As Wang Qiqi and Han Tao were having dinner, Qiqi took the opportunity to ask Han Tao about his plans moving forward.

"Plans?" Han Tao paused in thought. "I need to pick up a few private tutoring jobs. I have no choice. If I'm going to buy a house, this fifty thousand probably won't be enough, and I definitely don't intend to ask my mother to cover my tuition or living expenses." If he could manage it, Han Tao wanted to earn all that money himself. Although he had earned and saved up for his tuition throughout all three years of high school, university tuition fees were incomparable to high school, and moving to the capital meant covering his own living costs. These expenses would likely be two to three times his current annual outlay. Han Tao truly did not want to use his mother's money.

Wang Qiqi gave an "Oh," understanding she shouldn't offer Han Tao too much advice. While stocks were promising, not everyone could handle them. As for the house, Qiqi had initially suggested it because property was a fixed asset that Luo Hongjuan would surely accept. "I'm planning to go out with Shi Man for a few days, then I'll come back to wait for the Gaokao results."

"Are things settled here?" Han Tao knew Qiqi had property, though he wasn't sure how many units. Qiqi had previously suggested letting his mother look after one or two of her houses, but Han Tao had politely declined. It wasn't that he didn't want to help Qiqi; it was because he knew if his own mother took charge, the situation would be exposed before long, leading to complications for both their families.

Wang Qiqi nodded. "If money can solve it, it's not a problem," she stated rather smugly. "Only then can I truly relax."

Han Tao hadn't realized Qiqi had already arranged things. He considered the people Qiqi knew. "Did you ask Aunt Gong for help?" Based on his understanding of Qiqi, she absolutely would not let Wang Dagui and his wife handle this. As for Wang Damei, Qiqi was hesitant; the former was prone to graft, and the latter, if she found out, might react badly, as would Wang Dagui and his wife.

Wang Qiqi shot back, "Besides her, who else can I trust?"

Han Tao’s lips moved, wanting to explain why he hadn't agreed to let his own mother help. "That..."

Wang Qiqi had been slightly annoyed by Han Tao's initial refusal, but she soon understood. "Your family has its own share of difficult relatives, and so does mine. If they overlapped or found out about each other, it would be a collision of worlds. But Aunt Gong is different; she’s an employee. Nobody pays that much attention to her." Unless they were specifically looking, no one would be interested in the person behind Aunt Gong. Li Cui certainly didn't have the foresight for that, and besides, Wang Rui's own academic performance was enough to keep her occupied.

"You trust her that much?" Han Tao was surprised Qiqi was so bold as to entrust the task of collecting rent to Gong Hong. It wasn't that he doubted Gong Hong's character, but it was rare to hand over money collection to someone you'd known for just over a year, who primarily worked as a nanny, especially someone from out of town with no local property ties. "You need to know..." Han Tao tried to caution Qiqi, aware that facing money often caused many people to lose their integrity.

Wang Qiqi admitted she wasn't without worry. "The house is mine. If she really pulls anything outrageous, the worst loss would be a few months' rent. If that happens, I'll figure something out." For example, she could rent the place out to a real estate agency at a comparatively low price, letting them profit from the difference. If something broke inside, unless it was a major appliance requiring replacement, she wouldn't bother with minor repairs. But then again, the cost to her wouldn't be negligible, especially since the rent would gradually increase. If the agency knew her situation, would they generously raise the rent for her? Wang Qiqi held little hope.

Seeing that Qiqi was determined to proceed, Han Tao couldn't say more. "I hope Aunt Gong doesn't disappoint your expectations." Han Tao's understanding of human nature had solidified profoundly the moment his father passed away. Qiqi probably experienced something similar, but the main difference between them was that she retained a positive view of humanity, whereas Han Tao leaned toward the belief that human nature was fundamentally flawed.

"There’s always hope. If you always assume the worst of people, then truly no one is good. Besides, look at me—am I not a good person?" Wang Qiqi looked at Han Tao, feeling a bit helpless at his expression that suggested good people were scarce and he was too trusting. "And you, a high school student working as a tutor—even if your grades are excellent, parents might not feel brave enough to hire you as a teacher. Even though you’ve tutored several high-achieving students, those parents were good people too, weren't they?"

Han Tao smiled as Wang Qiqi gestured as if lecturing him. "Of course I know there are many good people, it’s just that few of my relatives qualify. I was just worried about you." He comforted himself that his concern stemmed from the fear that someone might scam Qiqi out of the money she relied upon.

"I know you're worried about me. By the way, are you confident about this scholarship?" Wang Qiqi changed the subject.

"Eighty percent." Han Tao felt the odds were high, though he couldn't rule out a dark horse emerging. "The school mentioned that if I manage to become the top science scorer in the entire city, there will be a generous bonus." Though his alma mater was a reputable, established high school, and its average Gaokao scores ranked among the best in the city, the school was embarrassed that the top scorers in both arts and sciences had consecutively come from elsewhere. This situation couldn't help but mortify the teachers. Therefore, before this year’s Gaokao, the school held a meeting and implemented a policy offering substantial rewards. As a key figure, Han Tao had certainly been called in for a pre-exam pep talk by his form teacher, and he was sure the school had also addressed the other key students similarly.

"How much is the bonus?" Wang Qiqi asked, intrigued. "But our school also said there would be great rewards for the top scorer in arts or sciences. What a pity, what a pity." Qiqi knew that no matter how generous the bonus, it was out of her reach. Forget the city's top scorer; she knew she wouldn't even be the top scorer in her own school.

Gao Kai held up one finger. "They're bleeding cash." If he could secure the city's top spot in science, sixty thousand would land directly in his pocket.

Ten thousand? Wang Qiqi pursed her lips. "Your school is really stingy. I heard ours is offering twenty thousand..."

"It's good enough to get something. But even with your school's high reward, you wouldn't get it." Han Tao had that much confidence. It wasn't that he looked down on Qiqi's school, but in the several city-wide mock exams, students from Qiqi’s school had never once taken first place in either the arts or science streams. So, no matter how high the school administrators set the scholarship, someone needed to achieve it first.

Wang Qiqi paused. Frankly, she wasn't interested in the rivalry between schools; those were battles fought at a higher level. For her, knowing her ranking within the school or the city was enough. As for first place or even the top ten in the city, Qiqi would just shrug and say it had nothing to do with her; she wasn't competing for those ranks. "No wonder the school is so generous; perhaps a hefty reward encourages valor." Twenty thousand was truly a significant income in those days. "Actually, the quality of students admitted this year isn't great; at least the proportion of students who ranked in the top one hundred during the high school entrance exams is declining."

The more top students a high school enrolled, the higher the probability of producing a top scorer in the Gaokao. If a school wasn't even admitting top-tier students, it could only wait for miracles. However, one redeeming quality of his alma mater was that its average score remained respectable; otherwise, it might truly slip from a first-tier high school to a second-tier one.

Han Tao felt Qiqi's speculation was highly unlikely. "If this policy had been announced a year or half a year earlier, maybe someone would strive for that money. But they announced it just days before the Gaokao. In such a short time, even without sleeping or eating, one couldn't complete the necessary work." Arts might be slightly more manageable, but securing the top spot isn't easy; a lot of material needs memorizing, and sometimes the examiners include material beyond the curriculum, truly testing the candidate's breadth of knowledge. For science, it relies entirely on critical thinking and foundational knowledge; it’s not something one can drastically improve with a few days of cramming, especially for those already excelling, as progress becomes much harder the higher they climb.

Wang Qiqi nodded. "Exactly. If they had announced it sooner, I would have fought for that money for a whole year," she said jokingly. In truth, she knew she wouldn't sacrifice her sleep for that twenty thousand; it wasn't worth it. Health was the capital of the body. She had already worked diligently enough this past year, and even tenfold effort wouldn't secure her that money, so there was no point in chasing something unattainable.

"You wouldn't go for it anyway," Han Tao finished the last bite of food. "Starting tomorrow, don't save dinner for me. I'll take care of it."

Wang Qiqi looked at him in surprise. Surely he wasn't planning to just grab some food outside to get by?

"Didn't I tell you? Do my tutoring jobs include providing dinner?" Han Tao rubbed his head, only just recalling the detail. "The two boys I’m currently tutoring, I coach them from 4 PM until 8 PM; their family supplies the meal in between."

"Every day?" Wang Qiqi felt sorry for Han Tao's two students. If that was the case, wouldn't he be stuck at home even during the summer break?

Han Tao nodded. "Their grades were decent on the final exam, but that was because I helped them focus on the right topics. The Gaokao isn't that easy to pass, though. I need to use the summer break to solidify their fundamentals." (To be continued)