Reborn As Super Heiress

Of course, Huo Sining had zero interest in all the dirty laundry of the Zhou Family, but because of those old grudges between Su Qingqing and Zhou Zhen, Su Qingqing hated the Zhou Family to the bone. Now that she heard the Zhou Family had gone under, she was naturally gloating and thrilled, itching to shout it to the whole world. There was no way Huo Sining could avoid it, so she ended up hearing a bit too.

Now that the Zhou Family’s affairs were being laid bare, it naturally jabbed right at Zhou Mei’s sore spot. Zhou Mei instantly flew into a rage, stomped her feet, and stormed toward Huo Sining, reaching out to slap her across the face.

Only, Huo Sining’s skills were nothing like before. She could already exchange a few moves with Gu Xu; dealing with someone as weak as Zhou Mei, who couldn’t even truss a chicken, was nothing.

Seeing Zhou Mei rush up, Huo Sining just used one hand to clamp down hard on Zhou Mei’s wrist, freezing her in place so she couldn’t advance even half a step. Zhou Mei’s entire face twisted in pain on the spot, and she couldn’t even manage to speak.

”Hmph!”

Huo Sining gave a cold snort. As she released Zhou Mei’s wrist, she suddenly pushed forward. Zhou Mei’s body staggered backward several steps at once; if Wu Linger hadn’t been bracing her from behind, she would’ve already fallen flat on the ground.

Huo Sining couldn’t be bothered with the two of them and directly turned to look at Jiang Chao off to the side.

”Miss Jiang, can I take a look at the flower in your hands?”

Jiang Chao had already gone dumb the moment she saw Huo Sining, staring at her in near disbelief. Now that she heard Huo Sining speaking to her, her face flushed scarlet, and she nodded again and again, stammering:

”O-okay... I... Huo junior, I—I’m Jiang Chao, a senior in the College of Biology, plant track. I... I’m your fan!”

Huo Sining couldn’t help laughing at that. So this little girl was actually her senior. Seeing Jiang Chao’s excited, starstruck expression like she’d just met her idol, Huo Sining couldn’t hold back a chuckle.

”Alright, I got it. If you want my autograph, you’ll probably have to wait a bit, because right now I want to look at your flower first.”

Jiang Chao froze for a moment, then realized in the next second that Huo Sining had already asked to see her flower three times. Her face flushed even redder, as if it might drip blood, and she hurriedly, clumsily passed the flowerpot over.

Huo Sining took the pot, carefully supporting the bottom with her hand. First she scrutinized the flower up and down for quite a while, then borrowed Azure Pearl’s Spiritual Energy to examine it.

Once she tested it, it turned out exactly as she’d expected. The entire plant was suffused with dense Spiritual Energy, which was enough to show it was an old specimen. Judging by the look of it, it was indeed a first-generation Xishu Daoguang without a doubt!

A trace of a smile flashed in Huo Sining’s eyes. She silently said ”sorry” to Wu Linger and Zhou Mei in her heart. It was rare to run into such a great steal; if she didn’t pick it up, she really would be letting down her title as Queen of Treasure-Hunting!

Huo Sining lifted her head to look at Jiang Chao and asked with a smile, ”Are you planning to sell this flower? What’s your asking price?”

Jiang Chao was stunned for a moment, then immediately realized something:

”Huo junior, you want to buy the orchid? This flower was raised by my mom. I won’t lie to you; she dug it up in the mountains. I don’t know that much about orchids—just heard people back home say it’s called Xishu Daoguang. We didn’t pay anything for it in the first place, so if you want it, I’ll just give it to you!”

Huo Sining had originally planned to score a bargain, but she was taken aback by Jiang Chao’s words.

From the way Jiang Chao had remained calm and neither humble nor overbearing while facing off against Wu Linger and Zhou Mei earlier, it was obvious she had some understanding of this flower. Maybe she didn’t know it was a first-generation Xishu Daoguang, but even the common, artificially cultivated Xishu Daoguang on the market these days wouldn’t go for less than a hundred thousand.

Such an expensive pot of flowers, and this girl actually said she’d just give it away. While Huo Sining was surprised, she also felt a bit guilty.

She’d been planning to make some money off this girl, but she hadn’t expected Jiang Chao to be so devoted to her idol that she wasn’t planning to take a cent. How was Huo Sining supposed to take advantage of her like that?

”Uh, I just heard someone say your mother’s in the hospital? You’re selling this flower to save her, right? I like the flower, sure, but there’s no reason for me to take your things for free. Besides, you should know, I’m short on many things, but money isn’t one of them. Whatever this flower should cost, that’s what I’ll pay. I’m not going to take advantage of you.”

As she said this, Huo Sining glanced over at Wu Linger and Zhou Mei and asked with a smile, ”Your hometown’s in Bashu, right?”

Jiang Chao nodded.

Huo Sining continued, ”Then that explains it. I also lived in Bashu for more than ten years. There are a lot of mountain ranges there, and many areas have complicated environments and are rarely visited by people. It just so happens that this kind of untouched ecological environment is the most suitable for orchids to grow.”

”As they say, ’in a secluded valley blooms a hidden orchid.’ I’m also from the College of Biology and happen to know a thing or two about orchids. This orchid of yours, if I’m not mistaken, should be a first-generation Xishu Daoguang. I’m guessing you know what a first-generation Xishu Daoguang means, right?”

At this point, Jiang Chao almost instinctively lifted her head, staring at Huo Sining in shock. ”What?!”

”Xishu Daoguang is native to Bashu, but over the years it’s been over-harvested and has already gone extinct. I didn’t expect your mother to be so lucky as to dig up a first-generation Xishu Daoguang!”

Huo Sining’s explanation was somewhat technical. Many of the onlooking students weren’t biology majors, so they were completely lost. Wu Linger, standing to the side, however, heard every word clearly. Her whole body trembled, and she stared in disbelief at the pot of orchid in Jiang Chao’s hands.

Zhou Mei was also completely confused, like a monk scratching his head in puzzlement. ”What first-generation, second-generation? What’s that Huo girl talking about? Didn’t you say this was an Iris Flower? How come she’s calling it that Xishu what-do-you-call-it? Which one of you is telling the truth?”

”Shut up!”

Wu Linger had already been stunned senseless by Huo Sining’s words.

In fact, Wu Linger had gone through untold trouble recently to find an exceptional orchid, with the same goal as Huo Sining: to participate in next year’s international orchid exhibition. She fancied herself quite knowledgeable about orchids, so the moment she saw the flower Jiang Chao was carrying, she had sworn up and down that it wasn’t an orchid at all, but an Iris Flower.

But now, Huo Sining’s words made it plain she’d misjudged it—and spectacularly so.

Of course she knew what a first-generation Xishu Daoguang meant. The thing was already extinct. If someone really managed to get a pot, even if they didn’t take first prize at the orchid exhibition, they’d at least become a major sensation.

But she’d actually managed to ruin such a golden opportunity!