Has the Han Dynasty been restored today?

The imperial entourage arrived in Guangdu that night and returned to Chengdu the next day. Jiang Wan and Fei Yi then returned to their respective offices to make final preparations for the emperor's relocation to Hanzhong soon.

Chen Zhi gradually became more and more busy, with no time to spare.

The most important thing is to report back.

This mission to the Wu Kingdom will last from late September to late December. Within three months, all the mission's documents and official seals must be submitted to the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, Jiang Wan, for personal review. Although Chen Zhi went south to catch up with the Emperor, he still had to go to the Imperial Secretariat with Zong Yu to give a comprehensive and formal report. Afterwards, they would enter the palace together to meet Emperor Liu Shan and present Sun Quan's letter to the Emperor.

Having completed the reporting, the next step is to handle matters related to the new position of Vice Minister of Works.

Although the formal appointments would not be issued until after the New Year, the Emperor would be moving to Hanzhong after the holiday, and preparations for the duties of the Secretariat needed to be made in advance. While the Minister of the Secretariat, Jiang Wan, and the Vice Minister of the Secretariat, Fei Yi, were both present, many tasks were arranged.

The Ministry of Works was no exception.

Therefore, Li Yan, the soon-to-be Minister of Works, also met with his two deputies in Taichung to discuss the upcoming arrangements for the Ministry of Works.

Of the two current Vice Ministers of Works, Chen Zhi is one, and the other is Xiang Tiao, son of Xiang Lang. The reason for saying "currently" is that, according to Fei Yi's arrangement, after arriving in Hanzhong, Du Yi, the Military Advisor to the Chancellor, will be appointed as Vice Minister, bringing the total number of Vice Ministers of Works to three. Vice Minister Xiang Tiao will remain in Chengdu, responsible for the Ministry of Works affairs in all prefectures except those within the Northern Expeditionary Army and Hanzhong Prefecture. Minister Li Yan, Vice Minister Chen Zhi, and Vice Minister Du Yi will reside in the Hanzhong Regional Headquarters, responsible for the Ministry of Works affairs in Hanzhong Prefecture and the army.

The Ministry of Works was in a better position. Apart from the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Personnel, which each had only one vice minister, the Ministry of Civil Affairs had two vice ministers, the Ministry of Rites had three vice ministers, and the Ministry of War had as many as four vice ministers.

This arrangement naturally prioritizes the military affairs of Hanzhong, while also taking into account the need to fill redundant positions with the rank of Deputy Minister. There are only six Ministers, so assigning a Deputy Minister to an official of the Nine Ministers level is acceptable, but assigning a Vice Minister would be too low a rank, and even somewhat humiliating.

Regardless, Chen Zhi was satisfied with the current structure of the Secretariat. Offering advice and suggestions, which were then put to use, was a kind of joy in life.

When Chen Zhi came out of the palace, it was already close to dusk. Hearing that Li Yan was preparing to hold a meeting in Taichung, he hurriedly rushed to Taichung.

"Fengzong has arrived."

Chen Zhi looked in the direction of the voice and saw an elderly official with a pale face and a lean build sitting behind a table in the center, while a middle-aged official with a wealthy appearance sat to his left. Without a doubt, these two were Li Yan and Xiang Tiao.

"Minister Chen," Xiang Tiao greeted him politely first.

When you see a deputy minister, the word "deputy" can of course be omitted.

"Greetings, Minister Li and Minister Xiang." Chen Zhi walked in slowly, neither humble nor arrogant, and bowed to the two men before sitting down quite naturally opposite Xiang Tiao.

Xiang Tiao is the son of Xiang Lang. He is known in the state for his erudition. Chen Zhi had heard of him before and had met him about five or six years ago.

Xiang Tiao had previously focused on his studies and had not entered officialdom. Presumably, his appointment as Vice Minister of Works was an arrangement made by Jiang Wan and his father, Xiang Lang. Such things are always unavoidable, and Chen Zhi couldn't even bring himself to ask. Was Chen Zhi allowed to use the emperor's connections, but Xiang Lang wasn't allowed to use Jiang Wan's?

This is the first time Chen Zhi has met Li Yan.

Although it was their first meeting, Chen Zhi already knew of Li Yan's name. In Chen Zhi's memory, there were three impressions of Li Yan. First, he was entrusted by Liu Bei to assist Zhuge Liang in governing the country; second, he caused Zhuge Liang to withdraw his troops for his own selfish interests, and was subsequently dismissed from his post; third, during his tenure as the Prefect of Jianwei, he "discovered" the auspicious omen of a yellow dragon, which helped Liu Bei to become emperor.

Overall, Chen Zhi's impression of Li Yan was more negative than positive. However, Chen Zhi was certain of one thing: Li Yan possessed talent and ability; otherwise, he wouldn't have been valued by Liu Bei back then. But how this man would act after his resurgence was anyone's guess.

Furthermore, Li Yan changed his name to "Li Ping" four years ago, but people usually refer to him by his old name when discussing him.

"Enough with the small talk." Li Yan cleared his throat, his sharp gaze sweeping over Xiang Tiao and Chen Zhi before he said, "I have invited you two here today to discuss matters concerning the Ministry of Works. I have taken some wrong turns in the past, but thanks to His Majesty's great kindness, I have been reinstated. I am revived and will do my utmost to serve you, even at the cost of my life."

"Vice Minister Du Yi is in Hanzhong, and I cannot deal with him for the time being. I will discuss this with him when I arrive in Hanzhong. But now that I have met with the two of you, I must explain what needs to be said now."

"Wenbao, you are the son of Xiang Gong, the Grand Master of Ceremonies. Although you were once known for your talent, you are not good at administrative affairs. Fengzong, you are a close minister of His Majesty and have done a good job in Hanzhong. You are highly valued by His Majesty, but you also lack qualifications. I don't care how you two obtained these positions. If you do not perform your duties well, hinder the work of the Ministry of Works, or disobey orders, I will not show you any leniency."

"Are either of you capable of serving as Minister?" Li Yan's voice grew increasingly stern. "If you are, then proceed as ordered. If not, now come with me to discuss this with Lord Jiang!"

Xiang Tiao's smile froze, making him look somewhat embarrassed and at a loss. He first looked down and then looked up at Chen Zhi, where their eyes met.

Chen Zhi was speechless for a moment.

This is our first meeting. You're only half a rank higher than me, yet you exude such authority?

Although Chen Zhi and Xiang Tiao have little experience in administrative affairs, one is in his early twenties and the other is only forty, making them somewhat inexperienced in their positions as deputy ministers, what is Li Yan's status and qualifications? Can't we all work together to do a good job in the Ministry of Works?

There are only two explanations.

First, Li Yan's thinking was indeed different from others, and he was stubborn and opinionated. But if he were truly so eccentric and inflexible, he wouldn't have kowtowed in the palace until he bled!

Secondly, Li Yan was intentionally damaging his relationships with his colleagues, especially with Chen Zhi, a close advisor to the emperor, in order to become a lone minister.

Being a loyal subject is fine... but this straightforward yet deliberately stern attitude is still somewhat annoying.

Chen Zhi took a breath and cupped his hands towards Li Yan: "Minister Li is the Minister of Works, and the affairs of the ministry should be under his command. We will naturally obey any reasonable orders. Although I am young, I have served as a vice minister in the Ministry of Works before, and I will certainly not neglect my duties."

Xiang Tiao followed suit: "Minister Li, do not worry, I will certainly not make a mistake."

"Alright." Li Yan didn't say much, and replied directly: "Wen Bao will be in charge of all affairs outside Hanzhong Commandery. The affairs of Hanzhong Commandery and the Northern Expeditionary Army can be roughly divided into three categories: land reclamation, weaponry, and logistics. I will personally oversee land reclamation, Du Yi will be in charge of weaponry, and Feng Zong will be in charge of logistics related to the expedition."

"It's settled then! If there's nothing else, you two can both go back."

Chen Zhi and Xiang Tiao looked at each other, and seeing that Li Yan had already begun to drive them away, they had no choice but to get up, cup their hands in farewell, and then walk together outside the hall.

Xiang Tiao is forty years old this year. This is his first time serving as an official. He was a little stunned by the way his superior, Li Yan, acted when they first met. Even after walking more than ten steps, he still looked back at the room he had just been in.

"Minister Chen, what's wrong with Minister Li today?" Xiang Tiao was completely baffled. "He's just been reinstated, why is he treating us like this? He dismissed us with just a few words?"

Chen Zhi smiled and said, "If Minister Li wants to be a loyal minister, then let him be. Minister Xiang need not worry about it."

"By the way, I will be getting married in a few days. An invitation will be sent to your residence. Please come and attend the ceremony, Minister Xiang."

Xiang Tiao nodded: "Of course, Minister Chen personally invited me. As colleagues, how could I not come to offer my congratulations? As for Minister Li..."

As they were talking, Xiang Tiao looked toward the duty room where Li Yan was.

Chen Zhi shook his head and smiled, "It would be impolite not to invite him. Of course I will invite him. Whether he comes or not is his business."

Xiang Tiao smiled without saying a word.