The rankings on the Civil Official List are very neat: Chen Xi, Xun Yu, Zhou Yu, Jia Xu, Xun Shen, Guo Jia, Liu Ye, Lub Su, Sheni Pei, Xun Youi, right down to Pang Tong and Sima Lang at positions nineteen and twenty. Generally speaking, the list angered many, but there were also many who believed it was reasonable.
However, when the annotations and final list are added, things become unsatisfactory, yet no one can say it's wrong. You can argue the order of the list is incorrect, but you cannot say that the Civil Official List itself is wrong, for the so-called civil pertains to all non-military matters!
If that is the case, then entries from medicine, engineering, agriculture, and science are indeed justified. But when scholars see this list, they couldn't help but hold their breath, waiting to see Qu Qi.
