived from the frontier. Princess Sinning plans to return to the capital.”

The emperor frowned. This had already been confirmed, so why report it in such a hurry?

But before the emperor could speak, the attendant raised his voice, “…In addition to Princess Sinning, twenty thousand frontier soldiers will accompany her.”

At these words, the entire hall fell into stunned silence.

After the morning session, the emperor, who had already been somewhat tired, suddenly stood up, shouting, “What did you say?!”

Twenty thousand soldiers!

Everyone was shocked.

“What… what…”

“Bringing an army into the capital?”

“How can the frontier army leave the frontier to come to the capital? Who allowed this?”

“…Princess Sinning is the commander of the frontier; if she can leave, why can’t her soldiers?”

Wang Jin’s eyes widened. If not for being in the court, he would have clapped and shouted, “Brilliant!”

And it was brilliant.

The emperor insisted on his course, and no one could dissuade him.

Yet this situation—whether Wen Yuesheng came or not—was wrong.

They had considered many options, worried about too many things, all because the emperor held all the power.

However, when the frontier conflict broke out, Wen Yuesheng held all the military power.

Not to mention, after months of brutal warfare, the soldiers of the frontier were united in heart.

They had thought of two possible paths for her: the loyal path or the rebellious one.

But they hadn’t anticipated that she would take control of the initiative.

Well, since she was to return, she would return now—immediately, and not alone. She would bring twenty thousand frontier soldiers with her.

What was she going to do with twenty thousand soldiers entering the capital?

With such a large army in motion, once they withdrew, what would happen to the frontier?

These were the concerns the emperor now had to deal with.

Wen Yuesheng had only done one thing—obeyed the order.

Within the frontier’s main city.

Twenty thousand soldiers stood ready for action.

Early in the morning, Wen Yuesheng led her officers, including Zhang Yulin, Li Qingyuan, Lu Qinghuai, and Jiang Yan, who was still unable to move and lying on a cart, out of the city lord’s residence to the waiting carriage.

Gao Quan had waited outside the city lord’s residence for an entire day and night. Upon seeing the officers by her side, his legs nearly gave way.

He gaped as Wen Yuesheng calmly spoke, and all the officers mounted their horses.

At this moment, Gao Quan was nearly beside himself.

He couldn’t care less whether the news from the capital had reached him; he quickly walked up to Wen Yuesheng, his voice trembling, “Princess! Princess!”

Wen Yuesheng had already mounted the carriage. Hearing his words, she turned around. Her cold eyes swept over him.

Gao Quan shivered, his breath short. Before this vast army of twenty thousand, he couldn’t even breathe steadily, lowering his voice cautiously, “Please, Princess, wait.”

“Wait?” Wen Yuesheng stood on the carriage, looking down at him. “Didn’t you want me to return to the capital?”