But when he thought of how Xu Xiao was now practically an Imperial Father-in-Law, Gu Jiantang regretted not having a good daughter of his own. Otherwise, he could have been just as arrogant.
More importantly, he considered himself highly skilled in martial arts, yet he was no match for Wang Xianzhi. And Wang Yue had killed Wang Xianzhi, making him clearly the greatest under heaven. Gu Jiantang wouldn't dare face him in battle.
The situation favored the stronger side, so he could only steel himself and go up to the city wall. Looking at Xu Xiao, he said, "So it's the Duke of Xu. I wonder if His Majesty has arrived?"
Xu Xiao knew what Gu Jiantang was thinking, so he smiled and said, "Come down and surrender first. Then we'll lead our seven hundred thousand troops together and take a trip to Northern Mang. As for His Majesty, he'll come see you when the time is right."
Gu Jiantang understood what Xu Xiao meant: attack Northern Mang first and cut off his retreat. That was the only way to leave him a way to survive. Otherwise, he could only start a war now and see whether he could win.
After a moment's hesitation, he said helplessly, "In that case, I'll make the arrangements at once. I'll join you in fighting Northern Mang."
Xu Xiao shook his head and said bluntly, "Why make things so troublesome? Open the gates and let me in. We can discuss the troop arrangements at our leisure."
Seeing Xu Xiao press him so relentlessly, Gu Jiantang was furious. But he thought Xu Xiao was deliberately provoking him into making the wrong choice. As he looked at the troops outside the city, the emperor in Tai'an City suddenly came to mind.
He shuddered and had no