WBSGVS Chapter 212 V2

This time, by the third month of fighting, Sima Heng passed away. Because of the war, his funeral was held quietly. Another six months went by, and still the conflict showed no signs of slowing. Chu even sent more reinforcements.

Qingli sensed something was wrong. She began preparing to leave the capital and lead the troops herself.

But before she could finish handing off court responsibilities, an urgent report came in during the war’s seventh month: after a Chu defeat, Yi Han had pursued the retreating enemy too aggressively, fallen into a trap, and although rescued, was now critically wounded.

This blunder was caused by Yi Han’s impatience—he’d gotten greedy for glory and acted recklessly.

Qingli immediately dropped everything in the capital and begged Prince Duan to come out of retirement, then personally led troops to the front.

With the commander down, Jin began losing ground rapidly.

They nearly lost a city—until Qingli arrived, took up the command banner, and led the charge against Chu.

Her presence reignited morale, and the tide began to turn. Under Qingli’s command, the army began racking up victory after victory.

In the eleventh month of the war, Qingli led a successful surprise attack on the enemy’s grain depot. A month later, with the Chu army short on funds and struggling to stay afloat, she struck a heavy blow on the battlefield.

From that point on, the Chu forces steadily lost ground. But unlike past wars, Jin didn’t stop after gaining an advantage—they kept pushing forward until they captured two cities. Only when both sides were exhausted—Chu unable to continue fighting, and Jin struggling with the toll of war—did the fighting finally cease.

When the army returned to the capital, Qingli was celebrated for her brilliant battlefield tactics. Chu was gripped with fear at the mere mention of her name. Among the people of Jin, the widespread belief was that she owed her victories not just to strategy but also to her mysterious talent for divination.

That wild theory followed Qingli back to the capital and was, to her amusement, widely accepted. The entire court grew even more respectful of her. During this time, even the most corrupt officials didn’t dare take a single coin—they all acted as meek as quail under her authority.

Unfortunately, Qingli’s position was already so high that there were no more titles left to give her. In the end, all the court could offer was a mountain of treasure as a reward.

Yi Han, however, never recovered from his wounds. The state of ancient medicine simply couldn’t save someone as gravely injured as he was. It had taken Qingli over a month just to reach the battlefield—by the time she arrived, the commander was already gone.

So when Qingli returned to the capital, she brought Yi Han’s coffin with her and passed along all the honors meant for him to the Yi family.

Her campaign had been so aggressive that, had resources not run low, she likely could have kept pushing even further. Chu knew it too—this time, they didn’t wait to be beaten into a corner. They came forward to request peace themselves. Having broken a previous peace agreement, they now had to pay a steeper price. Their envoy even offered one of the royal princes for a marriage alliance.

Naturally, the proposed match was Qingli.

But she refused.

The Chu princes were all surrounded by women—she had no interest in being one of many.

While the envoy nervously worried that Qingli was angry and might launch another war, he was relieved when the fearsome Grand Diviner of Jin offered a proposal: “We have plenty of promising young men here. Let one of them marry your princess instead.”

The envoy, thrilled, agreed immediately.

So a royal edict was issued to the Fu family: “Fu Cheng, eldest legitimate son of the Fu family, shall be wed to the ninth princess of Chu in a marriage alliance between our two nations!”

The Fu family was stunned.

Fu Cheng, on the other hand, could only let out a bitter smile.

Everything had come full circle.

Refusing a royal edict would doom the entire Fu family, so Fu Cheng had no choice but to accept and be sent to Chu to fulfill the alliance.

But Jin had just taken two cities from Chu and slaughtered thousands of their soldiers. Even with Jin backing him, life in Chu would be far from easy for Fu Cheng.

—

Qingli personally saw the marriage envoy off at the capital gates. As she recalled Fu Cheng’s stunned, hopeless expression, she gave a small smile, then turned back to work.

The war had dragged on for so long that many matters had been left unattended.

She began by inspecting the capital to ensure everything was still running according to the plans she left behind. Anyone who had gotten bold in her absence was immediately thrown in prison. Once enough were gathered, she dealt with them all at once.

After nearly six months of sweeping reforms, the entire court—from ministers to servants—stood in awe of Qingli. Only then did she finally return to her quieter life as Grand Diviner.

With the country at peace and no external threats, Qingli now had more free time. She resumed her old habit of giving readings at the Grand Diviner’s residence for those seeking answers, sharpening her skills and honoring her position.

Until one day, news arrived—Princess Lekin had passed away.

Qingli was momentarily startled to remember who that was.

Sima Qinghe had spent all that time waiting for Yi Han to come rescue her. She had firmly believed he would save her from her “hellish” marriage to Luo Liang. After all, marrying him had felt worse than death—especially now that she was a disgraced princess with no real power.

Back when her brother Sima Yan was still Crown Prince, he had made no arrangements for her to have a proper princess’s estate. Because she was the one marrying out—not the Luo family “marrying in,”—she was treated as a political pawn.

At first, her marriage wasn’t entirely miserable. Luo Liang did have feelings for Sima Qinghe once—otherwise, he wouldn’t have stolen military schematics from the palace to help her father, Sima Chang. But those feelings didn’t last long. His personality simply couldn’t sustain affection for long, especially when it became clear that Sima Qinghe didn’t like him.

No matter how good she was at “collecting admirers,” a girl raised under strict protection for sixteen years couldn’t fully hide her disgust when faced with a man she loathed.

When Luo Liang learned of her love for Yi Han, the marriage quickly deteriorated. He lost interest, took on concubines, and gradually distanced himself.

Then Sima Heng died, and Sima Yan ascended the throne. That sealed Qinghe’s fate—she had lost all her backing.

And with a new emperor in power, it was time to settle old scores.

But Qingli had been busy defending the nation from foreign threats. Only once she returned victorious did the reckoning begin.

Luo Liang’s role in stealing palace defense plans for Sima Chang had already been uncovered long ago. But due to the unstable power transition, no one had acted on it—until now.

Luo Liang’s father, Lord Luo of the Ministry of War, was dismissed and investigated. Luo Liang himself was thrown into prison. As his wife, Sima Qinghe naturally bore the full weight of the Luo family’s resentment.

At first, she still held on to hope that Yi Han would come to save her.

But once she heard he had died from his wounds, and that Qingli had returned and sent Fu Cheng away for a marriage alliance, she knew all hope was lost, taken from her in one fell swoop.

Those who once clung to her now avoided her like the plague.

And yet, her life wasn’t entirely unbearable. She was still a princess. Though Lord Luo had been dismissed because of his son, the Luo family wasn’t entirely ruined. She also had the dowry that Sima Heng had prepared for her.

But Sima Qinghe had lost all spirit.

She couldn’t bear the humiliation from the Luo family—both veiled and outright—and she couldn’t cope with the vast difference between what she once had and what she now endured. As a sheltered noblewoman with fragile health, a simple cold sent her spiraling into illness.

The Luo family did what they could to treat her, not out of kindness, but out of fear. To the ruling elite, even a grain of sand in their eye was too much. If they were seen as having allowed a princess to die out of spite, they’d face far worse consequences.

But Sima Qinghe had already given up on life.

Even the best care couldn’t bring back someone who no longer wanted to live.

She struggled through an autumn and a winter before the news finally reached Qingli.