High Martial Arts Three Kingdoms: The Incompetent Strategist

Before they knew it, it was time for He Jin's birthday banquet. Tang Ke and the other banquet organizers moved into He Jin's residence the night before to rehearse the proceedings.

The next morning, everyone went about their duties and waited early in the mansion.

As more and more people arrived, the mansion gradually became lively.

By this time, Tang Ke had basically finished his work. He didn't know many people, so he idly picked up a chopstick and twirled it in his hand to kill time, propping his head up with his hand to try and stay awake.

Half-asleep, I suddenly heard a voice announce in my ear: "The Emperor has arrived! The Empress has arrived!"

Tang Ke was startled, instantly losing all sleepiness. His head slid off his supporting wrist, and he knelt down in the crowd.

One message after another was relayed, and in the blink of an eye, they arrived at the door.

Tang Ke secretly glanced at the emperor and empress and couldn't help but sigh in his heart, "This is truly a beautiful flower stuck in cow dung!"

Emperor Ling of Han wore a crown, surrounded by pearls and jade, and a magnificent dragon robe. The five-clawed golden dragons embroidered on the robe were so lifelike that they seemed ready to burst out of the robe at any moment, exuding an air of imperial wealth and nobility.

But his every move showed a lack of strength, and every subtle movement revealed the fact that his body had been completely drained.

Empress He was adorned with fine silks and jewels. Unlike Emperor Ling of Han, whose richness was evident in his magnificent attire, the jewels on Empress He seemed to merely serve as a backdrop, overshadowing the radiance of this woman who was born to rule the world.

She was nearly twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, the prime of her life. Not only was her stunning beauty breathtaking, but her elegant and noble temperament also shone brightly.

From her current appearance, Tang Ke could already deduce how stunningly beautiful and elegant she must have been in her youth, and he couldn't help but stare at her in a daze.

"All of you, rise." Emperor Ling of Han walked straight to the main seat and sat down.

"Who is this person? How rude!" Empress He was about to sit down when she suddenly saw Tang Ke's staring eyes and became somewhat annoyed.

"Your Majesty, this man is named Tang Ke, and he is in charge of the preparations for this event," He Jin quickly explained, seeing that the Empress was angry.

Empress He said angrily, "Now that you are a member of the imperial family, you should be more careful when hiring people. Don't just hire any Tom, Dick, or Harry to work in your household. You should consider people who are both virtuous and capable."

Tang Ke finally realized that something was wrong and hurriedly lowered his head, feeling uneasy, wondering if Empress He would label him badly because of this.

Emperor Ling of Han advised, "Empress, there is no need to be angry. I think this person is not bad except for the pockmarks on his face. You can't judge a book by its cover!"

After saying that, he turned to look at He Jin: "I heard that the Imperial Brother-in-law has built a new bathing pool for beauties. I wonder if it is finished yet."

He Jin bowed and smiled, "Your Majesty, it was just completed yesterday, and it is now open for visitors."

"Yes, very good. After the banquet, let's all go and see how the pool is being built."

Tang Ke's heart skipped a beat; Cao Mengde had indeed been right.

"As Your Majesty wishes, Cavalry Commandant Cao Cao has been stationed by the pond since last night, awaiting Your Majesty's personal arrival."

"Very good. Cao Mengde is always very thoughtful in his work, which is exactly what I want! Tell me about the wonders of this pool first!" Emperor Ling of Han looked delighted and was clearly a little impatient.

"Your Majesty, this pool was specially built for you by your humble servant. The beauties are merely embellishments. The design is exquisite and well worth seeing!"

He Jin looked pleased with himself and gave a detailed explanation of the pool's design.

"This beauty bathing pool is more like a small reservoir than a pool. There is a willow tree every ten steps along the pool, and under the tree, there are beauties serving on trays."

"The pool water is crystal clear, and fish swim freely. If you go at night, the luminous pearls at the bottom of the pool reflect the twinkling stars in the night sky. The pool is filled with misty steam, and the light, gauze-like heat rises and swirls. The graceful figure of a woman bathing in the misty steam appears and disappears in the hazy steam, like a fairy in a painting. It's simply like a fairyland!"

The wealthy people of ancient times certainly knew how to have fun! Tang Ke thought to himself, just how much money must have been spent on manpower and resources in just one day.

"Very good, very good, I can't wait to go and see it." Emperor Ling of Han nodded repeatedly.

Empress He laughed and said, "Your Majesty, you're not here to look at the pool, you clearly want to see the beauties bathing, aren't you?"

"Hey, you can't say that. This is your brother's way of showing his loyalty! Let's start the meal as soon as possible, and then we'll set off."

"By order of His Majesty, the banquet shall begin!"

"Your Majesty, we have also set up a stage, and the opera programs are all ready. Shall we have them perform on stage now, and watch while we eat?"

"No, let's save time. Let's move the stage to the Beauty Pool and watch it there later."

"What? How can we possibly make it in time?" Tang Ke blurted out.

"How dare you! Slap yourself!"

As soon as Empress He finished speaking, a eunuch beside Emperor Ling of Han flashed over and slapped Tang Ke hard across the face. The speed was so fast that Tang Ke, a fifth-rank official, didn't even have time to react.

"If you can't do anything right, why are you taking on all the work? You're asking for it!"

Tang Ke's temper flared up immediately, and he was about to rush forward to start a fight when Yuan Shao quietly circled around behind him, gently stepping on his foot and bowing his head to signal him to be patient for the time being.

"Forget it, Feng Xu, don't bother with him." Emperor Ling of Han said leisurely, "When I get to the Beauty Pool later, if the opera is not ready, I will have his head rolled."

Tang Ke's anger was instantly extinguished, and a chill ran down his spine.

Yuan Shao said in a low voice, "Ziyou, what are you waiting for? Quickly take the actors to prepare. Don't dismantle the stage if you can avoid it. Take my token and lead the soldiers to move the whole thing over there."

Tang Ke realized what was happening and hurriedly retreated. While directing the soldiers to dismantle the stage, he also urged the Dong family troupe to rush to their destination.

Emperor Ling and his entourage leisurely ate their meal, and watching their busy figures, they couldn't help but laugh heartily.

Fortunately, the Beauty Pool wasn't far from the He residence, and with hundreds of soldiers taking turns, they managed to move the stage to the embankment by the pool ahead of schedule.

Cao Cao and his soldiers were stunned and didn't react for a long time.

"Ziyou, this is much better than a play!" Cao Cao gave a thumbs up as he watched the Tang guests carrying the stage, who were wobbling as they approached.

Tang Ke said irritably, "Get lost! Hurry up and help set up the stage, or my life will be in danger!"

"Oh!" Cao Cao also called his soldiers over to help, and they hurriedly finished setting up the stage before Emperor Ling of Han arrived.

In the distance, rays of light shone brightly as a dragon-drawn chariot and phoenix-embroidered carriage slowly approached. The jewels inlaid on the chariot glittered and shimmered, creating a magnificent and awe-inspiring spectacle. Golden dragon flags fluttered on both sides of the chariot, and melodious music filled the air, depicting a scene of prosperous and glorious times.

Tang Ke was drenched in sweat, cursing inwardly, "That damned emperor, I'll make sure you're dead sooner or later."