Gu Chi heard her.
He turned his head without a word and looked at Shen Tang.
Shen Tang looked back at him, just as confused.
She thought it over, but couldn't see anything wrong with what she'd said.
"Could it... not be?"
Gu Chi's expression left her uncertain.
His smile faded. "No, my lord is absolutely right."
"Hahaha, I knew it..."
Shen Tang tried to ease the awkward atmosphere with a sheepish laugh that practically overflowed with embarrassment. She wondered what was wrong with Gu Chi today. He was giving her the impression of a woman dealing with her monthly visitor. As she wondered, she discreetly studied his expression. He looked perfectly normal.
Something was off. Very off!
She'd just thought all that, and he hadn't reacted?
Could his Way of the Scholar have stopped working, so he couldn't hear her thoughts?
Shen Tang guessed at the source of Gu Chi's strange mood.
Then she recalled what she'd just discussed with Gu Chi, wondering if she'd hit a sore spot. Could it be that Wangchao wanted her to follow the example of Wu Zhaode and Zhang Yongqing?
It didn't seem that way...
Wangchao didn't think much of either of them.
Gu Chi didn't leave Shen Tang to her wild guesses for long.
He casually tossed out a question.
"What does my lord think of the word 'balance'?"
"Balance means making two or more sides relatively equal, so they can restrain one another."
But it was obvious that her dictionary-style answer wasn't what Gu Chi really wanted, nor was it enough to satisfy him.
Shen Tang cut to the chase and asked the test setter for a hint.
"The 'balance' Wangchao wants to know about—is it between individuals or between factions? Hey, why not give me a hint?"
"Between individuals."
"What