One of the palace maids burst into tears, unable to hold back, and said in a sobbing voice, "Your Highness, the princess... she knocked us unconscious and then secretly left the palace under the cover of night."

We searched almost the entire palace, leaving no corner unchecked, but we just couldn't find any trace of her.

Finally, they found a letter under her pillow.

As she spoke, she seemed to use all her strength to struggle to her feet. She staggered into the inner room, carefully took out the letter, held it in both hands, and handed it to Sheng Chuyi with trepidation.

Saint Chuyi snatched the letter and angrily questioned, "Why didn't you report such an important matter to me sooner? Don't you know how much trouble this will bring to the royal family?"

The palace maids were trembling all over and dared not utter a word.

She simply lowered her head and sobbed incessantly, silently enduring Sheng Chuyi's anger and rebuke.

Sheng Chuyi's eyes were filled with anger. The letter felt like a thorn in his heart. He slammed it on the table, as if to vent his anxiety and worry.

He shouted angrily, "Nonsense! This is all nonsense! One or two of you are acting so recklessly! How could a delicate girl like her possibly venture into that extremely dangerous battlefield? This is simply playing with her own life!"

As he spoke, he shouted urgently, "Someone, someone, quickly prepare pen, ink, paper and inkstone, His Highness needs to write a letter immediately."

After he finished speaking, he felt that writing a letter was a waste of time, so he quickly changed his tone, "Oh well, never mind, I'll go find my father."

Having said that, Sheng Chuyi no longer hesitated and hurriedly ran out of the hall.

Xiao Dezi chased after him, panting heavily, a helpless expression on his face. He ran and shouted, "Your Highness, Your Highness the Crown Prince, please slow down! I don't know martial arts, I can't keep up with your speed!"

At this moment, Sheng Chuyi had already thrown his usual composure to the back of his mind.

As Xiao Dezi ran, panting heavily, he comforted himself: "The princess is the most important, the princess is the most important."

When His Highness is involved with the princess, he becomes quite unlike the Crown Prince; this is a common occurrence.

When Sheng Chuyi ran wildly to Sheng Yuan, Sheng Yuan had just finished writing the letter.

"Father, Sheng Chuhan has secretly slipped out of the palace and isn't here. You should send the Imperial Guards to bring him back," Sheng Chuyi said breathlessly.

Sheng Yuan had regained his composure and frowned at Sheng Chuyi, "You still need to work on your temper. It's not like it's a big storm, why are you in such a hurry? What kind of state are you in?"

Sheng Chuyi was taken aback, sensing something was amiss. "Wait, Father, Sheng Chuhan has sneaked out of the palace to go to the battlefield? Aren't you worried at all?"

Upon hearing this, Shengyuan picked up the letter in his hand, blew on it to dry the writing, and then folded it up.

He said leisurely, "I know, she sneaked away. When I delivered the gift, I saw her hiding among the soldiers."

"Didn't you stop her? If the Empress Dowager knew, she would be so worried." Sheng Chuyi looked anxious.

"Oh dear, why are you panicking? I already told your mother that whether you go or Li'er goes, that girl will sneak out and follow us. Rather than letting her sneak away on her own, it's better to keep her under our watchful eyes. I've already written about this in the letter, and Li'er will take good care of her. Since this girl is so eager to help, let her go."

"In addition, you should also take responsibility. This time, when Li'er returns from the expedition, the ministers may have other ideas. You must be prepared." Sheng Yuan sighed.

He continued, "I do not want to see brothers killing each other. Yi'er, you must promise your father that no matter what happens, you must not turn your blade against your younger brother and sister."

Sheng Chuyi wanted to say how could he possibly do such a thing, but when his gaze fell upon Sheng Yuan's serious expression, he felt a slight tremor in his heart.

He composed himself and solemnly assured Sheng Yuan, "Father, rest assured, I promise that no matter what happens, I, Sheng Chuyi, my younger brother Sheng Chuli, and my younger sister Sheng Chuhan are all your and Mother's children. We will never fight each other. I will protect them."

Shengyuan nodded with relief, "That's good, that's good. Your mother and I can rest assured now."

Sheng Yuan's relieved expression aroused Sheng Chuyi's suspicion. Could it be that his father knew something he didn't?

He wanted to ask more questions, but then he thought that no matter what happened, he would not hurt his younger siblings, so there was no need to ask.

Meanwhile, Saint Chuli led his army on their journey.

The generals behind him all had different expressions.

Before this morning, everyone thought it was His Highness the Crown Prince leading the troops into battle.

But this morning we suddenly received an imperial decree that the prince should return to the capital to lead troops into battle, while the crown prince should stay in the capital to take care of the ailing emperor.

"This matter seems rather strange to me," a general said quietly.

Another general gathered around and said coldly, "He's just an adopted son with the title of a carefree prince. No matter how things change, His Highness the Crown Prince's future status will not change."

"That's not necessarily true. The imperial edict was just issued this morning. The prince is far away on the frontier. How could he possibly have returned to the capital so conveniently?"

"You mean the Prince received the imperial decree long ago and secretly returned to the capital, just waiting for the army to set off? Does that mean His Highness the Crown Prince was the last to know? Could it be that the Emperor really has other plans?"

"Something's not right. In the past few years, His Highness the Crown Prince has been acting as regent. Although he hasn't made any great achievements, he hasn't made any mistakes either. The Emperor is also very satisfied with His Highness the Crown Prince. Why would he suddenly make this decision? Something is definitely not right."

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