The next morning, during the court assembly, all the ministers had gathered outside the Taihe Hall.

Because of the recent assassination attempt by the Haozhou assassins during the military drill, the entire court seemed to be shrouded in a thick, oppressive gloom that made it difficult to keep one’s eyes open.

In the past, before the morning assembly began, it was common for a few ministers to gather and chat casually.

However, recently, no one had the mind to talk.

Just as the assembly was about to start, a servant led Wen Yue Sheng into the hall, startling everyone present.

“Why is the princess here?” someone asked, instinctively placing a hand on their chest. “Is someone going to die again today?”

It wasn’t unreasonable to think this way.

Wen Yuesheng had entered the court twice before, each time with significant matters that caused a great stir. Even thinking back on those events now, they were enough to make one shudder.

But seeing her now, it wasn’t a surprise.

“…What’s the panic? The princess is not a minister; her coming to the Taihe Hall must be by the emperor’s command.”

Although this statement was true, when the emperor entered the hall and saw Wen Yue Sheng standing among the ministers, he paused for a moment.

He looked up at Gao Quan.

Gao Quan stood there, mouth half-open, shocked.

The night before, Wen Yuesheng had submitted a memorial to the palace regarding the assassination attempt during the military drill, claiming she had found a significant lead.

Gao Quan had been tasked with informing her to report to the palace today.

This message was passed on as a direct order from the emperor, who had meant for Wen Yue Sheng to report after the assembly.

But unexpectedly, she arrived during the assembly.

Given that her past appearances in court were always related to crucial matters, and considering she carried the palace’s golden belt, the guards dared not stop her.

Thus, she confidently appeared in the court, with no one noticing anything strange.

In the heavy silence, Wen Yuesheng stepped forward and said, “Your Majesty, the mastermind behind the assassination attempt during the military drill, who colluded with foreign enemies, has been captured.”

The entire hall was in an uproar.

The ministers, hearing this sudden revelation, exchanged looks.

Just a few days ago, it was reported that the military commander Feng Ji was a tough figure, who refused to speak no matter what. Yet today, there was already a result.

And because Wen Yue Sheng was the Princess of Sining, some ministers began to look around to see who had fallen into her hands.

When they found no answers, they heard the emperor’s cold voice: “Where is the person?”

Wen Yue Sheng replied, “Bring them forward.”

With her words, everyone turned to look.

But when they saw who was brought forward, the entire hall went silent.

It was none other than Princess Furuo, the emperor’s eldest daughter and the younger sister of the crown prince.

Many ministers’ expressions immediately changed.

Not only was the identity of the mastermind shocking, but the fact that Princess Furui, a member of the royal family, had committed treason was even more appalling.

While the soldiers on the front lines fought to protect the country with their lives, she, as a royal, had not only ignored their hardships but had even committed acts of treason by collaborating with foreign enemies.

This was… outrageous!

“Absurd!” shouted Elder Lu, his voice ringing out, barely hiding his fury.

The ministers in the hall nervously looked up to gauge the emperor’s expression.

The emperor’s face was unreadable, and when Princess Furui was brought forward, Gao Quan could clearly see the veins bulging on the emperor’s forehead.

His hand, resting on the dragon throne, clenched tightly in a visible sign of immense shock.

Gao Quan’s own expression was dark.

Before, due to the death of the old emperor of Haozhou, the planned royal marriage alliance had fallen apart.

The empress dowager was gravely ill, and whenever the emperor visited her, she would repeatedly mention Princess Furui’s name.

As a result, the emperor had granted mercy, allowing Princess Furui to serve the empress dowager in her illness.

Though serving the empress dowager, the princess was still accompanied by palace guards. Given recent events, the empress dowager had even taken Princess Furui to the imperial retreat for rest.

Had Princess Furui known better and remained by the empress dowager’s side, she might not have ended up in such a tragic situation.

But unexpectedly, she still did not repent and instead committed this great mistake.

This was not the same as the earlier attempt to assassinate Wen Yuesheng or the plot to seize military power.

This was treason!

Treason! Such a crime was enough to implicate entire families!

In the silence of the hall, Princess Furui, who had just been forced to kneel, began to cry loudly, shouting, “Father! I am wronged! I am wronged!”

She cried so bitterly, immediately accusing Wen Yuesheng of framing her due to their personal grudges.

She cried loudly, “…The wet nurse had long since retired due to poor health, and everyone in the palace knows this. How can I be blamed for the wrongs committed by her niece?”

“Father! I have never done anything wrong! Please see through this, Father!”

Princess Furui had always been arrogant and overbearing, as she was the emperor’s eldest daughter.

She knew that no matter what grave mistake she made, the emperor would forgive her.

Even now, her voice was still loud and forceful, and she immediately placed the blame on others, insisting that everything was not her fault.

“Wen Yuesheng, how dare you accuse me of treason! Do you know who I am? I am the Princess of Dahuai!”

Her voice was shrill and echoed through the hall.

“Princess of Dahuai,” Wen Yuesheng interrupted her, “Then can you explain, Princess, what you did with the guards the empress dowager granted to you earlier this month?”

Princess Furuo froze. “…They are my people. I asked them to do things for me. Do I need to report to you?”

“Besides, how could I remember what happened earlier this month?”

She had been raised with an air of arrogance, and even in such a situation, she still spoke harshly.

Wen Yuesheng replied, “You don’t remember?”

“Then what about the documents from Haozhou found in your bedroom? Do you not remember those? Or the offer made to you by the powerful Haozhou official Yang Gu to marry you as one of the emperor’s consorts? Do you not remember that either?”

“If you don’t remember those, then you must remember how, the other day, you deceived the empress dowager by claiming illness and sent out her palace plaque, allowing Feng Ji to bypass the weapons inspection during the military drill?”

Upon hearing this, Princess Furui’s face turned pale.

She never expected Wen Yuesheng had uncovered even the palace plaque.

That plaque was commonly used by the empress dowager to reward people.

Many royal family members and favored officials’ wives, such as Wen Yuruo from the Wen family and Lady Wei Lanzhi from the Duke of the State’s family, all held such plaques.

Feng Ji had used this plaque to send away the soldiers who were inspecting weapons during the drill, and it was how he managed to bring in weapons.

She stood silent for a moment, then coldly said, “There are countless people in the capital with that palace plaque. How can you be so sure it was me? Do you have any evidence?”

At this point, she finally dropped her façade of being wronged, and the ministers around her felt uneasy.

The emperor’s expression darkened, but before she could speak again, he coldly ordered, “Take her down. This matter will be discussed later.”

The ministers quickly understood the emperor’s meaning.

As a royal, even if Princess Furui had committed treason, out of consideration for the dignity of the royal family, or perhaps the emperor’s dignity, she should be handled in secret.

By openly bringing her to the court, Wen Yuesheng had angered the emperor, and it had also implicated the emperor.

In such a situation, any sensible minister would have understood that this was a matter to be hidden, and Wen Yuesheng should not have made it public.

Before Wen Yuesheng could speak again, Princess Furui cried loudly, “I am a princess! This is an insult to me, Father! You must ask Wen Yuesheng why she keeps trying to frame me!”

“If the Haozhou spy was brought in by me, it would be better to say it was Wen Yuesheng who brought him in. After all, the crown prince of Haozhou had been saying he wanted to marry her!”

Even in this situation, she was still unwilling to back down and tried to drag Wen Yue Sheng into the mess.

The emperor, furious, shouted, “Shut up!”

Furui paused for a moment, then fell silent.

She wasn’t unaware of the consequences of her actions, but she was fearless, because she was a princess, the emperor’s daughter.

After everything was revealed, many would cover for her.

The reason she had conspired with Haozhou was simple. She understood that everything she had came not from her good character or talents but because of her status.

Because she was the Princess of Dahuai, she could act with impunity.

As for Wen Yue Sheng, she had caused her brother to lose his arm, and now her brother would never ascend the throne. She had been lucky not to be married off, but soon, she too would be trampled by these worthless people.

She had grown accustomed to being a high and mighty princess and couldn’t tolerate being slighted in the least.

She wanted to trample everyone beneath her feet. If Dahuai fell, she could still ally with Haozhou.

After all, everyone in this court feared Haozhou’s people. Even her father had been willing to use her as a bargaining chip for the alliance.

So why couldn’t she use Haozhou to suppress these useless people?

“Father, Furui is innocent!” Princess Furui sneered at Wen Yuesheng, her lips curling.

Her arrogance filled the room, causing many ministers to feel uncomfortable.

In the stillness of the hall, Wen Yuesheng replied coldly, “What a great Princess of Dahuai.”

She turned to face Princess Furui and said, “Without the tens of thousands of soldiers on the border defending the country, what would you be as a princess?”

The entire hall fell silent.

Princess Furui froze, then, about to shout angrily, she suddenly saw the Duke of Zhongyong step forward.

His expression was colder than ever.

He said solemnly, “The peace of Dahuai has been earned through the blood and sacrifices of the soldiers on the frontier. Anyone who collaborates with foreign enemies and betrays the country treats the bones of these soldiers as worthless!”

“They also trample upon the suffering people of Dahuai, the common folk in the frontier!”

“Therefore, those who commit treason and collude with the enemy should be put to death!”

His voice resonated throughout Taihe Hall.

After him, countless soldiers stepped forward, their faces somber, and said in unison, “Those who commit treason and collude with the enemy should be put to death!”

Wen Yuesheng stood tall in the hall, facing the emperor at the high seat.

She coldly said, “Take the traitors and execute them in public at the Wu Gate!”