High Martial Arts Three Kingdoms: The Incompetent Strategist

"Who is in the hall?"

Jian Shuo slammed his gavel and shouted loudly, pulling Tang Ke back from his reverie.

Ma Yuanyi spat disdainfully and sneered, "He's just one of the millions of commoners who wanted to kill the tyrannical emperor. Since his plan failed, why bother asking his name?"

"How dare you, a mere commoner, presume to represent the millions of ordinary people! You should take a good look at yourself in the mirror; you're simply courting death!"

Ma Yuanyi's eyes were sharp, and his gaze toward Jian Shuo was unwavering: "I know this journey is dangerous, but for the sake of all living beings and those innocent victims, I have no choice but to do it!"

"Nonsense! Your so-called 'all living beings' and 'innocent people' are nothing but an excuse for a madman like you to attempt assassination. His Majesty is the chosen one of Heaven. If you dare to assassinate him, you are defying Heaven. Aren't you afraid of divine retribution?"

"If there really is divine retribution, it should strike down those sons of bitches of eunuchs, the Ten Attendants, first, not us."

"How dare you! Slap them!" Jian Shuo watched as Zhang Rang and Feng Xu's faces grew increasingly ugly, and finally, unable to bear the shame any longer, he rushed down and slapped them more than a dozen times on both sides.

He Jin's side was delighted to watch the show, their smiles almost uncontrollable.

“Eunuch Jian, we’re here to hear a case. There’s no need to get into a fight with a death row inmate.” Yuan Shao slammed his gavel down hard.

Jian Shuo nodded, took out a tissue to wipe the blood off his hands, and then continued to ask, "You're willing to die for your own selfish desires, don't you even care about your entire family?"

Ma Yuanyi laughed even more wildly: "The tyrannical ruler has long since destroyed my family and left me all alone. Where would I get nine generations of relatives?"

Upon hearing this, Jian Shuo frowned deeply. He hadn't expected the assassin to be so stubborn. His face flushed and paled with anger as he lightly tapped his fingers on the interrogation table, pondering how to break down the assassin's resilient psychological defenses.

Are you going to use your best skills right away and give him a severe punishment?

"This kind of person won't confess unless they're subjected to torture. Eunuch Jian, I've heard you're quite skilled in this area. Why don't you come down and give everyone a demonstration?"

Yuan Shao's tone was full of mockery. As the Commandant of the Capital Region, it was his responsibility to interrogate such high-ranking criminals. Jian Shuo was just a minor eunuch, and his overstepping of his authority made him very unhappy. Seeing Jian Shuo suffer a setback, he was not offended at all, but secretly pleased.

His words were tantamount to putting Jian Shuo on the spot. Jian Shuo was co-judging the case with him, and the two were equals in this matter. If Jian Shuo personally took charge of the torture, he would be putting himself in the position of a yamen runner, and would be at a psychological disadvantage from the start. If he did not use torture or used ordinary punishments, it would probably not be very effective against such a stubborn person.

"Eunuch Jian, why don't you take a break and let me, Cao Cao, give it a try?" Seeing that they were at an impasse, Cao Cao volunteered to step forward.

"Very well." Jian Shuo knew that asking any further questions would be pointless, so he gave Cao Cao a grateful look and returned to his seat.

When Cao Cao arrived to interrogate him, the atmosphere instantly became tense. He first bowed to the three presiding and supervising judges, then quickly walked up to the assassin and carefully examined Ma Yuanyi from head to toe.

His face was serious, and his sharp eyes seemed to be able to see into people's hearts, making Ma Yuanyi feel uneasy.

"Since you dared to assassinate His Majesty, you must have some guts. Throughout history, there have been few who dared to assassinate their monarchs, but those who did such a great thing, such as Zhuan Zhu, Yao Li, and Jing Ke, have all left their names in the history books. Do you know why?"

Cao Cao seemed to have already guessed that this question would not receive a response, and continued to say to himself: "Heroes and great men all love the word 'name'. Don't you want to be remembered in history so that future generations will know your deeds?"

Tang Ke was startled. Cao Mengde had a firm grasp on human nature. Ma Yuanyi was the kind of person who might not submit even if you threatened or beat him, but he could never escape the word "fame".

“Ma Yuanyi, I never imagined that there would be someone like me in the history books.” Ma Yuanyi’s burning eyes were full of pride: “Even if I die, I will not have lived in vain.”

“Actually, you don’t have to die,” Cao Cao coaxed. “As long as you tell me who instructed you and the whereabouts of your accomplices, I can petition His Majesty to forgive your past transgressions and spare your life. You are young and have a bright future ahead of you. Why throw your life away for some vague and unrealistic ideals?”

"Really? I committed such a heinous crime and I can still be pardoned?" Ma Yuanyi's eyes were full of doubt.

Cao Cao nodded and said decisively, "Of course, you're not the main culprit. As long as you explain the mastermind behind it, it won't be a problem."

"On what grounds?"

Without hesitation, Cao Cao drew his sword, grabbed a lock of his hair, and with a hiss, cut it off, saying, "Today, I, Cao Cao, will cut off my hair as proof. If you reveal the mastermind behind this, and I cannot save your life, then this head of mine will be yours."

Tang Ke scratched his head, feeling slightly embarrassed. Cutting one's hair to represent one's head was indeed very convincing in ancient times, but if he remembered correctly, Cao Cao had used this tactic quite a few times in history, so it was somewhat beneath him.

Moreover, what right does a mere cavalry captain have to pardon a criminal sentenced to death?

"Good, that's straightforward." Ma Yuanyi's droopy eyelids twitched a few times, his gaze swept across everyone's faces, and a mocking smile appeared on his lips: "The person who ordered me is right here in the hall."

The group exchanged glances, their eyes filled with wariness.

Tang Ke's heart skipped a beat; he wondered if the man had recognized him with the pockmarked face mask he was wearing.

"Who is it?" Cao Cao took a step forward and asked.

Ma Yuanyi barely managed to raise his finger and trace it across everyone's faces.

At that moment, the air seemed to freeze into a giant rock, pressing heavily on the hearts of everyone pointed at, and the atmosphere became extremely tense.

"It's him!"

The finger circled around before finally settling on Zhang Rang.

Tang Ke breathed a sigh of relief, and a system notification popped into his mind: "Mission: Eliminate the Ten Attendants target locked. Mission failed warning!!"

Jian Shuo gave Zhang Rang a strange look and muttered, "You bastard, you're about to die and you still dare to slander Eunuch Zhang."

Everyone could tell that his words were full of schadenfreude, but he insisted on pretending to be indignant and wanted to rush over and beat Ma Yuanyi, but Cao Cao stopped him.

“Eunuch Jian, regardless of whether he is slandering us or not, we should just report the truth to His Majesty, and His Majesty will make a fair judgment.”

Jian Shuo stared coldly at Cao Cao, his pupils contracting. "You want to stand up for him and make things difficult for me and Eunuch Zhang?"

He emphasized his voice when mentioning Eunuch Zhang.

Cao Cao's gaze remained unwavering as he stared intently at Jian Shuo, saying each word clearly, "I dare not, but since I have promised him, I must protect him. There is no question of me standing up for anyone."