Zhang Cheng was really struggling to make a decision. He knew that his older brother, Zhang Ping, was ambitious enough to besiege the city even if his own child was tied to the wall, let alone ten. But he was not his older brother.
He was simply a brother of his elder brother. At the same time, Zhang Mao had always held him, his uncle, in high regard.
Could he really order the siege on the city after confirming Zhang Mao’s identity? Was he asking for his own death?
Zhang Mao was the legitimate son, so he didn’t have the authority to disregard Zhang Mao’s life or death. If he ordered the siege without considering Zhang Mao’s welfare, even if it was for his elder brother’s great cause and nothing was wrong, he would be criticized for his heartless disregard of family affection. This would become an unerasable weakness that others could use against him in future power struggles if his older brother eventually succeeded.
So, he gritted his teeth and gave the order, "Hold off on the attack for now."
At his command, the 200,000 soldiers halted their assault.
Zhang Cheng instructed his closest confidants, "You, go and negotiate with Ning Chi. Ask him what it would take to release the elder young master. Tell Marquis Nanping not to be stubborn and insist on defending the city. It’d be better if he surrenders to my Jibei army, as the position at the Duke Residence is much more prestigious than that of a mere marquis."
The confidant complied.
Seeing Zhang Cheng actually withdraw his troops, Ning Chi heaved a sigh of relief. He turned to Zhang Mao and said, "Your uncle is indeed kind to you."
Zhang Mao said nothing. It wasn’t that his uncle was kind to him, but that their kinship and status bound him to care for Zhang Mao, otherwise, he’d face endless troubles in the future.
Ning Chi could guess as much. He gestured to Ning Ze to take him away. "Take him back and keep a close watch."
Ning Ze nodded, motioned to his men, and led them away with Zhang Mao.
The group descended from the city wall, only to hear Zhang Cheng sending someone to negotiate with Ning Chi, as he lavishly promised the position of Duke Residence. It was astonishing.
Ning Ze whispered to Zhang Mao, "Your uncle is really generous. In order to rescue you, he’s trying to persuade Marquis Nanping to surrender by offering such a high-ranking title."
Zhang Mao remained silent.
Ning Ze looked at him, "You’re not having second thoughts, are you? Let me tell you, you won’t be able to escape from me. If I can’t even keep an eye on someone like you, I might as well be dead."
He valued his own life more than anything else. This meant that he would stay wide awake, foregoing sleep if necessary, to ensure that Zhang Mao did not escape.
Zhang Mao shook his head. "It’s true that my uncle cares for me. But I fear others might not. The city of Nanping can hold out for at most three days. Are you sure reinforcements are coming in three days?"
"They should, right?" Ning Ze didn’t really know, so he asked, "Who wouldn’t care for you?"
"My half-brothers," replied Zhang Mao. "My father would never let my uncle attack Nanping City by himself. I’m sure some of my half-brothers are with him. Each one of them would be more than happy to see me dead."
Ning Ze scratched his head, "This could be a problem. Would your uncle listen to them?"
"He will. People of the Zhang family are cold-blooded. What’s kinship compared to that? As long as someone shares the blame with him, my uncle will no longer care for me." Zhang Mao replied, "Even though I’ve always been good to him and he to me."
Ning Ze felt a headache coming on. "So what do we do?"
Zhang Mao shook his head, "Three days is the longest I can stall. Everything after that will be up to you."
Ning Ze looked at Zhang Mao. Seeing that he wasn’t lying, Ning Ze started to worry for his own life again.
"After all, I don’t want to die either, so you don’t need to doubt me." Zhang Mao said, "Even if I die, my mother still has a younger son, and my father has many other sons. Because I was the eldest son born to the main wife, my father has always been strict with me. That’s why my mother couldn’t intervene in my affairs. That also means, she’s not really close to me. This is the main reason why I chose to side with Su Rong."
In other words, there were no people in the Zhang family that he would miss, and there were no people in the Zhang family that would miss him either.
All Ning Ze could say was, "Alright, if we make it through this, I’ll say some good things about you in front of Lady Seven."
No matter how flowery the confidant’s words were, Ning Chi refused to surrender. Instead, he urged Zhang Cheng to retreat. Zhang Cheng was infuriated but could do nothing about Ning Chi.
Zhang Cheng never caught sight of Marquis Nanping, so he thought the rumors were true: the Marquis Residence was already under the control of Ning Chi, the heir.
He ordered his 200,000 soldiers to set up camp outside the city. Then, with his closest confidants, he discussed strategies, ideally on how to enter the city and save Zhang Mao.
Unfortunately, all spy networks within Nanping City had been eradicated by Su Rong, so without the help of spies, Zhang Cheng felt helpless.
Fen Ling had her covert guards closely monitor the movements within Nanping City. Hearing that Zhang Cheng besieged the city but withdrew the soldiers in the end, mostly because of Zhang Mao held hostage, she relaxed a bit.
On the second day, after Su Rong woke up and got ready with the help of Lan Zhi, Zhou Gu carried her to the dining table for breakfast.
Fen Ling and Ziye were also at the table. Fen Ling updated them about the situation in Nanping City and then shared her opinions, "Zhang Cheng is, after all, Zhang Mao’s biological uncle. He refrains aggressive assault on the city due to his nephew. However, I suspect that some people can’t wait and will urge Zhang Cheng to attack. Nanping City, can only hold on for a few more days."
Zhou Gu added, "At most three days."
Fen Ling immediately asserted, "If that’s the case, it simply won’t be enough. The third young master Zhou, even with his 100,000 soldiers, might not get here in time."
According to the message delivered by the hawk, it would take them at least seven days to reach their location.
"Zhang Yun is in Nanping territory. If he gets the message, he will certainly urge Zhang Cheng to attack the city," Zhou Gu said, "That man is the true ruthless and cruel character in Jibei Pingxi General’s Residence."
"Zhang Yun, that SOB. It’s his fault that my sister almost got killed by Nangong Yu back." Fen Ling clenched her teeth in anger, "But right now, we can’t find Zhang Yun’s whereabouts. We have no idea where that SOB is hiding."
"It’s him indeed." Fen Ling said. "He won’t sit idle and let Zhang Cheng’s soldiers go unutilized."
Fen Ling was worried, "It’s best if we could get ahold of him earlier, but currently, we can’t even find his shadow, as if he evaporated from this world."
Zhou Gu placed a bowl of chicken soup in front of Su Rong and spoke to Fen Ling, whose face was filled with concern, "We should have someone keep watch on the rear of the Jibei army for Zhang Yun’s appearance. We can hold them off for an extra two days as long as he doesn’t get close."
Fen Ling nodded, "I will listen to my brother-in-law. We have no other choice."
Su Rong had been quiet all along. Only after she finished a bowl of chicken soup did she speak, "Fen Ling, you go personally. Take a hawk and look for him. I have met Zhang Yun before. He has a faint scent of agarwood, likely because he’s ruthless, kills a lot, and enjoys paying homage to Buddha."
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