The sun was shining brightly as they left the village committee office, and Chi Wan stretched.

Although Chi Yuanshan and Song Yinghe finally understood why the village chief had targeted them, and knew he likely wouldn’t meet a good end, they still couldn’t feel entirely happy.

Chi Wan, however, was taking it in stride. "Money itself is a test of character, especially without proper oversight. Let’s just chalk it up as a lesson learned."

Hearing his daughter’s worldly words, Chi Yuanshan finally laughed. "You little rascal. Now you’re the one lecturing your mom and dad."

But Song Yinghe stood by Chi Wan. "Well, Wanwan’s not wrong. If we ever donate money again, we’ll have to be much more careful! Not that we have much to donate right now anyway."

Chi Yuanshan put his arm around her shoulder as they walked. "It’s okay. If it really comes down to it, we can always donate some oranges, right?"

Following behind them, Zhou Huaijin watched the family with a smile. He was finally beginning to understand how Chi Wan developed her personality.

But he had something else on his mind and couldn’t help but whisper to Chi Wan, "Um, Junior Sister Wanwan, how about we go take a look at your orchid?"

The Pure Crown Orchid was so precious and delicate that Zhou Huaijin didn’t dare carry it around carelessly.

His original agreement with Chi Wan was to help her deal with the village chief today, after which they would visit his greenhouse to check on the orchid that had inexplicably started to wilt.

Chi Wan had no objection, of course, and led Zhou Huaijin up the mountain. Chi Yuanshan and her mother stayed behind, as they still had a few things to sort out.

But once they reached the mountaintop, before he could even be surprised by any orchids, Zhou Huaijin was utterly stunned by a massive treehouse. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

"Did you build this yourselves...?" His eyes were filled with disbelief. "This is incredible."

Chi Wan blinked, unsure how to explain. She decided to just make something up. "I’ll tell you a secret, but you can’t tell anyone. We actually have a Tianluo... Prince. He can control the plants on the mountain. With a little PEW PEW, the house was built."

As expected, Zhou Huaijin didn’t believe her. He simply played along, amused. "Oh, right, right. That’s great! If it’s the Tianluo Prince, then my orchid can finally be saved, right?"

Chi Wan scoffed playfully. "Guaranteed."

With that, she pushed open the wooden gate and stepped into the yard.

Just as Zhou Huaijin was lost in admiration for an orchid blooming in magnificent splendor, Li Xingye’s voice suddenly sounded in Chi Wan’s ear. "Tianluo Prince?"

Joking around was one thing, but being overheard by the person in question was another entirely.

Chi Wan laughed awkwardly and expertly changed the subject. "Brother Xingye, you’re not busy today? How do you have time to come into the space yourself?"

Li Xingye felt there was a hint of sarcasm in her tone, but he knew Chi Wan would never admit it, so he just went with it. "I’m about to get busy, so I came to take care of business first."

"What business?" Chi Wan asked, puzzled, before a thought struck her. "You mean the space?"

’Could it be that those Zombie Crystal Cores from yesterday caused another huge change in the space?’

Unfortunately, with Zhou Huaijin standing right there, she couldn’t exactly pop into the space to check.

"You’ll see when you go in and look for yourself later. I was actually planning to bring you a kitchen, but since you have a guest, it’s probably not a good time. I’ll come back later."

The phrase "bring you a kitchen" sounded a bit strange. But hearing Li Xingye mention it reminded Chi Wan that he had promised to take care of the stove and everything, since starting a fire in the treehouse was, after all, not very safe.

’But a stove versus a whole kitchen... that’s a huge difference!’

Still, she had to admit she was extremely curious about what a post-apocalyptic kitchen looked like. She beamed. "Okay, you go get your work done. Just let me know when you’re finished~"

After admiring the orchid, Zhou Huaijin suddenly felt a renewed sense of confidence in Chi Wan. The plant was just casually sitting in a pot by the bed, and everything from its flowers to its leaves exuded a relaxed, effortless vitality, showing no signs of meticulous care.

He’d known for a long time that some people were just born with a green thumb; plants they tended to casually would grow better than ones others cultivated with painstaking care.

Don’t ask how he knew.

As for his grandfather’s Pure Crown Orchid... let’s not even talk about it. Maybe it had just lost the will to live because he’d stepped into the greenhouse with his left foot first that day.

In any case, looking at Chi Wan’s orchid, he had the sudden impulse to bring the Pure Crown Orchid over right now and leave it in her care for a few days.

Chi Wan hadn’t intended to refuse Zhou Huaijin anyway. It wasn’t just about repaying a favor; more importantly, she had realized that through him, she finally had a legitimate way to convert her assets into cash.

After a bit of small talk, Zhou Huaijin’s phone chimed.

He read the message and chuckled. "It’s from my senior, Zhuo Yu. She said reporting the Qingshui Village incident opened up a can of worms. The higher-ups are sending an investigation team down directly.

"Liu Yaozu’s career as village chief is officially over. He’s probably kicking himself for ever giving your family a hard time about that orchard."

Chi Wan wasn’t surprised. "Serves him right. People get so used to being greedy they start thinking everything is theirs. Still, knowing my dad, he probably never would have dug up those old donation records if this hadn’t happened. I guess it’s like our ancestors said: what isn’t rightfully yours will be lost in other ways."

Seeing her smug little expression, Zhou Huaijin couldn’t help but smile down at her. "Whose ancestors would that be?"

Chi Wan shot him a look. "Does it matter whose? It makes sense, and that’s what counts. By the way, senior, if I manage to save your orchid, you have to help me spread the word, okay?"

"Don’t you worry. If you can really revive my grandfather’s orchid, you won’t need my help spreading the word. His social circle is full of orchid fanatics who will be lining up at your door." Zhou Huaijin just assumed Chi Wan was planning ahead, laying the groundwork for a post-graduation career.

In his eyes, with that kind of cultivation skill, Chi Wan was so naturally gifted that success was practically chasing her down.

They had originally arranged to see the Pure Crown Orchid tomorrow, but now Zhou Huaijin couldn’t wait another moment. He decided to go get the orchid and bring it back right away, and with that, he hurriedly left Chi Wan’s home.

After seeing Zhou Huaijin off, Chi Wan eagerly entered the space to "inspect" her new kitchen.

But upon entering the space, her first reaction was a thought: ’Do I seem... bigger than last time? After all, the potted plants and chicks don’t look so massive anymore.’

’So, was I shrinking before really just because the space was too small?’

Chi Wan shifted her gaze to the large pit beside the thriving potted plants, and was shocked to discover a small, clear spring bubbling up from the bottom!!

It wasn’t much, only about four or five centimeters deep, but it was the first source of water she had ever seen in the space.

Chi Wan finally understood why Li Xingye had made a special trip to tell her about the space before he got busy. To her, this little bit of water was better than nothing, but to Li Xingye, who was short on both food and water, it was a veritable godsend!