High Martial Arts Three Kingdoms: The Incompetent Strategist

Upon hearing this news, Tang Ke's first reaction was to side with Chen Lin.

The interference of eunuchs in politics was a unique political phenomenon in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Eunuchs of this era held high positions and wielded great power. They not only participated in politics but also helped to overthrow powerful relatives and ministers, and those who helped to install emperors were even granted titles!

The hereditary system of titles contradicted the fact that eunuchs were infertile. Therefore, it was common for favored eunuchs to adopt a godson to inherit their hard-won titles and continue their family line.

Xu Feng is currently in favor of the emperor. Although he has not been granted a title, as long as this treason case is solved, it is a certainty that he will be granted a title. It is not difficult to understand why he would adopt a son in advance.

This makes Chen Lin's statement highly plausible.

After all, barring any unforeseen circumstances, it would be difficult for Zhang Rang to recover, and the aristocratic families had already been suppressed to the point of being unable to raise their heads due to the persecution of the partisans.

If we can further suppress He Jin, the powerful maternal relatives, the Qingliu faction can become the dominant force.

As the group was discussing, there was a knock on the door.

"Your Majesty, the Imperial Attendant Guo Sheng requests an audience."

"What is he here for? To plead for Zhang Rang?" He Jin stood up and said to the three men, "Please wait a moment. This man is from my hometown. I have received much help from him in the past. Now that he has come to my door, I must go and see him."

After saying that, he went straight out the door. Tang Ke and the other two looked at each other in dismay. He Jin was quite ruthless. When he was plotting to get rid of the Ten Attendants, he never mentioned that there was a fellow villager among them.

After a long while, He Jin returned with a worried look on his face.

"As expected, Attendant Guo has come about Zhang Rang's matter. Even the Empress asked him to pass on a message to plead for him. What should we do? My brother and I owe our wealth and status to his help. We can't refuse this favor."

Kuai Yue advised, "General, it is easy to let a tiger go but difficult to bind it. Now we are already in a situation where we are riding a tiger. This is not the time to talk about human feelings."

Chen Lin, unusually, didn't argue and chimed in, saying, "Yidu is right. Once you start working, there's no turning back. If we were going to consider these things, why did we go to all this trouble to go against them in the first place?"

Seeing that he was not getting support, He Jin turned to Tang Ke and asked, "Hey, Ziyou, what do you think? You told me before that you should be like Yi Yin, what's your plan now?"

Tang Ke smiled slightly: "Isn't it still the original plan? Solving this treason case, the general being ennobled and promoted is a natural consequence, but..."

"But what?" He Jin urged impatiently, "Don't keep me in suspense at this crucial moment."

"However, the most important thing right now is to send a suitable person to continue the trial of this case as soon as possible, to dig deep and thoroughly, and to find out who the mastermind is."

Chen Lin slammed her hand on the table: "That's right. If we find all the masterminds behind this, then the big things can be settled."

He Jin looked completely bewildered and scratched his head: "What mastermind? Didn't Zhang Rang get himself into this mess? Did we dig our own grave?"

Kuai Yue laughed and said, "General, you are too honest. You should hurry up and find a suitable candidate and expedite the case."

"Someone has already been chosen for this position. I originally intended to appoint General Yuan Shu, but the Empress just recommended Ziyou. Although this matter is somewhat dangerous, I cannot go against the Empress's wishes."

He Jin took out a token and handed it to Tang Ke, saying apologetically, "After the position of Commander of the Imperial Guards became vacant, His Majesty asked me to take charge of the Imperial Guards. Originally, I entrusted it to Mengde, but now that he is injured, I will temporarily put it under your command. These are all elites, which will make it easier to investigate cases and also protect you."

Tang Ke unceremoniously put away the token, wondering to himself, "Could it be that the Empress has taken a liking to me? Recommending me to both Emperor Ling of Han and He Jin seems rather unusual."

"Um, General, may I speak with you in private?"

Seeing Tang Ke's hesitant expression, He Jin encouraged him, "Speak your mind, don't hesitate. These are all brothers. You've already risked your life to solve this case, so feel free to make any requests."

Tang Ke hesitated for a moment, and seeing the suspicious looks from the other two, he finally went all out and said, "Um, I would like to borrow 1000 taels of silver from the general."

"What do you need the money for? To buy more property?" He Jin took out two thousand taels and stuffed it into his hand: "Buy a bigger house this time. It's not comfortable to live in a small house of several hundred square meters. If you hire a servant, there's nowhere for him to live. After all, you are now considered a member of our General's Mansion. Don't lose face."

Tang Ke quickly thanked him, saying, "The house is big enough. A friend of mine asked me to take care of her sister, who is currently living in a brothel. I want to help her get out of there."

"I never would have guessed, Ziyou. You always seem so polite and serious, but you're actually into all sorts of things?" Chen Lin patted Tang Ke on the shoulder and earnestly advised, "It's fine to play around occasionally, but you should be careful when bringing someone home. Be careful not to let them drain your energy."

Even Kuai Yue began to advise him: "Ziyou, you are still young. You have a bright future following General He. What good woman can't you find? You should pull back from the brink and find another suitable partner!"

"Stop! What nonsense is this?" Tang Ke pressed his right index finger against his left palm to signal a halt, then fled the He residence as if escaping.

This time, he didn't dare go to the brothel alone. Instead, he used his token to summon the imperial guards to go with him, since no one knew where the assassin was hiding.

The secret agents never dreamed that their first order to their new leader would be to protect him at the brothel.

Even the madam of the brothel was a little surprised to see him: "Oh, sir, you're in pretty good health. You just came this morning, and you're back again so soon?"

"Enough nonsense, I'm here to redeem Miss Ruyan." Tang Ke walked into the shop without looking back, rushed to Ruyan's room, kicked aside the customer who was asking about the price, and sat down in the room with a swagger.

"What is this, young master?" Ruyan looked at Tang Ke with a face full of questions.

The madam followed breathlessly, her powdered face almost splitting open with laughter. "Oh my, my darling daughter, you're so lucky! This official is going to redeem you!"

"Redeem me?" Ruyan was both surprised and delighted, and asked again and again, "Is Young Master really willing to redeem me?"

Tang Ke nodded and said, "Of course it's true. Didn't your sister entrust you to me?"

After saying that, he took out a thousand taels of silver notes and slammed them heavily on the table, suddenly feeling a surge of heroic spirit.

The madam and Ruyan exchanged a strange glance, neither of them saying a word.

Tang Ke felt a little guilty under their gazes and asked in a low voice, "Not enough?"

Seeing the two nod repeatedly, Tang Ke took out the remaining thousand taels and placed them on the table, tentatively asking, "Is this enough?"

Seeing the two shaking their heads vigorously, he couldn't help but ask, "How much do you want?"

"Three thousand taels?" Tang Ke exclaimed in surprise when he saw Ruyan cautiously extend three fingers.