A large number of media outlets rushed to the front of the only star-rated hotel in Y County.

Reporters from Y County’s TV station, city reporters, provincial reporters, as well as reporters from Hai City’s newspapers, magazines, and TV stations all came.

Besides these reporters, there are also some people involved in self-media.

Nowadays, self-media can be said to be widespread throughout Hua Country.

In the small county town of Y County, countless people are involved with certain apps, and when they learned that Zhang Gen was staying in Y County, it was as if they’d been injected with adrenaline, each grabbing their phones and rushing over.

Some even quietly slipped into the hotel to get first-hand information.

Zhang Gen couldn’t even dream of going out; if he tries, he’ll definitely get blocked.

He’s stuck in Y County, unable to return, let alone go to find Xiao Yuan’s grandmother.

Xiao Yuan was at home, holding a phone for his grandmother to watch live broadcasts from certain influencers, and seeing the throngs of people in front of the hotel, his grandmother laughed heartily.

The grandmother, who was initially a bit angry and upset, has now put all thoughts aside except for the spectacle.

Yet, Anning wasn’t finished.

The next day, Anning had An Xin post a message on major online platforms, claiming that the Zhang Group would soon send people to negotiate with the Hua government, and additionally, the current leader of the Zhang Group, Zhang Wang, might also visit Hua.

After this message was released, the Zhang family found themselves in a storm of public unrest.

If Zhang Wang wanted to send people to the Xiao family to cause trouble or to harm the Xiao family, these people probably wouldn’t even reach Hua’s borders before being broadcasted by ubiquitous influencers on short video platforms.

The Zhang family’s affairs would not settle down anytime soon, allowing Anning to focus on many other things.

In Fengtai Village, many crops were ripe, and Anning and Si Linna contacted several hotels. Additionally, the flowers planted at Erdaowan were ready to be transplanted. Earlier, when Anning and Si Linna were experimenting at Erdaowan, they sourced some premium flowers from the market; some were particularly difficult to cultivate, some were diseased plants the store owners planned to discard, which Anning and Si Linna collected and planted in the flower fields of Erdaowan.

She intended to transform Erdaowan into a floral kingdom by investing in road construction, installing wrought iron or wooden fences on both sides of the road leading to Erdaowan, and planting various climbing flowering plants under the fences, primarily climbing roses, as well as some bougainvillea and wood scent flowers. Spaces were also left along the roadside for hardy flowers like cosmos.

Upon arriving at Erdaowan, the village entrance is adorned with floral arches made of climbing roses, creating a truly delightful sight from afar.

Due to the growth fluid, the flowers Anning planted quickly thrived, blossoming in no time.

The premium flowers were treated with Growth Liquid No.2, reviving the diseased plants, and a cymbidium even sprouted flowering spikes.

Once the flowers at Erdaowan grew sufficiently, Anning found someone to film them and upload the videos online.

Soon, Y County became famous.

Many people visited Erdaowan.

Visitors came in large numbers, but the reception capacity of Erdaowan was inadequate, leaving the village chief anxiously helpless. Houses couldn’t be built overnight; he could only sigh and watch.

Considering she would likely spend less time in Hai City in the future, mainly staying in Fengtai Village or Erdaowan, Anning sold her several properties in Hai City.

The properties Anning had purchased weren’t very expensive at the time, and with house prices rising over the past two years, she sold them at a great price.

Anning used the proceeds to build several farmhouses in Erdaowan and added some recreational facilities to ensure visitors leave satisfied.

With Erdaowan booming, Mr. Xiao was overjoyed.

He was particularly grateful for listening to Xiao Yuan and purchasing three dilapidated houses earlier.

Previously, he thought buying three houses was not worth it.

He imagined when Xiao Chang passed his civil service exam, he’d surely buy a house in the county town, rendering the home-built abode unoccupied and a sheer waste of money.

But now, upon seeing how things have changed, good heavens, in such a short time, the village land prices have soared.

They’ve increased quite a bit, allowing him to claim he’s made a big profit.

Many villagers praised Mr. Xiao’s foresight, boosting his pride. He pondered even taking out a loan next year to build the house, considering that once it’s built, if the kids don’t live there, it could be rented to tourists, or even converted to a hotel.

Besides Erdaowan, crops improved by Anning in another village were showing results.

Meanwhile, Growth Liquid No.1 made its impact; experts from the Science Academy conducted experiments on desertified grasslands. Areas where Growth Liquid No.1 was sprayed saw rapid grass growth, significantly improving the local environment.

Anning’s account received a sum of money shortly thereafter.

Zhou Tong informed Anning that it was a reward from the state.

A few days later, Qu Lan also transferred a sum of money to Anning.

Anning had no intention of using the money sent by Qu Lan.

Qu Lan’s dowry to Anning was out of affection, and with Anning’s capabilities, she wasn’t short on money, so she wouldn’t take it gratuitously.

After receiving the money, she approached the village chief of Fengtai Village and, after some discussion, purchased an old house from the village. The house had belonged to an elderly man without heirs, who, unable to move in his later years, was cared for by the village committee at their expense. His funeral was also organized by the village, so upon his passing, the house reverted to collective ownership.

Anning then purchased this property from the village. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

After buying the house, Anning hired a construction team to demolish and rebuild it.

She drafted the plans and did the design herself, given Qu Lan’s fondness for traditional architecture, Anning designed a courtyard-style building. With ample space, she created a double courtyard, complete with winding corridors, side rooms, and a porch.

Because Anning had high standards, she hired artisans to make the gateway and such, with gold and colorful decorations adorning the roof eaves and corridors, which required a substantial investment exceeding the money gifted by Qu Lan, even prompting Anning to contribute additional funds.

Indeed, Anning constructed this residence for Qu Lan’s family.

She recognized that in a few years the world would change drastically, making the Capital an uncertain place. Meanwhile, Fengtai Village’s natural blessings and the geological inspections she conducted herself suggested it was very safe, so she planned to bring the Qu family to reside there.

Liu Feifei reviewed Anning’s design and was also particularly fond of the house.

Initially, Liu Feifei considered discussing with her parents to also build a courtyard, but after seeing Anning’s budget, she abandoned the idea.

Upon noticing Liu Feifei’s genuine interest in building a house in Fengtai Village, Anning advised, "You really don’t need to build a courtyard now. There are still some idle houses in Fengtai Village; you can negotiate with the village chief to buy one. It doesn’t have to be big, just four or five rooms will do. Once bought, you can build like the villagers do, and it won’t cost much."

Liu Feifei agreed, knowing that after spending some time in Fengtai Village, development would soon follow, making building a house subsequently impossible. She was determined to stay here instead of returning to the Capital, pondering house construction seriously.

Observing the impending tourism growth in Erdaowan and anticipating Fengtai Village’s upcoming popularity, Liu Feifei knew property purchase would become challenging. Lacking sufficient funds, she’d have to ask Mr. Liu for money.

Considering for several days, Liu Feifei eventually phoned Mr. Liu.

She cautiously shared her desire to stay in Fengtai Village and build a house there, probing if Mr. Liu could lend her some money—not too much, just enough to construct a few basic rooms.

Her words caused Mr. Liu some discomfort.

When had his daughter become so cautious in speaking with him?

Mr. Liu said he’d consider it, leaving Liu Feifei even more uncertain.

Subsequently, Mr. Liu discussed the matter with Mrs. Liu.

Mrs. Liu was reluctant for Liu Feifei to build a house in Fengtai Village.

In her mind, the place was too remote, lacking the prosperity of the Capital. She hoped Liu Feifei would return after staying temporarily.

Mr. Liu too hoped Liu Feifei would come back.

But Liu Feifei was resolute in staying in Fengtai Village.

She repeatedly called Mr. Liu, employing every possible means to persuade both Mr. Liu and Mrs. Liu.