Pei Xiu had just left the residence where Liu Bao was staying when he ran straight into Guo Ze.
Guo Ze was panting slightly. This man really was hard to find.
After exchanging greetings, Guo Ze asked him very directly, "Lord Pei, have you been taking powder?"
"I stopped long ago."
"Good. Please come with me to Taiji Hall."
Guo Ze invited him into the carriage. Pei Xiu asked curiously, "If I had said I had taken powder just now, where would we be going?"
"The Ministry of Justice."
Pei Xiu muttered a few words that Guo Ze did not catch.
Pei Xiu did not know why people kept slandering him. His Majesty always thought he was taking powder, when he had clearly quit so long ago.
Sitting in the carriage, Pei Xiu looked at the impeccably proper Guo Ze and could not help asking, "Lord Guo, I hear you are fond of the classics too. Which classics do you study?"
"I am versed in all the Five Classics."
"No wonder His Majesty is familiar with all the Five Classics. It is thanks to you, Lord Guo."
Guo Ze said earnestly, "His Majesty is naturally intelligent, benevolent, and generous. It is all due to his own abilities and has little to do with me."
Pei Xiu glanced out the window. "His Majesty certainly is naturally intelligent."
Soon, Guo Ze brought Pei Xiu into Taiji Hall.
When he arrived, Cao Mao was bent over his work.
Many memorials lay before him, all sent by the Inspectors in the various regions.
This batch of Inspectors really was remarkably capable, just as one would expect of Cao Mao's trusted aides.
The County Examination and Commandery Examination had supplied large numbers of grassroots personnel, renewing the ranks at the lowest levels. Not everyone had