For the next few days, Wang Qiqi stayed quietly at home looking after her parents. Auntie Luo next door would bring over food every day or fetch things Wang Qiqi needed. When she was alone, Wang Qiqi quietly leafed through her high school textbooks, writing down any problems she couldn't solve to ask the star student next door for help.

During this time, Wang Qiqi discovered quite a few issues. Fortunately, English wasn't a worry; History, Geography, and Politics—the subjects relying on rote memorization—were manageable, and Chinese was passable. Math was the real nightmare, something Wang Qiqi truly couldn't handle. She could only pin her hopes on catching up during the summer break; what else could she do? Luckily, she had chosen the liberal arts track. If she had chosen science, Wang Qiqi felt jumping off a building might be easier.

Han Tao pushed open the door, preparing to go out for a run and memorize vocabulary, only to find Wang Qiqi already awake and reading. “Awake?”

Hearing Han Tao’s voice, Wang Qiqi stood up and walked to the door. “Mm, I’m up. You’re going out to exercise again?” Wang Qiqi had figured out his routine these past few days; his wake-up time was set in stone. She truly admired his persistence.

Han Tao grunted an affirmation, then handed Wang Qiqi a few workbooks and some sheets of paper. “I think those workbooks are quite suitable for you to look at.” Han Tao genuinely hadn't realized how poor Wang Qiqi’s math skills were. He mentally flagged his previous impression of her, based on Uncle Wang’s assessment, but he couldn't bring himself to say, "Qiqi, your math is terrible; that doesn't match what your parents told me."

Hearing him say that made Wang Qiqi incredibly embarrassed as she took the workbooks. “Well, my math scores really aren't very good, which is why I chose liberal arts. Now that I’m home, I’m really worried…” Although she didn't need to fret over the other subjects, terrible math scores would drag her overall score down. Would she end up at the same tier of university as in her previous life?

Wang Qiqi knew she lacked the talent for running a business; foreign trade was just a way to scrape by. Her only advantage was having knowledge a decade or so ahead of everyone else, but the crucial problem was whether the unfolding events would be altered by her interference—the butterfly effect. Therefore, getting into a decent university and finding a practical major for a career she could manage from home was the best path.

“It’s fine. We can focus on catching up during the summer, and you can ask me if you don't understand anything then.” Han Tao caught the implication in Wang Qiqi's words and responded tactfully. In his mind, regardless of Wang Qiqi’s past, from this moment forward, she was one of them.

“Thank you so much.” Wang Qiqi suddenly remembered something. “Wait for me a second.”

With that, Wang Qiqi darted into the kitchen, leaving a bewildered Han Tao wondering whether to leave or stay. Before long, Wang Qiqi returned with two cakes, handing one to Han Tao. “I made these myself. The taste is decent; try one.”

Han Tao had been thinking how unimpressive the cake looked, and hearing Wang Qiqi say she made it herself made him hesitate. Should he eat a cake that looked like this? But seeing the hopeful expression on her face, he reasoned that since she had clearly eaten one, it couldn't be that bad—at worst, the taste might be questionable. “Then I won't be polite.”

Han Tao took a large bite of the cake right in front of Wang Qiqi. After chewing a couple of times, he found it genuinely delicious. “This is really good! I didn’t realize you could bake?”

Wang Qiqi didn't believe Han Tao was just being polite. Although it was a simplified cake made in a rice cooker, the taste was acceptable, mainly because the ingredients were top-notch and completely additive-free. “It’s good! I’ll make you one every morning from now on.”

Wang Qiqi hadn't noticed the accidental implication in her words. To her, this was the only thank-you gift she could think of that Han Tao would accept, given her family’s current situation. “And you know my family’s situation now; this is the only way I can repay you.”

When Han Tao first heard her serious tone, he immediately felt the weight of the cake in his hand, but after hearing what she said next, he realized he had been overthinking things. “Then I won't hold back. My breakfast is relying on you from now on.” This would also let his mother sleep in a bit longer.

Wang Qiqi lived a leisurely life, sharing secrets and future plans with her parents, reading intermittently, doing light exercises, and occasionally calling the traffic police department to check on the progress of the case.

The quieter Wang Qiqi remained, the less peace her uncle and aunt, Wang Daguai and Wang Damei, experienced. That family was relentlessly pressing for updates. Settlements for all the deceased and injured were nearly finalized, but the matters concerning Wang Dajun and his wife were perpetually delayed. As long as their case wasn't resolved, the perpetrator couldn't be definitively dealt with. They weren't afraid of the girl, Wang Qiqi, but inexplicably, Wang Dajun’s company leaders had called higher-ups, hoping that the families' feelings, especially those of the deceased's child, would be considered. This implied message left the traffic police department unable to close the case hastily. Moreover, Wang Qiqi had hinted at appealing the decision if it wasn't handled impartially. While normally this threat might be ignored, the problem was that the city was about to compete for the title of "Civilized and Sanitary City," and any public scandal seen by visiting officials could reflect poorly on the leadership.

With all these factors combined, those people, even if they had entertained the thought of intimidating Wang Qiqi, had to back down. They had initially assumed the deceased’s younger brother would settle things quickly, as their prior inquiries suggested he was easily swayed—a small sum would secure his agreement. They never expected the deceased’s children to be so difficult, which greatly frustrated them.

Li Cui watched Wang Daguai slam the phone down, then immediately asked with concern, “What did they say?” Outside, people were already whispering about her. Especially that dead girl. Regardless of how often people questioned her, her only reply was that her aunt was unwell and resting at home. But nobody was a fool; her dismissive demeanor didn't match the situation. If Wang Qiqi had said something else, people might have considered other angles, but her simple response only made Li Cui simmer with internal rage. What sustained Li Cui now were the compensation funds.

Wang Daguai let out a deep sigh. “They said dragging this out isn't an option. If we don't give them an answer by tomorrow afternoon, they’ll show up here directly.” If they caused a scene at their door, what chance would he have? Everything would be exposed, and what about his reputation?

Hearing this made Li Cui’s heart ache, a piercing pain. “Can’t we wait a bit longer? You know that girl’s thoughts.” The people were already dead; why cling to these principles? Money was the only real reason now. “I think that dead girl was spoiled by her uncle and aunt, spoiled into thinking she’s untouchable.” Hmph, the girl had no concept of the value of money. Li Cui wanted to see how that girl would manage on just 100,000 yuan.

Still, Li Cui only thought that far. She truly wasn’t willing to give up the 150,000 yuan she stood to gain. During these days confined at home, she hadn't stopped browsing real estate listings. She had already picked out several houses, planning to immediately put down a deposit once the money arrived. As for the house and money left to Qiqi by her brother and sister-in-law, Li Cui planned to deal with the girl slowly. Wasn’t she just a teenager still in school, protected by Wang Dajun and his wife? If she and Daguai teamed up, wouldn't getting that house and money be easy?

“The issue is we must get Qiqi to agree to a private settlement now. Sigh, I told you that day to lower our stance. If she argues, just tell her we’ll take a slight loss now, and our good days are still ahead. But look at you, what have you done?” Wang Daguai was furious. That 300,000 yuan was gone! “Besides, from what they implied, the money could still be negotiated upward.”

That was what made Wang Daguai even more tempted. He had initially thought the starting offer of 500,000 was high, but the fact that it could potentially increase was exciting—it was just so difficult to secure the funds.

“How about we go to your older brother's house tonight together? We won't believe she refuses to give us the authorization letter then.” Li Cui pondered for a moment. Maybe they could just take the authorization letter and then Daguai would have the standing to negotiate with the other party.

Wang Daguai looked at Li Cui with the gaze one reserves for an idiot after hearing her suggestion. “If we hadn’t had that fight a few days ago, maybe that trick would work. But now, why would she agree? Never mind forging Qiqi’s signature—if anything goes wrong then, the trouble will be even greater.”

The more Wang Daguai thought, the angrier he became. Was he just going to watch the money slip away? Wang Daguai certainly wasn't willing to let it go. “I’ll go find my brother-in-law immediately and ask him what to do.” He had no choice but to turn to his brother-in-law. “We should have listened to him back then; unfortunately…”

Wang Daguai truly regretted it now. His brother-in-law had opposed Li Cui’s idea initially, but he had been swayed by her rhetoric then, and his elder sister had agreed, so the brother-in-law had held back. Now it seemed: “We really underestimated that girl. I never thought Big Brother’s company leaders would side with him.”

“Right, we both thought that girl was harmless,” Li Cui regretted too now. “I hope Brother-in-law has a solution.”

“He must have a solution. I already promised them on the phone that this matter would be resolved,” Wang Daguai said fiercely.

“Yes, we must get this money,” Li Cui agreed fiercely. “We absolutely cannot let this money float away from us.” This wasn't a small sum; it was a massive pie.

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