High Martial Arts Three Kingdoms: The Incompetent Strategist

Yang Ci glanced at the doorway, then at He Jin, hesitated for a long time, and finally stopped.

He stepped forward, his face beaming, "Eunuch Zhang, General He, we're all on the same side! Why get so angry? For Yang's sake, how about we make peace?"

Seeing that neither of them showed any sign of backing down, he added, "Even if you don't care about Yang's reputation, you should at least consider the Empress's."

Zhang Rang finally calmed down a bit, his tone softening slightly: "Grand Commandant, it's not that I don't respect the Imperial Brother-in-law, but we lowly people depend on the Empress for everything, entrusting our lives to the Imperial Brother-in-law. We just hate that he's gone too far!"

He Jin, Yuan Shao, and Cao Cao exchanged glances, all looking puzzled. Had their plot to eliminate the Ten Attendants been exposed?

Yang Ci was a meticulous man and had already seen through He Jin's doubts. He pressed on, "I don't know what Eunuch Zhang is talking about. Tell us so everyone can judge. If it is indeed General He's fault, I, Yang, will make him apologize to you."

"Do you think this can be resolved with just an apology?" Zhang Rang's anger intensified. "Unless you hand over Tang Ke, this matter is not over today!"

He Jin and the others secretly breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this; it turned out that all their fuss was for Tang Ke.

Yang Ci was taken aback: "Eunuch Zhang, I don't understand. If I remember correctly, not long ago you were imprisoned in the imperial prison, and it was Lord Tang who helped you clear your name. He saved your life."

“You, him…” Zhang Rang hesitated, then finally uttered only one sentence: “One thing at a time. Just hand him over, and I’ll have my own things to say.”

Yang Ci looked at He Jin with difficulty, not daring to agree on his own, but his eyes clearly advised him to be patient and agree for the time being.

“Eunuch Zhang, let’s not talk about this anymore. Tang Ke is someone from my He family. If we hand him over to you without real evidence, who will dare to come and seek refuge with me in the future?” He spoke righteously, but his eyes had already begun to scan the area around him.

Although many people came today, most of them have already left, and there are not many officials left, all of whom are gathered in the middle.

Tang Ke always wore a pockmarked mask, a white robe, and carried the Cold Moon Spear that Zhang Chu had given him; his features were very distinctive.

To He Jin's dismay, he looked around twice but couldn't find Tang Ke anywhere. The man had apparently left without him noticing.

Zhang Rang sneered, "The Emperor's brother-in-law is loyal to him, but unfortunately he is not necessarily loyal to the Emperor's brother-in-law."

He Jin still wore a smile on his face, but he was inwardly annoyed. With a formidable enemy at hand, this instigator had actually left without permission.

"Who says I'm disloyal to the Emperor's brother-in-law?"

A loud and powerful voice came from afar. Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw a group of red-clad cavalry galloping towards them. The sound of their orderly hooves was as fast as thunder, like a thousand troops and horses, and their momentum was even greater than when Zhang Rang came before.

"The Imperial Guards are here!" Cao Cao whispered in He Jin's ear. He had led the Imperial Guards for quite some time and knew them well. This cavalry force responsible for maintaining order in Luoyang was no less powerful than the Imperial Guards responsible for protecting the emperor.

He Jin nodded, his expression softening slightly.

"Attendant Zhang, the Commander of the Imperial Guards has arrived with his elite cavalry!" A member of the Imperial Guards rushed in, intending to give Zhang Rang a detailed report.

A long spear flew over his head and stuck straight into the ground in front of him, the shaft making a "humming" sound.

The leader rode his horse at full speed to the gate of the mansion, dismounted, and strode in.

"Lord Tang!" The officials who had stayed behind to support He Jin finally felt relieved and excitedly greeted Tang Ke.

Tang Ke looked around and saw that those who remained were mostly He Jin's close friends or Yang Ci's students and former officials.

His gaze lingered on Yin Yixue, a woman dressed in elaborate attire. At first glance, her attire seemed somewhat intricate, but now that she was willing to stay here with Yang Ci, she appeared even more elegant and refined.

His gaze lingered on Yin Yixue for a moment before he suddenly realized something, his face flushing slightly. Yin Yixue was also looking at him with a half-smile.

Tang Ke blushed. Luckily, he was still wearing a mask, otherwise he would have been mortified in front of so many people.

"Tang Ke, you still dare to come?" Zhang Rang looked at him with a cold smile, a hint of murderous intent flashing in his eyes.

Tang Ke walked over nonchalantly and retrieved the gun he had stuck in the ground: "What is there to be afraid of? Maintaining the order of Luoyang is my duty. As for the Imperial Guards trespassing into the He residence, I wonder if there is any decree from His Majesty?"

Zhang Rang hesitated for a moment, then quickly regained his composure and remained silent.

The Imperial Guard who had been blocked by the gun finally got a chance to speak: "We heard someone secretly report that someone in the He family is plotting a rebellion..."

Before he could finish speaking, Tang Ke kicked him away, sending him crashing to the ground. He roared, "This matter will be handled by the Imperial Guards. The Imperial Guards' duty is to protect His Majesty's safety. You are derelict in your duties."

The kick was powerful and heavy, striking the man squarely in the chest. The man coughed violently, blood gushing from the corner of his mouth, and dared not utter another word.

Zhang Rang took a deep breath: "Lord Tang, you dare to injure His Majesty's guards without authorization. You truly have no respect for the law."

Tang Ke smiled slightly: "Eunuch Zhang, I'm afraid that when I got you out of the imperial prison that day, that would have been a real disregard for the law, wouldn't it?"

"Hmph, very well, very well." Zhang Rang laughed instead of getting angry: "We were very grateful for your help when we were in trouble, but we only recently found out what you've done. It's truly hateful!"

Seeing that Tang Ke had brought a large number of men, Yang Ci guessed that Zhang Rang wouldn't gain any advantage either, and advised, "Eunuch Zhang, it seems that Lord Tang doesn't know what happened either. Why don't you explain yourself more clearly? We can all discuss it with you."

"Consult my ass!" When Zhang Rang had the upper hand, he still showed some courtesy to Yang Ci, but now he showed no respect to the Grand Commandant of the court and cursed, "If it weren't for you old codger stalling for time, I would have taken him down long ago."

"You, you, you!" Yang Ci, that old fox, had never been treated like this before. He turned away, his face ashen, and said nothing more.

Tang Ke smiled slightly and comforted him, "Grand Commandant, there's no need to be angry. Only losers take their anger out on others."

Upon hearing this, Yin Yixue glanced at the recently rising star, the Commander of the Imperial Guard, with surprise, then quickly lowered her head, thinking to herself, "Judging from his words and actions, he is not as bad as others say, so the rumors are mostly unreliable."

When she first saw Tang Ke staring at her so blatantly, she felt no liking for him whatsoever. It seemed the rumor that the greedy and lustful Commander of the Imperial Guard had married a courtesan upon taking office was most likely true.

Looking at this person now, apart from his pockmarked face being a bit ugly, he doesn't seem so unpleasant.