Don't Ask Where People Go After Time Travel

Chapter 1969 Stubbornness
"Shang Zhongyi is dead. Mr. Xie says you're a suspect." Fang Zilan spoke each word clearly and calmly, yet it startled Mo Yang, causing him to jump up as if awakened. "I'm not a suspect!"

Fang Zilan remained calm. "If not a suspect, then what is he? A murderer?"

Mo Yang froze, staring intently at Fang Zilan outside the fence, as she asked, "Mo Yang, do you still recognize me?"

"Fang Zilan," Mo Yang gritted his teeth, "If it weren't for you, Mo Han wouldn't have lost her life."

"Mo Han is dead, so you can't wait to join him?" Fang Zilan's hand, hidden in her sleeve, clenched into a fist. "Have you thought this through? You are not Mo Han, and I will not risk my life to save you."

"When Mo Han died, did you risk your life to save him?" Mo Yang walked to the fence and demanded sharply, "If you risked your life, why wasn't it you who died, but him?"

Fang Zilan did not answer, but the long-delayed injury on her leg, which was almost healed, suddenly ached, as if it were helping Mo Yang to interrogate her—interrogating Fang Zilan, who brought Mo Han to the capital but failed to protect him.

"I owe Mo Han my life, and I will repay him sooner or later." Fang Zilan said expressionlessly, "But I don't owe the Mo family anything, and I don't owe you anything either."

She met Mo Yang's gaze. "If you really become a murderer, don't use Mo Han as an excuse. Confess honestly and openly. Perhaps even in the afterlife, he will still be willing to acknowledge you as his brother."

Mo Yang's lips moved slightly, and he lowered his head. "I've been on the battlefield and killed people. If we're talking about murderers, I was originally..."

“You know this isn’t the same thing.” Fang Zilan interrupted Mo Yang, whether to comfort him or to comfort herself who had once been the Duke of Yue, a veteran of countless battles, but who had perished in the capital.

"Back then..." Mo Yang suddenly stepped forward, gripping the fence tightly, "did you really want to risk your life?"

"What did you say?" Fang Zilan stared blankly at Mo Yang. His voice was very soft, but the words "Princess Rong'an" still clearly reached her ears.

"You killed Shang Zhongyi for Princess Rong'an?" Fang Zilan seemed completely unprepared for this reason and pressed on, "Why?"

"Mo Han and Princess Rong'an had an affair, I don't believe you didn't know..." Mo Yang leaned closer to Fang Zilan and lowered his voice, "If that weren't the case, why did you kill Princess Rong'an?"

Fang Zilan subtly distanced herself from Mo Yang, "Do you think that the death of Princess Rong'an was done by the late Duke of Yue to protect Mo Han's reputation?"

Mo Yang frowned, but before he could say anything, Fang Zilan's expression turned cold, and she said in a chilling voice, "Who told you this?"

"Isn't that so?" A hint of doubt flashed in Mo Yang's eyes, but Fang Zilan laughed as if he had heard something ridiculous. So he couldn't help but continue, "Back at Mushan Pass, you protected Mo Han because of matters between men and women. What wouldn't you do for his reputation?"

Fang Zilan took a sip of tea and said slowly, "Wen Ran has been wandering the martial world for quite some time, but he doesn't have a famous reputation. If he does, it's because he's Lord Wen's younger brother. People in the martial world will give him some face if they're afraid of getting into trouble, but that face is really nothing in the imperial court."

“I seem to remember that Wen Ran also went into business?” Awan couldn’t help but interject. Fang Zilan chuckled, “Perhaps that’s why Wen Ran didn’t make a name for himself. He dabbled in everything but mastered nothing.”

Awan was skeptical, but Fang Zilan curled her lips and said, "However, keeping a low profile has its advantages. Little Awan, why don't you guess how much of the Wen family's poisonous insect and herb business has passed through Wen Ran's hands?"

"You mean..." Awan was shocked, and the teacup in her hand wobbled, almost spilling the tea. Fang Zilan grasped Awan's wrist, "Wen Ran herself would never have imagined that the biggest mistake of her life would be getting to know Zixiu, who is more than just an assassin."

If Zi Xiu was merely an assassin, then Wen Ran was just a stranger she met by chance. But Zi Xiu was more than just an assassin; Wen Ran's shady dealings behind the scenes as a stranger could not escape her notice.

Awan opened her mouth, but before she could say anything, Fang Zilan said to herself, "Now that I think about it, my acquaintance with Wen Ran was probably not accidental, but rather premeditated."

"Fang Zilan..." Awan called out, and Fang Zilan stared at her intently. "What's wrong?"

Awan pulled her hand away from Fang Zilan's, put down her teacup, and looked concerned. "I bet you were very upset when you finally figured it out yourself, layer by layer."

Fang Zilan remained silent for a while before asking, "Why do you think I'm sad?"

“It’s true that Zi Xiu is a ruthless killer, but precisely because of that, those in the martial arts world who can befriend her are even more precious to her.” Awan said earnestly, “But in the end, she found out it was all a deception, and even their meeting might have been premeditated. How can she not be heartbroken?”

“It’s not the first time.” Fang Zilan laughed self-deprecatingly. “In my situation, deception is always involved. It’s always better to think things through beforehand than to be kept in the dark and lose your life without knowing why.”

“These are two different things,” A-Wan said matter-of-factly. “Does thinking it through mean I won’t be sad anymore?”

"More than being sad, I want Wen Ran to pay the price." Fang Zilan avoided Awan's gaze and said in a deep voice, "Zixiu will be present at this ghost marriage."

"Are you really going?" Awan's expression changed, but Fang Zilan seemed to have made up her mind. "I'm going."

“You know perfectly well that this ghost marriage is a huge affair. Even if not many people are present, it will still cause a huge uproar if something goes wrong.” Awan clenched her fists tightly. “Moreover, what kind of status does Zixiu have? Once she shows her face, everyone will want to kill her.”

“I know,” Fang Zilan said calmly. “That’s precisely why I’m going.”

"Have you thought about the consequences..." Awan's lips moved slightly, "Is it worth risking your life to ruin Wen Ran's reputation?"

“Zixiu has never lost.” Fang Zilan raised the corners of her lips in a reassuring smile. “So it doesn’t count as a bet.”

"Then I want to go too!" A-Wan persisted, and Fang Zilan chuckled, "What are you going there for?"

“An autopsy,” A-Wan said with an air of righteous indignation. “Once we find out the cause of Lord Wen’s death, we’ll know who’s behind this. If it really is Wen Ran, is there a better time to expose him than during the ghost marriage?”

Fang Zilan shook her head. "If it really was Wen Ran who was behind this, you won't see Lord Wen's body at the ghost marriage; you'll only see an empty coffin."

"Isn't that perfect?" Awan said confidently. "They didn't even dare to release Lord Wen's body during the ghost marriage, which is enough to show that the cause of death was suspicious and they didn't dare to let outsiders know."

"Why are you so stubborn?" Fang Zilan looked helpless but did not try to stop her again.