Chapter 144: Chapter 144

Several minutes later, the lab results came in. "The mosquito repellent bag contains no other substances."

Jiang Xiaoze was skeptical. "But my bites are real! And it really does seem like the mosquitoes are only biting me!"

"That’s because you threw away your mosquito repellent. Besides, individual body chemistry varies, and some people are simply more prone to mosquito bites than others."

"I don’t believe it!"

"If you insist, then after we go ashore, you can choose a testing center you trust to perform the tests. We’ll proceed entirely according to your wishes."

An Yan’s consistent calm finally made Jiang Xiaoze break down. "I’m sorry! I thought you had harmed me first, so I tried to scare you!"

An Yan asked, "Then do you know why I still saved you after you scared me with the snake, but not Bai Zhi?"

Jiang Xiaoze’s eyes revealed a kind of pure, unadulterated cluelessness. "Why?"

"Because you were set up by her! You only wanted to scare me, but she wanted me in jail!"

"Ah?" Jiang Xiaoze felt like her brain was about to short-circuit. Miss Bai Zhi was so gentle and kind; what on earth was An Yan talking about?

A nearby staff member frowned unconsciously. "Miss An Yan, could there be some misunderstanding here?"

Overall, Bai Zhi was mindful of her reputation and aimed to project the image of a gentle, magnanimous, and kind lady from a distinguished family.

An Yan stated, "There’s no misunderstanding. If you don’t believe me, I’ll have her tell you herself!"

With that, she turned, walked out of the camera’s view, and took a bottle from a nearby desk. Lifting the cloth covering it, she revealed a green snake soaking inside!

The director’s eyes narrowed. "Miss An Yan, did you... did you put last night’s snake into wine?"

The director was almost in tears. A Green Tail! That’s a Green Tail, a national first-class protected wild animal! And a guest on his show used it to make snake wine!

"Of course not," An Yan said. "This is a different kind of snake; it just looks somewhat similar."

"Really?" the director asked.

"Then what do you mean?"

"I mean, let’s have Miss Bai Zhi believe this is the snake from last night."

So, she’s planning to entrap her! The director understood her intention.

An Yan turned to glance at Jiang Xiaoze. "Just watch and don’t say anything. Understood?"

Jiang Xiaoze quickly covered her mouth. She was struggling to keep up with how quickly things were developing. Why was An Yan so convinced Bai Zhi wanted to harm her? And why was An Yan so sure Bai Zhi would confess upon seeing the snake wine? Bai Zhi had always defended An Yan!

After a few injections, Bai Zhi woke up. Her eyelashes fluttered a few times before she slowly opened her eyes. Seeing An Yan, she instinctively propped herself up on her arms and tried to shrink back. "What are you doing?"

An Yan held up the needle in her hand. "Saving you! If it weren’t for me, you’d still be unconscious."

Bai Zhi was much quicker on the uptake than Jiang Xiaoze. With a glance, she realized they were still live broadcasting and immediately forced a smile. "Then thank you, Miss An Yan."

"You’re welcome. Just transfer one hundred thousand yuan to my account."

Bai Zhi didn’t hesitate. "Okay, I’ll transfer it as soon as I get my phone."

"No need to wait. Do it now."

An Yan gestured. A staff member immediately handed Bai Zhi a phone, explaining, "Due to the emergency, everyone was worried about the artists’ safety, so the phones are being returned early. This way, you can inform your families you’re safe."

Bai Zhi was speechless.

With the phone in hand, Bai Zhi had no choice but to transfer 100,000 yuan to An Yan.

After hearing the notification that the funds had been received, An Yan said generously, "Seeing as Miss Bai was so prompt, I’ll gift you a bottle of snake wine. A small cup each night will enhance your beauty and prolong your life."

As she spoke, An Yan picked up the bottle of snake wine and presented it to Bai Zhi.

Bai Zhi’s eyes instantly widened. "You... you, An Yan! You killed the Green Tail?"

An Yan raised an eyebrow. "What Green Tail? This snake wandered into my tent yesterday. I saw it wasn’t venomous, so I used it to make wine."

Bai Zhi looked horrified. "An Yan, you actually made wine from a nationally protected animal! Do you realize the trouble you’re in? Director! Where’s the director?"

All the surrounding staff members turned to look at Bai Zhi.

Bai Zhi was frantic. "What do we do? An Yan, this is a nationally protected animal! And we’re live broadcasting; many people saw it! You... you should turn yourself in!"

An Yan looked at her thoughtfully. "How do you know this is a Green Tail?"

Bai Zhi retorted, "Of course, I know! We saw this snake yesterday under Teacher Abei’s guidance! It’s green with two black spots on its head—it’s the exact same Green Tail we saw!"

"Teacher Abei said the Green Tail is a national first-class protected animal, the panda among snakes!"

"Listen to me, An Yan, turn yourself in! Maybe if the police see you’re willing to confess, they’ll give you a lighter sentence and you’ll spend less time in jail!"

As she spoke, she bit her lip as if having made a great resolution. "If you don’t have money for the fine, I can help you pay it! As long as you realize your mistake."

"Ha!" An Yan chuckled. "Well, thank you. How very kind of you!"

"You’re welcome. After all, we are acquaintances! I..."

Bai Zhi wanted to seize the chance to further burnish her image, but An Yan interrupted her performance. "But you claim this is the Green Tail you saw. What if I say it’s just an ordinary Green Snake? Making wine with an ordinary snake isn’t illegal, is it?"

Bai Zhi immediately understood An Yan was trying to bluff her way out. That was unacceptable!

"An Yan, you can’t lie! It’s not an ordinary Green Snake; it *is* the Green Tail! This is a TV show; we all need to project positive energy. We can’t set a bad example for the audience!"

"Haha..." An Yan laughed again, showing Bai Zhi no courtesy.

Even some of the staff and other guests were struggling to suppress their laughter.

Bai Zhi faintly sensed something was amiss. But at that moment, she couldn’t afford to dwell on it; her main concern was that An Yan might persuade everyone. After all, the production team certainly wouldn’t want any more trouble. What if they sided with An Yan and decided to downplay the incident, to smooth things over?

"Teacher Abei, come take a look! Is this snake a Green Tail?"

Abei, having been singled out, had no choice but to approach. He was about to speak when Bai Zhi, avoiding the camera, whispered to him, "Think carefully before you speak. Don’t forget that collaboration you want."

If he hadn’t witnessed what happened earlier, he might have been swayed by her threat. But he had.

So, he shook his head. "No. This is just an ordinary Green Snake."

Bai Zhi was instantly furious. "You’re lying! Look here! When Jiang Xiaoze caught it yesterday, her manicure scratched its belly. There’s still a scratch mark here!"