Chapter 37 The most comforting thing is a constant stream of underhanded tricks and the gentle warmth of a soothing bal
The next few days were anything but peaceful.
Shi Wan belatedly discovered the Oasis Ecological Park's treacherous schemes, which were like needles hidden in a velvet cloth.
Its probing is like the drizzling rain of the plum rain season—not heavy, but seeping in continuously, disturbing people's peace of mind.
Like grit in a shoe, it's not deadly, but it constantly reminds you of its presence.
The packaging box supplier was the first to run into problems.
Since Shi Wan decided to create her own IP character for Meow Meow Mimi Farm, she has contacted several artists with suitable styles on a dedicated app and commissioned many drafts after detailed discussions.
Then, after carefully selecting from these drafts, the most suitable and favorite artist was chosen, and she was regularly commissioned to hand-draw images of the farm's cats for use on the packaging boxes.
She personally oversaw the packaging and materials for each product, testing each sample one by one.
It can be said that they put a lot of thought into it.
Customers gradually recognized her clever ideas, and some even proactively messaged her to ask if she had any plans to release merchandise.
She has always found the collaborations very pleasant. Whether it's the illustrators or the packaging box manufacturers, everyone is very easygoing and a great person when it comes to working together.
However, for the first time in almost half a year, the boss hesitated on the phone, only saying that environmental inspections were strict recently, raw materials were in short supply, and the delivery date would be postponed.
After being asked a couple more questions by Shi Wan, he sighed and gave her a subtle reminder.
“Boss Shi, I won’t beat around the bush with you anymore. Think about it yourself, have you… offended someone? It’s tough for our small business… so please don’t make things difficult for me…”
Shi Wan's fingers tightened around the microphone, her heart skipped a beat, but her tone remained calm, "Mr. Wang, I understand. Thank you for telling me this. Please try your best to arrange the orders that weren't completed before. As for the rest... let's discuss it when we have the chance."
After hanging up the phone, she immediately turned on her computer to search for new packaging suppliers.
This was just the beginning, she knew it.
A man like Zhou Jianming wouldn't be satisfied with just cutting off her family's packaging boxes.
Next, a deliveryman from a partner courier point subtly mentioned that the company had recently implemented new regulations.
The package inspection requirements have become stricter, and the checks are much more thorough. As a result, the delivery time of many products shipped from the farm will be affected, and he personally suggested that Shi Wan consider other logistics companies.
Even the farm's network started acting up, occasionally lagging during live streams and uploading product images at a snail's pace.
Shi Wan called the telecommunications company's technicians to come and check. After inspecting for a long time, they finally said it was an external line problem. Although they were investigating, they couldn't find the cause.
These troubles, individually, are not catastrophic.
The packaging can be replaced, the logistics can be arranged with another company, and network lag can be tolerated.
But they came one after another, like countless tiny grains of sand, accumulating little by little, consuming Shi Wan's time and energy.
She felt like a firefighter, just as she extinguished a small spark on one side, smoke started rising on the other.
She forced herself to stay calm and handled the situation step by step.
Call new packaging box suppliers to compare prices and quality.
Research several other large logistics companies in the vicinity and identify alternative logistics options.
She even encouraged herself by looking at the small cucumbers in the hydroponic greenhouse.
"It's alright, Shi Wan, this is nothing. Starting a business is never smooth sailing."
But the pressure still rose silently like a constantly rising tide.
It felt like a piece of wet cotton was pressing down on my heart, making it hard to breathe.
Shi Wan kept telling herself to stay calm, to be patient, and to solve the problems one by one.
But the effect was still weak.
She went to bed later and later, woke up earlier and earlier, often ate hastily, and her brows were always unconsciously furrowed.
Even the cats sensed her low mood, and they circled around her more often, their meows becoming more tentative and cautious.
The emotional breakdown occurred on a seemingly ordinary afternoon.
She spent two whole mornings meticulously filming and editing a video about the process of making the new flavor of catnip cookies, intending to use it as promotional material for the live broadcast that evening.
The video showcases the entire process from harvesting cat grass to processing and roasting, with heartwarming visuals and detailed explanations, which she herself is very satisfied with.
After saving and backing up the data to ensure everything was correct, she shut down her computer and went to tend to the cat grass field and get busy packing and shipping the goods.
But when I returned in the evening and turned on my computer to upload the materials, I found that the folder where the materials were stored was empty.
Her heart skipped a beat, and she quickly checked the backup drive, which was also empty.
There was no record in the recycle bin.
A chilling panic gripped her instantly.
Undeterred, she restarted her computer and used data recovery software to scan...
But after struggling for more than half an hour, with sweat soaking his forehead, the folder still seemed to have never existed.
Is it a virus?
Or... a cyber hacker?
Thinking of the latter, a long-suppressed anger mixed with immense grievances suddenly surged to the top of his head.
All the frustration and exhaustion accumulated over the past few days found an outlet at this moment.
"Bang!"
She suddenly raised her hand and slammed the wireless mouse next to her onto the ground!
The plastic casing shattered, and the battery rolled out, bouncing a few times on the floor with a cracking sound.
Tears welled up unexpectedly, not because I felt sorry for the mouse, but because of the helplessness of having my efforts easily crushed and my hard work going to waste.
She lay face down on the table, her shoulders trembling uncontrollably, and her suppressed sobs were exceptionally clear in the quiet room.
She thought she was strong enough to deal with these despicable tactics, but when malice actually struck at what she cherished in such a specific and subtle way, she overestimated herself.
Just as she was overwhelmed by negative emotions, she felt something furry rubbing against her ankle.
It's tangyuan (glutinous rice balls).
He walked over without her noticing, and simply stayed quietly by her side.
He even brought his favorite fluffy bunny toy to her slippers.
Shi Wan looked down at him, her vision blurred by tears.
How did the kitten's comforting words make her feel even more wronged?
Tangyuan sat at her feet, his beautiful eyes filled with worry. He rubbed against Shi Wan's ankle and pushed the little rabbit toy forward, "Don't be sad, meow, this is for you to play with."
Immediately afterwards, Mianmian jumped onto the table and used her fluffy head to push open Shi Wan's tightly clenched fists.
Then he pressed his warm cheek against her palm and purred softly and soothingly.
The cats weren't good at sweet talk, nor did they understand why Shi Wan was so sad, but they sensed her grievance and heartbreak.
They are conveying comfort and support in the most direct way.
This subtle warmth, like a ray of sunshine, barely pierced through the gloom in Shi Wan's heart.
Shi Wan raised her tear-filled face and looked at the two furry little lives beside her. Strangely, the violence and grievances in her heart were soothed.
She reached out and touched Mianmian's chin, then rubbed Tangyuan's head, taking a deep breath to try to calm herself down.
Just then, the system interface suddenly popped up on its own without any notification sound.
The farm's customer service system interface then opened automatically.
Instead of text, a clear screenshot of the map location was displayed directly on the screen.
The location clearly points to the third floor of the administrative office building of the Oasis Ecological Demonstration Park, with a specific office highlighted.
Immediately afterwards, an audio waveform began to play automatically.
First came the static, then Zhou Jianming's slightly hoarse voice could be clearly heard speaking to another person.
"...Just teach her a lesson, don't make a big fuss. That video... handle it cleanly..."
A moment later, another indistinct male voice responded to him.
"Don't worry, Mr. Zhou, I'm using a temporary link; they can't find us..."
The audio abruptly ends here.
Shi Wan felt as if her blood had frozen instantly. Tears still clung to her face, but her pupils contracted sharply in shock.
This is not speculation, it's irrefutable evidence!
She stared intently at the screen, her heart pounding so hard it felt like it would burst out of her chest.
The cold, impersonal voice of the customer service system finally arrived.
"Miao: The evidence has been archived. Please issue the next instructions, agent."
Shi Wan took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down.
She stared intently at the words, her heart pounding like a drum.
Miao wasn't asking her if she needed help; she was telling her that it was time to launch the next counterattack.
This doesn't sound like the tone of a passive, supportive program.
It's more like a comrade-in-arms who, upon noticing her breakdown, proactively offered her a sharp weapon.
Tears still clung to her eyelashes, but Shi Wan's eyes had completely changed.
She broke free from that feeling of self-pity and anger, and a light mixed with shock and determination gradually gathered in her eyes.
Shi Wan quickly calmed down.
Should the recording be released directly?
No, it cannot be made public directly.
This could very well lead to an immediate falling out with Oasis, and if Zhou Jianming is pushed too far, he might resort to even more extreme retaliation.
Moreover, she cannot explain the source of the recording, which could very well backfire on her.
After considering it for a while, Shi Wan decided not to make it public directly, but to launch a warning-style counterattack first.
She sent Miao a message.
"Agent: We don't need a direct counterattack plan for now. But could you anonymously send the key parts of this recording to Zhou Jianming's private email address in an untraceable manner?"
Miao replied quickly.
"Miao: Command received, in progress..."
Almost the instant the command was issued, Shi Wan felt a sudden, inexplicable dizziness, as if the air around her had rippled slightly.
In the following days, she clearly noticed a change in customer service representative Miao.
Its responses became extremely slow, sometimes even irrelevant, like a machine running out of energy.
That presence that occasionally revealed humanistic care seems to have disappeared.
A sense of unease and doubt swept through Shi Wan's heart, but more than that, she felt a strange sense of dependence.
Shi Wan had a strange feeling that Miao had paid a great price to help her.
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Author's Note: Tangyuan: Why has Mimi been so miserable lately? Can anyone tell Mimi why?
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