Don't ask where people go

Chapter 1884 Defection

"I have a question, and I wonder if Lord Fang could answer it for me?" Fang Chongzheng seemed to have anticipated Fang Zilan's reaction and changed his tone, saying, "If Lord Fang can answer my question, I am willing to tell you the thing you most want to know."

Upon hearing this, Fang Zilan's gaze sharpened slightly. She had been making moves since the beginning of the year, from Baiye Temple to the Fang family. Others might not know what she was investigating, but Fang Chongzheng certainly did.

It sounded like a deal, and one she couldn't refuse.

Her silence seemed to be tacit approval, and Fang Chong asked bluntly, "Since Lian Niang was able to poison Duke Jin, why didn't she just go after Pei Poming directly?"

Fang Zilan's expression suddenly froze; she hadn't expected it to be such a simple question. But she still spoke, "Because only Pei Poming in the Pei family never uses medicine. Duke Jin is often ill and always needs medicine. The poison Pei Poming purchased at great expense took advantage of this. It was placed in Duke Jin's daily medicine without being detected, yet it still took his life."

"If this poison were applied to the girl's sleeve dart, would it have the same effect?" Fang Chongzheng pressed. Fang Zilan replied decisively, "Yes, but it wouldn't work as quickly as if taken orally."

Fang Chongzheng said thoughtfully, "If this poison were used on Old Madam Pei or other members of the Pei family, could it also be fatal?"

Fang Zilan answered decisively, "Yes."

She had previously asked Awan to investigate this poison, and Awan told her that it was incompatible with the medicines commonly used by the Pei family, so it would be fatal to the Pei family members, but deadly to others...

Wait, the medicine that the Pei family often uses...

Fang Zilan suddenly realized something, but before she could correct herself, Fang Chongzheng said, "Lord Fang, you are mistaken. Apart from Duke Jin and Madam Pei, it may not be fatal for others to use it."

"What exactly does the Prime Minister want to say to me?" Fang Zilan calmly grasped the teacup beside her. Fang Chongzheng already knew the answer; he was just deliberately creating a diversion to lure her into the trap.

"Lord Fang, as I said, I have a lot to say today, and this is just one of them." Fang Chongzheng took a sip of tea and said calmly, "The medicine used by Duke Jin and Madam Pei is to alleviate the poison of Frost. However, Pei Poming somehow found out the secret behind it and obtained the medicinal ingredient that triggers the poison of Frost."

The Frost Poison? Fang Zilan felt a strange sense of familiarity upon hearing it. Fang Chongzheng looked at her and said, "People from the Ghost Gate should be familiar with this poison."

Fang Zilan's expression suddenly changed, but Fang Chongzheng remained calm. "The medical and poison skills of the previous dynasty are incomparable to those of today. The Frost Poison was originally given to the secret guards to make them obey orders, but it was occasionally given to disobedient court officials, such as the Pei family."

He paused, "Lord Fang must have heard about how the Duke of Jin's mother married into the Pei family to save her clan's lives. Although they survived, they were subjected to endless torment afterward. The Frost Poison in the Duke of Jin's body was inflicted by his mother."

“Military Advisor Qi, what crime have you committed?” Fang Zilan asked indifferently, while Qi Yuming remained kneeling upright. “You released Shangguan Min without permission and harbored selfish motives towards the people of Sanyuan Village. You deserve to die ten thousand times over.”

"It seems Military Advisor Qi still doesn't realize where he went wrong." Fang Zilan looked down at Qi Yuming and chuckled. "Military Advisor Qi's act of releasing Shangguan Min to lure out the treacherous group led by Lusaya is indeed a great achievement. But your biggest mistake was mobilizing troops without authorization. Do you know that the military power in the Northern Border is in His Majesty's hands? Without His Majesty's approval, I cannot even mobilize troops, let alone a mere military advisor like you?" "Lord Fang..." Qi Yuming looked up blankly, a flash of surprise crossing his eyes. Then, Fang Zilan leaned down and whispered in his ear, "Qi Yuming, do you really think I can't guess why you came alone?"

Qi Yuming's surprise turned into fear, but Fang Zilan did not let him off the hook. "You and Huangfu Lin agreed to use me as a scapegoat, but I won't."

After she finished speaking, she stood up leisurely, turned to the solemn soldiers, and said in a deep voice: "Commander Qi's unauthorized troop deployment is an unforgivable crime, but considering his merits, I will spare his life today and deal with him after reporting to His Majesty. Men, take Qi Yuming away and bring him back to the camp."

Qi Yuming blankly allowed the soldiers to take him away, but in his heart he just found it incredibly funny. It seemed that whether it was Shangguan Jing, Huangfu Lin, or even himself, Qi Yuming, they had all underestimated this woman.

Knowing it was a trap, she still stepped in without hesitation, not out of a momentary impulse to gamble everything, but out of a calculated step with a way out.

She had long anticipated that this military expedition would give Huangfu Lin an excuse to impeach her in front of Li Shengxuan. However, if she remained silent, it would only incite discontent throughout the Northern Territory, and she would also be dragged down from her high position by Huangfu Lin.

Fang Zilan's aloofness put her in a difficult position from the start, but she took a risky and unconventional approach.

She pinned the blame for the unauthorized troop deployment on Qi Yuming, yet she also spared Shangguan Min's life to preserve the hopes of the barbarians and the old Shangguan family, making Huangfu Lin hesitant.

At that time, Qi Yuming did not know that Fang Zilan kept Shangguan Min behind entirely out of her own selfish reasons.

When Fang Zilan escorted Shangguan Min and Qi Yuming back to the military camp, as expected, Huangfu Lin had already been waiting in the main tent for a long time.

Fang Zilan looked weary, but she still managed to keep her spirits up and exchanged words with Huangfu Lin for a while. "General Huangfu is here. It seems that the Wang family's wedding procession has already left Yanzhou City."

"Lord Fang's strategic planning and foresight are truly remarkable; his guess is certainly correct," Huangfu Lin said with flattery, then turned to the topic with a troubled expression, probing, "However, I noticed Lord Fang left in a hurry during the banquet today, so I assumed something had happened at the border. I was worried and had to come to the military camp myself to be at ease, but who would have thought..."

Huangfu Lin paused meaningfully, and Fang Zilan frowned slightly, feigning ignorance, and said, "General Huangfu, please speak frankly."

"Since that's the case, then I'll be frank." Huangfu Lin said solemnly, "The military power in the northern border has always been in the hands of the current emperor. It's probably not right for Lord Fang to mobilize troops without permission."

"I thought it was something else." Fang Zilan sneered disdainfully. "When a general is in the field, he may disobey the emperor's orders. In times of emergency, one should act expediently." I'm sure His Majesty will understand.

"Urgent matters necessitate expediency?" A hint of sarcasm flashed across Huangfu Lin's face. "Such a crucial matter as military power is far too simplistic for Lord Fang. I will certainly report today's events to His Majesty word for word."

“Very well.” Fang Zilan nodded, and said thoughtfully, “I originally thought that General Huangfu would be understanding and cover up for Qi Yuming, but now it seems that we can only report it to His Majesty for punishment.”