High Martial Arts Three Kingdoms: The Incompetent Strategist

Tang Ke didn't stop until he had vomited almost empty his stomach. Li Jin, who had already prepared water and was waiting, quickly handed him the water when he saw that he had vomited enough.

After rinsing his mouth, Tang Ke glanced gratefully at the newly assigned personal guard. After spending the last few days with him, he discovered that this man was not only quite skilled in martial arts, but also very meticulous in his work.

"His Majesty has decreed that you, sir, return to the capital immediately after the execution to report and discuss important matters," Li Jin reported while tidying his clothes.

Tang Ke was a little surprised: "The court hasn't adjourned yet?"

"No, Lord Yuan Shao has already obtained the detailed rebellion plan of the Taiping Dao. Its leader, Zhang Jiao, calls himself the General of Heaven, and his two younger brothers, Zhang Bao and Zhang Liang, call themselves the General of Earth and the General of Man, respectively. They lead an army of 360,000 and will officially rebel today. They may have already attacked and captured the prefectures."

Tang Ke was not surprised that Li Jin had already known most of the information he was talking about. He was surprised that Yuan Shao could find out so much detail. Could it be that there was already a spy for him in the Way of Peace?

Seeing the uncertain expression on his face, Li Jin hesitated for a long time before finally saying, "There is something I am not sure if I should say."

"What?" Tang Ke was full of questions. Li Jin was a very decisive person, and he rarely hesitated.

Li Jin shrugged: "When you were escorting the prisoners to be tortured just now, I looked at the notice. In addition to the crimes of the three people, there was another line written on it?"

"What word are you hesitating to say?"

"The gist of it is that the fact that this treason case was solved was entirely due to your active investigation, courage, and outstanding contributions, and you are hereby awarded the title of Commander of the Imperial Guard for your merits."

"What?!" Tang Ke jumped up in anger and cursed, "Who the hell came up with this terrible idea? I'm already the Commander of the Imperial Guard, why would I need an award? Besides, if it's written like this, wouldn't all the Yellow Turban rebels in the world put me on their blacklist?"

His statement was rather conservative. If the Yellow Turban Army believed that he was the one who orchestrated the deaths of Ma Yuanyi and his group, they would probably all consider him a traitor. Those friends who initially felt some sympathy for him being expelled from the Taiping Dao would likely have their old friendships completely gone.

Although Li Jin was unaware of the details, he could tell that the announcement was highly inappropriate. He looked at him sympathetically and said, "I heard that it was strongly recommended by the Commandant of the Capital Region and the Commandant of the Cavalry, and the Emperor's brother-in-law took the lead in affirming it."

"Bastard!" Tang Ke spat angrily.

"Sir, please be quiet. Be careful, the walls may have ears," Li Jin said, glancing around.

Tang Ke patted him on the shoulder and laughed, "I've only ever complained to you about this. If anyone else finds out, I'll beat you until your butt is bruised and battered."

When Tang Ke rushed to Jiade Hall, the argument inside had already reached a fever pitch.

Although the previous court appointed He Jin as Grand General and Huangfu Song as his deputy, this plan still met with much opposition when it was actually brought up for discussion in the court.

It's really not right to have the main general stationed in the capital while sending his deputy to lead troops into battle.

The risks were all taken by the deputy generals, while the credit was attributed to the commander-in-chief's proper command. This not only made it difficult to convince the masses, but also meant that the generals, being far from the front lines, could not keep up with the military situation and were unable to cope with the ever-changing battlefield circumstances.

Although Emperor Ling himself was pushing for this arrangement, the censors showed no respect for the emperor, and their words were so harsh that they could be described as scathing rebukes.

The eunuch clique, which usually dealt with these outspoken officials, remained silent this time. The two leaders of the Qingliu faction had just been torn apart by chariots and had completely lost their voice. Zhang Rang's side originally wanted Huangfu Song to take over.

"Commander of the Imperial Guard, you came up with this suggestion. What are your brilliant ideas?" Emperor Ling of Han couldn't handle it. He glanced at Tang Ke, who had been quietly sitting to the side, and quickly shifted his focus.

All the officials turned to look at him, each with an expression that said, "So it was you, kid."

You old bastard, you're so inconsiderate! Tang Ke cursed Emperor Ling's family in his mind, pondering how to reply. He wasn't good at debating, and he knew very little about ancient military campaigns, political etiquette, and so on.

The reason I recommend He Jin is simply because he did indeed hold the position of Grand General in history, and I have been grateful for his help along the way, so I am just returning the favor. As for any profound insights, there is absolutely nothing to it.

"The Commander of the Imperial Guard is young and inexperienced; how could he understand the art of employing people?"

"He himself was promoted by His Majesty through sheer force, without any merit whatsoever. How dare he advise on such an important position as Grand General?"

"Indeed, he disregarded the safety of the nation and rashly recommended people, intending to form cliques and pursue personal gain. He deserves to be executed."

"..."

Before he could reply, the censors had already launched their offensive. They showed no mercy to someone like him who had no real power base, and went all out.

Large beads of sweat immediately appeared on Tang Ke's forehead. The rapid-fire speech from the other person left him no chance to refute.

"You insolent fool! I'm asking you a question, why aren't you answering?" Emperor Ling of Han roared, seemingly scolding Tang Ke, but actually silencing the clamor of the crowd.

Tang Ke had no choice but to reply with a stiff upper lip: "Your Majesty, the Taiping Dao followers are spread throughout the court and the country. Although they have already shown signs of rebellion, governors and prefects in various places have built a strong first line of defense. On the contrary, the capital region needs to be strengthened to ensure that there is no more assassination attempt on Your Majesty like last time."

"Therefore, I believe that no matter who becomes the Grand General, the primary task is to be stationed in Luoyang, eliminate the accomplices of Ma Yuanyi and others, as well as the remaining forces of Feng Xu and others who may remain in the court, and ensure the safety of the capital. As for denouncing the rebellions in various states, that can be left to those who are good at fighting."

“Lord Tang is right. If the Grand General has to personally go to the front line for everything, then are the thirteen prefectures under the jurisdiction of thirteen Grand Generals? Besides, we still need to figure out which is more important, Luoyang or the various prefectures and counties.” Yuan Shao jumped in to support Tang Ke.

“Even if it were to be stationed in Luoyang, Huangfu Song would be the most suitable. He has served as the governor of Beidi for many years, guarding the frontier. His merits and achievements are beyond question, and he also has enough reputation and experience.”

Tang Ke couldn't understand the thought process of these officials. Knowing that Emperor Ling of Han was determined to establish his brother-in-law as emperor, they repeatedly risked offending the emperor and empress by speaking out again and again.

Emperor Ling of Han did not possess the methods of those incompetent rulers depicted in TV dramas. He did not consider "snap" a few of these outspoken and confrontational officials to establish his authority.

At the moment when he was being attacked face-to-face, Tang Ke finally understood why ancient emperors blindly favored those treacherous officials.

This is incredibly useful in such situations. Let them get rid of the ministers they don't like, so that everyone's resentment will accumulate on the treacherous ministers instead of the emperor. Once the resentment has accumulated to a certain extent, then kill the treacherous minister to appease public anger.