Chapter Sixty-Eight: The Script

Su Wannin carefully picked off the petals, bending over and patiently searching flower by flower without complaint. After nearly two hours, she had gathered quite a few blossoms in her hands.

Many people in China didn’t believe in such things; they thought Su Wannin was simply using this as an excuse to take the children outside and find some peace, squatting there for hours. But when they saw she had actually picked a substantial number of flowers, the doubts in the livestream began to fade.

“She really didn’t sleep—she’s picking herbs?”
“Do you honestly believe that? Come on, basic common sense! Who uses flowers for Chinese medicine?”
“But she seems so serious and knowledgeable about Chinese medicine; it doesn’t seem like she’s joking.”
“Even if this really is medicine, could it possibly trade for a fridge and TV? Wouldn’t the villagers have gotten rich already?”

Doubtful voices rolled on and on, and even Wang Zan stayed up, coming to see in person.

Su Wannin ignored it all. After gathering her things, she turned and slipped into her tent, sleeping soundly until morning, woken by the chorus of insects and birds in the forest.

Opening her eyes, she felt the air was fresher than she’d breathed in ages. The hustle of the city had long drowned out the essence of life; people chased after gain and appearance, forgetting the nature of existence.

Pulling open the tent, she found the two children curiously crouched beside the Dragon Creek they’d discovered the night before.

“Mom! This one didn’t bloom!” Nian Nian ran over at once to report.

Su Wannin stroked her daughter’s soft hair and took out the petals she’d collected last night, handing them to her.

“It bloomed at midnight, and I picked it then.”

“Wow! You’re amazing, Mom!”

Nian Nian showed no regret or disappointment over the picking of the flowers, instead clapping her little hands in praise. This brought Su Wannin much comfort.

At that moment, the director’s team arrived, helping Su Wannin and the children return to the road, ready to head home.

“Xiao Ning, yesterday in the livestream, the audience kept questioning whether what you picked was really medicine. Even if it is, how could it trade for a fridge and TV for the elderly couple?” Wang Zan asked the question everyone wanted answered.

Su Wannin replied, puzzled, “Didn’t I explain yesterday? Dragon Creek is a rare medicinal herb, and selling it would easily buy a fridge and television.”

Wang Zan remained dubious.

So Su Wannin suggested directly, “Just find a seasoned Chinese medicine practitioner to vouch for me.”

Wang Zan hesitated at first, but then thought that, if this could curb Su Wannin’s momentum, it was worth a try. Soon, arrangements were made, and a renowned Chinese medicine doctor in the country was contacted via video call.

The audience in the livestream was eager, as were the other three guests who caught wind of the news.

“Let me take a look…” said the old doctor, wasting no words. Since the herb disliked sunlight, Su Wannin shielded it with cloth, displaying it only in dim light.

“It’s hard to see clearly…”

“Why not use some light? Is Su Wannin doing this on purpose?”
“About to get exposed—what’s the point of these tricks?”
“I’m waiting for her to get slapped in the face.”

Su Wannin was patient, showing the herb bit by bit to the camera. After some time, the old doctor grew suddenly excited.

“Yes! That’s it, this is Dragon Creek!”

Even Wang Zan on the other end was incredulous. “There really is such a herb?”

“This is an extremely rare and precious medicinal plant. Judging by its quality, it’s naturally grown, wild, and has tremendous medicinal value!” the doctor explained, then directly offered to buy it. “How do you plan to handle this? Sell it to me, name your price!”

Su Wannin smiled and stepped forward, facing the camera herself. “Doctor, I picked this myself. It has nothing to do with anyone else. My price isn’t high—just one fridge and one TV.”

The old doctor, fearing she’d change her mind, quickly agreed. “Absolutely, I’d give you ten if you asked. Just make sure it’s delivered in perfect condition!”

“Rest assured!”

The livestream exploded, viewers flooding in by the tens of thousands, and the comments scrolled nonstop.

“This old doctor must be a plant by the show, right?”
“If you don’t know, don’t flaunt your ignorance. If you don’t know what Dragon Creek is, look it up.”
“Judging by the doctor’s tone, the value of this herb is far greater than that. Is Su Wannin, the money-lover, really not inflating the price?”

The doctor worked fast; by noon, two large fridges and televisions were delivered to the village and placed prominently in the program’s courtyard.

The other three teams heard the news but didn’t come to congratulate her.

Su Wannin didn’t mind. After bathing, she carefully changed the dressing on Nian Nian’s wound, feeling refreshed.

After lunch, she lay on the rocking chair in the courtyard, enjoying life, when suddenly someone snapped their fingers beside her. Opening her eyes, she saw Vincent behind the camera, urgently gesturing at her.

Su Wannin was puzzled; Vincent was always discreet, and to interrupt her on the show meant something important had happened.

She pretended to head to the restroom, switched off her microphone, and followed Vincent to a corner. He mysteriously took out his phone and handed her a document.

The file was detailed and concise, the sender unnamed, but it included many written and photographic pieces of evidence.

“This was sent to my email just now. I came straight to show you. What do you think—should we call the police?”

The information was all evidence from the previous grape-selling incident, proving that the negative reviews were a malicious, organized slander.

With this proof, a lawsuit by Su Wannin would surely succeed.

“I suspected Shen Shan was behind it, but I didn’t expect the director’s team to be involved as well,” Su Wannin sneered, watching her expression. Vincent knew she was already plotting revenge.

“No need to call the police, just keep the material for now,” Su Wannin decided after a moment.

Vincent agreed unconditionally, though he was curious. “Who sent this?”

Su Wannin glanced at Sui Sui, napping inside the house, her eyes softening with gratitude.