In the Heavenly Court, beauties were everywhere. Grace Miller was mentally ranking them by flirtatiousness when he suddenly noticed several little heads peeking in and out from behind the door.

"Get out here, you little rascals!"

Grace Miller shouted sternly, feeling quite pleased. These six were all his attendants—so this is what it feels like to call for your underlings.

The attendants came in grinning and bowing obsequiously. The eldest said, "My lord, you look even more radiant today."

The second said, "My lord, you’re becoming more and more handsome and dashing."

The third said, "My lord, could you possibly stand any taller and prouder?"

The fourth said, "My lord, my heart—I'm a fairy, but for you, I’m falling for a mortal."

The fifth said, "My lord, are you secretly using your powers? Why do I feel a bit unsteady on my feet?"

Grace Miller straightened his back and smiled with a smirk. So this is what it feels like to be flattered—no wonder his dad always withheld his allowance unless he said something nice. Turns out, it’s all about enjoying the pleasure.

The sixth said, "My lord, Benjamin Franklin is still waiting for you in the main hall. You’d better go see him—he seems to have something important."

Grace Miller raised his sword-like brows. This sixth one never knew how to talk, but he was loyal enough. Fine, he’d deal with him later.

Benjamin Franklin? Grace Miller pulled up his file from memory. Oh, he was no longer the white-bearded old man from over a thousand years ago in Sun Wukong’s time. Now he was a pretty boy, transferred to the Heavenly Court less than a hundred years ago, with very little seniority. But he’d been recommended by a guest monk from Mount Sumeru’s Great Thunderclap Monastery. That monk was said to be related to the monastery’s property manager, Kāśyapa, who once shared a knowing smile with the Tathāgata—so the new Benjamin Franklin had a lot of clout.

Sigh, better go meet him. Even the Jade Emperor gives this guy some respect—definitely not someone to offend.

"Lead the way."

The six attendants led the Sword God to the front hall.

There were quite a few immortals in the front hall. At the front was the pretty boy Benjamin Franklin, with four others behind him: the Supreme Elder Lord, who hadn’t moved from his spot in thousands of years; the new Marshal Tianpeng, successor to Pigsy, tall and burly, and honestly, looked like Pigsy had been reincarnated into the wrong body; Thomas Jefferson, who’d finally grown up and stopped wearing that red bellyband, now holding his little pagoda and acting every bit the privileged official’s son; and finally, George Washington, that old woman who meddled in Heavenly Court affairs more than anyone. Whenever she was around, trouble usually followed—especially when she smiled mysteriously.

Right now, George Washington was smiling very mysteriously.

Are they promoting me again? Or sending me to the Western Paradise? No way I’m going there—they’re all about abstinence, and I’m not having it.

"I didn’t know the five of you were coming. Forgive me for not welcoming you sooner."

The polite words tumbled out of Grace Miller’s mouth without a thought. As the Jade Emperor’s bodyguard and a general of the Dragon Court, he was a veteran at this.

Except for the slyly smiling George Washington, the other four immortals didn’t show a hint of a smile. Benjamin Franklin coughed twice and said:

"Mm, Sword God, I’m here on behalf of the Heavenly Court’s Personnel Department to announce an important notice."

"Oh? Since when did Venus start managing the Personnel Department?"

Grace Miller asked with a grin, but inwardly he felt uneasy. Notices from Personnel were either promotions or demotions. Judging by these immortals’ grim faces, it probably wasn’t a promotion. But he hadn’t made any mistakes these years—at most, he’d just flirted a bit, maybe held a fairy’s soft hand or two. Surely that wasn’t enough for a demotion? Was the Jade Emperor unhappy? The old guy hadn’t been near a woman in ten thousand years—would he really care?

Benjamin Franklin started putting on airs:

"The Personnel Department didn’t dare come see you, so they reported to the Jade Emperor. The Jade Emperor sent me and these four immortals to handle this unpleasant task. Nothing we can do, Sword God, please bear with us."

The pretty boy invoked the Jade Emperor’s name. Though Grace Miller was grinding his teeth in anger, he still had to keep smiling:

"Haha, Venus, you’re too serious. What kind of notice is it that the Personnel Department wouldn’t dare deliver? Is it because I drew my salary a month early the year before last? I thought I paid it back?"

Thomas Jefferson swung his ancestral little pagoda and said:

"Sword God, at this point, you’re still joking around?"

"Hey, what do you mean ‘at this point’? I’ve seen you and your two brothers joke plenty in front of Sister George Washington." Grace Miller was not only the top swordsman in the Heavenly Court, but also among the top three in verbal sparring.

Thomas Jefferson’s face turned bright red with anger, while George Washington’s mysterious smile grew even wider. Calling an old woman "sister" was always unbeatable.

"Oh, Venus, let’s get to the point. The Sword God General is still in the dark," George Washington said.

Benjamin Franklin coughed twice again and said:

"Sword God, you know about the Heavenly Court’s order to streamline departments and cut redundant staff, right?"

"That—that was eight hundred years ago. I’ve never heard of any department actually being streamlined. Redundant staff? I’m the Jade Emperor’s personal bodyguard—surely I’m not redundant?"

That’s what he said, but Grace Miller’s heart sank. For Benjamin Franklin to dig up such an old law, he was clearly up to no good.

Benjamin Franklin looked down his nose and ignored Grace Miller’s question, continuing:

"A month ago, the Personnel Department held a Sanskrit exam in the Heavenly Court. Do you remember that?"