A reality TV show was originally considered a lowbrow form of entertainment.
However, because Sheng Yuxiao participated, and now even Qin Sui has been on it, this supposedly lowbrow entertainment has suddenly been brought to the attention of various wealthy ladies. Under the lead of Mrs. Qin, they've started watching from the very first episode...
"This house is too run-down. How could Xu Qiulai bear to send his son there?"
"It's so dirty."
"But that little girl is really pitiful."
"I've never seen Young Master Sheng so gentle before."
"It's rare to see Qin Sui so patient too."
The wealthy ladies watched while letting out soft exclamations. As the show progressed, their initial disdain gradually turned into sympathy for Li Xiaoya.
Whether their sympathy was genuine or not, they were accustomed to doing charity work anyway. What ill will could they possibly harbor towards a little village girl at this point?
The name Li Xiaoya thus became familiar among them.
Ning Heng, whom Mrs. Qin had mentioned, also heard about this show from his mother.
He wasn't as averse to it as Qin Sui was initially.
"Isn't Brother Sheng there? Alright, I'll go. It'll be like traveling with Brother Sheng."
Ning Heng said, and even posted on Weibo:
@I'mNingHeng: @ShengYX, my mom says she wants to send me to you for reform.
First Qin Sui, now Ning Heng, this immediately caught the attention of curious netizens.
[What's up with you rich people? Are you using Li Xiaoya as some kind of game level to clear?]
[No wonder Li Qingqing's grandfather wanted to get rid of Li Xiaoya. If he sees this news, won't he be even more jealous?]
[They're probably just joking. Let it go, folks. How many wealthy young masters would actually go suffer in a mountain village? The show's rules wouldn't allow for this anyway.]
While the internet was buzzing with discussion, Li Xiaoya suddenly sneezed.
Sheng Yuxiao quickly put a mask on her. "You're not fully recovered yet. Keep the mask on." However, as soon as he put it on, the mask slid down a bit.
Li Xiaoya's face was just too small.
Sheng Yuxiao had to tie a knot in the mask and bend down to put it on her again.
Dou Dawei had been watching this scene from afar, but seeing that they were about to return to Li Family Village, he couldn't wait any longer and rushed over.
"Li-little girl, do you remember me?" Dou Dawei's voice trembled with nervousness.
Sheng Yuxiao glanced at him. "Oh, it's you. You did well in reporting that day. I haven't had the chance to thank you yet."
Dou Dawei's nervous heart eased. Great, with Young Master Sheng saying this, it meant things were looking up.
Li Xiaoya also chirped, "Thank you, uncle, for helping me. And the nurse sister from that day..."
Sheng Yuxiao asked, "Which nurse?" He needed to thank her too, couldn't miss anyone.
Sheng Yuxiao had already unconsciously adopted a parental mindset.
Dou Dawei hurriedly said, "I saw her name tag that day. Her name was Lin Xiaoru."
Sheng Yuxiao nodded, indicating he had taken note.
Dou Dawei rubbed his hands together. "Well, Young Master Sheng, I..."
Sheng Yuxiao appeared very generous. "The reward, right? I'll have someone give it to you." He paused, then asked, "How about 200,000 yuan? Do you have any other requests?"
Li Xiaoya immediately widened her eyes and tugged at Sheng Yuxiao's sleeve.
Her hand was small, so Sheng Yuxiao simply enclosed it in his own, preventing her from moving further.
"You... you're too generous, but I don't want money," Dou Dawei said, calming his excited heart. He knew these rich second-generation were generous, but he didn't expect this level of generosity. Giving away 200,000 yuan in cash without batting an eye, as if it were just two yuan.
"If not money, then what do you want?"
"I... I want to ask Young Master Sheng to invest in my factory."
Sheng Yuxiao frowned, reassessing Dou Dawei.
Even though Sheng Yuxiao was still considered a child compared to him, Dou Dawei couldn't withstand his scrutinizing gaze. He panicked involuntarily and stuttered an explanation, "That day, when I saw Li Xiaoya selling mushrooms with Young Master Qin, I recognized Young Master Qin and wanted to ask him for help. I didn't expect the incident to happen the next day..."
"It was also a coincidence that I was about to go bankrupt and was dealing with selling my property. After clearing out the house, I came out and ran into that Li Hongguang carrying Xiaoya. I... I did indeed want to use this to seek investment. My intentions weren't pure, I..."
Under immense pressure, Dou Dawei, a grown man, started to choke up as he spoke.
Li Xiaoya rummaged in her pocket and handed him a tissue, saying softly, "Judge the deed, not the heart."
Dou Dawei was stunned for a moment, then nodded vigorously in joy, "Yes, yes, judge the deed, not the heart. Thank you, thank you, little girl. You... you know so much! You even know such philosophical sayings!"
Li Xiaoya's voice grew even softer, "Mom taught me."
But then she quickly changed the subject, "But you saved me, how can you ask Sheng Yuxiao for anything?"
Sheng Yuxiao patted her head, "Where are your manners? When will you learn to call me brother?"
Li Xiaoya shook her head and said, "Uncle, I'm very grateful to you. I can repay you, but..."
"There's no 'but'. Still trying to draw such a clear line with me?" Sheng Yuxiao scoffed lightly, then turned to Dou Dawei, "Alright, what kind of factory is it? Explain clearly. Write up a report on your factory's operational situation for me, and also prepare an investment proposal... Write clearly how much funding you need, what it will be used for, and when you expect to break even."
Dou Dawei was immediately filled with admiration.
As expected of a young master from a top-tier wealthy family, completely different from other rich second-generation.
This young man hadn't even graduated from high school yet, but he was already well-versed in these matters, not agreeing impulsively at all.
This young master was quite rational...
But therein lay the problem.
Dou Dawei's face fell as he wondered how to persuade this young master to invest money in a business that might continue to lose money for several years.
Seeing his troubled expression, Sheng Yuxiao immediately understood, "It seems you're well aware that your factory can't make money."
Dou Dawei anxiously said, "Have you heard of the 'Thousand Gold Formula'?"
"I've only heard of Sun Simiao's 'Thousand Gold Prescriptions'."
"That's exactly it! The ancients believed that a human life was worth more than a thousand gold pieces, so they named life-saving prescriptions 'Thousand Gold Formulas'. We were originally a pharmaceutical company specializing in traditional Chinese medicine. We once launched medicines like 'Si Ni', 'Wen Pi Jin', and 'Bai Tou Weng'. We called these compound formulas 'Thousand Gold Formulas', and they were quite famous several decades ago.
"Back then, my father was in charge. After the business grew, his partners urged him to expand to big cities, but he refused. He said only the herbs grown in this poor area were the most authentic. The quality of an herb depends not only on how it's processed but also on its growing environment. For example, the best saffron comes from Iran, and the best gastrodia grows in Shennongjia..."
Dou Dawei wiped his face and continued, "But you see, people from small places can be short-sighted. My father's intention was to help create jobs in our hometown. The bigger our business grew, the more local people would benefit. Who knew... who knew that people in the company would steal our secret formulas and sell them to outsiders! After that, my father fell ill, and the pharmaceutical company went downhill completely."
"By the time it was passed down to me, the pharmaceutical company had become just a factory processing medicinal herbs. Now even the factory is on the verge of collapse. There's a foreign company willing to buy it for just one million. I know they don't want the factory; they want the last secret formula my father left me before he died."
Dou Dawei looked at Sheng Yuxiao with desperation, "I don't want to sell it. I really don't want to sell it to a foreign company. But the shareholders can't hold on anymore, they all want to sell and be done with it... But that won't do. I want it to survive."
Li Xiaoya didn't fully understand, but she could see Dou Dawei's despair and pain. So she rummaged through her pockets again and handed him a piece of tissue.
Dou Dawei said "Thank you" and grabbed the tissue to wipe his face.
"Young Master Sheng, I beg you. I'm not trying to emotionally blackmail you. I just... I just can't give up. Even if there's only a sliver of hope left, I have to try!" Dou Dawei was almost on his knees in front of Sheng Yuxiao.
Sheng Yuxiao raised an eyebrow and lowered his gaze to Li Xiaoya, "What do you think?"
Li Xiaoya looked up in confusion, "Huh? What I think?"
"Yes, I'll go with your decision," Sheng Yuxiao said nonchalantly.
It seemed as if investing this money was truly just like casually spending some pocket change for him.
