"Come forward, Jinkai." The Emperor beckoned with a wave of his hand. His face that was once filled with tiredness immediately lit up like the bright sun of Summer.

The man wordlessly walked past the guards that lined the golden staircase.

He strolled up the stairs with confidence that no one could ever possess.

The staircase mustn't ever be touched by people who weren't the Emperor or Empress. Yet, this man had boldly stepped on the gleaming stairs without a care in the world.

"You've grown taller and stronger the last time I've seen you." The Emperor commented when Jinkai was within a few feet away.

The man didn't say anything at the compliment, but the slight curl on the left side of his lips was enough to show he had heard what the Emperor had said.

Wen Jinkai rarely smiled, nor wore a gentle expression on his face. Growing up on the battlefield and slaying many men left and right without flinching, his soul was bleak and black.

Even when his parents and the Royal Family doted on him, he rarely had a pleasant expression on his face.

That small uplift of his mouth was enough for the Emperor who chuckled at his aloof behavior.

"How was the battle near Yijing?" The Emperor asked. He didn't care for the battle, he only wanted to hear the quiet Jinkai speak more.

"We won." The man curtly said. His voice was rough and deep, but the authority and dominance never wavered from two simple words.

A slow smile spread on the Emperor's face. "Good...Very good."

Truthfully, the Emperor had already heard the magnificent outcomes of the battle.

The enemy soldiers were left brutally slaughtered, they hadn't stood a chance the minute Commander Jinkai strolled into battle with his fearsome horse, leading an army of only one thousand soldier against one thousand enemy soldiers from Yijing.

"My dear child, you've yet to come and greet me." The Empress gently said.

Even though her tone seemed to nitpick at him, the fond smile on her face said over wise. Her mood was incredibly low, and had only risen higher than the sky when she saw him.

Because Wen Jinkai had grew up without his biological mother, the Empress had graciously taken the role of raising him as her own son, and eventually, he found a good place in her heart.

He had stuck to the side of the Empress more than he had to the Emperor, which made her love and dote him more than anyone ever could.

Duke Wen was never the type of father to shower his children with love, especially his eldest son, which was why the Empress had taken care of him. Sure, his step-mother tried to fulfill the big shoes of Wen Jinkai's actual mother, but she was too distracted with her own children to care for him.

On the outside, Duke and d.u.c.h.ess Wen seemed like a good parent, and too some extent they were, but Wen Jinkai was the eldest child in the family, so they were less lenient and doting when it came to him.

Everyone knew the Empress's closet friend, Wen Jinkai's mother, had died at a very early age. His mother had saved the Empress's life countless times. The Empress tried to repay this enormous debt by taking care and loving Jinkai as if she was his own son.

Jinkai turned towards the Empress, his frigid expression softened the slightest bit. "I was saving the best for last." He walked to her, cupped his fists and bowed to her lower than he did to the Emperor.

Had it been anyone else, the Emperor would've felt insulted and angered, but he didn't. Instead, he was slightly grateful towards Commander Jinkai.

The Imperial Concubine was present and the Empress hated the sight of her. Whenever she saw the Imperial Concubine, the Empress's expression would become sour and her mood would fall faster than the leaves of Autumn.

But after Jinkai's words, the Empress's mood was significantly lifted and a genuine smile was gracing her lips.

"You've lost your baby face." The Empress gently said, placing a tender hand on the man's cheeks. Jinkai didn't make any move of returning her kind gesture, but he also didn't pull back from her touch.

"I never had a baby face." He curtly said which prompted light laughter from the Emperor and Empress.

"Of course, my child." The Empress said, with a small smile on her eyes.

Her eyes were so warm and filled with so much adoration towards the boy, it was beginning to make her own sons very jealous.

Their mother greatly doted on them, but anyone would feel jealous when their mother showed the same love to a man who wasn't even her real son.

"Uhm..." A light voice peeped from the Empress's right side.

The Empress turned towards the small voice that sounded like the beautiful jingles of bells.

It was her second-daughter, the famed Second Princess of Houling. She was the Empress Dowager's favorite granddaughter, and one could tell why.

With beauty as delicate as the Peach Blossom trees, expressive and adoring eyes, she was the definition of beauty. Her voice was beautiful and sounded like the light melodies of Spring.

"W-welcome home, Jinkai." The Princess softly uttered, her face red with shyness. She gently gathered her hanfu and did a light bow to him.

It wasn't a rumor that the second princess was deeply in love with him.

Ever since she was a child, she had a ma.s.sive crush on Commander Jinkai. It all started when she had fallen into a deep pond and the first person to jump in and save her was the Commander himself. But the boy was young when he performed the selfless act, and he barely remembered this pampered and spoiled Princess.