Reborn As Super Heiress

Chapter 634: Chapter 631: The Diseased Plant

One doesn’t go to the Temple of the Three Treasures without a reason; knowing that this Zhao was looking for him, Yan Xuesong was somewhat peeved:

”What could I possibly want? What, is your esteemed Guose Tianxiang on the brink of closure, preparing to sell it off to me?”

Zhao Guotian had a thick skin; despite being ridiculed by Yan Xuesong, he remained cheerful:

”How could that be? My restaurant is still in business, barely making a small profit. I didn’t come to you for that. You should know about my Old Golden Osmanthus, right? I went away on a business trip to Spring City recently and specifically instructed my wife to water it.”

”And that wasteful woman forgot all about it until right before I got back, probably afraid that I would find out, and then she secretly gave the Old Golden Osmanthus a big bucket of water.”

Hearing this, Yan Xuesong couldn’t stay seated any longer; he had seen Zhao Guotian’s Old Golden Osmanthus before and had coveted it for a long time, but the old man treasured it too much and just wouldn’t sell it to him.

Now hearing about Madam Zhao’s actions, Yan Xuesong felt his blood boiling, and he slammed the table and cursed: ”Ignorant fool! Isn’t this just cutting off the Old Golden Osmanthus’s lifeline?”

Zhao Guotian also felt embarrassed being that his own wife was being cursed, but he couldn’t find the words to refute, since it was indeed as Yan Xuesong had said.

The Golden Osmanthus has five fears: fear of alkaline soil, fear of half-watering, fear of drought, fear of waterlogging, and fear of overwintering at high temperatures. After Madam Zhao’s mishandling, the Old Golden Osmanthus was indeed ruined; it wasn’t until its leaves turned yellow that Zhao Guotian realized there was a problem. When he finally took a look, he was instantly dumbstruck.

Because the pot of Golden Osmanthus was placed in the study, to avoid leakage and inconvenience in cleaning, Zhao Guotian had even specially sealed the drainage hole at the bottom of the pot. But when Zhao Guotian lifted up the pot to look, he immediately went pale.

Half of the pot was filled with accumulated water, and the roots of the Old Golden Osmanthus had all rotted...

Zhao Guotian had been preparing to ask Yan Xuesong for help with the Golden Osmanthus to see if it could still be revived. Before he had the chance to seek help, he heard from his subordinates that Yan Xuesong had come to the restaurant.

This was perfect; it saved him a trip to the research institute, and he went straight to the private room to find Yan Xuesong.

After explaining the situation, Zhao Guotian had his staff bring the Old Golden Osmanthus into the Lantingxuan private room.

Indeed, some branches of the Golden Osmanthus already showed signs of withering and even shedding leaves. The entire bonsai had not been lush, and now it appeared even more bleak and pitiful.

Seeing the state of the Golden Osmanthus, Yan Xuesong became furiously angry, his eyes fixated on the diseased plant in front of him, unable to speak for a long while.

Zhao Guotian also felt very uncomfortable; indeed, his wife’s handling of the matter had been a mess.

Yan Xuesong had previously gone to great lengths to buy that pot of Golden Osmanthus from Zhao Guotian, who had always refused to budge. Yan Xuesong had no way to deal with him.

But now, to think that the Golden Osmanthus had been ruined like this under Zhao Guotian’s care, it was no wonder Yan Xuesong had such an angry expression.

Putting himself in Yan Xuesong’s shoes, Zhao Guotian reckoned that if he were Yan Xuesong, he would probably have been cursing while slamming the table long ago.

Although Yan Xuesong looked quite displeased, he was ultimately concerned for the Old Golden Osmanthus. He bent down silently and carefully inspected the plant. Finally, unable to hold back a deep breath, he looked at Zhao Guotian with a mix of sorrow and annoyance, and said:

”This one’s core is already rotten; the disease is terminal. I am powerless to help. You should seek someone else.”

This declaration was essentially a critical illness notice for the old Golden Osmanthus, and Zhao Guotian immediately panicked.

He had put all his hopes on Yan Xuesong, yet unexpectedly, Yan Xuesong gave him this result:

”Come on, Old Yan, I know I handled this in a shady way, I admit my mistake, I apologize, doesn’t that count for something? But you can’t take it out on this Golden Osmanthus. If not even you can save it, then who else can I turn to?”

Yet Yan Xuesong just shook his head, ”I always distinguish between personal and professional matters. If it were a matter of pests or pathogens, you wouldn’t have to ask me—I would save it for you.”

”But you know better than me what’s going on with this Golden Osmanthus. If you had found out about this a few days earlier and come to me, I might have been able to make an effort to try. At this stage, even though it pains my heart and I’m reluctant to let it go, I could not possibly lie to you. Its condition has deteriorated to this point, and I’m limited in my abilities, really helpless to reverse this.”

Zhao Guotian’s shoulders slumped in an instant, looking at the old Golden Osmanthus tree with both heartache and reluctance.

But what could be done? Even Yan Xuesong, a renowned master in the world of flowers and bonsai, was at a loss. It seemed the old Golden Osmanthus had truly been sentenced to death—the end of its days had arrived.

The Golden Osmanthus was different from ordinary flowers; the older it was, the more valuable it became.

The common Golden Osmanthus, being young, bears pale yellow flowers with a light fragrance, whereas the old Golden Osmanthus has deep, golden yellow flowers with an extremely rich scent.

Among flowers, the old Golden Osmanthus is a precious variety. If the plant has an exquisite and grand shape, its price is even more incalculable.

Even Qin Shaoyou and Tian Yuan, two laymen, showed a look of regret, not to mention Yan Xuesong and Hu Yongyuan, the two scholars specializing in plants and trees.

The old Golden Osmanthus in question was planted in a round pot about thirty centimeters in diameter, its stem reaching a height of one and a half meters.

The plant’s roots, like dragon claws, plunged directly into the soil of the pot. The main trunk was inclined, with thick branches that were eight or nine centimeters thick. The bark, like dragon scales, was layered upon layer, and the creases from the bark’s splitting were like ravines, exhibiting a sense of ancient simplicity and solidity.

Atop the main trunk split into three branches, which gave rise to fine branches that formed a thick crown. The leaves of the crown were vivid green with smooth edges, and some branches were even adorned with a few golden yellow flower buds, from which a rich, refreshing fragrance faintly emanated.

Even without much expertise, Qin Shaoyou could tell that this Golden Osmanthus was of great value; it probably wouldn’t sell for less than two hundred and seventy to eighty thousand.

What a pity that due to a watering mishap, this Golden Osmanthus was now wasted.

As the three were silent, suddenly a faint crying of a girl came from outside the door: ”Ningning, I’m sorry, I had no idea Jiang Chuan harbored such intentions. If I had known he was using me to get close to you, I never would have invited you over for this meal.”

”I know, although we haven’t been acquainted for long or spent much time together, I know you, Luo Jinzhi, are not that kind of person.”

Another female voice came through: ”So Jin Zhi, you don’t need to blame yourself or feel upset. Such a person, who is morally bankrupt and without a baseline of decency, is not a good man. Someone like that doesn’t deserve your tears. Being able to see through his true face in time means our attendance here wasn’t in vain.”

”Jin Zhi, in this lifetime, we cannot choose our birth, but we can choose to strive.”

”The words I just said to Jiang Chuan weren’t a joke. You don’t need to feel inferior or belittle yourself. Jiang Chuan looks down on you, right? Well, let him open his eyes wide and watch. Believe me, I will make him regret his actions today!”