Wu Wangcheng felt as though he could hardly breathe.
Shen Chen truly deserved to be called an old Minister who had weathered more than sixty years of officialdom. He merely cast a swift glance at Emperor His Majesty seated behind the imperial desk.
Wen Er of the Ministry of Works was Shen Chen's student. He lowered his head and took a sip of chilled plum juice, something available only at the Minor Court Assembly, while those High Pillar State surnames did not get any.
Yan Yongfeng, Court of State Ceremonial Minister and current head of the Zi Zhao Yan Clan, was a remarkably lean and capable-looking old man. Here, he had always merely answered roll call.
Ma Yuan, Minister of Justice, rose to his feet and drew a jade plaque from his waist. Moments later, a sand-table model appeared in the Imperial Study: miniature jade-green buildings, with golden lettering marking the various offices. As easily as taking something from his bag, Ma Yuan opened an Earth-character archive from the Ministry of War office in Nanxun Workshop beside Thousand Pace Corridor, then found the Han Prefecture file within it, and immediately located Qiu State with pinpoint accuracy. Ma Yuan pointed at a dossier that had long been prepared on a desk. The dossier appeared out of thin air in the Imperial Study, hanging in midair. Ma Yuan walked over, took it in hand, and looked toward the Emperor. Song He smiled. "Let the National Teacher review it first."
Ma Yuan handed the dossier to Chen Ping'an. The Minister of Justice was in no hurry to return to his seat.
The Ministry of Justice archives, along with the shipyards that built sword ferries, were both first-rate secrets of the Great Li imperial court.
Officials from other departments who wished to consult classified