The leave system for Eastern Jin officials was much more relaxed than it had been during the Western and Eastern Han. In Han times, officials could return home only on rest days and spent all their remaining time in their government offices. Eastern Jin officials, however, took turns staying overnight on duty. Apart from those on rotation, who had to remain at their offices day and night, the rest did not need to attend their offices after noon. Officials of the fifth rank and above all had numerous subordinates to handle the tedious daily business; the senior officials needed only to make decisions. Thus they had abundant leisure, living half as officials and half as recluses. This was the distinction between "pure officials" and "common functionaries"-
Xi Chao waited for Chen Caozhi at his lodgings that afternoon. Earlier, in Taicheng, he had seen Chen Caozhi's younger clansman Chen Yu escorting Lu Song, Zhu Lingbao, and more than ten others to the Ministry of the Five Armies. Surprised, he had questioned Chen Yu, who said that his elder clansman Chen Caozhi had also returned to Jiankang and had presumably gone to the Lu Residence first, but would surely call on Attendant Minister Xi that afternoon. He had also briefly described their clash with Lu Song-
Chen Caozhi had stirred up such a major dispute immediately upon returning to Jiankang, and had even delivered Lu Song to Lu Shi's Ministry of the Five Armies, making quite a fanfare of the affair. This was unlike Chen Caozhi's usual restrained manner. Could he have been acting on Duke Huan's instructions?
When Chen Caozhi arrived, Xi Chao took his hand and exchanged greetings, then asked, "Did you have lunch at the Lu Residence, Zizhong?" Learning that it had been at the Xie Residence, he was