Of course, he had not lightly placed his complete and absolute trust in her. He also knew they differed greatly over altering the lake and diverting its waters-that was something she had planned for a long time.
Thus, he had spoken at length with her about it, and ultimately persuaded her to give it up.
But in all fairness, if she truly used this matter to force his hand, he would choose her over the Five Lakes Gang; it would not damage their alliance. Preserve the people and lose the land, and both people and land could be preserved. The Seven Flood Dragons had wandered through several prefectures before finally settling in Bowang, and even now, only seventy years had passed. They had never had any notion of an ancestral seat or sacred sect grounds. As their young master, he understood this principle deeply.
Besides, even taking ten thousand steps back, if they really did part on bad terms, they would merely go their separate ways. He often saw coolheadedness in her eyes; she would never make an enemy for herself without cause.
Yet now, as he looked at this woman, the hostility in her expression had frozen into biting ice, as though she had clutched this poisoned knife now plunging into his throat through several sleepless nights.
Qi Zhaohua likewise looked at the man before her.
But her gaze was not on him. It seemed to pass through him, fixing on certain things behind him.
A considerable part of the man's impression of her was actually true. Shang Huaitong, Pei Ye, Fang Jidao, the scholars and literati-she could win the trust of many people with vastly different positions, because what she offered to earn that trust was the part that was true.
She had indeed never intended to make