Don't ask where people go

Chapter 1852 Right and Wrong
“If it were only Miss Zixiu here today, the entire Feiling Mountain would surely be unable to keep her here.” Honghe stood up and met Fang Zilan’s gaze. “But now that Young Master Fang and this gentleman are both here, does Miss Zixiu intend to abandon them?”

"Abandon them?" Fang Zilan repeated those four words, then suddenly chuckled. "Miss Honghe, you just said—the Hong Clan, the Wolf Army, are never mountain bandits. But now, with your habit of using hostages as leverage, how are you any different from a mountain bandit?"

She paused, then said meaningfully, "Everyone thinks they are different, able to remain untainted by the mud, but little do they know that conforming to the corrupt is the norm in this world. It seems that the Hong family is nothing more than that..."

"Miss Zixiu!" Honghe interrupted Fang Zilan sharply, "You speak so righteously, yet aren't you just as corrupt as she is?"

“In the past, perhaps so,” Fang Zilan said frankly without any pretense, “but now, and in the future, I will only live for myself.”

She looked at Li Shengxuan as she spoke, "I will only choose what I believe is right, not what others think is good or bad."

“You…” A look of disbelief flashed across Honghe’s face. “Impossible…”

“Nothing is impossible.” Fang Zilan smiled. “Just because you, Miss Honghe, can’t do something doesn’t mean others can’t. Otherwise, why would you and the Second Master resort to threats and bribes to get me to save Hongtai?”

"We...can't save her." Honghe's voice was soft, but Fang Zilan heard it clearly. "Since that's the case, are you still unwilling to agree to my conditions?"

Honghe's expression hardened, and Fang Zilan continued speaking to herself, "To expect me to work for you without paying any price is nothing short of a pipe dream."

A hint of sarcasm crept into her tone. Honghe pursed her lips. "Do you really think you can rescue my brother?"

"Before that, I have some questions that Miss Honghe needs to answer." Fang Zilan didn't answer but asked instead, "If I rescue Hongtai, what will you do?"

"What do you mean by that, Miss Zixiu?" Honghe frowned slightly, as if she had not understood Fang Zilan's words at all.

"You won't return to the Yin residence, and Hongtai hasn't stayed there either." Fang Zilan's expression grew cold. "Do you think Lord Yin Quanzhang will swallow his anger and remain silent and do nothing?"

Her voice deepened, "Or are you and your siblings going to use me as a scapegoat and throw me directly at Lord Yin Quanzhang to apologize?"

“I didn’t mean that…” Honghe waved her hand, but it was not convincing at all. Fang Zilan glanced at her, and she lowered her voice to a whisper, and the rest of her words were barely audible.

"Is that so?" Fang Zilan raised an eyebrow and said coldly, "Miss Honghe, things have come to this point, surely you haven't thought about how to end this?"

Honghe was taken aback. It wasn't that she had never thought about it before; in fact, what Fang Zilan said was something she had also thought about. However, now that such thoughts had been exposed to others, it carried a hint of ruthlessness.

Seeing this, Fang Zilan snorted coldly and said, "Someone once told me that mountain bandits and outlaws are different from people in the martial arts world. They are ruthless, vicious, and cruel. You can talk to them about profit, but you absolutely cannot talk to them about right and wrong."

"How are you feeling?" Fang Zilan sat on the edge of the bed and reached out to touch Awan's forehead, but Awan dodged her hand.

Fang Zilan's hand froze in mid-air for a moment before she lowered it. "Awan, are you still angry with me?" Awan didn't answer, but instead leaned further into the bed. Seeing this, Fang Zilan pursed her lips. "You should rest well. What's wrong..."

"If anything really happens to me, what will you do?" Awan suddenly interrupted Fang Zilan, staring intently at her. "I will protect you, I won't..."

"Won't what? Won't it cause me any trouble?" Awan interrupted Fang Zilan again. "How many people have you said that to? And how many of them are still alive?"

Fang Zilan opened her mouth, but Awan continued on her own, "Young Master Wenran is dead, and Miss Fu Mingyue is dead too. They are not the first, nor will they be the last..."

"Who told you Fu Mingyue is dead?" Fang Zilan frowned, and Awan's eyes reddened. "What, you're trying to hide it from me?"

“I’m not trying to hide it from you.” Fang Zilan shook her head. “At this critical juncture, telling you this news would likely be ill-intentioned on their part.”

“I asked General Meng about Miss Fu Mingyue, and he told me.” Awan sat up. “I don’t care what General Meng’s intentions are, at least he’s willing to tell me the truth.”

"If Meng Tingyang can't save you, what's the use of him telling the truth?" Fang Zilan said irritably, and Awan was even more furious. "Yes, at the mortuary, General Meng let me be taken away by Xiahou Qi and failed to save me. But where are you, who kept saying you would protect me? You chose Prince Yucheng, and you abandoned not only Young Master Wenran, but also me!"

"I..." Fang Zilan's lips moved, while Awan gripped the quilt tightly. "What? You know I can use poison, and that ordinary people can't do anything to me? Or you know my medical skills are superb, and that I won't die if I fall into the hands of ordinary people?"

"I'm sorry." Fang Zilan lowered her eyes, reached out and covered Awan's hand. Awan trembled, but did not pull her hand away.

"Why are you apologizing to me?" Awan turned her head away. "The people who died were Young Master Wenran and Miss Fu Mingyue..."

"The deaths of Wen Ran and Fu Mingyue have nothing to do with whether I intervened to save them," Fang Zilan interrupted A Wan. "They made their choices and have to pay the price. I can save them once or twice, but I can't save them forever. I have a clear conscience."

Awan was stunned for a moment, then heard Fang Zilan continue, "But you are different. Your biggest connection to the Southeast case is your identity as a member of the Ghost Gate. But now, you haven't used that identity to do anything, so you are truly innocent in being dragged into this. It was my fault for not being able to protect you, and I should apologize to you."

"I killed Dugu Linxiu's daughter..." Awan dared not look at Fang Zilan, "And in the mortuary, I also poisoned many people. What if..."

She hesitated for a moment, then said softly, "Mr. Xie wants me to go to court. Will I be convicted?"

“If you go to court regarding the mortuary matter, you will be the victim.” Fang Zilan held Awan’s hand. “If you hadn’t poisoned them, you would be the one who died.”

“I know, but that was a living, breathing human life after all…” A-Wan didn’t finish her sentence, and Fang Zilan tightened her grip on her hand. “It’s not your fault, it’s my fault for not taking good care of you.”

"Are you scared?" Awan asked out of the blue. Fang Zilan nodded without hesitation. "Yes, it's because I'm scared that I've survived until now."