At 100 years old, he joined the army in place of his granddaughter, and became a national war god.

early morning,

Outside the Imperial Study in the Imperial Palace.

As dawn broke and the morning mist had not yet completely dissipated, the entire palace was shrouded in a thin veil.

The guards stood ramrod straight on both sides of the palace road.

On the white marble steps in front of the Imperial Study, a bright yellow palanquin was already prepared.

Emperor Xiao Jinghuan was dressed in a bright yellow Taoist robe, with no crown on his head, only a jade hairpin to tie his hair up, and a Taoist scripture in his hand, looking quite like a Taoist immortal.

His face wore an expectant smile, as if he were going to keep a long-awaited appointment.

Consort Xu stood beside him, dressed in a light purple palace gown, her hair styled in a high bun, her makeup exquisite, and a hint of smugness in her eyes.

She took Xiao Jinghuan's arm and said softly:

"Your Majesty, shall we set off now?"

"Your Majesty, I have already arranged for Master Ziyun to wait at Ziyun Temple and have prepared the finest vegetarian food. Your Majesty will surely be able to calm your mind and prolong your life during this visit."

Xiao Jinghuan smiled and nodded: "My dear consort, you are very thoughtful."

"I have been very busy with state affairs these past few days and I really need to go to the Taoist temple to find some peace and quiet."

Just as he was about to step into the sedan chair...

Li Fuquan, the chief eunuch dressed in a dark blue eunuch's robe, strode quickly from the end of the palace road.

Li Fuquan walked to the imperial sedan chair, knelt on one knee, cupped his hands, and said in a low voice, "Your Majesty! Minister Wang of the Ministry of War requests an audience, saying he has extremely urgent intelligence from the East China Sea that must be presented to Your Majesty immediately!"

Xiao Jinghuan paused, his smile fading slightly as he was about to step into the sedan chair: "Eastern Navy intelligence?"

Consort Xu's face instantly darkened. She released Xiao Jinghuan's arm, took a step forward, and looked down at Li Fuquan kneeling on the ground, her voice sharp:

"Li Fuquan, you old scoundrel, do you have any sense at all?"

"Didn't you see His Majesty was about to head to Ziyun Temple?"

"His Majesty has been working tirelessly for days, and he finally has a chance to get some peace and quiet. How dare you, a mere servant, obstruct His Majesty's journey?"

"Hurry up and send Lord Wang away so His Majesty can proceed to Ziyun Temple in peace!"

Li Fuquan did not look up, but his voice was unusually firm.

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger! This old servant did not mean to disturb His Majesty's enjoyment, but Lord Wang said that the situation in the Eastern Navy is extremely urgent, and if it is delayed any longer, it may lead to a great disaster!"

"This old servant dares not act on his own; I can only come to seek Your Majesty's permission!"

Consort Xu's face darkened further, her words filled with anger and curses.

"Li Fuquan! You dog of a servant, you don't even listen to His Majesty's words anymore?"

"I order you to leave, so leave!"

"What intelligence about the East China Sea? With His Highness the Crown Prince's 50,000 troops stationed there, what major incident could possibly occur?"

"Clearly, some people have ulterior motives, deliberately exaggerating to disrupt His Majesty's meditation!"

Li Fuquan knelt on the ground, his forehead touching the ground, but his body remained completely still.

After a moment of silence, he raised his head, looked directly at Xiao Jinghuan, and said with an unprecedented resolve in his voice, "Your Majesty, even if this old servant offends the Empress today, even if I commit a capital offense, I must finish what I have to say!"

"Your Majesty, judging from Lord Wang's words, I suspect the urgent report from the East Sea is extremely serious; it is highly likely that the Eastern Barbarian army has defeated our forces!"

"If we don't deal with this quickly, the Eastern barbarian bandits will likely advance unstoppable, sweeping all the way into the heart of Jiangnan!"

"Your Majesty, the consequences would be unimaginable if Jiangnan were to fall!"

He kowtowed heavily, his voice trembling with tears:

"Your Majesty! The safety of the East Sea concerns the very foundation of the nation!"

"Your Majesty, please consider the well-being of the nation and the people, and grant me an audience with Minister Wang!"

Xiao Jinghuan's eyes flickered.

He glanced at Consort Xu's resentful face, then at Li Fuquan kneeling on the ground with his forehead bruised and bleeding. After hesitating for a moment, he finally put down the Taoist scripture in his hand and said, "Let him come over."

Consort Xu's lips tightened abruptly, a cold glint flashing in her eyes, but she dared not stop him in front of the Emperor any longer.

Because the emperor has already spoken.

She simply took half a step back, stood there with her arms crossed, her face ashen and extremely unsightly.

Before long, Wang Ben, the Minister of War, strode over from the end of the palace road.

His forehead was covered in sweat, as if he had run all the way here.

He walked to the imperial sedan chair, knelt down on one knee, and said urgently, his voice filled with barely concealed anxiety, "Your Majesty! I have urgent military news and must disturb Your Majesty's enjoyment! Please forgive me!"

Xiao Jinghuan asked in a deep voice, "My dear Wang, what has happened in the East Sea?"

Wang Ben took out two documents from his sleeve and raised them above his head with both hands.

"Your Majesty! Battle report from the East China Sea..."

"His Highness the Crown Prince led an army of 50,000 to battle against the Eastern Barbarian army of 30,000 at Ninghai City, and the result... was a crushing defeat!"

"Ninghai City has fallen! Nearly 20,000 of the 50,000 troops have been lost, and they have retreated to Haizhou City!"

Xiao Jinghuan's expression changed instantly: "What? Fifty thousand against thirty thousand, and the Crown Prince still lost? Ninghai City is lost too?"

Wang Ben lowered his head, his voice becoming even more somber.

"Your Majesty, the enemy has several fierce generals with superb martial arts skills. Our vanguard general Zhao Huaizhong was defeated in three moves, General Li Ye was killed with a single blow, and even General Xu Cheng was defeated by the enemy generals and seriously injured!"

"If it weren't for General Han Shixun's desperate rearguard action, the army's defeat would have been even more devastating."

Xiao Jinghuan looked furious and flew into a rage.

"I have given the Crown Prince an army of 50,000!"

"Fifty thousand!"

"I thought that even if he couldn't achieve a great victory, he could at least stabilize the East China Sea defense line... but he lost Ninghai City too!"

Consort Xu stood to the side, intending to say a few words.

But seeing the emperor's furious face, he swallowed back the words he was about to say.

Wang Ben continued, "Your Majesty, there is another document, a joint petition from General Xu Cheng and several other military commanders, impeaching His Highness the Crown Prince!"

He handed over the second document with both hands.

"General Xu stated frankly in his article that His Highness the Crown Prince lacked the talent to command troops, was stubborn and self-willed, refused to listen to advice, and suppressed loyal officials, causing the army's morale to collapse and the army to suffer a crushing defeat!"

"Furthermore, His Highness the Crown Prince knew that the Third Prince had ventured alone deep behind enemy lines, yet he refused to send troops to rescue him, leaving him to fend for himself! The Third Prince's fate is now unknown, and his whereabouts are unclear!"

Xiao Jinghuan took the document, his hands trembling slightly.

He unfolded the letter, his face growing increasingly grim.

"You bastard!"

He slammed the document to the ground.

"Crown Prince! I entrusted him with a great responsibility, giving him 50,000 troops, and this is how he repays me?"

"Is this how he leads troops? Does he even deserve to be the crown prince? Does he deserve to be the commander of a large army?"

He paced back and forth a couple of times, then suddenly stopped, turned to look at Wang Ben, and his voice carried an unprecedented panic.

"My dear Wang, tell me... what should we do now?"

"Xu Cheng and the generals jointly impeached the Crown Prince. The army is already divided among its commanders; how can we possibly fight this battle?"

"What about the East China Sea? What about Jiangnan?"

Wang Ben raised his head, looked directly at Xiao Jinghuan, and replied, "Your Majesty, now there is only one path to take."

Xiao Jinghuan asked urgently, "What road? Tell me quickly!"

Wang Ben took a deep breath: "As General Xu Cheng said in his letter, please ask General Su Mu, the Duke of Zhenbei, to come out of retirement!"

"Ahead lies the East Sea, to suppress the Eastern barbarian bandits."

Consort Xu finally couldn't hold back any longer and coldly interjected, "Lord Wang, does the Great Qian Dynasty really need Su Mu to survive?"

"Although the Crown Prince suffered a defeat, it was merely due to carelessness. Give him another chance, and he will surely be able to..."

"Your Majesty!" Wang Ben turned around abruptly, his voice rudely interrupting Consort Xu, "Your Majesty, this old minister dares to ask—what exactly is your intention in repeatedly preventing General Su from leaving the mountain?"

"Do you not want the people of Donghai to live? Do you not want peace in Jiangnan?"

"Or is it... that you're just trying to save face and prevent General Su from gaining any more merit?"

Consort Xu's face turned pale instantly, her lips trembled, and she wanted to retort, but Wang Ben did not give her the chance.

"Your Majesty, this old minister knows of the grudge between your brother Xu Shigui and your two nephews and General Su."

"But they brought it on themselves!"

"They colluded with the Blood-Clad Tower, kidnapped General Su's granddaughter, and framed loyal officials. Justice has been served; they deserve to die!"

"If you disregard the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in the East Sea for personal revenge, you will be a sinner against the Great Qian Dynasty!"

Consort Xu was speechless, her eyes filled with hatred that was almost overflowing.

But she couldn't utter a single word, because she knew that everything Wang Ben said was true.

Xiao Jinghuan remained silent for a long time before finally making a decision.

He turned around abruptly, his tone resolute: "Prepare the carriage for the Duke of Zhenbei's residence! I will personally go to invite Su Mu to come out of seclusion!"

A look of surprise suddenly flashed in Wang Ben's eyes, and he knelt down and kowtowed: "Your Majesty is wise!"

Upon seeing this, the chief eunuch Li Fuquan immediately announced, "Let's proceed to the Duke of Zhenbei's residence."

The imperial sedan chair turned around, and the Imperial Guards marched in formation, heading towards the Duke of Zhenbei's mansion in a grand procession.