The low-key prince summons trainees from the Imperial Household Department at the start of the game.

"My thoughts are somewhat different from Brother Wei's."

Zheng He, who had been mostly silent, spoke up, his voice steady and powerful: "Flattery is a path, but it won't take you far."

"The kind of person Manager Liu can be happy for a while if you flatter him, but when it comes to really important matters, the first person he thinks of will not be the one who is best at flattering him, but the one who is the most reliable and gives him the least trouble."

"What I mean is, do your job impeccably, so that he can't live without you."

Upon hearing this, Gao Lishi chuckled softly: "Brother Zheng is right, but not entirely right either."

"It would be great to achieve perfection, but that takes time, and time is precisely what we have the most to offer and the least to offer."

"Our master is only six years old. We have plenty of time to take our time and build things up. We have no shortage of time."

"But the situation in the palace is ever-changing, and no one knows what will happen tomorrow. If we are too slow, we will miss the opportunity when it comes."

He paused for a moment, then his tone softened. "My idea is to observe first. Observe Steward Liu's temperament, preferences, and weaknesses; observe the relationships between the stewards of each room; observe where there are vacancies, where there are opportunities for personal gain, and where there are risks."

"Once you've figured all of this out, then choose the safest path to take."

Four people, four completely different ways of doing things.

Zhao Gao followed a covert path of forbearance and scheming, Wei Zhongxian followed an overt path of intertwined personal relationships and interests, Gao Lishi followed a middle path of observation and waiting for the right opportunity, and Zheng He followed a solid and pragmatic path.

These four lines intertwined in the darkness of the dormitory. No one said who was right or wrong, because they all knew that different paths were suitable for different people.

In the end, they are all cunning foxes, and discussing these things at this time is less of a discussion and more of a test to probe each other's intentions.

After a moment of silence, Zhao Gao suddenly spoke, a faint smile playing on his lips: "Gentlemen, how about we make a bet?"

"What kind of bet?" Wei Zhongxian asked, intrigued.

"Let's see who among the four of us leaves this dormitory first within a year, and who gets to the very edge of the Imperial Household Department's power first."

Zhao Gao's voice was soft, like a feather falling on water, "The stakes don't need to be high. The loser will clean the winner's chamber pots for a month, how about that?"

Wei Zhongxian was the first to laugh out loud: "Deal! Brother Zhao, you've asked for trouble. You should practice emptying chamber pots beforehand."

Gao Lishi smiled slightly: "I have no objection either. But it's still uncertain who will win or lose in the end."

Zheng He was silent for a moment, then his deep voice rang out, like distant thunder: "Alright. I agree."

The four people remained silent.

In the darkness, four pairs of eyes gleamed with different lights, like four chess pieces that had just been placed on a chessboard. They had not yet made their moves, but the killing intent was already spreading in the invisible confrontation.

The next day, at the third quarter of the Yin hour.

Before dawn, the piercing sound of a gong yanked the new eunuchs in the shared dormitory out of their sleep.

A group of people hurriedly put on their clothes and ran outside, standing in two crooked rows in the yard.

Manager Liu, wearing a thick cotton robe, stood on the steps, stamping his feet from the cold, and grumbling as he urged them on.

Zhao Gao was the first to stand in the courtyard, fully dressed.

His clothes were perfectly wrinkle-free, his belt was tied neither too loosely nor too tightly, and he looked like a knife sheathed in its sheath, cold and calm.

Wei Zhongxian was the third to arrive, but when he arrived he was already talking to the person next to him, and in just a few words he found out where the person was from, how many people were in their family, and what their special skills were.

He could chat with anyone for a bit, and within the time it took to eat a meal, three or four of the new recruits in his batch had already started calling him "Brother Wei".

Gao Lishi arrived at the perfect time, standing in the middle of the queue, keeping a low profile.

But his position was carefully chosen, just within Liu's peripheral vision, neither too far nor too close.

He stood there, upright and focused, looking no different from the other timid newcomers. But if you looked closely, you would notice that every time Manager Liu's gaze swept over his direction, it lingered for a moment longer than others.

This subtle difference is so small that almost no one notices it.

Zheng He was the last to arrive at the courtyard, but not because he had gotten up late.

Before leaving, he straightened out the shoes scattered around the dormitory room and picked up the chamber pot that someone had kicked over.

No one asked him to do these things, but he did them without intending anyone to know.

Manager Liu began assigning tasks for the day.

He assigned the dirtiest and most tiring jobs—pouring out chamber pots and cleaning latrines—to a few of the newcomers he found most disagreeable.

When it was Zheng He's turn, he looked at Zheng He's good physique and waved his hand: "Go chop firewood. The kitchen needs thirty loads of firewood today. You're not allowed to eat until you finish chopping it."

Zheng He nodded in agreement without uttering a single unnecessary word.

Zhao Gao's assigned task was sweeping the entire west courtyard's passageways and courtyard.

He picked up a broom taller than himself and started sweeping from the most secluded corner of the west courtyard. His movements were slow, but each sweep was clean and efficient.

When he glanced at the Moonlit Gate leading from the west courtyard to the front court, he stopped what he was doing and looked up at the tightly closed vermilion gate.

Beyond the gate lies the central government compound of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the route that all officials, from the highest dukes and marquises to civil and military officials, must take to court every day.

He looked away and continued sweeping. The broom swept across the bluestone slabs, making a soft, rustling sound.

Not urgent.

He said to himself.

First, make sure the broom can reach every corner of this palace wall.

Then, make sure your hand can reach every hidden door in the palace walls.

Not far away, Wei Zhongxian walked past the well carrying two buckets of water. When he saw Zhao Gao, he grinned at him from afar, revealing a mouthful of white teeth.

The smile looked warm and welcoming, but Zhao Gao knew that beneath it lay a silent farewell to the old fox.

Gao Lishi was assigned to the kitchen as an assistant, and he was helping the cook prepare vegetables by the stove.

He sat on a small stool, carefully picking celery leaves, while listening intently to the conversation of several old eunuchs in the kitchen.

Who is from the same hometown as whom? Who has a powerful backer? Which steward has a bad temper and should not be offended? Which lady's head maid is the most generous?

He silently absorbed this information into his mind, categorizing and organizing it one by one, as if he were organizing an invisible ledger.

Zheng He was chopping wood in the woodshed with an axe. With one swing, the log split in two cleanly and decisively.

In less than half an hour, he had already chopped the amount of firewood that others would have chopped in a morning, and each piece of firewood was chopped to a uniform thickness and stacked neatly.

The cook in the kitchen passed by, glanced over, clicked his tongue, and said to the kitchen helper beside him, "That new kid is a real workhorse." The kitchen helper peeked over, nodded, and said, "Indeed, much better than the last batch."

Zheng He was unaware of their discussion.

As he chopped wood, he repeatedly analyzed the power structure of the Great Zhou court in his mind.

According to the information provided by the system, the Three Dukes and Four Marquises are all ninth-rank masters. Emperor Wu of Zhou is in his prime. Below the Empress, there are four concubines and nine consorts in the harem, and there are a total of seventeen princes and princesses.

These relationships are intricate and complex, like a giant spider web, and he is now just a lowly servant who can't even touch the edge of the web.

But he wasn't in a hurry; there was no use in being in a hurry. He would first chop away at the problems at hand, one axe at a time, until one day he could stand at a higher vantage point and see the whole picture of the net. At that time, he would naturally know where to start.

The sun gradually rises higher and then slowly sets in the west.

The newcomers in the janitor's quarters were sweating profusely at their respective tasks, and no one noticed that on this ordinary and tedious day, four people had already begun their silent planning.

The palace walls are deep, and the autumn wind is chilly.