Red tape, as burdensome, unnecessary, and ineffective rules, have been studied extensively by scholars and practitioners. The Chinese government has also repeatedly vouched for red tape reduction in its bureaucracy, but to little avail. Based on participant observation, surveys of 103 junior faculties and subsequent deep interviews with 22 faculties and administrators in R University, we examine a tenure review requirement that calls for extensive teaching skill trainings for junior faculties. We find an organizational Rashomon phenomenon among diverse organizational echelons (junior faculties/deans/university administrators) that acts as a roadblock to red tape reduction efforts. Specifically, members at diverse levels perceive whether this rule constitutes red tape differently and such divergence generates a Rashomon phenomenon that makes red tape a permanent feature in the university: organizational members at varied hierarchical levels give contradictory interpretations to how red tape is formed while shirking their responsibilities or acting inconsistently during institutional efforts to cut red tape.