Ch 37: The World’s Number One Resort

“Aierjian’s regional manager just called. They want to settle for $200,000. What should we do now?” As Tang Huai was still confused by the sudden activation of the reputation system, back in the 32nd residential building in Donghe City, Guanghai Province, a tense atmosphere filled Zhao Hongxia’s home.

A little over half a month ago, her daughter-in-law had been hospitalized due to a parasitic infection. After a grueling battle in the hospital, the baby was saved, but her daughter-in-law suffered greatly from vomiting and diarrhea. Now, her diet was more delicate than ever. In a fit of anger, Xiao Shengguo took a team from Ace Mediator straight to the Aierjian club. After a series of disputes, both Blue Sea Fish and Ice Spirit Fish were sent to Donghe’s quality inspection center.

Over the past half-month, Zhao Hongxia had been filled with guilt. If she hadn’t impulsively bought those items, her family wouldn’t be going through this ordeal. Though her son and daughter-in-law didn’t blame her, Zhao Hongxia couldn’t get over her own regret.

Zhao Hongxia had completely cut ties with Chen Fenglian. During her daughter-in-law’s hospitalization, Chen Fenglian, trying to avoid any responsibility, hadn’t visited even once! Zhao Hongxia felt utterly disappointed, and in her anger, she was determined to seek justice.

Three days ago, the test results for Blue Sea Fish and Ice Spirit Fish came back. As expected, the parasites in the Ice Spirit Fish exceeded the national safety standard by a hundredfold. Looking at the magnified images of the parasites, everyone felt a wave of disgust. The fish had been vacuum-packed with a production date from half a year ago, yet it had become a breeding ground for parasites that multiplied under the fish’s skin, still writhing even now.

Xiao Shengguo, who had brought along the Ace Mediator crew, could barely stomach the sight after glancing at the test results. Only the camera crew managed to suppress their nausea and zoom in for a detailed shot.

In contrast, the test results for Blue Sea Fish shocked everyone. There were no parasites, and the fish was packed with proteins, vitamins B2, and B12, among other nutrients, at levels a hundred times higher than normal fish. The nutritional content of Blue Sea Fish was so balanced and rich that its vitamin levels rivaled a large box of vitamin B supplements, without any side effects.

“This is a miracle in marine biology. We should consider shifting medical research from land to the ocean,” remarked Wu Daqing, a guest professor from Jing City Medical University, who specialized in pharmaceutical research. Coincidentally, he was visiting his hometown of Donghe on vacation. Upon discovering the uniqueness of Blue Sea Fish, the students at the inspection center immediately contacted him.

Wu Daqing stayed at the Donghe Quality Inspection Center for seven days, where he and the other researchers were far more interested in studying the Blue Sea Fish than the Ice Spirit Fish. While it might have been an exaggeration to say the Blue Sea Fish was equivalent to a box of vitamin B supplements, its myriad health benefits were undoubtedly worthy of extensive research.

Wu Daqing was well-known in academic circles, and after the Ace Mediator crew learned of his involvement, they gave him plenty of screen time. Once the test results were out, Xiao Shengguo proudly carried the report and marched back to the Aierjian club.

“Aierjian is a professional health and bio company. Before the Ice Spirit Fish was launched, it underwent comprehensive health evaluations and met national standards. We do not acknowledge the quality report from Donghe,” came the arrogant response from Aierjian. They didn’t even bother with the usual formalities, bluntly dismissing the findings. After all, Donghe was just a small third-tier city, and its quality inspection reports weren’t as rigorous as national-level testing.

“Shameless!” Xiao Shengguo trembled with anger at their refusal to accept responsibility. He decided to take legal action. Meanwhile, Ace Mediator continued filming the entire process.

After three days of editing, Ace Mediator aired the segment during prime time on Saturday.

“Aierjian? Ha! I bought their $6888 ‘Calming Brain Tonic’ once. Tasted like sugar water—did nothing at all.”

“Aierjian on the news? They just opened a branch near my apartment and have been bugging me to sign up for a membership…”

“Trash Aierjian! My wife has a stomach issue, and they said their ‘exclusive acupuncture method’ would cure it. Her stomach’s still messed up, and now her back’s covered in needle scars… Absolutely worthless.”

Unlike the first episode, the airing of Ace Mediator—Aierjian’s Fight for Justice (Part 2) instantly blew up on Weibo.

Under the official Ace Mediator account, complaints against Aierjian were endless. Aierjian had been in business for nearly a decade, with over 300 branches nationwide, each with multiple subsidiary lines. The company had attracted countless customers across the country, many of whom had been misled by advertising claims and delayed their own treatments… In short, Aierjian‘s products were utterly ineffective!

Aierjian was like an over-inflated balloon, with all the negative press trapped inside. At this point, the balloon had reached its limit, and the show The Road to Justice was the needle that finally popped it.

@BaitianOrange: “Waiting for further updates. @AceMediatorShow.”

Baitian Orange, a well-known social commentator, retweeted the news, propelling the hashtag “Aierjian Road to Justice” to the sixth spot on the trending list.

Weibo, being the most popular social network, naturally attracted users who noticed the ongoing dispute between Xiao Shengguo and Aierjian as they scrolled through the trending topics. Beyond the conflict, people were also intrigued by the contrast between the Ice Spirit Fish and the Blue Sea Fish.

The Ice Spirit Fish was relatively straightforward, but the claims about the Blue Sea Fish seemed almost unbelievable. Wasn’t it the focus of this conflict?

“Blue Sea Fish… Wasn’t that the one recommended by Lazy Fish Yaoyao in her livestream?” Regular netizens don’t forget things that easily. As they dug deeper, some sharp-eyed viewers remembered a live broadcast on Salt Fish’s homepage two months ago.

Indeed, Blue Sea Fish was the overseas fish from that broadcast. As people rewatched the video, they spotted Xiao Shengguo in the background of the stream. How ironic that the story had come full circle.

Lazy Fish’s livestream and the Aierjian scandal were two completely unrelated events. But with both trending at the same time due to The Road to Justice, Lazy Fish, which had been struggling with low traffic, seized the opportunity. The higher-ups decided to push their own hashtag onto the trending list!

Lazy Fish bought the third spot on the trending list, sharing a video clip from two months ago that featured the island content.

Although this was akin to rehashing old content, the video was beautifully shot by Jiang Yaoyao, and now that it had been uploaded to Weibo, it reached tens of times more viewers than before.

“This feels like the grassroots version of This Is Life!”

This Is Life was a popular farming reality show at the time, and many viewers had compared Jiang Yaoyao’s livestream to it. With the release of the edited version, those comparisons resurfaced once again.

Thus, the combination of the three hot topics—Aierjian, Lazy Fish Livestream, and This Is Life—led The Road to Justice to go viral.

As more people followed the story, they became eager for updates on the Road to Justice.

The sudden surge in popularity left not only Xiao Shengguo baffled but also Aierjian’s headquarters in disarray. How could a local show like Ace Mediator spark nationwide attention?

Regardless of the surprise, the attention on The Road to Justice reflected poorly on Aierjian. The company immediately called for an emergency meeting, issuing a stern public statement and deciding to handle the situation with money.

Aierjian offered a settlement of 200,000 yuan to Xiao Shengguo’s side.

“We won’t settle. Even if it’s 2 million, we won’t!” Zhao Hongxia immediately shot down the idea when Xiao Shengguo mentioned the offer in their Donghe City apartment. They weren’t strapped for cash, and after enduring over half a month of frustration, they weren’t going to accept a quick settlement.

“There are quite a few reporters downstairs these days, and the whole country is watching this. We definitely can’t settle,” Xiao Shengguo added, lighting a cigarette. His family owned a clothing factory, and backing down now would hurt their reputation.

“Knock, knock, knock—” Just as everyone was getting ready to consult a law firm the next day, a knock sounded at the door. Xiao Shengguo extinguished his cigarette and went to open the door.

“Hongxia… Oh, Brother Xiao, you’re home!” Outside stood Chen Fenglian, her hair permed in small curls, carrying several large gift bags and greeting them with an overly friendly smile.

Xiao Shengguo: … Hmph, she’s got the nerve to come here.

…

“How did The Road to Justice get tied up with Aierjian?” In the Blue Sea Treehouse on Sora Island, Tang Huai finally understood the sudden surge in his reputation score after reviewing the trending posts on Weibo and Guohu.

Reputation Score: A comprehensive calculation of Sora Island’s global exposure and influence, updated based on both positive and negative factors. 【Note: Positive influence increases the score, negative influence decreases it.】

The Road to Justice show had indirectly boosted Sora Island’s reputation score by quite a bit. Calculating reputation score was a complicated process. Tang Huai had tried to follow the formula provided by the system, but the math was so convoluted it felt like solving complex calculus equations. After half an hour of trying, he gave up on the formula. In any case, the key was to keep managing Sora Island as successfully as possible.

Closing the formula interface, Tang Huai opened the system shop.

Reputation Score: 1.36 million.

Exclusive Reputation Items: A-class Gardener – 500,000. Zixia Immortal’s Sunset Glow – 1 million. Sky-High Ferris Wheel – 5 million…

The exclusive reputation store offered a variety of items, with the cheapest starting at 500,000. After looking around, Tang Huai decided he didn’t need anything at the moment.

He converted his reputation points to island points in one click.

Converted Value: 800,000.

Two seconds later—

Island Points Balance: 892,000
Reputation Score Balance: 560,000+

Tang Huai felt like a wealthy man. Since reputation points were earned through special means, they fluctuated. The “+” sign next to his score indicated a positive trend, meaning the score was still increasing. If it had been a “-,” it would mean a negative trend and decreasing points.

As Tang Huai focused on developing the Sora Island project, he also realized the importance of managing the island’s reputation.

For now, he was financially secure.

After reviewing his personal dashboard, Tang Huai searched for ‘AI Ali.’

Sora AI – Alik: Non-sentient AI. Strength Rating: 96. Price: 100,000 Island Points.

Ali was the first AI Tang Huai had encountered in the system. He had always dreamed of buying it outright when he had enough points.

Now that he had some extra funds and no urgent purchases, it was time to fulfill that two-month-old dream.

After carefully reviewing Ali’s details, Tang Huai clicked “Buy.”

In an instant, 100,000 island points were deducted, and a small AI card appeared in his hand, about the size of a palm.

Since it was non-sentient, the card simply displayed “AI Ali” in bold letters. Tang Huai clicked “Activate…”

“Master.” As soon as Tang Huai clicked, Ali’s towering figure appeared in front of him. This time, Ali’s clothes had changed from grey to black, signifying that the purchase was successful.

“Don’t call me Master, call me Island Lord… Actually, just call me Boss,” Tang Huai corrected, thinking that “Master” didn’t quite fit in this modern, law-abiding era.

“Boss,” Ali replied promptly. As a non-sentient AI, his primary function was to follow Tang Huai’s orders unconditionally.

“When I’m not around, you’re in charge of patrolling the island to ensure its safety,” Tang Huai added, realizing the need for security after the unexpected visit from Li Suhao and his friends. Strengthening the island’s safety measures had to become a priority. However, given the current limitations, Ali would handle basic patrols for now.

With only Sora Port operational and the rest of the island largely in ruins, patrolling wouldn’t be too challenging.

“Understood, Boss,” Ali responded dutifully.

Satisfied, Tang Huai nodded as Ali began making rounds around the Blue Sea Forest.

Tang Huai stretched, doing a few light exercises, before heading to Blue Sea Lake to fetch water. With a bucket in hand, he made his way to the fields.

Name: Sora Pineapple
Type: Fruit-bearing
Growth Progress: 85%
Task Requirement: Reach full growth within thirty days. 22/30
Plant Status: 87 points, Normal.

The system tasks weren’t too demanding, as long as he kept the plant status above 60 points.

Everything seemed to be going smoothly in the Sora Fields, and the same was true for the livestock—both the sheep and the chickens were in good condition. With Li Suhao and the others gone, Tang Huai’s life returned to its original peaceful routine.

Over the next eight days, Tang Huai settled back into his relaxed lifestyle of farming, feeding chickens, and herding sheep.

Meanwhile, the battle between Xiao Shengguo and Aierjian in China was intensifying, attracting more and more public attention. It had grown beyond just Xiao Shengguo’s personal struggle for justice.

One after another, Aierjian’s faulty products were exposed nationwide, and more victims of Aierjian’s schemes came forward. The company was now in disarray, having never anticipated that a single Ice Spirit Fish would lead to such a catastrophe.

Tang Huai kept in touch with Xiao Shengguo, though the matter didn’t directly concern him. Xiao Shengguo didn’t involve Tang Huai much in the ongoing lawsuit. In this time, apart from his reputation score climbing to 2.15 million, domestic events seemed to be happening far away from Tang Huai’s secluded island.

Tang Huai spent eight quiet days alone on the island. During this time, Da Huang fell seriously ill, and its health score dropped to 65, giving Tang Huai a serious scare. He was worried Da Huang might not make it. But Da Huang, being resilient, pulled through and officially entered its mature stage.

On the ninth day, the system updated, and Tang Huai refreshed his task interface.

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