Zhang Rui

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Zhang Rui (张瑞)
Alias(es)	Steward Zhang; Governor Zhang
Species/Race	Human; remains an ordinary person by choice 142
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Longwind Fortress
Occupation/Role	Former company manager and Black Iron City messenger; later Longwind Fortress steward, governor, and internal-affairs administrator 3 13 33 185
Status	Alive 218
First Appearance	Chapter 3: “Messenger”

Background

Before Longwind Fortress

Before the Dark Age, Zhang Rui helped his father manage a company through his family’s connections. After society collapsed, his former wealth and status became worthless; he became a messenger for Black Iron City, carrying messages and goods between settlements through Dark Creature territory. His work was driven largely by the need to support his seriously ill wife, Xu Wan, and their son, Zhang Han 3 8 13.

While traveling toward Flint City, Zhang Rui took a wrong turn and entered the supposedly fallen Longwind Fortress. There he found Lincon alive after three years of isolation. Zhang Rui attempted to persuade him to leave for Black Iron City or Flint City, but Lincon refused to abandon the fortress. Zhang Rui left intending to mark the fortress on his map and preserve news of its survival 3.

At Flint City, Zhang Rui shared the story of Longwind Fortress’s lone survivor with fellow messengers. The story reignited their suppressed admiration for the ideals of the old era, but it also drew Flint City’s hostility; its ruler, Ye Yuan, ordered the survivor’s elimination 8.

Becoming Lincon's Subject

After spreading Lincon’s story, Zhang Rui and his family became targets of Flint City. He returned to Longwind Fortress with Xu Wan and Zhang Han, asking Lincon for sanctuary. Lincon accepted them and gave the family a Purification Shrine to protect their home from low-level Dark Creatures 12.

Zhang Rui witnessed Lincon clearing Dark Creatures through the streets at night and concluded that his family’s survival depended on proving useful to him. He offered Lincon his complete service in exchange for Xu Wan and Zhang Han’s safety, raising his loyalty to 80 and qualifying him as a subject 13.

Although Zhang Rui recognized that Lincon’s Shrines and other powers did not fit the public explanation of a simple Plant Cultivator, he kept those suspicions private—even from his family 18.

Steward and Governor

When more than 800 refugees arrived after the destruction of Shangmai City, Lincon entrusted Zhang Rui with organizing them. Zhang Rui established Lincon as Longwind Fortress’s sole lord, explained the settlement’s rules, assessed the crowd for disloyalty, and began registering each survivor. Li Zhouhai publicly acknowledged him as the fortress’s steward 22.

Zhang Rui’s personal talent, Leadership Presence, was identified after the refugee intake. It gives him exceptional charisma and persuasiveness, causing others to unconsciously place trust in his words 23.

As Longwind Fortress grew, Zhang Rui became widely recognized as its governor. He oversaw housing, farmland reclamation, labor allocation, defenses, water channels, and Sunlight Sunflower cultivation for a population of more than 800 people 33.

When Zhou Qing, a C-Class Ability User from Black Iron City, tried to enter the fortress without permission, Zhang Rui refused to abandon protocol despite being physically helpless against him. Zhou Qing attempted to kill him with an ice spike, but Lincon returned in time to stop the attack 34.

Loyalty Through Crisis

Lincon gave Zhang Rui the option to leave before an approaching C-Rank Black Tide. Zhang Rui refused, declaring that he would remain a person of Longwind Fortress in life and death 46.

His loyalty eventually reached 100 after Lincon protected him during Flint City’s intimidation attempt. Zhang Rui became completely devoted to Lincon and the fortress 52.

During Longwind Fortress’s later development, Zhang Rui became responsible for major civic systems, including the Rune Workshop’s resource distribution, recruitment of specialists, the Contribution Point system, the Longwind Code, trade negotiations, population management, and the construction of the City Lord’s Manor—later named the Life Sacred Court 37 74 81 113.

Internal Affairs Administrator

After Lincon defeated Flint City, Zhang Rui imposed the terms under which captured enemy Ability Users could live: they had to surrender their weapons, seal their abilities, and serve Longwind Fortress for three years. He also interrogated Flint City’s steward, Liu Bowen, and tested the man’s rapidly shifted allegiance 137 138.

Zhang Rui later declined Lincon’s offer to help him become an Ability User or Rune Warrior. He chose to remain ordinary, prioritizing his administrative responsibilities over personal power 142.

As Longwind Fortress expanded, Lincon authorized Zhang Rui to act as the fortress’s “blade” against dangerous instigators and potential rioters. Zhang Rui accepted the role despite knowing that harsh enforcement could ruin his reputation among the residents 179 180.

Following the collapse of Jiangzhou’s other major cities, Zhang Rui retained responsibility for Longwind Fortress’s internal affairs, while Zhou Qing became Foreign Affairs Officer 185.

Personality

Zhang Rui is practical, observant, and strongly family-oriented. His initial request to join Longwind Fortress came from desperation to protect Xu Wan and Zhang Han, but his dependence on Lincon gradually became genuine conviction in Longwind Fortress’s future 12 13 46.

He is capable of humility when survival demands it, but he does not confuse humility with submission. As an ordinary man among Ability Users, he repeatedly insists on protocol, territorial boundaries, and the dignity of Longwind Fortress’s citizens 34 82 84.

Zhang Rui is deeply invested in restoring order and meaning to the lives of survivors. Before reaching Longwind Fortress, he felt emotionally numb and contemplated death if not for his family; administration and reconstruction give him renewed purpose and happiness 33.

His compassion has firm limits. He is willing to use intimidation, strict discipline, execution, and forced labor against invaders, prisoners, and those he believes threaten the fortress’s stability 137 138 180.

Abilities & Skills

Leadership Presence

Zhang Rui possesses the innate talent Leadership Presence, granting him exceptional charisma and persuasive authority. People are inclined to trust his words, making him especially effective at commanding crowds and establishing order 23.

• Organized hundreds of refugees into a registered, rule-bound population after the Black Tide attack 22.
• Established Lincon’s sole authority before the refugees entered Longwind Fortress 22.
• Maintained control over hostile Flint City prisoners despite being an ordinary person 137.
• Uses public rules, rewards, and consequences to reinforce loyalty and civic discipline 74 113.

Administration and Institution-Building

Zhang Rui applies his former corporate-management experience to Longwind Fortress’s expansion.

• Planned housing, infrastructure, agriculture, defense repairs, and labor distribution for the fortress’s growing population 23 33.
• Developed the Contribution Point system, assigning value to farming, production, construction, and Rune research 74.
• Recruited specialists for the Rune Workshop, intelligence work, production, and other emerging departments 37 40.
• Oversaw the City Lord’s Manor project and pushed for a residence grand enough to represent Lincon’s authority 44 77.
• Continued raising administrative concerns even after the Sacred Court’s destruction, forcing Lincon to confront the practical consequences of reconstruction 218.

Diplomacy and Political Judgment

Zhang Rui is an experienced negotiator who understands the dangers posed by larger Ability User cities.

• Used Black Iron City’s presence to discourage Flint City from attacking Longwind Fortress directly 50.
• Rejected Black Iron City’s initial demand for 3,000 tons of Sunlight Potatoes as an unreasonable opening offer 53.
• Controlled Zhou Qing’s access to Lincon and refused to allow foreign vehicles into the fortress without permission 82.
• Warned Zhou Qing not to involve Longwind Fortress in Black Iron City’s internal factional conflict 90.
• Argued successfully that Longwind Fortress should not attempt to directly occupy Flint City before it had enough capable fighters to govern it 138.

Messenger Experience and Regional Knowledge

Years of work as a messenger gave Zhang Rui practical knowledge of Jiangzhou’s settlements, routes, political powers, and wilderness survivors.

• Informed Lincon of the regional dominance of Black Iron City, Flint City, and New River City 13.
• Identified exiled Ability Users, villages, ruin-dwellers, and isolated communities as potential recruits or contacts 37.
• Helped Lincon recognize the need for a stronger advancement path for messengers traveling through the Dark Wilderness 125.

Limitations

Zhang Rui has no supernatural combat ability and cannot physically contend with Ability Users or Dark Creatures.

• Zhou Qing’s ice-spike attack left him unable to react without Lincon’s intervention 34.
• He relies on Lincon, Guan Teng, Spirit Plants, fortress guards, and institutional authority for protection 34 89.
• Lincon offered him paths to becoming an Ability User or Rune Warrior, but Zhang Rui refused both 142.

Administration of Longwind Fortress

• Refugee intake — Organized the registration and incorporation of 832 survivors after the Shangmai City disaster 22.
• Subject hierarchy — Helped enforce loyalty-based access to Shrines, rewards, and subject status 25.
• Rune resource distribution — Received Purifying Candles, Weird Candles, and Rune Stones from Lincon for controlled allocation to expeditions and contributors 37.
• Contribution Point system — Designed the merit-and-reward framework used to regulate labor and access to high-value rewards such as Ecological Contracts 74.
• Longwind Code — Publicly announced the fortress’s foundational laws, beginning with absolute obedience to, support for, and respect for the Longwind Lord 113.
• Prisoner administration — Established terms of surrender, labor, restricted movement, and punishment for Flint City captives 138.
• Internal affairs — Remained responsible for domestic governance after Zhou Qing assumed foreign-affairs duties 185.

Relationships

• Lincon — His lord and protector. Zhang Rui first tried to rescue Lincon from isolation, later became his first highly loyal subject, steward, governor, adviser, and authorized enforcer 3 13 22 180.
• Xu Wan — His wife. Her illness and safety are central reasons for Zhang Rui’s decision to seek refuge and pledge service to Lincon 8 12 13.
• Zhang Han — His eight-year-old son. Zhang Rui’s responsibility toward him is a key motivation behind his loyalty to Longwind Fortress 12 13.
• Li Sheng — Former messenger friend. Zhang Rui rejected renewed intimacy after Li Sheng arrived with Black Iron City’s investigator; Li Sheng was then killed by Zhou Qing 33.
• Li Zhouhai — Fellow Longwind official and collaborator. Li Zhouhai publicly recognized Zhang Rui as steward during the refugee intake and later assisted with registration and governance 22.
• Zhou Qing — Initially a hostile Black Iron City investigator who nearly killed Zhang Rui. They later became wary diplomatic counterparts, with Zhang Rui overseeing internal affairs and Zhou Qing external affairs 34 90 185.
• Guan Teng — Zhang Rui’s trusted guard and enforcer. Guan Teng carried out Zhang Rui’s order to execute Liu Le during the Black Iron City delegation crisis 85.
• Luo Qian — A young guard whom Zhang Rui disciplines over protocol violations, though he ultimately supports investigating Guan Teng’s condition and recognizes Luo’s hardships 67 92.

Notable Quotes

“Whatever you want me to do, I will do it. As long as you can keep my wife and child safe, I would be willing to die for you.” 13

“The things of Longwind Fortress can only be traded for or given away. There has never been any such thing as stealing.” 89

“Longwind Fortress needed a kind and benevolent Lord, but it also could not be without a blade that killed.” 180