High Martial Arts Three Kingdoms: The Incompetent Strategist

Emperor Ling of Han waved his hand and said, "Since there is no evidence, then it is invalid. We will have the three judicial departments conduct a retrial on a later date."

"Your Majesty, there is no need to trouble the three judicial departments. The traitor Hou Fu has already committed suicide out of fear of punishment."

"How dare you! You are suspected of murdering a witness." Although Emperor Ling of Han's words sounded like he was blaming him, there was no anger on his face.

"Your Majesty, I am truly terrified!" Tang Guan looked at his face and finally felt relieved. He knew he had made the right bet. Emperor Ling of Han didn't want to touch Zhang Rang or Feng Xu; he was just trying to smooth things over.

"Originally, you solved the case and made such a great contribution, so I should have rewarded you handsomely. However, you acted recklessly, and your merits and demerits cancel each other out. So I will just keep you as the Commander of the Imperial Guard."

The courtiers remained silent. Tang Ke was originally just a commoner, but overnight he was officially appointed as the Commander of the Imperial Guard, which was already considered an exceptional reward. Emperor Ling of Han said this simply to shut them up.

Tang Ke quickly seized the opportunity and bowed deeply, saying, "Your humble servant thanks Your Majesty for your great favor! Long live Your Majesty!"

“Your Majesty, Hou Fu’s testimony is only one side of the story, and there is no way to corroborate it. Ma Yuanyi is the real mastermind behind the assassination attempt on Your Majesty. He personally identified Eunuch Zhang on that day.”

Feng Xu clearly did not want to let Zhang Rang off the hook, after all, if Zhang Rang came out, his own life would definitely not be easy.

Tang Ke smiled slightly and said, "Is it possible that Ma Yuanyi is not referring to the party as an endorsement, but rather to clearing obstacles for his comrades?"

Feng Xu sneered, "Then let's continue the joint trial. Kid, you think you can muddy the waters and fish in troubled waters? Not so easy."

"Investigate, investigate, investigate, how long are you going to investigate? If you want to investigate, release Eunuch Zhang and investigate him together. I, Zhao Zhong, want to see who is really taking advantage of the situation."

Before Tang Ke could speak, the Ten Attendants, who had been suppressed and unable to raise their heads due to Zhang Rang's rebellion, finally jumped out after seeing a glimmer of hope and directly retorted.

"As long as the case remains unresolved, he remains a suspect. How can he be released so easily?"

"You're accusing me of something I'm trying to frame."

The two men openly argued in the court, and before long, their cronies joined in the verbal battle. For the first time, Tang Ke witnessed the court turn into a marketplace.

This was exactly what he had anticipated.

During the Eastern Han Dynasty, the power of the imperial relatives and the eunuchs alternated in their dominance. At present, He Jin was no match for either the Ten Attendants or the Qingliu faction, let alone a newly promoted person like himself, who didn't even have the qualifications to be served at the dinner table.

The best way is to let them fight like dogs and wear each other down.

Taking advantage of the chaos, He Jin pulled Tang Ke aside and cursed, "You little bastard, why didn't you discuss this with me before doing it? We finally caught Zhang Rang, and you just let him go so easily?"

Tang Ke comforted him, saying, "In times of emergency, one must act expediently. Just wait and see, the best is yet to come, and your marquisate is within your grasp."

He Jin was about to say something when Emperor Ling of Han slammed his hand heavily on the armrest of the dragon throne: "You insolent fools! What kind of decorum is this, making such a racket in the court? Do you even respect me as the emperor?"

The two groups, their faces flushed with anger, continued their argument for quite some time before finally calming down.

"Immediately issue an edict to release Zhang Rang, ordering him to return home to recuperate, and forbidding him from entering the court until the case is clarified. Jian Shuo and Tang Ke shall jointly interrogate Ma Yuanyi, and give him three days to thoroughly investigate the truth, or else he shall bring his head to the emperor!"

After Emperor Ling finished speaking, he was so angry that he didn't even wait for the court to adjourn before storming off.

A large green exclamation mark flashed through Tang Ke's mind: "Congratulations, host! The mission to eliminate the Ten Attendants has been temporarily averted. The mission is about to succeed. Please expedite the process!!"

The two groups, who had just calmed down, started arguing loudly again in the court after the emperor left.

Tang Ke was pulled away from the palace gate by He Jin...

The sun is like fire.

The atmosphere inside He Jin's residence was unusually tense. He Jin sat at the dining table with an angry expression, frantically shoveling rice into his mouth. There were already three empty bowls on the table in front of him.

Tang Ke stood to the side with his hands at his sides, looking down at his nose and inward, like a child who had done something wrong.

"General, that's enough. You'll burst if you eat any more," Kuai Yue, who was sitting to the side, kindly advised.

"Get out!" He Jin didn't even lift his eyelids.

Chen Lin carefully brought over a bowl of water: "General, would you like some? Don't choke!"

"Mind your own business!" He Jin didn't slow down his chopsticks as he ate his rice. With a "clatter," another empty bowl appeared on the table.

Chen Lin gestured with her eyes and called out, "Ziyou, quickly apologize to the general. What exactly did you do wrong?"

Tang Ke pursed his lips helplessly and said, "He didn't do anything wrong, so I released Zhang Rang."

"What?" Kuai Yue and Chen Lin exclaimed almost simultaneously, startling Tang Ke.

Tang Ke was startled: "Don't be so alarmed, you're all grown up."

Chen Lin reached out and placed her hand on Tang Ke's forehead: "Have you lost your mind? We went through so much trouble to get Zhang Rang in jail, spending so much manpower and resources, and you just let him go like that?"

Tang Ke looked aggrieved, touched his nose and said, "Hey, when the Empress sent Guo Sheng to plead for Zhang Rang, we discussed it together. We all agreed to dig deep into the mastermind behind it."

He Jin shouted, "Digging deep my ass! What have you dug up? You released Zhang Rang, and you found no evidence against Feng Xu. In the end, everyone is fine. What a waste of time!"

“It won’t be a wasted effort, General. Think about it: although Zhang Rang’s crimes are heinous, he has deep roots in the court and many followers. His Majesty is very reluctant to let him go and will pardon him sooner or later. Why don’t we do him a favor?” Tang Ke spoke slowly, his voice steady and powerful.

"The same applies to Feng Xu. We cannot defeat either of these forces rashly at the moment. Why not let them fight each other and watch the outcome? We would also be doing His Majesty and the Empress a favor."

Kuai Yue pondered for a moment and said, "Ziyou is right. When two tigers fight, one will surely be injured..."

“It will be one dead and one injured,” Tang Ke corrected him. “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we took advantage of the situation then?”

"Then you should at least discuss it with us." He Jin's tone softened considerably, clearly having been persuaded.

"The situation was quite urgent at the time, and by the time I contacted you, it would have been too late." Tang Ke chuckled, then said seriously, "However, although the report was delayed, my loyalty to the General is as clear as day. Next time, I will definitely strengthen the reporting process."

Looking into Tang Ke's resolute eyes, He Jin's reservations lessened considerably. He nodded and said in a deep voice, "Alright! I'll trust you this time. But remember, if I can lift you up, I can also pull you down."

Tang Ke finally breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, "Yes, I only have one goal now: to get you up there. Once you're up there, we won't be missing a few of us."

"Come, let's raise a glass together to congratulate Ziyou on officially taking command of the Imperial Guard!"

The four wine glasses clinked together, producing a pleasant, crisp sound.