Wang Dagui placed the microphone down with a strange look on his face. Li Cui asked curiously, "Who was that on the phone?"

"It was Qiqi." For the past few days, Li Cui had been constantly murmuring about this year's New Year's Eve dinner. Wang Dagui knew that when his brother and sister-in-law were around, these things were never a worry. But the situation was different now; his brother and sister-in-law were both gone. It wouldn't have been surprising if Wang Qiqi hadn't offered to host, but she had—only the time had changed.

Upon hearing it was Qiqi on the phone, Li Cui turned down the television volume. "Is she telling us the time for the New Year's Eve dinner? And why didn't you let me answer earlier? Xiaorui still hasn't bought her new clothes for the New Year."

Wang Rui had been pestering Li Cui about new clothes for days, which greatly annoyed her. If her daughter’s grades were good, she wouldn't mind buying them. But when she saw the report card and the class and grade rankings from the parent-teacher meeting a few days ago, Li Cui was so angry she nearly spat blood. With such terrible grades, how dare the girl ask for several hundred yuan for new clothes? Hmph, she only ever focused on eating and drinking—it was all because her sister-in-law had set a bad example. It was better to let that girl Qiqi buy Wang Rui's New Year clothes after all.

New clothes? Wang Dagui could only shake his head. "The New Year's Eve dinner has been moved to noon." This meant their family would have to prepare the evening meal themselves.

What? Moved to noon? Li Cui was furious. "Then what about the dinner that night?" She recalled that in previous years, they either ate at her sister-in-law's place during the day or ate up the leftovers at noon, saving the good food for the evening. From the first day of the New Year onward, they would go visiting relatives, eating at her brothers' and sisters' homes.

Li Cui wailed inwardly. Since her brother and sister-in-law were gone, they wouldn't give her any New Year's provisions anymore. The provisions Li Cui could send back to her maternal family were also limited. Her mother and siblings had already given her meaningful looks. Li Cui knew it was impossible to go from house to house as they used to. "Sigh, the New Year is hard, it's hard to get through the New Year. The expenses for our family this time will be so high."

The thought that the situation where they could save money during the New Year would never return made Li Cui’s heart ache. "No, I must call Qiqi."

After hanging up, Wang Qiqi returned to reviewing her studies, not expecting Li Cui to call her back. "Auntie, ah, you're saying the New Year's Eve dinner is moved to noon? I'm sorry, that was the only time slot available when I tried to book it."

"Dinner? Everyone eats at their own place then. There's no reason why I, a child, should be responsible for your New Year's Eve dinner, right?"

"Cook at home? Come to my place to cook?" Wang Qiqi thought Li Cui was being rather shameless. "If you still need a dinner that evening, then Auntie, you treat. In any case, my treat is only for the noon meal."

"I won't be buying any New Year's clothes this year. I also don't have time to go shopping; I need to focus on studying for the College Entrance Exam." Tch, Wang Qiqi thought, Li Cui caring about her was truly a sign that something was up.

"I really don't have time. The pressure in the senior year is immense, and didn't you say you could supervise Xiaorui when buying clothes? That way, Xiaorui won't overpay, and you won't be stuck not buying them or buying them. If you go, you can decide immediately whether to buy them or not." Wang Qiqi grew impatient; she still had a lot of homework due tomorrow. "Auntie, I need to do my homework, it's due tomorrow."

"Don't you know how short our Spring Festival break is?" After saying this, Wang Qiqi hung up the phone. Talking any longer with Li Cui would make her truly sick. "Also, if Auntie has any objections, I honestly don't mind canceling the New Year's Eve dinner entirely, and everyone can eat on their own."

Wang Qiqi tossed the phone aside and returned to her desk to study. As for the reaction of the person on the other end, sorry, Wang Qiqi truly didn't have the time to spare to consider it.

Wang Qiqi quietly focused on her studies, while Shi Man and Zhu Lina, who were beside her, exchanged a look. "Qiqi, you're eating the reunion dinner with your relatives at noon, and you're spending the evening alone at home? Shi Man couldn't imagine Qiqi cooping up at home eating takeout from the reunion dinner.

Zhu Lina also looked concerned. She really wanted to say, 'Why don't you come over to my place for New Year's Eve dinner?' But then she thought about how boisterous their family's New Year's Eve dinner was. Only family members would be there, and Qiqi wouldn't agree to join them. Especially seeing so many of her own relatives crowded together, it would probably make her sad. Although her family's relatives also had their own agendas, her old man could control the situation, so they would only obediently stick to the corners, maybe muttering a few cynical remarks at most. Zhu Lina wouldn't pay them any mind; if they were truly capable, why would they still be working at her father's company instead of venturing out on their own? Her father had told them he would sponsor any entrepreneurial ideas they had, but how many were willing to go independent?

Shi Man had a similar thought. When her family celebrated the New Year, they also gathered a bunch of relatives. However, the atmosphere wasn't great either; everyone was just boasting about themselves. Those whose official careers were going smoothly were the center of attention. If their careers were disappointing or their positions low, they wouldn't be surrounded by people. Even if they swallowed their pride to speak to relatives, the responses would be lukewarm—it was brutally realistic. In that setting, if Wang Qiqi were there, those people would only greet her superficially. Qiqi might as well eat New Year's Eve dinner with her Uncle and Aunt.

Wang Qiqi raised one finger and shook it lightly. "I'll eat with my relatives at noon, and for dinner, I'll have New Year's Eve dinner with my tutor and his mother. The three of us will dine together." Wang Qiqi knew they were worried she would feel lonely spending the most significant evening of the year by herself. "I don't think I'll be that lonely this New Year's Eve."

Shi Man was stunned when she heard this. Such a momentous dinner on New Year's Eve would be spent with Han Tao and his mother? This, this—what could she even say? "That... that’s also quite nice."

Zhu Lina didn't overthink it. Since Qiqi said she had someone to eat with, that was good enough. She returned to her studies. "My cousin is coming back from America in a couple of days. He brought back quite a bit of chocolate; I'll bring some over then."

American chocolate? Wang Qiqi wasn't keen; wasn't that stuff too sweet? "Chocolate is great for boosting energy during evening self-study sessions."

"Then I'll bring more," Zhu Lina replied. "But why do you have to treat them to New Year's Eve dinner? Your parents are gone; as the younger generation, you shouldn't have to treat them."

Wang Qiqi sighed. "Of course, I don't want to treat them; I'm not rich enough to burn money. But the problem is, my parents just passed away, and they are still my elders. What choice do I have? But once I get into university, I'll be completely free. After that, I'll only be back during winter breaks."

Wang Qiqi knew that continuing to give money to her aunt and uncles now was utterly idiotic. "I just need to endure these last six months."

"What about future New Year's Eves?" Shi Man had always found it a bit unbelievable that Wang Qiqi, as the junior in the family, constantly had to show deference to her elders. She hadn't realized that Wang Qiqi was operating under the mindset of spending money to avert disaster. Alas.

"This is the first year I treat, and it will be the last time I host New Year's Eve dinner. If they invite me to eat during the New Year, I'll invite them back. Reciprocity—that's what relatives are about, isn't it?" Wang Qiqi had already calculated her moves. "I also don't want to waste time haggling with them while I'm in my senior year. Otherwise, they'll constantly come over under the guise of caring about me. What am I supposed to do then? Kick them out? Then there will be gossip outside, and they still won't stop visiting." Wang Qiqi thought they wouldn't cause a fuss over such a small amount of money. It was better to be generous this once, making everyone happy. Moreover, if her parents saw from below, they would only sigh in resignation and feel that their daughter had grown up and knew how to handle relatives. In a few days, when they paid respects to the ancestors for the New Year, she would have a good chat with her parents, of course, only sharing happy news.

Wang Qiqi didn't want to recount unhappy events to her parents while they were having their New Year's Eve dinner; she wanted them to be happy. When Wang Dajun and his wife first passed away, Wang Qiqi would tell her parents everything, whether happy or sad. Especially when her uncles behaved outrageously, Wang Qiqi would often cry while talking to her parents' memorial portraits. Even after Shi Man and Zhu Lina moved in, Qiqi would hide alone in the study, crying while clutching the old family photo of the three of them. But now, Wang Qiqi felt that if she kept crying like that, her parents wouldn't be happy, and neither would she.

Slowly, Wang Qiqi resolved only to share joyful things with her parents. She would record the unhappy events in her diary. She felt that doing this would make her parents happy. It wasn't about constantly weeping and saying she loved them or missed them, or complaining about why they abandoned her so early to both ascend to another paradise. It was about her honoring their memory; if her parents heard her saying these things from below, they would surely be uneasy.

Wang Qiqi believed that if they saw her becoming more mature, they would feel much more relieved down there. The best way to miss her parents was to get into a good university, letting them know that the daughter they worried about—herself—would manage her life well, allowing them peace of mind.

Han Tao glanced at Wang Qiqi and then lowered his head to continue his studies. To be honest, when Uncle Wang and his wife passed away, Qiqi completely fell apart. She walked as if she were drifting, which made Han Tao think Qiqi would never recover. But unexpectedly, she pulled through, getting used to using a smile to mask her emotions. But a smile was a mask, wasn't it? Moreover, Han Tao wondered if Shi Man and the others had noticed that every time Qiqi went out or returned, she would pause by the memorial portraits of Uncle Wang and his wife, clasping her hands in prayer for a moment. "Everything will be alright, Qiqi. It's a good thing you're an adult now; if you weren't, they truly would have taken over all this money."

"Yes, if they took over, all that would be left for me would be an empty shell. Even if it wasn't empty, they'd probably only leave me the house or something, and the money would be long gone," Wang Qiqi mocked coldly. Never mind her uncles and aunts; even her relatively well-off aunt on her mother's side had the same mentality.