People in the Qin Dynasty, entertained during the Warring States period

Inside the small house, after cultivating for a while, Cao Ze opened his eyes and looked at the quiet, seemingly lost in thought Lady Jingni with a serious expression.

Now that Jingni sees he can cultivate, she can proceed to the next step.

Step 3: I'm not pretending anymore, I'm coming clean!

"Xiao Ni isn't your real name, is it?"

Jingni came to her senses and asked, somewhat confused, "What do you mean by that, my husband?"

Cao Ze said, "You are very strong. I know you are a master."

Jing Ni was startled. Where exactly had she given herself away?

Based on Cao Ze's cultivation just now, his strength is at most third-rate in the martial arts world. He has opened up several extraordinary meridians, but he has clearly not yet fully connected them to form a small circulation within his body, thus entering the realm of second-rate masters.

With such strength, how can one know her true capabilities?

"With your strength, you infiltrated the palace seeking revenge, right? And your enemy is the Wolf King?"

A hint of coldness flashed in Jingni's narrow, phoenix-like eyes.

Cao Ze seemed oblivious to Jing Ni's unusual behavior. He paused for a moment and said, "To be honest, I didn't want to stay here either. As you can see, I appear free, but in reality, I'm imprisoned by Hu Ji. I can only secretly cultivate and wait for an opportunity to escape. Who knew Hu Ji would send you here..."

He didn't choose to expose Jingni's identity, and even made up a reason for her on the spot, even though it was very lame.

Jing Ni said coldly, "What exactly are you trying to say?"

Seeing that Jing Ni did not attack immediately, Cao Ze breathed a sigh of relief and became more composed.

The saying "a night of passion is worth a hundred days of kindness" isn't entirely without merit; at least Jing Ni didn't draw her sword and stab him on the spot.

"I can help you kill the Wolf King, but you need to follow my instructions. After it's done, you must take me back to the Central Plains."

Honestly, the despicable maps of this era are truly touching.

The worst part is that he can't read, which makes things even more tragic.

If we can fool Jingni into learning the languages ​​of the seven kingdoms and how to read maps, it's better than him figuring things out by himself.

As for asking Jingni to take him back to the Central Plains, that was just a casual remark, a way to show sincerity and give her a reason to trust him.

Who knows if they'll stab themselves in the back after it's all done? It's better if we all just run away.

Jingni frowned slightly: "Follow your orders? You think you can kill the Wolf King?"

It wasn't that she looked down on Cao Ze, but rather that the Wolf King's close attendant was a top-tier expert who was almost always by his side, making it difficult for her to kill the Wolf King while ensuring her own safety. She could only wait for an opportunity to strike.

Cao Ze shook his head repeatedly: "No, no, no, you are the one who came to kill the Wolf King. You have seen my strength. Even the Wolf King's close attendants are no match for me. However, I can help you get close to the Wolf King."

Why should I believe you?

Cao Ze said earnestly, "Because I like you, my lady."

Even if he didn't really like the salamander in front of him, he would still have to say he did!

Jingni looked into Cao Ze's eyes, completely taken aback by his answer.

Suppressing the sudden agitation in his heart, he said coldly, "Don't overthink it, we're just putting on an act!"

Cao Ze muttered to himself, "It's not impossible to turn a fake act into a real one."

But he didn't continue to tease Jingni; important matters needed to be addressed.

"Alright, alright, to be honest, we don't have any conflict of interest. The reason I arranged to kill the wolf king is because the wolf king can't die right now. If the wolf king dies now, you can get away, but I'll be in trouble."

Jing Ni said calmly, "What does your suffering have to do with me?"

Cao Ze sighed. "This silly girl."

"What do you say?"

I could kill you right now!

"and then?"

"..."

Jing Ni was speechless. Killing Cao Ze seemed to have done nothing to help, and instead exposed her own existence.

Cao Ze suddenly said, "Actually, now you only have the option of cooperating with me."

"why?"

"Firstly, we each get what we need. As for the second..."

Cao Ze smiled with a hint of slyness, "I've already spoken to the Wolf King. The Left Wise King is very likely to send someone to assassinate him. I hope he can strengthen his own security."

Jing Ni no longer concealed her full strength, unleashing it all, which made Cao Ze feel as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.

That damn guy is a jinx!

Seeing Cao Ze like this, Jing Ni felt somewhat relieved, realizing that his strength was indeed only average.

"What are your plans? How long will it take? My time is limited!"

Cao Ze took a breath and gained a clear and intuitive understanding of the top-tier assassins.

Fortunately, Jing Ni has been misled by him and is not focusing on the Left Wise King's attack on the city. If Jing Ni were to accidentally find out the truth now, it would be difficult to continue the conversation.

Before I plan how to arrange things, tell me the minimum amount of time you need.

Jing Ni thought for a moment. The mission did not have a specific time limit, but the assassination mission had to be completed before the warring states attacked Qin.

"Six months! It can't be any later!"

Cao Ze smiled and said, "Then, it's a pleasure to cooperate."

His wife, Jingni, is truly an honest person; she doesn't play games.

He knew that in history, the fifth coalition against Qin would take place next year.

Generally speaking, wars usually occur in the spring and autumn, which translates to March or April of the following year, or August or September.

Jingni frowned and said, "You haven't said how you plan to arrange things yet."

Cao Ze chuckled and said, "That's easy. After this city defense, I'll definitely be valued by the Wolf King. When the time comes, I'll find an opportunity to take you to kill him, and that'll be fine."

Jing Ni felt something was off. If defending the city was so easy, why would the Wolf King rely on Cao Ze? If defending the city was so difficult...

Thinking of this, Jing Ni suddenly realized that she had overlooked something: she knew about the situation inside and outside the royal city through Cao Ze.

Before Cao Ze revealed it, she could still believe the news was true, but now who knows if it's true or false.

Jing Ni brought a package from outside, glanced at Cao Ze, and said, "Turn around!"

When Cao Ze saw Jing Ni take out a really nice uniform, he knew what she was up to.

He joked, "It's not like I haven't seen it before."

Jing Ni's gaze grew even colder. Cao Ze shrugged and turned away.

I really miss last night's Jingni. Sigh~ It hasn't been explored much yet, so disappointing~

Jing Ni put on her combat suit very quickly. By the time Cao Ze, still harboring wicked thoughts about whether to peek at his wife, she was already dressed.

It has to be said that the salamander wearing the combat suit is even more impressive.

However, Jingni is now wearing a metal mask, so her face cannot be seen.

Cao Ze could only look around at other places.

This soft armor combat suit, resembling a giant salamander with fish scales, is quite impressive; the chest plate even features a fish-shaped pattern.

However, compared to Jingni's combat suit, what is even more eye-catching are her long, slender, and shapely legs, which are as white as jade and wrapped in black fishnet stockings.

The slit skirt reveals glimpses of skin, creating a very alluring effect.

Especially when those delicate jade feet stepped into a pair of shiny black high heels, the amazingly beautiful Aquarius was breathtakingly beautiful.

But Jingni's current demeanor is very cold, like the bright moon in the sky above the grassland, clear and cold, making people feel a chill in their hearts.

"You wait inside. I'm going out for a bit. If when I return there's no one here, or if there's anything that shouldn't be here, I will kill you!"

Jingni's voice was clear and cold, with a hint of etherealness, or rather, indifference.

Cao Ze casually replied, "Don't worry, I'm not stupid."

Do you really think those netizens are just praising him as a "Little Zhuge Liang" for nothing?

Before confronting Jing Ni, he had already made arrangements to stabilize morale within the army.

Having experienced all kinds of modern public relations battles and news bombardments, he is adept at using impersonation, white noise, and fake news. Jing Ni will only get the information he wants her to know.

Under the cover of night, Jingni quickly found several soldiers standing guard in a wooden building on the palace wall, chatting at night.

After listening for about half an hour, Jingni frowned.

It turns out that General Zuo An Lulu betrayed the city and took 30,000 men with her. Based on some details, she deduced that the current garrison in the city was not as exaggerated as 100,000, but at most 50,000.

However, she did not expect that Cao Ze was actually a descendant of Cao Gui, a strategist, and also a successor of the military school.

So, defending the royal city before the snow arrives and winter comes is not too difficult.

Adhering to the principle of caution, Jingni went to eavesdrop in several more places.

According to some intelligence gathered, the city's garrison numbers at most around 30,000.

After thinking it over, Jingni gave up the idea of ​​helping the Left Wise King attack the city.

The risks are extremely high, and the losses outweigh the gains.

The city gates were sealed off, or rather, blocked. It wasn't something she could simply help open!

I really don't know which jerk came up with this terrible idea!

Back in Cao Ze's hut, Jing Ni said coldly, "The city's garrison has at most 30,000 men, not nearly as many as you claim, 100,000!"

Cao Ze had anticipated this, and said leisurely, "Sun Tzu said, 'Warfare is based on deception.'"

The city's actual garrison numbered no more than ten thousand, but due to the influence of rumors, Jingni could not possibly know the exact figure.

He wouldn't tell Jingni the truth either; a mix of truth and lies would be more advantageous.

Jing Ni remained noncommittal, staring at Cao Ze: "You want to harm me?"

Cao Ze laughed and said, "You know I like you, how could I harm you? If I really wanted to harm you, I would have already handed you over and surrounded this place with my men. Why bother with all this trouble?"

As a surfing enthusiast, I know his current situation well. I'll say a few words of liking him every now and then. Maybe there will be some surprise. I'd rather be called a flirt than not flirt at all.