117: Chapter 117 If it were really possible to go back, who wouldn't want to?

"You want to repay a favor, use your own life to do it. Don't drag me into taking risks to pay off your personal debts."

Lin Fan took two steps toward the edge of the platform and looked down at the bottom of the cliff.

"There are around twenty-something people down there, starving for nearly twenty days, and their eyes have all turned green. If I charge down with a knife, even if I can kill ten, the remaining ten will swarm me. Can I block them? Even if I block them, my arm will be slashed open, and without antibiotics, it will get infected and inflamed within three days. In a week, I'll end up with the same fate as those corpses."

"Is it worth it?"

Song Ya stood in place, her lips moving twice, but she couldn't say anything.

What could she say?

Say it was worth it? Betting Lin Fan's life to gamble on Su Qingxue's life—how could she possibly do that, nor could she manage it.

But she was clear about that group of people down there; saving Su Qingxue was very simple and didn't require Lin Fan to risk his life.

Nor did it require charging down to risk his life the way Lin Fan described.

Song Ya's hands clenched tightly.

She knew what kind of person Lin Fan was.

This man only looked at one thing when doing anything: whether it was worth it.

Emotion couldn't move him, and morality couldn't constrain him. The only thing that could move him was interest.

"Lin Fan." Song Ya spoke up, her voice much lower than before.

"You're right, I have no qualification."

Lin Fan glanced at her. Was she going to cry again?

"But I still want to say it." Song Ya didn't cry like before, but instead said toughly, "You can throw me down after I finish speaking."

Song Ya raised her head. That pair of eyes was different from half a month ago.

In the past, they were clear and carried a bit of naive, foolish luster; now they had turned into something else.

She couldn't quite describe it, but they were much heavier than before.

"If it were just because she was good to me, I wouldn't come to beg you. This reason isn't enough, I know."

Lin Fan didn't move.

"I came to beg you because Su Qingxue is useful."

When these words came out, Lin Fan's eyelids twitched slightly.

Song Ya no longer mentioned the gratitude of that half piece of meat and a few mouthfuls of water.

She took a breath and continued, "Have you ever thought that we still have a chance to go back?"

Lin Fan's brows furrowed slightly.

It wasn't surprise, but rather scrutinizing whether there was any substance in this sentence.

"You said there is no rescue, I believe it. It's been fifteen days, no planes have come, no ships have come, nothing has come."

"But no rescue now doesn't mean never."

"How strong the country's search and rescue forces are, you know better than I do. You are someone who has done bidding documents, and you memorized the data more fluently than I did."

Lin Fan didn't deny it.

Song Ya continued, "If they can't find us this year, what about next year? If they can't find us next year, what about five years? Ten years?"

"Do you think ten years is too far?" Song Ya looked at him. "MH370 was searched for four years without being found, but that was deep in the ocean, and the wreckage sank to the seabed thousands of meters down. We are different; we are on the shore, on an island. As long as someone passes through this sea area, as long as the satellite resolution is raised by another level, as long as a fishing boat goes off course..."

"We can be discovered."

"We didn't sink to the bottom of the sea. As long as we keep living, there is hope."

Lin Fan didn't interrupt her.

This was a signal.

Song Ya's heart tightened; she knew this was her only chance to output all the remaining words.

"Technology progresses every year, and satellite accuracy improves every year. What could be done ten years ago and what can be done ten years later are completely two different concepts."

"What kind of person is President Su's father, Su Zhenbang? He is our country's richest man. He won't give up. If one year doesn't work, two years; if two years doesn't work, ten years. Even if it takes twenty years, he will still search."

"As long as this possibility exists, even if it's one in ten thousand, it's not zero."

Song Ya paused.

"And a one-in-ten-thousand probability is still a probability."

"Lin Fan, have you ever thought that if that day really comes and we can go back..."

She paused to make sure Lin Fan was listening.

"Every single thing you've done on this island, upon returning to civilized society, is enough to get you sentenced several times over."

Lin Fan's fingers stopped.

"Killing people, hoarding supplies, pushing people off cliffs—no matter how many reasons you have here, after going back, the court won't recognize these reasons."

Song Ya bit her lip, and the scar at the corner of her mouth was pulled into a white mark.

"But what if President Su is still alive?"

"She is the boss of Shengtang, and her father is Su Zhenbang. As long as she speaks up for you, everything can be smoothed over completely."

"Whether it's legitimate defense, necessity, or force majeure under the special environment of a Deserted Island—the Su Family can afford the country's best legal team, and Su Zhenbang's connections are enough to wipe this matter clean from beginning to end."

"The premise is that Su Qingxue has to stay alive."

"Alive, and remembering your lifesaving grace."

Song Ya could feel that he was calculating the gains and losses.

What he was calculating was not emotion, not grace, not morality.

It was pros and cons.

"Lin Fan, President Su tore half of her own portion of meat and stuffed it into my mouth that day, and fed me the water she saved, which shows she is not like the others. Deep down, this person still has a bottom line and retains a last bit of humanity."

When Song Ya said this, her voice lowered even more.

"A person who can still share food with others in a desperate situation—I feel that even if you save her, she won't stab you in the back."

"On this island, you saved her life. What she owes you isn't a debt like a piece of meat or a few mouthfuls of water. It's a life."

"The people of the Su Family can afford to owe anything, except for a life. Su Zhenbang started from scratch and built a fortune of hundreds of millions. The rule he believes in most is that every kindness must be repaid, and every debt must be paid. Being able to pass this family motto to Su Qingxue shows that this family recognizes this logic deep in their bones."

"If you agree to save her, her rations and water won't require you to spend an extra share."

This time, Lin Fan turned his head.

"Deduct it from my share."

Song Ya met his gaze, "The same rules as Zhou Kai and Liu Feifei. Whatever Su Qingxue eats and drinks will all come out of my share. If it's not enough, I'll eat a bite less and drink a sip less, and I won't take an extra grain of rice or a drop of water from you."

"If she causes you trouble, you can deal with her however you want."

Lin Fan stared at Song Ya for a few seconds.

A one-in-ten-thousand probability.

This number spun around in his mind twice.

Life on the Deserted Island wasn't impossible to live; there was food, currently water sources, and a dwelling.

Zhou Kai obediently worked, and although Zhang Tao wasn't of much use, at least he didn't get in the way.

That group of people down there would die out in less than a week. The ecosystem on this Deserted Island had already initially formed.

But the question was, then what?

Stay on this island for a lifetime?

Hunt for a lifetime? Roast fish for a lifetime? Guard a Karst Cave and spend one's old age there?

He, Lin Fan, could, but he didn't want to.

A cliff-top platform, a few boxes of canned goods and fresh water, taming three half-dead subordinates.

And a giant snake weighing several hundred kilograms—whether he could spend his old age here was also a question.

If they could really go back, who wouldn't want to go back.

But after going back, every single thing he was currently doing on the island would be a capital crime if brought to court.

Murder, coercion, illegal detention—not a single one could be escaped.

Furthermore...