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

When Wei Zhongxian finished walking around the inner court under the scorching sun of the Lesser Heat, his back was already soaked with sweat.

He returned to his duty room, drank two bowls of cold tea, sat down at the elmwood table, and laid out the Xuan paper with the diagram of the relationships between the twelve supervisory offices, four departments, and eight bureaus for a long time.

The paper was covered with dense circles and lines, like a spider web, and he was squatting in a corner of this web, pondering where to start spinning silk.

Chen Ju had already publicly approved the task of compiling and investigating the materials, with the Personnel Department taking the lead.

The edict was delivered to Wei Zhongxian's desk that afternoon, with red characters in black and white and stamped with the official seal of the Imperial Household Department.

Wei Zhongxian placed the edict neatly on the table, flicked the paper with his finger, making a crisp sound, then looked up at the clerks of the Personnel Department who were on duty and smiled, "Gentlemen, after so many years of hard work in the Personnel Department, it's finally our turn to take the lead."

"This organizational review covers all twelve supervisory commissions, four administrative offices, and eight bureaus. They'll go through everything from beginning to end, leaving no stone unturned."

"Make up for what needs to be made up, lay off what needs to be laid off, and investigate what needs to be investigated. If anyone dares to drop the ball at this critical juncture, don't blame Old Wei for being ruthless."

He spoke with conviction, but when he turned around and sat down, he knew better than anyone else what was going on in his heart.

The phrase "compile and investigate" sounds easy, but in practice, it's like stirring up a hornet's nest.

The inner court comprised twelve directorates, four departments, and eight bureaus, with tens of thousands of staff and an annual turnover of hundreds of thousands of taels of silver.

Behind every vacancy may lie a salary that has been accumulating for decades, and behind every temporary transfer may lie a trusted confidant planted by a high-ranking official.

He spent most of his previous life in the Ming Dynasty palace, so he knows best how sensitive things are when it comes to compiling documents.

Moving someone's position will make them resent you more than touching their money.

Money can be earned back, but once you lose your position, you lose everything.

But conversely, because the staffing system is everyone's lifeline, whoever controls the power to investigate and verify staffing holds everyone's lifeline in their hands.

What he wanted to do was not to offend everyone, but to let everyone know that he had this knife in his hand, but only to cut down those who deserved it, while showing leniency to others.

Only in this way, after the investigation is completed, he will not only avoid making too many enemies, but will also have a large number of people who owe him favors.

He divided the personnel department into three groups.

He personally led the first group, which was responsible for the four most crucial government offices: the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs, the Directorate of Imperial Horses, the Directorate of Imperial Supplies, and the Directorate of Palace Attendants.

The second group was led by Zhou An, his most capable clerk, and was responsible for the middle-level government offices such as the Imperial Kitchen, the Imperial Clothing, and the Imperial Furnishings.

The third group is responsible for the remaining four departments and eight bureaus.

After the assignments were completed, each group received the documents and forms and went their separate ways.

He changed into a clean blue palace robe, tied the copper badge of the head of the personnel department around his waist, and strode towards the first station with Xiao Shunzi and two clerks.

His first stop was the Imperial Horse Stables.

The Imperial Horse Administration was located in the northwest corner of the Imperial City, covering a vast area. In front were the stables and hay yards, and in the back were the armory and granaries.

When Wei Zhongxian arrived, Hai Dafu was personally training a spirited horse at the horse farm. He saw a group of officials from the Ministry of Personnel in blue robes coming from afar, threw the reins to the groom next to him, and strode over to greet them.

Hai Dafu, a seventh-rank cultivator, was a burly man who walked with a powerful stride. Standing in front of Wei Zhongxian, he was a full head taller than him, naturally exuding the oppressive aura of a seasoned battlefield general.

"Manager Wei, what brings you here?" Hai Dafu's voice was loud and clear, though his tone was still quite polite.

But when his gaze swept over the clerks behind Wei Zhongxian carrying stacks of blank forms, his brows furrowed slightly.

"Greetings, Admiral Hai." Wei Zhongxian greeted him with a smile, bowing with his hands clasped in a perfectly measured manner, neither humble nor arrogant.

"By order of Chief Steward Chen of the Imperial Household Department, the Personnel Department is to lead a review of the inner court's personnel structure."

"The Imperial Horse Administration is the most important of the twelve administrations, so we dare not neglect it and came here first."

"Admiral Hai, rest assured, we're not here to nitpick. It's just a routine check to verify the number of registered personnel against the number of people actually on duty. It's just a formality."

Hai Dafu glanced at him, his gaze lingering on the smiling face for a moment, before stepping aside to let him through the door: "Please."

He was a straightforward person who hated trivial matters related to paperwork, but the compilation and investigation was an order issued by the Imperial Household Department, so he couldn't openly obstruct it.

He led Wei Zhongxian and his entourage to the duty room, ordered tea to be served, and then had his deputy retrieve the roster of the Imperial Horse Administration from the filing cabinet.

Wei Zhongxian's method of flipping through the roster was extremely sophisticated.

He would quickly skim through each page first, only stopping to examine the sections marked "seconded," "temporarily transferred," or "waiting for replacement" more closely, his brow furrowing slightly from time to time.

Then it quickly relaxed again, like a doctor taking a patient's pulse, feeling some minor ailment but thinking it's not worth mentioning.

Hai Dafu sat opposite him, holding a teacup in his hand, but didn't drink it, his gaze never leaving Wei Zhongxian's expression.

"Admiral Hai," Wei Zhongxian suddenly stopped when he turned to a certain page, pointing to a name with his finger, his tone casual as if he were chatting.

"This groom named Ma Sanbao is listed on the roster as 'temporarily transferred to the Armory Department of the Ministry of War' for a period of three months, but it has been two years and he still hasn't returned from his leave."

"In this situation, according to the rules, it should be considered part of the Armory Bureau's staff, and they cannot occupy a position in the Imperial Horse Administration."

"We're not being argumentative, it's just a routine matter. What do you think? Should we recall him, or formally transfer his employment?"

Hai Dafu was stunned for a moment.

Of course he knew about Ma Sanbao's affairs.

That kid was a distant relative of his. He had been seconded to the Armory and hadn't returned. The Armory was happy to have another person to do the work, and both sides tacitly dragged it out.

This matter wasn't a big deal in itself, but he was somewhat surprised that it was brought up to his face.

What surprised him even more was Wei Zhongxian's attitude; instead of interrogating him, he was trying to discuss things.

He pondered for a moment, put down his teacup, and said in a slightly gentler tone, "We know that Ma Sanbao's matter is against the rules. How about this, we'll have him report back to the Imperial Horse Stables later, so as not to cause you any trouble."

Wei Zhongxian smiled, a very sincere smile, revealing a set of slightly crooked teeth.

He picked up his pen, lightly circled the three characters "Ma Sanbao," and marked them with the words "verified." Then he closed the roster and pushed it aside.

He checked the remaining nine hundred-plus names in less than half an hour, pointing out several similar problems along the way.

Each time, I only touched on the topic briefly, offering a solution before immediately moving on to the next one.

As they left the Imperial Horse Stables, Xiao Shunzi followed behind him and whispered, "Brother Wei, that Ma Sanbao was clearly on illegal temporary transfer. Why didn't you report it directly to Steward Chen? He's a big fish."

Wei Zhongxian glanced back at him, then flicked him on the forehead with a laugh: "Silly, report it to Chief Steward Chen. The credit and favor will go to Chief Steward Chen. We, Old Wei, are just running errands."

"Let Hai Dafu recall the man himself. He owes us a favor. How many people in the Twelve Stables can owe Hai Dafu a favor?"

Xiao Shunzi rubbed his forehead, seemingly lost in thought.

Wei Zhongxian said no more and quickly walked toward the next stop.