High Martial Arts Three Kingdoms: The Incompetent Strategist

"Stop, I'll do it myself." Tang Ke grabbed the clothes, stuffed them under the covers, quickly put them on, and hurriedly went to the dressing table to put on the mask.

"Well, I couldn't get rid of her last night, but she turned her back on me after I woke up. Don't worry, young master, I'm not the kind of person who clings to people. It's just a transaction between us. I just hope that you won't forget our agreement and help our opera troupe through this difficult time. The entire Dong family troupe will be grateful for your help."

Her words were so frank that they made Tang Ke a little embarrassed. He chuckled awkwardly and said, "Don't worry, sister, Ziyou will do his best to make this happen. But please keep my wearing a mask a secret."

"Don't worry, young master. I'm practically one of your people now, so I won't reveal anything about you." Dong Ruyun leaned against the bed with a half-smile, stretching lazily, clearly having not slept well all night.

Did I, this young master, fight all night last night? Tang Ke couldn't help but yawn.

"Then I'll take my leave now. I'll contact you as soon as I have any news."

"Then I will await good news."

Tang Ke practically fled Dong Ruyun's room. When he came downstairs, Zhao Xiaoer was snoring loudly, his head resting on the table.

Dong Dahai paced back and forth, his eyes dark, clearly having not slept all night.

Seeing Tang Ke come down, he hurriedly came forward, smiling almost obsequiously, and asked, "Young Master Tang, did you rest well last night? Were you satisfied with Miss Ruyun's service?"

"Uh, it's fine." Tang Ke felt a bit guilty and patted Zhao Xiaoer's shoulder a few times to wake him up.

"Oh my, young master, you're awake! You had quite the good fortune with the ladies last night, didn't you? Hehehe~"

Tang Ke gave him a hard flick on the forehead and scolded, "What nonsense are you talking about? Last night I was just reciting poems and chatting with Miss Ruyun all night long. Don't exaggerate."

"Yes, yes, yes, it was my wild imagination and nonsense. I'm despicable and vile!" Zhao Xiaoer took the few silver notes that Tang Ke secretly handed him from his sleeve and slapped himself hard several times.

Tang Ke glanced at Boss Dong, who seemed hesitant to speak, and didn't know what to say. He nodded slightly and hurriedly walked towards the door. When he got to the door, he saw Boss Dong's cautious appearance and felt sorry for him.

"Well, Mr. Dong, thank you for your hospitality. Your troupe's performance is indeed above average. I will definitely recommend them to General He later."

Dong Dahai rubbed his forehead and bowed deeply: "Thank you very much, Young Master Tang. The entire Dong family is extremely grateful!"

“Young master, if you ask me, we don’t necessarily need to recommend them to General He. Anyway, we’ve already benefited, so there’s no need to offend Yuan Shu for their sake. After all, our foundation is not yet stable.”

No sooner had Zhao Xiaoer left the opera troupe than he began to sow discord between Dong Dahai and others.

"You little rascal, short as a man, but full of tricks." Tang Ke rolled his eyes at him, knowing he couldn't bring himself to turn his back on someone after taking advantage of them.

Zhao Xiaoer stuck out his tongue, not daring to say anything more, and silently followed behind, slowly sneaking back to the He residence.

As soon as Tang Ke stepped into the mansion, he was surrounded by a lively yet tense atmosphere.

The servants of the He family were extremely busy, some carrying all sorts of rare and precious treasures, others setting up yellow backdrops symbolizing imperial power. They were busy yet cautious, afraid of making the slightest mistake.

A faint floral fragrance filled the air, which did not seem to originate from the Central Plains.

One man had a handsome face, with an extraordinary air of heroism about him. He was tall and imposing, exuding an aristocratic air in every gesture. His deep eyes seemed to see through everything in the world as he directed the preparations for the banquet.

Holding a meticulously hand-drawn blueprint, he carefully compared every detail, constantly asking those around him to ensure that every decoration reflected the He family's respect for the Emperor.

Tang Ke was dumbfounded; this guy was truly a talent!

Cao Cao called out loudly from afar, "Ziyou, Ziyou, where have you been gallivanting? Why are you only coming now?"

Tang Ke was slightly embarrassed and said, "I was helping His Majesty choose a theatrical troupe. There's a Dong family troupe that's quite good, so I was delayed for a while."

"Hey, what's so great about choosing a troupe? They only ever perform a few plays. The Dong family troupe is pretty good, let's stick with them."

Cao Cao strode over and grabbed the hand of the person in charge, saying, "Come, come, let me introduce you. This is Yuan Shao, the Commandant of the Capital Region. He is in charge of supervising the Crown Prince and all officials below the Three Dukes. His family has held high positions for four generations. If you want to get ahead in Luoyang, you'll have to get on his good side."

Yuan Shao is far superior to Cao Cao in terms of appearance! Tang Ke secretly compared the two in his heart, and replied aloud: "It's a pleasure to meet you. I am Tang Ke, courtesy name Ziyou. I hope General Yuan will take good care of me!"

Yuan Shao put away the blueprints in his hand and laughed, "Ziyou, don't listen to Mengde's nonsense. I'm only his equal now. If he can help you with something, you don't need me. If he can't help you, I can't help you either."

Tang Ke laughed and said, "General Yuan's position carries a lot of power and influence."

Yuan Shao asked in surprise, "I understand the concept of 'containing power,' but what about 'containing mother's power'?"

Tang Ke explained, "The general is arresting and punishing people all day long. Aren't all the arrested officials cursing him behind his back?"

The three men smiled at each other. Cao Cao, without saying a word, pulled the two men outside, insisting on going out for a meal and a chat. Yuan Shao could not persuade him otherwise. He repeatedly instructed his men to be careful and slow down the progress, and to catch up on the work when he returned. He also made detailed arrangements for all matters, leaving the two men waiting on the side dumbfounded.

Tang Ke exclaimed, "General Yuan is truly a model of hands-on leadership!"

Cao Cao, however, had a different view: "No one is omnipotent; everyone has their own expertise. Professional tasks should be left to professionals. If you are not satisfied with the person assigned to you, then replace them with someone else."

Tang Ke was deeply moved by what he heard. Perhaps the gears of fate for these two powerful figures had already begun to turn at this moment, and their way of looking at things would ultimately determine where they would go.

The banquet lasted until sunset, and all three of them were completely drunk. Tang Ke went home and fell asleep immediately, which delayed him for another day. Fortunately, when he arrived the next day, he found that Zhao Xiaoer had already taken care of the things he had agreed to earlier.

The two consecutive days of delays caused a backlog of work, and for the remaining days he was in a frantic state of catching up, so intense that he even felt like a modern-day workhorse.

Fortunately, apart from requiring that all ingredients be personally inspected, He Jin had few other objections. The Dong family troupe was also arranged smoothly. Dong Dahai was extremely grateful and repeatedly invited him to watch the opera in Dong Ruyun's name.

Tang Ke felt that the matter had been accomplished too easily, and he had already gained a great advantage. Secondly, he felt that his actions seemed to be somewhat opportunistic, as he had pushed away the opportunity that had been within his grasp.