With the sky mended and humanity thriving, the first gods took their positions in the celestial order.

The Jade Emperor became the supreme ruler of heaven — not by conquest, but by a vote among the other gods, who recognized that he was the most patient among them and patience is the first virtue of administration.

The Kitchen God took his post to watch over households — to record the good and bad deeds of each family and report them to heaven once a year. The City God took his to protect communities. The Dragon Kings took theirs to rule the seas and send rain when properly petitioned.

The system was bureaucratic, which was the point. The gods were not tyrants — they were administrators. There were forms to fill out, proper channels to follow, appeals to file.

Humans complained about this system constantly. "The gods are so slow," they said. "The gods don't listen." But what they meant was: the gods were not magic. The gods were management.

And management, as everyone knows, is the art of making sure things get done — slowly, properly, and with a great deal of paperwork.