"Ah—"
The next day, after the Great Court was dismissed, all the officials ate beneath the corridor.
The Great Court lasted from the start of the Mao hour to the beginning of the Wu hour. Quite a few people were starving—though it wasn't because they had skipped breakfast, but because attending court was hard physical labor: fighting, launching map-wide attacks, sowing discord, pretending to mediate while taking one side, keeping one's eyes on six directions and ears on eight to avoid being caught in the crossfire... The Imperial Court was overflowing with juicy scandals, enough to numb anyone. It was terribly exhausting.
"Lingde, why do you look a little dazed?"
From the corner of her eye, Lin Feng saw a young man in purple robes approach.
It was Shen Zhi, who had been promoted to Minister of Agriculture at the end of the first year of Yanhua.
A social butterfly among the female officials.
Also publicly acknowledged as the one with the best connections.
This was all thanks to her unique Way of the Scholar, which was also what had enabled her to become head of the Ministry of Agriculture. She now oversaw the four departments of Shanglin, Taicang, Goudun, and Daoguan, along with the various bureaus. However, her administrative ability was rather limited, and the Ministry of Agriculture had more than six hundred and fifty employees. Her energy shouldn't be wasted there. Thus, the Ministry's internal affairs were either divided among the deputy ministers and department directors, or some authority was transferred to the Ministry of Revenue. She herself handled little internal business, and her working hours were comparatively flexible. Apart from the Great Court, where she had to report at dawn, she could adjust everything else according to circumstances. With more free time came more time for socializing