If you die, I will be able to inherit your cultivation.

Zhou Minggang had just sat down in the study, and hadn't even taken two sips of the hot tea in his hand.

Butler Meng then tiptoed in and bowed to report:

"My lord, someone outside is requesting an audience. They say they are a newly appointed official from the Ministry of Justice and have come to pay their respects to the Minister."

They arrived quickly. Zhou Ming placed the teacup on the table and nodded: "Bring him in."

Before long, a middle-aged man dressed in a brand-new court robe followed Steward Meng into the study.

The man was in his early forties, of medium build, with fair skin and three neatly trimmed long beards under his chin, showing that he must have been a handsome man in his youth.

He entered the room with very light steps and his eyes lowered, only stopping when he was directly in front of the desk.

He clasped his hands in a fist salute, bowed deeply, and his voice carried a hint of barely perceptible nervousness:

"Wu Shijun, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, pays his respects to Your Excellency."

Zhou Ming looked him up and down, then nodded slightly: "No need for formalities, please sit down."

When Steward Meng heard Zhou Ming ask the guests to sit down, he tactfully retreated to the door and beckoned to a maid to serve two cups of freshly brewed hot tea.

Wu Shijun sat down in the chair, his buttocks only touching half of the chair surface, his back straight, his hands neatly placed on his knees, his posture respectful to the point of being restrained.

"When did Vice Minister Wu receive His Majesty's decree?" Zhou Ming asked casually, picking up his teacup.

"Your Excellency, I received the decree a quarter of an hour ago. After receiving it, I immediately inquired about the location of your residence and came here right away."

Wu Shijun answered very quickly, clearly having already mentally rehearsed these words several times before coming.

Zhou Ming hummed in agreement, took a sip of tea, and said nothing more.

Silence fell over the study.

Wu Shijun sat in the chair, not daring to breathe.

He secretly raised his eyes and quickly glanced at Zhou Ming.

The newly appointed Minister of Justice sat behind his desk, his face still bearing that same pointed, monkey-like appearance.

His physique does appear much taller and more robust.

But once you sit there, it's as if your whole body is shrouded in an invisible layer of frost.

Zhou Ming's infamy is known to everyone in Youzhou, young and old alike, for his outrageous act of calling a deer a horse in the Taihe Hall half a year ago, and for confiscating the entire families of five or six noble clans in one fell swoop.

The storyteller in the teahouse told several versions of the story over and over again, and each version described the young man with a pointed mouth and monkey-like face as a monstrous, fanged, and man-eating monster.

His heart was pounding when he received the imperial decree.

The Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, a third-rank official, is a position that many people can only dream of. But to be Zhou Ming's deputy is no different from dancing on the edge of a knife.

Now, sitting in this study, with the esteemed man opposite him silently sipping his tea, he felt as if the chair beneath him was covered in needles and needles, every second an ordeal.

"grown ups……"

Wu Shijun finally couldn't hold back any longer and cautiously probed the question.

"The Ministry of Justice's office is currently under construction, and our future office location will be..."

"I know," Zhou Ming said calmly, taking a sip of tea. "You can work here for now."

The study fell silent again.

A fine layer of cold sweat appeared on Wu Shijun's forehead, and his undershirt was sticking to his skin.

He simply couldn't figure out this man's temperament.

You might call him kind, but there's a sharp edge hidden in his eyes.

While he could be described as stern, his tone of voice was unhurried, and he even had tea served to him.

This feeling of being stuck in mid-air, neither here nor there, is even more unpleasant than being directly scolded.

"Then... then, sir, may I... may I first familiarize myself with the office space?"

He cautiously probed again, his voice so soft it sounded like he was asking if he could go to the outhouse.

"No need," Zhou Ming finally raised his eyes, his gaze falling on his face. "Wait a moment."

Wu Shijun quickly pinned his buttocks back onto the chair.

He waited.

If the adults tell him to wait, he will wait, no matter how long, as long as they stop staring at him with those unreadable eyes.

"Lord Wu, do you have a list of officials from the Ministry of Justice?"

Zhou Ming suddenly asked.

Although the tone was still indifferent, at least there was a clear question.

Wu Shijun felt as if he had been granted a pardon. He hurriedly pulled a neatly folded piece of paper from his sleeve and handed it over with both hands:

"Yes, sir, yes...yes..."

Zhou Ming took the paper, unfolded it, and glanced at it.

The paper was densely filled with names, from the Left and Right Vice Ministers to the various department heads, from the Assistant Ministers to the Principal Officers, and then to the various department clerks, all of them were listed.

He couldn't help but nod inwardly, thinking that Chunlan was indeed reliable.

As he was looking at the list, Butler Meng tiptoed in again, bowing and reporting:

"Sir, another guest is requesting an audience at the door."

Zhou Ming nodded, signaling him to bring the person in.

Butler Meng did not turn around immediately. Instead, he looked at the few chairs in the study with a troubled expression and said in a low voice:

"Master, there are quite a few people here, I'm afraid this study might be..."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Ming stood up, folded the list neatly, and put it into his sleeve. He then said to Wu Shijun:

"Lord Wu, let's go see our colleagues together."

Wu Shijun jumped up from his chair and followed Zhou Ming out of the study.

In the front yard, forty or fifty officials dressed in brand-new official robes stood in twos and threes, talking in hushed tones.

Sunlight streamed down from above the courtyard wall, casting different expressions on the faces of the people present.

Some people looked calm, some looked nervous, some were whispering and exchanging information with the people next to them, and some just stood silently, glancing towards the main hall from time to time.

Hearing footsteps approaching, all the whispers stopped abruptly.

Everyone turned around in unison, their eyes falling on the figure walking at the very front.

Zhou Ming walked at a moderate pace, his old dark blue robe faded slightly from washing, standing out starkly against the backdrop of the brand-new court robes filling the courtyard.

But none of the officials in the courtyard felt there was anything wrong with the old robe.

A person's name, a tree's shadow, no matter how old the robe, cannot conceal the chill that seeps from the very bones.

"Greetings, Your Excellency!" Forty or fifty people bowed in unison, their voices echoing through the courtyard.

Zhou Ming stopped on the steps, his gaze sweeping over everyone's faces before he took the list from his sleeve and handed it to Wu Shijun beside him:

"Lord Wu, please take attendance."

Wu Shijun took the list, cleared his throat, and began calling out names one by one.

Those whose names were called stepped forward one by one, clasped their hands in response, some with loud voices and others with voices as soft as mosquitoes.

Zhou Ming stood on the steps, looking at everyone with a blank expression. He was memorizing people and observing them.

After a roll call, most of the names on the list were answered, but when two names were called out, no one in the courtyard responded.

One was Zheng Zhigan, the Right Vice Minister, and the other was Zhang Wenming, the prison warden.

Wu Shijun read it twice, but the only response he received was the autumn wind blowing through the courtyard.