"Compared to me, you were born into a prestigious family and educated from a young age. You’ve spent numerous years as a study companion in the Eastern Palace. You’ve learned from the Crown Prince about the way of serving the sovereign, nation-building, and governance. You’ve honed your civil and military skills, all aimed at achieving great deeds for the nation. In the end, aren’t you supposed to be on the path to becoming a renowned minister, making your name eternal in history? You’re not choosing to abandon your home and career, forsaking your original path for ephemeral love and pleasure, right?"
Jiang Zhu did not believe that nobody had ever said this to Zhou Gu before.
Zhou Gu choked on his words, silent and speechless. After a while, he muttered, "Why do you care about me? I’m asking you. If you refuse, I won’t recommend you."
Jiang Zhu fell silent.
Zhou Gu warned him, "Don’t set your sights on Ning Chi. Even if I don’t approve, he won’t recommend you either. He owed me a favor when he decided to join the Eastern Palace, and I was the one who introduced him to it."
Feeling helpless, Jiang Zhu asked Zhou Gu, "Brother Zhou, may I ask? Isn’t the second young master of the Ye family, Ye Guixue, already engaged to Lady Su Qi? If so, why did you... break off your engagement? Are you still trying to win her back?"
Zhou Gu twirled a finger, remaining silent.
Could he say that he didn’t choose to break off the engagement, that it was forcibly demanded of him? Could he say that he wanted to win her back but had no idea how, with what means, especially when that person was Ye Guixue, who holds the most influence over her?
So right now, all he could do was wish and hope.
Seeing Zhou Gu’s changing facial expression, Jiang Zhu did not press for more information. He respectfully bowed to Zhou Gu and said, "Please go ahead and make the recommendation for me, Brother Zhou."
Zhou Gu nodded, "Alright."
Jiang Zhu stood upright, studying Zhou Gu’s face. After a moment, he suddenly asked, "With a face like yours, Brother Zhou, what do you have to fear? Are you afraid that I will steal your thunder?"
Zhou Gu let go of the hand, dusted off his clothes and grumbled, "I hadn’t considered that a Ye Guixue could suddenly pop up. You know what his charisma is like."
Jiang Zhu suddenly enlightened, "Indeed, the second son of the Ye Xiang family, a renowned figure known throughout the Nanchu Kingdom, is quite an extraordinary character."
Zhou Gu didn’t respond. Of course, he was outstanding. Being nurtured by the Nanchu King and Ye Xiang, with a tiger talisman controlling a hundred thousand soldiers and the whole Ye Xiang Residence as a betrothal gift, he had gained worldwide fame for being perfect in both character and appearance. He completely overshadowed all the things Zhou Gu used to pride himself on.
"You know, I could go to Nanchu only after persistently pleading with her. Naturally, I don’t want anyone other than Ye Guixue to catch her attention and cause trouble," Zhou Gu used to never dare to speak like this. But now, since he had cleared things up with Su Rong, she had been less distant towards him. He felt brave enough to say these words, it seemed more bearable once they were out.
Jiang Zhu hadn’t met Su Rong yet, nor did he understand the intricacies between Zhou Gu and Su Rong, but seeing Zhou Gu’s condition, he found it hard to believe that the once exuberant young Master Zhou was now so troubled by his feelings.
He had keenly noticed that Zhou Gu cared about Su Rong through the subtle hints in their conversations these past two days at the eighteen mountain strongholds. After all, a person’s eyes can never lie, no matter how good their disguise, there will always be flaws.
Zhou Gu’s weakness was not Duke Residence or the Eastern Palace, but Su Rong.
So, he thought that a woman who could stir Zhou Gu’s heart, who could disrupt the political situation in the capital, help the Crown Prince out of his predicament, cause the Crown Prince’s defeat, and force the second Prince to maintain a low profile, was worth a gamble on his future prospects, wasn’t she?
Jiang Zhu turned around and patted Zhou Gu’s shoulder, "Brother Zhou, don’t worry, I know my limitations and I won’t get in your way."
Zhou Gu glanced at him, dissatisfied, "People who are too smart are always worth being on guard against."
Jiang Zhu:"..."
He touched his nose, all out of words.
Feng Ling took Zhang Mao back to the Marquis Nanping Residence.
After entering the residence, he found the housekeeper and asked, "Does this residence have a hidden cell?"
The housekeeper was taken aback, "Yes, yes, we have one."
Looking at the man Feng Ling had brought back, he stuttered, "Sir Feng, who is this man?"
"Zhang Mao of Pingxi General Residence."
The housekeeper was shocked.
Feng Ling ordered, "Take me to the hidden cell."
The housekeeper hurriedly nodded and led the way. He was extremely surprised and couldn’t understand why the famous young Master Zhang Mao, who belonged to the Pingxi General Residence, had been captured by Feng Ling and was to be locked up in their hidden cell. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖
This was a big deal!
The hidden cell in the Marquis Nanping Residence was not much different from those in the Duke Residence or Rui’an King Residence. Feng Ling pushed Zhang Mao into the cell and chained him to a pillar before assigning some men to guard the cell. Then, he went to the kitchen.
The housekeeper rushed to report to Marquis Nanping.
Upon hearing the news, Marquis Nanping was greatly shocked, "You’re saying that Feng Ling has captured... Zhang Mao, Zhang Ping’s son?"
The housekeeper nodded in confirmation.
Marquis Nanping asked again, "Are you certain it’s Zhang Mao?"
He had met Zhang Mao before. Zhang Mao was exceptionally gifted, and in some respects, he was even better than his father, Zhang Ping.
The housekeeper replied, "It was Mr. Feng Ling himself who said so. I don’t believe he would lie to me."
There would be no reason for him to lie.
Marquis Nanping nodded, thinking about how Su Rong and Fen Ling had personally escorted his children back to Nanping. This incident was already an obvious clue that there was an ulterior motive behind their actions. Otherwise, why would they go through such a trouble without reason? After they arrived in Nanping, they had only been there for two days before they eradicated the numerous hidden threats within the city. Now, he was dealing with the aftermath of those events. He had just inspected the situation and confirmed that these were indeed hidden threats that he hadn’t noticed before in Nanping. Furthermore, Ning Chi and Zhou Gu had taken thirty thousand soldiers to the eighteen strongholds. Was it because Zhang Mao was secretly stationed there?
If that was the case, then it made sense that Zhang Mao had now been captured.
He gestured to the housekeeper, "Tell everyone in the residence not to get close to the hidden cell and leave the person inside to Feng Ling’s management. Also, warn the workers who have heard about this not to gossip or leak any information."
If Zhang Ping found out that Zhang Mao was locked up in the cell of Marquis Nanping Residence, he certainly wouldn’t sit still.
"Understood." The housekeeper nodded repeatedly.
Ning Ze heard that Feng Ling had returned. After questioning the servants in the residence, he immediately went to the kitchen.
When he arrived, he found Feng Ling sitting in the kitchen, watching the pot on the stove as he gobbled up the stewed goose. Ning Ze was no longer surprised at such behavior, for it was typical of him.
Feng Ling was eating hungrily, which made Ning Ze hungry as well. He simply grabbed a pair of bowls and chopsticks, squatted next to Feng Ling, and began to eat.
Feng Ling turned to him and asked, "What’s with you?"
Ning Ze responded, "Watching you eat has made me hungry."
"I’m tired and starving."
Ning Ze confidently replied, "I’m just greedy."
Feng Ling: "..."
Very well, he couldn’t argue with that.
Seeing Feng Ling fall silent, Ning Ze chuckled and leaned closer, "Where did you and Lady Su Qi go yesterday? I heard you caught someone and are keeping them in the hidden cell?"
"Yes, I captured Zhang Mao." Feng Ling glanced at him, "Do you know how to interrogate people? Go and interrogate Zhang Mao. If he doesn’t confess, break his fingers."
Ning Ze: "..."
Did he want him to learn from his own experience?
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