Vientiane Throne of Civilization

Chapter 1671 This is the Emperor's Decree

After Huo Qubing left, everyone in the Qin Zheng Hall was forced to adapt to a new work rhythm.

During this process, Charman was under tremendous pressure. He was still only a semi-newcomer and didn't even fully understand the extent of the Great Zhou territory, but now he was forced to become a pillar of the Diligent Governance Hall.

Faced with a mountain of work that piled up every day, Charman felt his own incompetence for the first time.

When Huo Qubing was in power, the work in the Hall of Diligent Governance was so well-organized.

Despite the enormous workload caused by the problems in the Saint Laurent region, the tasks are generally completed, and the situation is improving every day, with everyone's work efficiency increasing.

But now, everything has changed...

Compared to Charman, Li Bowen has been feeling extremely uneasy, as if he were sitting on pins and needles, with a fishbone stuck in his throat and a thorn in his back these past few days...

Charman was only a relative newcomer, while he was a veteran who had worked in the Hall of Diligent Governance for many years.

Logically speaking, he should step up and take the lead in this situation.

The reality is that he can't handle anything, and even has to rely on the newcomer Charman to take the lead, which makes Li Bowen quite embarrassed.

Of course, he knew in his heart that both Huo Qubing and Charman in front of him were true geniuses.

The abilities of these geniuses cannot be measured simply by seniority.

As for myself, I can only say that I am already excellent compared to ordinary people, but I am far from being able to compare with these true geniuses.

Let alone Huo Qubing and Charman, even in the secretary's office next door, the newcomer Karl, Li Bowen could sense that his talent was clearly superior to his own.

The only thing the other party lacks compared to me is years of experience in handling government affairs.

Once the other person has worked in the secretary's office for a few more years and accumulated experience, they will soon surpass you.

At that moment, Li Bowen clearly realized that his abilities were no longer sufficient.

No! As an assistant, my own abilities have never actually met the standards.

In the Hall of Diligent Governance, his presence was more like that of Huo Qubing's secretary. When Zhou Xu was around, he would also act as Zhou Xu's secretary, helping them with some miscellaneous tasks so that they could concentrate their relatively limited energy on the truly important work.

With Huo Qubing as his backup, he only needed to do his job well.

Now that Huo Qubing is gone, and Charman is unable to perfectly replace him in terms of work ability, his shortcomings have been exposed.

Should I go to the Saint Laurent region with Old Huo...?

Li Bowen felt a little numb.

No, maybe it's time for me to retire.

Neither Zhou Xu nor Charman knew what Li Bowen was thinking at that moment. After realizing that the Qin Zheng Hall was about to stop working, Zhou Xu had no choice but to stick his butt to the chair in the Qin Zheng Hall and move all the documents that Charman couldn't handle or couldn't handle to his desk to work overtime.

The issue of backlogged documents was addressed relatively promptly. The three of them worked overtime for about two days, and the backlogged documents were basically processed, allowing the Qin Zheng Hall to return to normal operation.

However, this mode has one prerequisite: Zhou Xu cannot practice or study mantras in the afternoon.

Like Charman and Li Bowen, he had to be glued to his chair in the Hall of Diligent Governance all day long, occasionally working overtime for an hour or two, to ensure that the documents sent up each day could be processed in a timely manner.

Simply put, Zhou Xu filled in Huo Qubing's place.

Zhou Xu didn't say anything about this, because he knew there was nothing he could do but wait for Charman to fully mature.

After reviewing the last document, Zhou Xu stretched. It was already 5:30 PM. In early spring, it was already dark. Charman had finished his work and left work a dozen minutes earlier.

Zhou Xu glanced around and looked at Li Bowen, who was still organizing documents in the Hall of Diligent Governance.

"Bowen, is there something you need to talk to me about?"

Li Bowen had finished his work early and could have left on time, but he spent almost thirty minutes tidying up in front of the cabinet. Anyone could tell that someone needed to talk to him.

Upon hearing Zhou Xu's voice, Li Bowen took a deep breath, as if he had made up his mind, and knelt down in front of Zhou Xu with a 'plop'.

"Your Majesty, I have recently found myself overwhelmed by my work and am no longer able to fulfill my duties as an assistant. I humbly request Your Majesty's permission to retire and return to my hometown."

"..."

Faced with Li Bowen's words, Zhou Xu couldn't say he was completely unprepared.

Despite being extremely busy during this period, the sensory domain surrounding the body, which is inherent to Out-of-Body Realm mages, is at work.

Therefore, he was able to detect Li Bowen's emotional fluctuations, and combined with recent events, it was not difficult to deduce Li Bowen's changes in mindset.

"Qu Bing just passed away, and you immediately retired to your hometown? If this gets out, people who don't know the situation will think that I did something that caused me to become disloyal to my subordinates."

Putting down the documents in his hand, Zhou Xu said something half-jokingly.

Upon hearing this, Li Bowen lowered his head even further.

"Wei Chen doesn't dare!"

After saying this, Li Bowen showed no intention of retracting his statement, which gave Zhou Xu a bit of a headache.

Don't underestimate Samsung's talent. Lee Bo-moon is already quite outstanding as a subordinate.

Not to mention his highly compatible talent. A good talent can make one's professional abilities even more outstanding. Li Bowen's actual political ability is close to that of a four-star.

Their Great Zhou has now expanded its territory dramatically, and there are too many places where they need manpower. They are too busy with all sorts of things. At such a time, how could Zhou Xu let Li Bowen retire and return to his hometown?
"The Hall of Diligent Governance is in dire need of capable people right now. I have treated you well over the years. Bowen, if you retire now, won't that just create more problems for me?"

Zhou Xu's words were sincere, and even though Li Bowen had been determined to leave just a moment ago, he couldn't help but waver a little.

Seeing this, Zhou Xu quickly put in even more effort.

"Bowen, I don't care what you think. The Hall of Diligent Governance needs you, and I need you too. You are not yet old enough to retire. Until I allow you to leave, stay here and serve me! This is the Emperor's decree!"

Zhou Xu's tone was firm and domineering, allowing no dissenting voices.

Zhou Xu's move can be considered a combination of soft and hard tactics.

Upon hearing these words, Li Bowen, who had previously harbored thoughts of retreating, couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion.

Yes. The man I've always been loyal to has always been this domineering.

Without thinking, Li Bowen slammed his head to the ground with a thud.

"Your humble servant obeys the decree!"

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(End of this chapter)