Su Yang glanced at Zhao Hu Zi and said softly, "If these eight families switch allegiance, what then?"
"This..." Zhao Hu Zi was anxious: "Master Su, all of these seventeen families pledged loyalty to us. If all of them defect, then... wouldn't our power be instantly dismantled?"
"So what if it's dismantled?" Su Yang retorted.
Zhao Hu Zi was stunned, looking at Su Yang in disbelief, suspecting that Su Yang had gone foolish from drinking. Your power is being dismantled, and you still ask me what of it? You say what of it!
Su Yang, however, was calm, and with a faint smile, he said: "Hu Zi, have you ever considered whether these seventeen families truly belong to our side's power?"
"How could they not belong to us?" Zhao Hu Zi said: "Everyone recognizes them as aligned with our side!"
"But can we mobilize them? Can we command them? Can we have them do certain things, make certain sacrifices?" Su Yang asked.
