“Is this your grandson?” Zhi Ning held the child, kneeling directly before Fu Lingxi.
Fu Lingxi’s beautiful face showed no expression, only a slight twitch, then she said indifferently, “I am sorry, I am powerless. I cannot save him!”
Zhi Ning held the child, sobbing uncontrollably, kowtowing desperately, “He is still small, he is only one year old, he also carries your bloodline. Can you bear to see him suffer Zhi Li’s torment? You… can you bear to see him…”
Speaking to this point, Zhi Ning could no longer continue. Those terrible words she dared not think of, nor dared to speak.
“I am sorry, I am powerless.” Fu Lingxi walked up the steps, leaving the secret room.
From behind came Zhi Ning’s blood-sobbing cry, “Fu Lingxi, are you not afraid that in the future Soren will flay you alive?”
Fu Lingxi paid no heed, directly walking out of the high tower.
Zhi Ning collapsed sitting on the ground, holding the baby, already unable to even cry.
“Heavenly Dragon God, if you have eyes, please send down a divine thunderbolt and strike that beast Zhi Li dead, lest he continue to harm my child.” Zhi Ning said in a hoarse voice.
Zhi Li was her own brother, for a long time her only family member. For her brother she would do anything.
But now, she truly cursed Zhi Li to die.
At this time, Fang Qingzhuo instead stopped crying. She stepped forward and gently held Zhi Ning, saying, “Little Ning, do not be afraid. I will save the baby, I will certainly save you and the baby.”
At this time, Fang Qingzhuo had already made her resolution!
To save Zhi Ning and her son, she would stake everything, even if it meant putting Zhi Li completely to death!
What did that black shadow say to Fu Lingxi when it found her? No one knew.
But for Fu Lingxi, it was definitely not a bad thing. Her eyes lit up with excitement, her entire body trembling.
…
Sky Wolf Pass battlefield!
Zhi Li’s punitive expedition against Tianshui City had silenced all voices, yet Jian Ze emerged as a dark horse.
The Jian family was an old noble family of the Furious Wave Kingdom. For generations they had paired one civil and one military official. This generation’s civil official was Jian Yong, the military official was Jian Ze. In the clan, one marquis, one count!
However, this countship was earned by Jian Ze, and each generation’s hereditary title was reduced. Unlike Jian Yong’s marquis position, which was truly hereditary in perpetuity.
Jian Ze was fifty-two years old this year. From childhood his talent in the martial dao was extremely high.
At eighteen, he had already established illustrious military merits. Following this, he remained submerged for over a dozen years.
At thirty-two, he encountered the Rouan great war. At that time, he was a ten-thousand-commander in the Dragon Guard Legion, yes, serving under Solon.
In the great battle supporting Rouan City against the Grand Duke of Yelan, Jian Ze fought bravely and similarly distinguished himself.
Yes, he distinguished himself, but did not establish too great a merit.
In truth, his merit was very great, almost turning the tide of battle. However, he had disobeyed Count Solon’s military order and attacked privately, disrupting the army’s rhythm. Not only that, the ten thousand cavalry he led suffered enormous casualties.
So for that battle’s merit, not only was he not promoted, but Count Solon gave him ten harsh lashes.
The Rouan great war changed the fate of many people in the Furious Wave Kingdom. Many generals rose to prominence because of it, but not including Jian Ze. After the great war ended, he instead left the Dragon Guard Army and entered the Zhi Du City Guard Army, still a ten-thousand-commander level officer.
By the military’s established rules, infantry was half a rank lower than cavalry. So in this Rouan great war, Jian Ze was instead demoted half a rank. The indignation in his heart can be imagined.
However, after being unlucky for over a dozen years, his fortune finally turned.
King Zhi Bian once publicly went out to participate in an agricultural ceremony, farming together with farmers in the suburbs of Zhi Du. This was of course merely a show.
Jian Ze did not look good, dark and old-looking, unlike his elder brother Jian Yong who was tall, elegant and refined. So he dressed as a farmer, following beside King Zhi Bian to farm together, used as a bodyguard.
Unexpectedly, among the farmers farming together with King Zhi Bian, over a dozen assassins were hidden. They suddenly erupted, directly using farm tools to assassinate Zhi Bian.
At that time, King Zhi Bian was in the middle of the field. Gao Yin, Gao Yu and others were all over twenty metres away.
No one had expected that farmers who had been checked countless times would hide over a dozen assassins.
At that time, King Zhi Bian was in imminent peril. At the critical moment of a thousand pounds hanging by a hair, Jian Ze, playing the farmer, shielded the king behind him. Fighting over a dozen assassins alone, he took five sword wounds, killed six assassins, and saved the king.
Who sent the assassins at that time? Why was the Black Ice Mansion so negligent in this matter?
From this, one can see how intense the conflict between the king and the noble feudal lords was at that time?
It was also at that time that King Zhi Bian became completely disappointed in the Black Ice Mansion, and instead had Gao Yin establish the Shadow Pavilion.
And at that time, Jian Ze finally rose to prominence, being enfeoffed as a count and promoted to deputy commander of the Zhi Du City Guard Army.
After becoming the king’s direct confidant, although his noble rank and position had both risen, he did not clearly feel life getting better. Instead, it became even more difficult.
He felt as if he had encountered countless invisible walls. No matter where he went, others were very polite, but the politeness was filled with coldness. He looked as if he were a petty person who had risen through luck.
And the longer time passed, the more severe this situation became.
When the news of the king being without sons was formally spread, he was completely isolated by the Furious Wave Kingdom’s military and nobles. Even his own elder brother Jian Yong broke off relations with him.
In everyone’s eyes, he, Jian Ze, was King Zhi Bian’s man.
However, his image in King Zhi Bian’s eyes was actually not very good. Although he had once saved the king’s life, and the king had enfeoffed him as a count and promoted his military position, from that point on the king was not close to him.
Because in the Rouan great war, the memorial Count Solon submitted to the king contained very unfavourable comments about Jian Ze. It said this person was brave, but fond of grand achievements and glory, did not cherish soldiers’ lives, and was solitary, gloomy and harsh.
So although Jian Ze had a life-saving grace toward the king, the king still did not like him. Zhi Bian was a very temperamental person. If he did not like something, he would not even bother to act. So from childhood he was evaluated by the previous king as unpredictable in joy and anger, and by the nobles as stubborn and self-willed, harsh and ungracious.
Originally, a life-saving great grace was not enough to enfeoff a count. But the king still enfeoffed Jian Ze as a count, treating it as the life-saving grace being completely settled.
Thus, Jian Ze was disliked on both sides, and his days were very difficult.
Such days continued until Zhi Li returned!
After returning from Yanjing to Zhi Du, Zhi Li was enfeoffed as young lord, only half a step away from crown prince.
Moreover, the noble feudal lords who had always opposed the king, seeing Zhi Li like sweet rain after a long drought, immediately gathered around him, pushing Zhi Li to the front line of opposing the king.
And Zhi Li also desperately searched for and promoted his own team among the crowd. He took one look and fixed on Jian Ze, this oddity who was disliked on both sides.
He knew that Turing Tuo’s power was overwhelming and he could not win him over, only rely on him. Thus, Jian Ze became the first true military confidant that Zhi Li won over.
And Jian Ze had been neglected by people for decades, already forty-seven years old. At this time encountering young lord Zhi Li’s meticulous care and eager thirst for talent, it was completely like sweet rain after a long drought, like a person frozen stiff suddenly basking in the sun.
That feeling was like a widow sleeping alone for over a dozen years, when suddenly a handsome and gentle young man came into her bed. The two completely hit it off, and Jian Ze also became Zhi Li’s first trusted confidant in the military.
From that point on, Jian Ze felt the clouds had parted to reveal the sun, good days were finally coming!
However…
The good days still did not come. Although the Furious Wave Kingdom’s nobles’ attitude toward him had improved greatly, he had finally transferred from Zhi Du City Guard Army commander to Southwest Legion commander.
One of the four legion commanders of the Furious Wave Kingdom, roughly considered the peak of military officers.
But after going to the Southwest Legion, Jian Ze discovered it was even worse than being in the Zhi Du City Guard Army. Because the entire Southwest Legion from top to bottom was Turing Tuo’s people, completely surrounding him airtight.
The entire Southwest Legion’s officers completely propped him up!
He, the highest commander of the Southwest Legion, had no financial power, no promotion power. He was completely a commander in name only.
With Zhi Li’s cooperation, he desperately tried to infiltrate the Southwest Legion, constantly seizing power.
However, this person had skill in fighting wars, and one could say he also had skill in power struggles. But his temperament was too impatient, his mind too narrow, he lacked patience, his killing aura was heavy, and he was not good at acting. So after managing for four or five years, he still had not taken control of the Southwest Legion.
Of the kingdom’s four legions, the Southeast Legion’s Duke Zhi Wei was both governor and commander, and also a royal noble. He did not need to act, and could monopolise power, making people submit willingly.
Turing Tuo had deep roots and overwhelming power, but his acting skill was top-notch.
The Northern Legion’s Chu Ye had only one skill in fighting wars, that was being careful and cautious, wishing he could completely follow the books. But his acting skill was high! Today calling someone father, tomorrow calling someone mother. Facing the soldiers below, he would act crude, all day cursing fathers and mothers in his mouth to win people’s hearts. So his legion commander’s position was rock solid, and the Northern Legion was completely in his grasp.
Only he, Jian Ze, had such a stifling time as Southwest Legion commander.
Only after entering the battlefield did he have a chance to perform!
Finally waiting for this punitive expedition against Soren, Jian Ze once again shone brilliantly.
The Northern Legion’s Chu Ye, and the central army’s Zhi Li both fought like shit. Only Jian Ze on the Sky Wolf Pass battlefield actually breached the Sky Wolf Pass.
But just as Count Solon had evaluated, Jian Ze did not cherish soldiers’ lives. He fought wars like the Seven-Injury Fist, harming the enemy one thousand, self-harming eight hundred. In his eyes there was only the objective, no human lives.
And since the first day he breached the Sky Wolf Pass, but it was then recaptured by the Rock Bandit Legion, in the subsequent battles he had no achievements at all.
Because in the first day’s battle, casualties were nearly sixty thousand. The Southwest Legion had over half its casualties. Following this, he could no longer command the army.
Of course, he still had the so-called Southeast Rebel-Suppressing Army in his hands, a full one hundred thousand. It’s just that this group of people were all composed of local hooligans and ruffians from the Southeast Province. They could not fight a fart of a war!
…
Sky Wolf Pass battlefield, inside Jian Ze’s main camp!
Jian Yong appeared inside Jian Ze’s central army tent. His son Jian Ning had voluntarily surrendered to Soren, and was currently at the Wind Thunder Fortress defensive line as a hostage and prisoner.
“His Highness Zhi Li is defeated.” Jian Yong’s first sentence said.
Jian Ze’s eyes widened violently, hissing, “How is that possible? His Highness Zhi Li had four hundred fifty thousand troops, staking everything on a single throw to attack the Wind Thunder Fortress defensive line. Even if it were copper walls and iron ramparts, it would have been breached. If you let me fight, I would have won long ago.”
Two or three days had already passed since Zhi Li’s great defeat.
But the Wind Thunder Fortress defensive line was a full four hundred li from the Sky Wolf Pass, over five hundred li by detour. The routed soldiers had not yet fled to the Sky Wolf Pass.
Moreover, no one had used flying falcon messages to inform him. Now the royal capital several thousand li away already knew of Zhi Li’s defeat, yet Jian Ze still did not know. This shows how much of a failure he was as a person.
Jian Yong said, “He spoke of staking everything on a single throw, but at the critical moment, he still harboured ulterior motives with Turing Tuo, preserving his strength. During the decisive battle, seeing the battlefield situation was unfavourable, he immediately abandoned everyone and turned to flee. At that time there were still over two hundred thousand troops on the battlefield. As long as he led from the front, there was clearly still hope of winning. But the moment the battlefield situation showed the slightest sign of losing, he fled.”
“Truly, one incompetent general exhausts a thousand armies.” Jian Ze struck the table forcefully.
Jian Ze was under one metre seventy in height, and looked very old, appearing like a farmer. Only his two eyes were always aggressive and pressing.
Jian Yong said, “Zhi Li is not only militarily defeated, but politically even more thoroughly defeated. His affair with Turing Duo, his murder of Tu Liyang, and his plot to seize the Luanyang City foundation have been completely exposed to the world. Now he is utterly foul-smelling and completely hopeless.”
Jian Ze’s face twitched in pain. Zhi Li was the first lord who had appreciated and heavily used him, yet now he was defeated so miserably. Where should he, Jian Ze, go from here?
Jian Yong said, “Now Zhi Li has no hope left. No one can stop Princess Zhi Yan from ascending the throne, no one can stop Soren from taking control of the kingdom. Brother Ze, your opportunity has come.”
Jian Ze said, “You mean, let me pledge allegiance to Soren?”
Jian Yong said, “Yes. After Soren rises to power, he will certainly carry out a great purge of the Furious Wave Kingdom, yet he has no people at hand. You are very capable, but suffer from not knowing how to conduct yourself. Now you only need to personally go to the Wind Thunder Fortress defensive line and kneel to pledge allegiance to Soren. I guarantee, the Dragon Guard Legion commander is yours, and it will be a Dragon Guard Legion commander with true real power!”
Jian Ze’s gaze stirred, then he picked up his pipe and took a forceful puff, saying, “You want me to pledge allegiance to him? Fine! Let Soren himself come to invite me. Back then, Zhi Li stood in my courtyard for three days before I threw my lot in with him. I only know how to fight wars, not how to act. Making me run to his face to kneel and fawn, I cannot do it. Since he wants a thousand-li horse, he must display the posture of honouring the worthy and humbling himself! I also don’t need him to stand for three days, two days will suffice!”
…
Inside the Wind Thunder Fortress defensive line!
Soren was treating Mentor Niya to a meal, and by the way also called Jian Ning from the prisoner camp.
This once youngest Dragon Warrior ten-thousand-commander was now almost eating while kneeling on the ground, his neck as if afflicted with soft bone disease, never daring to lift up at any moment.
Previously for power and position, he could offer his wife to Zhi Li. Now, for power and position, he could naturally offer everything to Soren.
The reason Soren did this was also to vent anger for Mentor Niya.
“This little subject is a crude person. At that time, Niya following me was truly a bright pearl cast into darkness.” Jian Ning said humbly and sighingly, “Her following Lord Soren is truly a meeting of kindred spirits, a harmonious union of lute and zither!”
Mentor Niya truly felt incomparable sorrow, and absurd ridiculousness.
This was the man she had once married, and also the man she had once admired?
Just at this time, Zhuang Zhixuan came from outside and delivered a secret letter, handing it to Soren. On it was written: “Jian Ze is willing to surrender, but wants the lord to personally come to invite him, to honour the worthy and humble himself, to visit the thatched cottage three times.”