Upon hearing the four words “General Huai Sheng,” the elderly general immediately widened his eyes in disbelief, striding quickly toward the door. He pushed aside the junior general blocking the doorway and approached the junior general running from afar: “Who did you say returned?”

“General Liu! General Huai Sheng has returned!” The junior general saluted the elderly General Liu, his eyes reddening with joy, looking as if he might cry, declaring loudly: “General Huai Sheng says the Emperor has summoned the naval soldiers back to camp to lead them to retrieve the Prince of Hancheng’s remains! To send troops… and destroy Dongyi!”

Upon hearing this, Liu Shucheng’s eyes immediately filled with mist. He hurriedly asked: “Really?! Where is he?”

“Right at the camp entrance. General Shen has already gone to greet General Huai Sheng!” the junior general replied.

Upon hearing this, Liu Shucheng immediately ran toward the camp entrance. The other five generals who had been gathered with Liu Shucheng in the room discussing strategies also hurriedly followed behind General Liu Shucheng, running toward the naval camp entrance.

Jiang Huaisheng was Liu Shucheng’s close friend, once the most formidable warrior in their navy. Later, due to an accident, he lost his left hand, but his commanding abilities in naval warfare remained formidable and could not be underestimated. After Great Liang surrendered and fell, when Great Zhou took over the navy, Jiang Huaisheng, this naval general whose ambitions reached the heavens, left the navy and returned to his hometown, citing his disability as making him unfit to continue in military service.

Liu Shucheng knew that Jiang Huaisheng had become disheartened due to the fall of his country. He never expected that today he would answer the call and return!

Liu Shucheng speculated… perhaps Jiang Huaisheng came back for the Prince of Hancheng!

Perhaps before the news reached the coast, the Emperor’s decree to fight Dongyi and retrieve the Prince of Hancheng had already been widely distributed inland, so Jiang Huaisheng, having received the news… had also returned!

Seeing General Shen talking with Jiang Huaisheng in the distance, Liu Shucheng shouted while running: “Jiang Huaisheng!”

Jiang Huaisheng, once again clad in battle armor, turned his head to look at Liu Shucheng. He still had that upright bearing, that refined and handsome appearance, showing Liu Shucheng a smile.

Beside Jiang Huaisheng stood many naval soldiers who had returned carrying their bundles.

“Jiang Huaisheng!” Liu Shucheng ran to Jiang Huaisheng’s side, raised his hand and struck Jiang Huaisheng’s chest armor forcefully, then embraced him with tears in his eyes.

He had never expected to see Jiang Huaisheng again in this lifetime.

“General Liu!” After General Shen saluted General Liu, he said, “I have already arranged for people to register the returning soldiers! Quite a few have returned this time!”

“Good!” Liu Shucheng suppressed his tears and released Jiang Huaisheng, looking him up and down with a smile: “I never thought I’d see you don battle armor again in my lifetime! You… came back for the Prince of Hancheng, didn’t you!”

Jiang Huaisheng nodded and spoke: “I came back for the Prince of Hancheng, I came back to destroy Dongyi! This return… is also because of His Majesty’s return. I originally thought His Majesty would surely prioritize the national wager and send envoys to Dongyi to seek peace, but His Majesty said that the national wager was to spare the people from the suffering of war, so they could enjoy the unified realm’s peaceful mountains and rivers without worry or fear, never again to be bullied! Now the small Dongyi nation has also taken the opportunity to strike at Great Zhou, daring to kill Great Zhou’s navy, daring to humiliate Great Zhou’s Prince of Hancheng! Making the coastal people of Great Zhou fearful and worried, therefore, the Great Zhou Emperor personally came to the coast, leading the imperial expedition and vowing to destroy Dongyi, summoning former naval soldiers to fight together. When the nation is at war… I dare not refuse to come!”

Jiang Huaisheng understood clearly in his heart that along this journey, this Great Zhou Emperor had greatly put on a show to win over the hearts of Great Liang’s former people. He knew this Great Zhou Emperor’s past—once in battle against Great Liang… when Prince Gaoyi was trapped by Liang forces, this Emperor had traveled day and night without rest, arriving before the various government offices along the route even knew she had passed through.

This time, though the Emperor also rode fast horses, after entering Great Liang’s former territory, at every government office she passed, she had people issue decrees summoning naval soldiers back to the naval camp to join her in destroying Dongyi. She also personally visited major shipyards, ordering them to urgently build large ships, all to tell Great Liang’s former people… that she treated Great Liang’s former people as her subjects, and even at such a critical juncture as the national wager, she would never let her own people suffer grievances!

She told those people who thought she was too fond of gambling and didn’t think highly of her as emperor that her national wager wasn’t because she loved gambling, but because she cherished the people and didn’t want them to suffer from war, so she wanted to use this method of national wagering to unify the realm so all under heaven would be one family with no more warfare!

In that instant, this could elevate this female emperor’s standing in the people’s hearts!

This Great Zhou female emperor, who had originally ascended to the throne under the banner of overthrowing Jin for the people’s sake, with all her thoughts and intentions being for the people’s noble character… would become even more deeply rooted in people’s hearts. Not only would the people who originally supported this emperor in Great Zhou do so, but even Great Liang’s former people would be won over by this emperor, viewing her as a sage ruler and enlightened lord comparable to Yao and Shun.

But Jiang Huaisheng also understood that this emperor was a sovereign… every sovereign had their unique methods of governing the people. For instance, some emperors used harsh taxes to keep people struggling at the subsistence level, unable to concern themselves with other matters!

Some emperors used foreign wars to unite the nation’s hearts.

And an emperor like Bai Qingyan was also using her methods to win people’s hearts!

But regardless, in Jiang Huaisheng’s view, even if the emperor had ulterior motives, her decision to destroy Dongyi during the national wager with Yan, and when she could have just allowed warfare and sent the court’s elite troops, choosing instead to lead the imperial expedition personally to destroy Dongyi—Jiang Huaisheng still greatly admired this! Whether she did it to win people’s hearts or to win the military’s hearts!

Therefore, Jiang Huaisheng chose to return.

“What? Imperial expedition?!” Liu Shucheng looked shocked.

“Imperial expedition?”

The naval generals following behind Liu Shucheng also looked incredulous.

Jiang Huaisheng nodded but also felt strange: “How is it? Haven’t you received word?”

Liu Shucheng and the other generals shook their heads repeatedly.

Jiang Huaisheng continued: “The Great Zhou Emperor rode fast horses urgently, with the main army following closely behind. At every place she reached… she had the government offices post notices, stating that if there were those whose blood still ran hot, who dared to fight alongside the Emperor to destroy Dongyi, they should report to the naval camp before the twenty-sixth of September! I should be among the earliest arrivals. More soldiers will return in waves afterward, so we should prepare early! Among them… There will surely be people inspired by the Emperor who want to enlist and pose as veterans. Time is urgent—we must strictly screen them out. We can keep them for training, but we cannot let them onto the battlefield, lest they die in vain or drag down their comrades!”

Jiang Huaisheng was still the same strategizing naval general as before. Upon arriving at the camp, before he even had time to set down the bundle on his back, he was already making arrangements.