Wang Qiqi had no idea what was happening with the three families; she was currently hunched over the dining room table at home, working on a budget.

A budget for what? It was simple enough: those four apartments were still bare shells. To make them habitable, they at least needed renovation before they could be rented out at a decent price. Labor costs weren't high right now, so the key was to design the spaces to look comfortable and clean.

"Should I go with wooden flooring or tiles?" Wang Qiqi pondered, hesitant. Honestly, she preferred wood flooring; it felt warm. But the problem was, if a careless tenant moved in, the wood could be ruined quickly.

"Let's go with tiles, and then put laminate flooring over them in the rooms." After thinking it through, Wang Qiqi finally made up her mind. That way, if an inconsiderate renter managed to damage the bedroom floor, they could just replace the laminate boards.

As for the water heaters, she decided on electric ones. For the pipes, wiring, and switches, she would select the most expensive options available. These components were all inside the walls, so choosing cheap ones now would only lead to having to break open the walls later if something went wrong.

For furniture, it was best to find places that offered good value for money. As for appliances, finding a reliable second-hand shop would be ideal—scoring items that were seven or eight tenths new would save a significant portion of the budget.

"It's almost June now. Ideally, the houses should be finished by the end of July so I can start renting them out right when the summer rush of job applicants arrives," Wang Qiqi muttered to herself. Time was tight, though; she wondered if there were any decent renovation teams available right now.

That thought brought the perfect person to mind. "I should call Uncle Luo. Didn't he say last time he wanted to pull a team together to take on renovation projects?"

With that idea settled, Wang Qiqi figured it was better to let Uncle Luo handle the renovations than to seek out others. He was a skilled plasterer, and the other workers he knew were also competent. "Yes, I'll have Uncle Luo do the renovations."

The decision made, Wang Qiqi went searching for her address book, intending to contact Uncle Luo. After all, she didn't know how busy his business was; if he was fully booked, she'd have to find someone else.

She wasn't worried about finding Uncle Luo's contact information; all the numbers for people her parents knew were in that book.

Wang Qiqi hurried to the nightstand in her parents' room and began to search. As she rummaged, she realized something was wrong. "Where is the address book?"

Wang Qiqi tried to recall carefully. It couldn't be anywhere else; her parents always put it back in the same spot after use.

She checked both nightstands thoroughly but found nothing. Impossible. Wang Qiqi suspected that her Aunt and Uncle must have searched through her parents' bedroom that day. But they were quite clever; they left important items—like the jewelry her mother often wore, some loose change, and even the bank passbook—in their original places. They hadn't bothered to neatly return the less significant things. Although the items looked scattered now, there was a reason for how they were placed.

Wang Qiqi moved to the wardrobe and searched a specific spot. Though the surface looked a bit messy, the area underneath showed no signs of having been disturbed. "Strange. How could they make such a big mistake and not even put these things back properly? They must really think we're dead."

"It must have been Uncle who put them there; Aunt wouldn't make such a mistake," Wang Qiqi sighed. Her Uncle and Aunt wouldn't touch the things in plain sight; they were looking for things Wang Qiqi didn't know about. Unfortunately for them, they hadn't found what they were searching for. "Finally found it!" Just as Wang Qiqi was about to get truly angry, she spotted something tucked into the narrow gap between the nightstand and the bed frame. She reached in and pulled it out. It was the address book.

Wang Qiqi flipped to Uncle Luo's contact information and picked up the phone to dial. "Uncle Luo, are you free recently?"

"Uh, I have... a friend who has a few apartments needing renovation, so I immediately thought of you, Uncle Luo." Wang Qiqi paused, realizing her mistake, and quickly changed the ownership details in her head. She preferred they didn't know about her owning four properties until she was a legal adult. She already had a plan for who would step forward officially when the time came.

"The properties are all in Meihu Garden. Actually, the owner is a friend of my dad's who bought them intending to collect rent later. I meant to tell you sooner, but with everything that happened with my parents, it got delayed."

"I was actually going to back out, but I remember you mentioned wanting to start your own renovation team when we ran into each other last time. Since that friend is also out of town, and I know you well, Uncle Luo, if you aren't taking jobs, I'll have to cancel the whole thing."

"Really? That's great! Uncle Luo, since that 'friend' bought quite a few—four units—I'll have his family come over in a few days to discuss the specifics with you face-to-face."

"However, the timeline is quite tight. We need to finish two units by the end of July so he can move in. The other two can wait a bit longer."

"Thank you so much, Uncle Luo. I'll contact you again in a few days after the auntie comes over to set the time, okay?"

"Oh, and one more thing!" Wang Qiqi suddenly remembered the most crucial point. "Uncle Luo, Uncle Luo, since Uncle's family just bought all these houses and is about to move and everything, the renovation fees..." She felt awkward asking for a discount but hoped he would understand her implication.

"You're really going to offer a better price?" Wang Qiqi was surprised she had actually found a good person—though perhaps Uncle Luo felt she was the good person. "Uncle Luo, actually, not many people have moved into that complex yet. If you do a great job renovating, it could become a showcase. Some people who see construction going on in the community will definitely come over to look, and you might pick up quite a few new contracts."

She wasn't lying; many people were like that. Especially in this era when dedicated decoration companies were scarce or considered too expensive. People preferred calling a carpenter or plasterer they knew to work on their homes, often having no real style in mind—as long as the plumbing and electrical were done, and the floors were laid, they could move in. Even though her own few properties were renovated this way, when potential renters compared Uncle Luo's quoted price against buying materials and hiring separate workers, the choice was obvious—provided Uncle Luo's skill and material quality were high.

"I'll be in touch then, Uncle Luo. Thank you, good night." Wang Qiqi hung up the receiver and clenched her fist in a gesture of encouragement.

"Go for it, Wang Qiqi! March toward your landlady days!" Wang Qiqi could already picture the life awaiting her: lounging with a book in the sun, heading out at appointed times to collect rent—an absolutely perfect existence.

With this vision firmly set, Wang Qiqi enjoyed a wonderfully deep sleep, dreaming of Chairman Mao, with money rain pouring down. As she happily hugged the cash, laughing in delight, she was startled awake by a knocking sound and the barking of a dog.

Wang Qiqi lifted her head and checked the time; it was only 6:30 AM. Who would be calling that early? Rubbing her eyes, she walked to the door and found little Wang Rui standing there. The girl clearly looked like she hadn't slept well all night, which struck Wang Qiqi as strange.

Wang Qiqi rubbed her eyes, opened the door, and then headed to the bathroom to wash her face and brush her teeth. She figured Wang Rui could take care of herself. Wang Rui had absolutely no sense of being a guest. For instance, if she was thirsty, she would go to the kitchen for a Coke. If she went out shopping with friends and needed clothes, she would head straight to Wang Qiqi's place to rummage through the closet. And if she ran out of pocket money, she wouldn't hesitate to ask Wang Qiqi's parents for cash.

After finishing her morning routine, Wang Qiqi returned to the living room and realized the situation was highly unusual. This thick-skinned girl hadn't gone to the kitchen for snacks, nor had she gone into the bedroom to look for clothes. "What's wrong with you?" This wasn't like her. Had she broken up with her boyfriend?

Wang Qiqi thought hard. In her memory, this person hadn't broken up with her boyfriend yet. Had her Uncle and Aunt scolded her? But how could they scold the daughter they coddled? It was very odd.

Wang Rui asked in a voice thick with tears, "Qiqi, you know, you said you were going to give me ten thousand that day, right?"

Wang Qiqi nodded. "Yeah, I did. Don't tell me you've already planned how to spend it, and it won't be enough?" Oh dear, don't tell me this girl realized the money wasn't enough and came to demand more? Do I look like an onion to be peeled? "Xiao Rui, you know my family's current situation with the money..."

"It's not about the money being insufficient." Wang Rui didn't know what Wang Qiqi was thinking; otherwise, she would definitely have pestered Qiqi for more private funds. She angrily recounted the details of the family meeting from the previous night.

Only then did Wang Qiqi understand. "Aunt really only gave you five hundred? That's too little."

"Exactly! I promised to treat my classmates to a meal, and I need to buy clothes too," Wang Rui grumbled furiously.

"But didn't they say they would give you two thousand later?" Wang Qiqi thought two thousand was quite a lot, enough for her typical spending habits.

"I know, Qiqi! I just think my parents are being completely unfair. I contributed so much, why am I only getting such a small amount?" Two thousand would have been enough initially, but Wang Rui had spent the whole night dwelling on the fact that the full ten thousand should have been hers, not something she had to split, especially taking the smaller share.

The Diary of a House Girl Book Number: 2681104 Synopsis: A certain loli states that the struggles of household infighting are quite stressful; she much prefers telling tall tales to ghosts! Recommended without ads for full text reading on the website provided by 】