Guo Tong arrived at Zhaoyang Hall in high spirits.
Ever since the emperor had ascended the throne, many things had changed.
In the past, people like them had only needed to stay at home and enjoy outings with their friends. When the time was ripe, the imperial court would summon them directly and grant them high office.
Their starting positions were generally determined by their fathers' ranks. If your father was merely a commandery governor earning Two Thousand Shi, you could begin your official career as a county magistrate. For someone like Guo Tong, whose father had been General of Chariots and Cavalry, his starting rank had to be at least One Thousand Shi.
They did not even need to enter office. The longer they stayed at home, the better. This was called cultivating reputation.
Hua Yi, for instance, had still been a commoner in his thirties, yet had gone straight to Two Thousand Shi upon entering office.
But after the emperor assumed personal rule, these unwritten rules had been disregarded.
The imperial court had not issued summons for a long time. Even the court ministers entitled to establish their own governments no longer freely summoned and recommended their own relatives and sons.
Guo Tong had waited at home, year after year, without ever receiving news of a summons.
He could only set aside the arrogance of the great clans and send someone to the Ministry of Personnel to ask when he might be entrusted with an important post. The answer he received was actually that anyone who wanted office should take the examination.
This infuriated Guo Tong. What sort of man was I?
*My father was General of Chariots and Cavalry! I cultivated my reputation at home for decades, and you actually wanted me to take an examination alongside