diff --git a/includes/Checker/Checks/Plugin_Readme_Check.php b/includes/Checker/Checks/Plugin_Readme_Check.php
index 3e65aa266..dece0c9ba 100644
--- a/includes/Checker/Checks/Plugin_Readme_Check.php
+++ b/includes/Checker/Checks/Plugin_Readme_Check.php
@@ -212,29 +212,29 @@ private function check_for_warnings( Check_Result $result, string $readme_file,
 		$messages = array(
 			'contributor_ignored'          => sprintf(
 				/* translators: %s: plugin header tag */
-				__( 'One or more contributors listed were ignored. The %s field should only contain WordPress.org usernames. Remember that usernames are case-sensitive.', 'plugin-check' ),
-				"'Contributors'"
+				__( 'One or more contributors listed were ignored. The "%s" field should only contain WordPress.org usernames. Remember that usernames are case-sensitive.', 'plugin-check' ),
+				'Contributors'
 			),
 			'requires_php_header_ignored'  => sprintf(
 				/* translators: 1: plugin header tag; 2: Example version 5.2.4. 3: Example version 7.0. */
-				__( 'The %1$s field was ignored. This field should only contain a PHP version such as %2$s or %3$s.', 'plugin-check' ),
-				"'Requires PHP'",
-				"'5.2.4'",
-				"'7.0'"
+				__( 'The "%1$s" field was ignored. This field should only contain a PHP version such as "%2$s" or "%3$s".', 'plugin-check' ),
+				'Requires PHP',
+				'5.2.4',
+				'7.0'
 			),
 			'tested_header_ignored'        => sprintf(
 				/* translators: 1: plugin header tag; 2: Example version 5.0. 3: Example version 5.1. */
-				__( 'The %1$s field was ignored. This field should only contain a valid WordPress version such as %2$s or %3$s.', 'plugin-check' ),
-				"'Tested up to'",
-				"'" . number_format( $latest_wordpress_version, 1 ) . "'",
-				"'" . number_format( $latest_wordpress_version + 0.1, 1 ) . "'"
+				__( 'The "%1$s" field was ignored. This field should only contain a valid WordPress version such as "%2$s" or "%3$s".', 'plugin-check' ),
+				'Tested up to',
+				number_format( $latest_wordpress_version, 1 ),
+				number_format( $latest_wordpress_version + 0.1, 1 )
 			),
 			'requires_header_ignored'      => sprintf(
 				/* translators: 1: plugin header tag; 2: Example version 5.0. 3: Example version 4.9. */
-				__( 'The %1$s field was ignored. This field should only contain a valid WordPress version such as %2$s or %3$s.', 'plugin-check' ),
-				"'Requires at least'",
-				"'" . number_format( $latest_wordpress_version, 1 ) . "'",
-				"'" . number_format( $latest_wordpress_version - 0.1, 1 ) . "'"
+				__( 'The "%1$s" field was ignored. This field should only contain a valid WordPress version such as "%2$s" or "%3$s".', 'plugin-check' ),
+				'Requires at least',
+				number_format( $latest_wordpress_version, 1 ),
+				number_format( $latest_wordpress_version - 0.1, 1 )
 			),
 			'too_many_tags'                => sprintf(
 				/* translators: %d: maximum tags limit */
@@ -244,17 +244,17 @@ private function check_for_warnings( Check_Result $result, string $readme_file,
 			'ignored_tags'                 => sprintf(
 				/* translators: %s: list of tags not supported */
 				__( 'One or more tags were ignored. The following tags are not permitted: %s', 'plugin-check' ),
-				"'" . implode( "', '", $parser->ignore_tags ) . "'"
+				'"' . implode( '", "', $parser->ignore_tags ) . '"'
 			),
 			'no_short_description_present' => sprintf(
 				/* translators: %s: section title */
-				__( 'The %s section is missing. An excerpt was generated from your main plugin description.', 'plugin-check' ),
-				"'Short Description'"
+				__( 'The "%s" section is missing. An excerpt was generated from your main plugin description.', 'plugin-check' ),
+				'Short Description'
 			),
 			'trimmed_short_description'    => sprintf(
 				/* translators: 1: section title; 2: maximum limit */
-				_n( 'The %1$s section is too long and was truncated. A maximum of %2$d character is supported.', 'The %1$s section is too long and was truncated. A maximum of %2$d characters is supported.', 150, 'plugin-check' ),
-				"'Short Description'",
+				_n( 'The "%1$s" section is too long and was truncated. A maximum of %2$d character is supported.', 'The "%1$s" section is too long and was truncated. A maximum of %2$d characters is supported.', 150, 'plugin-check' ),
+				'Short Description',
 				150
 			),
 		);
@@ -291,7 +291,7 @@ private function get_wordpress_stable_version() {
 		if ( false === $version ) {
 			$response = wp_remote_get( 'https://api.wordpress.org/core/version-check/1.7/' );
 
-			if ( ! is_wp_error( $response ) ) {
+			if ( ! is_wp_error( $response ) && 200 === wp_remote_retrieve_response_code( $response ) ) {
 				$body = json_decode( wp_remote_retrieve_body( $response ), true );
 
 				if ( isset( $body['offers'] ) && ! empty( $body['offers'] ) ) {