Chapter 217: Zhang Jiaqi

Facing Xiawei City, his former hometown, Wang Leyuan felt a surge of emotion. He gazed at the familiar faces on the city walls, his heart filled with complex feelings. He wanted to persuade them to surrender and spare them from massacre, but he didn't know how to begin.

"My lord, let me speak to the people inside first—perhaps I can reason with them." Wang Leyuan stepped beside Jiang Mingyu and spoke softly.

Jiang Mingyu snorted. "Fine, give it a try. Better yet, get them to surrender without a fight."

Wang Leyuan nodded and walked to the foot of the city wall, shouting loudly: "Brothers on the walls, do you still remember Wang Leyuan?"

The defenders on the ramparts turned in surprise, recognizing the figure. It was their former commander, one of Zhong Nianyu's trusted lieutenants. How had he ended up siding with Jiang Mingyu to attack Xiawei? How could he betray his own lord?

"Wang Leyuan? You traitor! How dare you follow Jiang Mingyu to kill us?" someone shouted angrily.

"Wang Leyuan, how can you even show your face here? Do you have any conscience? Have you forgotten your lord's kindness to you?" someone asked mournfully.

"Commander Wang, how… how did you end up with Jiang Mingyu?"

In their minds, Wang Leyuan should still be stationed in Dingdong. Wang Leyuan gave a bitter smile. "Brothers, I'll tell you the truth—my lord captured Dingdong a few days ago, and I've pledged my loyalty to him."

What? The defenders were stunned, as if they'd seen three severed heads of Zhong Nianyu. In rank, apart from Lu Chuanwen and Zhong Jinqiang, Wang Leyuan was one of the few who could speak directly to Zhong Nianyu.

Now that Wang Leyuan had surrendered, what hope did they have left? Seizing the moment, Wang Leyuan pressed on.

"Brothers, we rose in rebellion to resist the oppression of Marquis Fei and carve out our own survival."

"If that's the case, why not find a lord worthy of our loyalty?"

"You may not know much about my lord's deeds, but I'll tell you."

"My lord, through his own strength, has defeated Xixia's henchmen time and again, safeguarding Shangmu."

"When Marquis Fei seized power, he relentlessly hunted my lord down—forced to, my lord raised the banner of rebellion."

"In just three months, he's led the men from Shangmu to seize Xiangcangzhou, the largest of the nine prefectures of Da Feng."

These deeds were common knowledge within Jiang Mingyu's army, and Wang Leyuan had long heard of them.

He merely exaggerated a few details to curry favor with Jiang Mingyu.

Jiang Mingyu didn't mind—he simply listened quietly. Seeing no displeasure, Wang Leyuan continued under the flickering torchlight.

"Now, my lord, for the sake of peace across the land, fearlessly leads troops into battle—what a grand spirit!"

"To be honest, I once resented him. But after serving under him for just a few days, I realized his abilities far surpass Zhong Nianyu's."

"Brothers, think about it—if Zhong Nianyu had half my lord's ambition, Lanzhou would already be his."

"But he lacked the wit and the courage—and that's why he ended up with his head on a pike."

"Brothers, Zhong Nianyu is dead. You're all brave men—why die for him?"

"Open the gates and surrender. Otherwise, when my lord's army storms in, you'll have no choice but death."

"We haven't even seen Marquis Fei overthrown yet—why die pointlessly like this?" Wang Leyuan fell silent. The defenders on the walls sank into thought.

Jiang Mingyu offered no pressure, no threats—only watched them in silence. After a long while, the soldier who had spoken first let out a long sigh.

"Brothers… let's surrender." Faced with life or death, he weighed his options—and chose to live. Seeing no opposition from the silent crowd, the soldier waved his hand.

"Open the gates." As the gates slowly creaked open, Jiang Mingyu smiled inwardly—he had been wise to keep Wang Leyuan.

With Wang Leyuan's plea, the fifteen thousand inside the city surrendered without resistance.

As Jiang Mingyu handed over the city's defense to Tukesiluo, he heard a remark that sank his heart.

"My lord, we fought hard tonight—we lost nearly five thousand, and even counting these traitors, we're down to ninety thousand."

Jiang Mingyu's face darkened. He nodded stiffly. "Alright. Let the men rest for three days. Then we march east to Dongning Commandery." He had already seized two commanderies in Lanzhou—three remained: Dongning, Yingchang, and Dihuo. All three were thorns in his side.

For those three days, he sent Li Goudan to scout Dongning's situation, leaving city affairs to Tukesiluo. He wasn't afraid of betrayal—these men followed him for food and wine. Whoever dared rebel would meet ghosts.

But before Li Goudan returned, Jiang Mingyu met Wang Leyuan.

"What do you want?" Jiang Mingyu snapped.

"My lord, I've come to report on Dongning." Wang Leyuan bowed respectfully.

Jiang Mingyu's eyes lit up. "Speak—what's the situation in Dongning?" Wang Leyuan's lips twitched, uneasy.

"My lord, I'm ashamed to say—I'm from Dingdong. I don't know Dongning well."

"I only know it's in chaos—within a single small commandery city, seventy-eight rebel bands are tangled together, fighting each other like boiling porridge."

"But my lord, rest assured—if you give the order, I'll lead troops to crush them without trouble." Jiang Mingyu inwardly cursed the fool. Is this all you know about such a critical matter? Do you take me for an idiot? He coldly waved him off.

"Go. Wait for Xiaoqi's return." Seeing Jiang Mingyu's displeasure, Wang Leyuan quickly withdrew.

As Jiang Mingyu pondered Dongning, Zhang Jiaqi walked up with a smile.

"My lord Jiang, what are you thinking about?" Seeing his heavy expression, she tried to comfort him.

Jiang Mingyu looked at Zhang Jiaqi's sweet face and felt warmth. He smiled.

"What else could I be thinking about but Dongning? Sit down." Zhang Jiaqi sat beside him and sighed softly.

"My lord, you've been working too hard lately. You must rest—you can't wear yourself out."

Jiang Mingyu froze. Coming from Zhang Jiaqi, these words felt different. She wasn't as haughty as her sister, but she was usually cold and distant. Why had she suddenly become so gentle?

He didn't know that Zhang Jiaqi's feelings toward him had quietly shifted. At first, she despised Jiang Mingyu.

She saw him as a curse—the cause of her family becoming rebels.

But later, she witnessed his heroism, his mercy toward her sister and Tukesiluo—and her heart wavered.

Gradually, her hatred turned to admiration, and admiration to affection.

She dared not speak it aloud—only expressed it through action.

Zhang Jiaqi's heart raced. She increasingly realized her feelings for Jiang Mingyu had changed.

These feelings were like a raging river—once the dam broke, there was no holding back. She thought and thought, until she finally admitted: she had fallen in love with Jiang Mingyu.

But this emotion was forbidden. Liu Yifei was her dearest friend—how could she fall for her husband?

She wrestled with this feeling for a long time. But warriors were destined to be decisive.

Today, she finally resolved to speak her heart—even if rejected, it was better than suffocating inside.

She gathered courage, looked at Jiang Mingyu, and opened her mouth—when he rubbed his neck wearily and chuckled bitterly: "Damn, I'm just doing what I have to. If Marquis Fei had just died sooner, I'd be back with my wife. I've no right to complain—everyone's fighting. As commander, I must lead from the front. When we take the empire, it'll be mine—I've got to worry about everything!"

Zhang Jiaqi shook her head: "Being with Lord Jiang, I've already…"

Before she could finish, Li Goudan burst in shouting: "My lord! The scouts are back!"

Zhang Jiaqi swallowed her words, sighing inwardly.