Don't Ask Where People Go After Time Travel

Chapter 1708 Gu Nian
"Mr. Xie suspects me?" Fang Zilan raised an eyebrow, but her expression showed no surprise.

“Since the Crown Prince’s wife suspects Lord Zhuge without any evidence, I naturally cannot let go of any clues.” Xie Chen said meaningfully. Fang Zilan stood up and walked to Zhuge Yu’s side. “Mr. Xie is right.”

Zhuge Yu turned his head and saw Fang Zilan standing straight, saying word by word, "I went to see Cheng Zhimo the day before yesterday."

Xie Chen frowned. Although he knew that Fang Zilan had deliberately brought up Cheng Zhiming's name, he couldn't figure out what she was up to for the time being.

"I obtained an account book from Cheng Zhiming," Fang Zilan said, then took out an account book and handed it to a yamen runner to present to Xie Chen.

Xie Chen quickly flipped through the account book, then asked Fang Zilan, "Has the young master's wife read the contents of this book?"

"Is this related to my husband's poisoning?" Fang Zilan asked instead of answering. Xie Chen's expression was serious. "It is not only related to the prince's poisoning, but also to the smuggled poisonous insects and herbs."

“Mr. Xie, I don’t think I’ve ever told you what kind of poison my husband was afflicted with.” Fang Zilan’s expression turned cold. Xie Chen nodded. “The young master’s wife certainly didn’t say, but there is a female physician in the manor who did.”

Fang Zilan remained calm and said, "Judging from Mr. Xie's words, this female doctor can also be considered a witness. Why not invite her to the courtroom as well and question her properly?"

"Princess, there's no need to rush." ​​Xie Chen waved the account book in his hand. "I'll ask again, have you seen the contents of this book, Princess?"

"I've never seen it," Fang Zilan denied outright. Xie Chen pressed, "Madam, why did Cheng Zhiming give you this ledger?"

“My meeting with Cheng Zhiming was purely by chance,” Fang Zilan said calmly. “He didn’t want to expose his whereabouts, so I agreed not to report him. Perhaps in exchange, he handed me this ledger.”

"The Crown Prince's wife trusts Cheng Zhiming so much?" Xie Chen's voice deepened. "He gave you the account books, and you didn't even look at them. Aren't you afraid he'll deceive you?"

Fang Zilan shrugged. "Mr. Xie, I am but a weak woman. It was already difficult enough for me to survive when I encountered Cheng Zhiming, who was in exile, all alone. As for what he exchanged, whether it was true or false, how could I possibly worry about that?"

"Is that so?" Xie Chen's eyes showed obvious suspicion. Fang Zilan lowered her eyes and said, "Now that you two gentlemen have asked, I will present this account book. Whether it is useful or not is up to you to decide."

After she finished speaking, she raised her head, a sharp glint flashing in her eyes. "However, if this ledger becomes a reason for you to doubt me, or even a tool to frame me, I cannot agree to it."

"Same to you, Miss Fang, why are you being sarcastic?" Wen Ya smiled innocently. "This trip took me a lot of effort, Miss Fang, please remember my kindness."

"You're His Majesty's favorite. It would only take you a few words to persuade him to take my pulse. How dare you ask me to recite it?" Fang Zilan said with a forced smile. "If you really want someone to recite it, why don't you go and say something to the young master? I think he'll remember it."

Wen Ya quickly waved his hand, "Never mind, how the young master treats you, others may not know, but you know perfectly well. I don't care if I live too long."

As he spoke, he stepped forward and extended his hand. Fang Zilan cooperated by lifting her sleeve and raising her arm to reveal her wrist.

Wen Ya took her pulse, and his expression gradually became serious.

After a while, Wen Ya withdrew his hand, and Fang Zilan also lowered her arm, asking indifferently, "How was it?" "Not good." Wen Ya shook his head solemnly, and Fang Zilan said expressionlessly, "You are, after all, A-Wan's master, tell me something I don't know."

Wen Ya sighed, "You have been plagued by injuries in recent years, and the Gu poison in your body has been rampant. The pull of these two factors has caused too much damage to your body, and I'm afraid it will be difficult for you to recover."

Fang Zilan gave a casual "hmm," and then asked, "Anything else?"

“If this continues, you will soon die.” Wen Ya slowly lowered his head, but Fang Zilan curled her lips and smiled, “Wen Ya, you have changed.”

Upon hearing this, Wen Ya suddenly raised his head, only to see Fang Zilan smiling casually and leisurely, "No matter how reckless I was before, even if my life was hanging by a thread, you would never say that you were going to die soon. It seems that either you have become weak, or Awan has become strong enough to replace you."

Wen Ya was startled and his expression changed. He looked at A Wan and said in a deep voice, "What did you say to her?"

Awan rarely saw her master with such a gloomy expression, so she quickly waved her hand and said, "It's nothing. I told you that as long as I'm here, I'll make sure she lives as long as she can. The world is so big, I'm sure I can find a way to keep her alive."

With each word she spoke, Wen Ya's face paled a little more.

Fang Zilan is right, Awan has become stronger, but he has indeed become weaker.

In the past, he was so confident in his medical skills that he used to play tricks on people and never took any difficult or complicated diseases to heart. This is why he raised Awan to be such an optimistic and almost arrogant person.

Back then, he even dared to try such a risky and desperate method as planting Gu poison. But now, the Gu poison is becoming increasingly out of his control. The fear of being powerless makes him anxious and worried. He is afraid that one day Fang Zilan will die from the poison, and he will be the instigator who cannot escape the blame. He is even more afraid that Ji Ningtian will be implicated, and then he will be a sinner who has failed the first ancestor of the Ji family for all eternity.

"Wen Ya, it's true that you were the one who suggested planting Gu, but I was the one who did it willingly and happily. So why are you uneasy?" Fang Zilan sat at the table, poured a cup of tea, and handed the teacup to Wen Ya.

Wen Ya hesitated before accepting it, saying, "What you said is somewhat similar to what the young master said."

Fang Zilan raised an eyebrow. Wen Ya looked gloomy, as if he was worried but more concerned. He lowered his eyes and said softly, "The medicine puppet I made for you to test medicine for you is dead."

Fang Zilan's expression changed, and she blurted out, "When?"

“Three months ago.” Wen Ya answered crisply, his tone as light as a feather, yet it made Fang Zilan feel suffocated.

"How did he die?" Fang Zilan tightened her grip on the teacup, causing the clear tea in the cup to sway slightly.

Wen Ya turned his head away from her and said in a low voice, "He was depleted of both qi and blood, and was tortured to death by the Gu poison. Miss Fang..."

Before he could finish speaking, Awan interrupted him, "The medicine puppet will die, but Fang Zilan won't."

Awan's expression was unwavering. She said, word by word, "The medicine puppet is inherently weak and cannot be compared with ordinary people. Moreover, once the medicine puppet is made, it becomes a chaotic walking corpse with no will whatsoever. Fang Zilan has had a very good physical foundation since childhood, and her willpower is even stronger than that of ordinary people. She will not die easily."