Chapter 341 - 332: Visitors from the Ministry of Personnel

Chapter 341: Chapter 332: Visitors from the Ministry of Personnel

With the fighting in Dingzhou slowing down, Huanglong Prefecture had a rare opportunity to rest and recover.

Kong Sen proved to be quite skilled in matters of governance.

Ever since losing the upper hand in his struggle with Bai Yuan, he had focused solely on internal affairs.

Under his administration, the number of stalls and vendors in Huanglong Prefecture City increased considerably, and tax revenues hit a five-year high.

A piece of explosive news, brought by a delegation of officials from the Capital City, spread through the streets and alleys.

"The Hidden Dragon List? What’s that?"

"Lord Bai is mighty!"

"The Flood Dragon of the Northern Territory! He truly lives up to the name!"

...

「Within the Huanglong Prefecture Magistrate’s Office.」

"Vice Minister Li, thank you for your trouble."

Bai Yuan clasped his fists in salute to a refined, middle-aged man.

This man was Li Ru, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, who had come specifically for the matter of the Hidden Dragon List.

He had long known that Yan Shao’an had petitioned the Emperor to place him on the Hidden Dragon List. He just hadn’t expected it to happen so quickly.

The Hidden Dragon List was managed by the Ministry of Personnel, so naturally, the person announcing it would be one of their own.

The fact that a Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel had personally come to Ling Province this time was enough to show the importance the Ministry placed on the Hidden Dragon List.

The Six Ministries of the Xuan Yang Court were the highest administrative bodies, and the Six Ministers were all top-ranking, important officials. Among them, the Ministry of Personnel was indisputably number one.

Though the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel was only a Third-Grade official, his authority was no less than that of some Second-Grade officials with cushier posts.

In the Capital City, the people who wanted to curry favor with Vice Minister Li Ru were as numerous as fish in the sea—simply too many to count.

"Having finally met you, General Bai, I can see you are truly extraordinary."

Li Ru sized up Bai Yuan with curiosity.

The last time Bai Yuan’s name had shaken the Capital City, it was because he had been impeached by the Imperial Censors for slaughtering a major sect.

At the time, all the officials of the Ministry of Personnel, Li Ru included, had thought Bai Yuan’s career was over. They believed that Lingzhou General would be the final stop on his official path.

Yet, unexpectedly, just a year later, they received news that Bai Yuan had been placed on the Hidden Dragon List.

What surprised Li Ru even more was that the petitioner was none other than Grand Protector Yan.

Everyone knew Bai Yuan was a protégé of Xu Dingchun, the Minister of War. For Yan Shao’an to recommend the student of a political rival... well, it was a real eye-opener.

"Lord Bai, now that you are on the Hidden Dragon List, your future is surely limitless."

"You’re too kind, Lord Li."

For once, Li Ru grew serious. "To enter the Hidden Dragon List is to be recognized as a talent of a flood dragon’s caliber. A Second-Grade position will be within easy reach. Lord Bai, you need not be so modest."

Since its establishment, the Hidden Dragon List had only contained three people.

One was a great scholar from an academy in Jiangnan, who now held the position of Grand Scholar of the Wenyuan Pavilion. Although the rank wasn’t high, the post was incredibly prestigious. The top three scholars of every imperial examination were required to study at the Wenyuan Pavilion, so the Grand Scholar’s network of connections was naturally terrifyingly vast.

In fact, without exception, every previous Grand Scholar of the Wenyuan Pavilion had eventually become one of the Six Ministers, holding a key position in the court.

Another was a military genius, similar to Bai Yuan. He was a Martial Artist who had proven his worth through pure martial strength. It was said he had now become the second-in-command of the Southern Garrison Army.

The last person was the most unique—a member of the Li Royal Family, about whom the least was known.

And now, Bai Yuan had been added to the Hidden Dragon List.

As an official of the Ministry of Personnel, Li Ru knew the details of every Xuan Yang official of the Third-Grade and above like the back of his hand.

Bai Yuan had come from humble beginnings and worked his way up to the position of Lingzhou General. His journey was nothing short of legendary. However, precisely because he had no experience serving in the capital, he was ignorant of some of the common knowledge familiar to all Capital Officials.

Li Ru kindly reminded him, "Lord Bai, for the geniuses on this Hidden Dragon List, the Ministry of Personnel must report their progress to His Majesty every three months. There is a small promotion every three years and a major one every five."

Bai Yuan was all too familiar with this sort of system. ’It’s just a talent pool.’

"Lord Bai, you are different from the other three. Your experience in regional posts is already sufficient. I expect it won’t be long before His Majesty summons you to the Capital City."

"Prime Ministers must rise from the provinces, and great generals must emerge from the ranks."

Unlike the other three, they were sent out of the capital, while Bai Yuan would be brought in.

Li Ru continued, "Furthermore, those on the Hidden Dragon List can choose one Cultivation Technique from the Heavenly No. 1 Inner Treasury each year."

At these words, Bai Yuan finally perked up.

’Promotions and the like don’t interest me; they’re far less practical than a Cultivation Technique.’

Ever since Yan Shao’an had helped him obtain the "White Ape Mountain Breaker" from the Heavenly No. 1 Inner Treasury, he had been coveting the other Cultivation Techniques inside. He simply had no way to access them.

’I never thought the Hidden Dragon List would be the key.’

It was a perfect example of finding a path forward just when all seemed lost.

’Wonderful!’

In truth, given how highly the Court regarded the Hidden Dragon List, it would have been no issue to allow the four members to view all the Cultivation Techniques in the Inner Treasury.

It was only because the Grand Tutor worried these young dragons would bite off more than they could chew that this rule had been established.

Li Ru then went on to list the other benefits of the Hidden Dragon List for Bai Yuan.

Besides promotions and Cultivation Techniques, alchemical pills and Divine Weapons were naturally part of the standard package.

When added up, the rewards were shockingly generous. The Court had clearly spared no expense in its bid to secure top talent.

The procedures that followed were much simpler.

First, Bai Yuan summoned the top courtesan in Ling Province to dance at the Prefecture Magistrate’s Office for three days. Afterward, he sent along some "local specialties."

News of Li Ru’s arrival in Huanglong Prefecture quickly reached the other officials in Ling Province, and a grand banquet was, of course, unavoidable.

By the time Li Ru left Ling Province, a full eight days had passed.

Bai Yuan had spent tens of thousands of taels of silver this time around.

If not for his own considerable wealth, a General’s monthly salary of a mere fifty taels of silver coins would have been nowhere near enough to cover such expenses.

But this was the way of officialdom; one could not afford to be stingy in such matters.

To say nothing of the fact that Li Ru was the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, holding a key position with power over promotions.

There was no telling when he might need to interact with him in the future.

...

"You rascal."

After all the guests had departed, Yang Fangyu and Li Huan finally appeared at the gate of Bai Yuan’s residence.

For the past eight days, everyone who entered Bai Yuan’s residence was a Third-Grade Official or higher. They simply didn’t have the status to join such company.

They were self-aware enough to wait until Li Ru had left before paying a visit.

Yang Fangyu thumped Bai Yuan on the chest with his fist.

’The Hidden Dragon List... Damn.’

It was something he wouldn’t even dare to dream of.

Coming from the Yang Family of Jiangnan, he of course knew exactly what the Hidden Dragon List represented.

The three on that list were absolute geniuses. Aside from a select few from the Buddhist and Daoist Sects, they were unrivaled.

The best of the best, prodigies among prodigies!

’A Hidden Dragon is my brother?’

’Just the thought of it is exhilarating.’

Upon hearing the news, Li Huan had rushed all the way from another part of Ling Province to Huanglong Prefecture just to congratulate him.

They were sworn brothers, so there was no need for the grand banquets held for outsiders. They were practical, spending only where it mattered.

Bai Yuan brought out a jar of aged wine, and the three of them leaned against a railing, drinking heartily—a moment brimming with youthful spirit and vigor.

Although the three of them were over thirty, in the grand scheme of their cultivation, they were only just beginning. In that sense, were they not still youths?

Yang Fangyu and Li Huan both gazed at Bai Yuan, their faces filled with emotion.

When the three of them had first met, Yang Fangyu and Li Huan’s family backgrounds were far superior to Bai Yuan’s. If Yang Fangyu hadn’t insisted, someone of Bai Yuan’s status would never have been able to enter their small circle.

Looking at it now, it was simply the best investment Yang Fangyu had made in his entire life.