Hi André,
Your error lies in using "network_model.solve" instead of "network.solve". The network_model is saved as network.model already within the network object.
Here a full example which works:
import pypsa
n = pypsa.examples.ac_dc_meshed()
n.optimize.create_model()
n.optimize.solve_model(solver_options={"mip_rel_gap": 0.001})
Hope this helps,
Markus