Song Wenbo hadn't expected Wang Qiqi to have such a sharp mind. "The Development Zone is doing quite well. It seems over sixty percent of the existing factory spaces have tenants already, and the higher-ups are planning to start building on the plots they zoned out a while ago. More people will come then, and the properties near the zone will slowly become hot commodities."

Song Yao might not trust what others said, but she would absolutely believe her father, Song Wenbo. The good life their family currently enjoyed was all thanks to the old man; relying on her calculating mother, their own family was only marginally better off than her second uncle's. "So, Dad, what you mean is that what Gong Peixing’s parents gave us isn't complete trash?"

"Wrong." Wang Qiqi looked at the excited Song Yao and Gong Peixing. "If there were no Development Zone, if it hadn't developed well, those houses would still be junk even ten years from now. If they knew how sought-after those properties would become, would they be willing to give them to you? Brother-in-law, am I wrong?" They needed to realize this was entirely about catching a perfect moment; otherwise, those houses would just be piles of rubbish, perhaps not seeing demolition or yielding any income for ten or twenty years, just slowly weathering away.

When her daughter spoke those words, Wang Damei truly wanted to shake her awake. Did she really think that way? But she had just argued with her daughter and didn't want another fight. Now that Qiqi was speaking, she was the best possible bridge. "Qiqi, you’re absolutely right. I think they wanted to use that run-down house in exchange for various forms of peace later on—for instance, how grandly their younger son’s wedding could be held, or not needing to prepare or renovate a marital home, maybe even skipping the betrothal gifts for the bride. Of course, all of this rests on them not knowing the true value of the house."

Gong Peixing wanted to tell himself not to think too poorly of his parents, and that regardless of the circumstances, his in-laws were willing to lend him and Song Yao money. If his own parents found out, they would surely revoke their offer. "Yaoyao, your parents are not wrong. They aren't that benevolent. Qiqi, are the houses over there really that easy to rent out?"

When he first heard his mother-in-law mention selling the house to Wang Qiqi, Gong Peixing's immediate reaction was to agree; there was no helping it, borrowing too much money was troublesome. But aside from being somewhat blindly obedient to his own parents, Gong Peixing was generally quite astute. He later realized that buying a house could solve the problem for a while, but it wouldn't solve everything. His grandparents had once said that life goes on whether you have much money or little, but having a house offered hope, especially since Qiqi mentioned the rental income.

"I don't know entirely. A classmate of mine owns a few properties in the Development Zone apartments; I heard they rent out very well, so I thought..." Wang Qiqi wasn't entirely sure herself—what if the houses over there didn't rent easily?

Gong Peixing pondered for a moment. "Auntie, Uncle, I will write an IOU. And I will put both the house my parents gave me and the newly purchased house under Yaoyao's name. If the houses rent well, I plan to renovate that place, and for this house, I've thought it through: I want to take out a loan to buy it, but I need to borrow the money from you two for the renovations." Gong Peixing’s tone dropped toward the end. After all, this was his in-laws' home, and he had a son too; he was merely the son-in-law, and he felt his request was a bit excessive.

In Wang Damei's eyes, Gong Peixing’s proposal was not just excessive; it was shameless—cheating her daughter and now trying to swindle her money. What did an IOU matter? In Wang Damei’s view, if the young man later threw up his hands and claimed he had no money, what could she do? Kill him, or have her daughter divorce him?

Song Wenbo, however, felt somewhat relieved that his future son-in-law had finally said something that sounded marginally decent. "Is that truly your plan?" With property, one wouldn't worry about their livelihood getting worse. If the houses rented out easily, the borrowed money could be repaid quickly.

If Wang Damei’s face was stormy, Gong Peixing understood his mother-in-law's thoughts. But as his father-in-law stared at him, Gong Peixing's nerves were a jumble. He hadn't expected the question from his father-in-law at the very end: "That is what I think. I believe as long as we have the properties, there will always be opportunities."

"Your aunt and I originally planned to lend Yaoyao one hundred thousand," Song Wenbo said. He felt he was giving the young man one last chance. He had considered things just now: the current situation was most advantageous for him. Who would have thought his own parents favored his younger brother, while his in-laws had previously looked down on him? But at this crucial moment, his in-laws were helping him. He would surely be grateful, and after that, he would surely treat his daughter better and completely change his perspective, realizing who truly cared for him. "You write the IOU then. Of course, so your parents see the rent is good, you must transfer the deed to Yaoyao’s and your names; otherwise, I won't give you the money."

How could Gong Peixing disagree with this arrangement? He thought for a moment. "I think I should transfer the house to Yaoyao’s name." This way, even if his parents discovered the house’s true value and pressured him to give it to his younger brother, he would have a valid reason to refuse.

Putting the house solely in Song Yao's name? Wang Damei and Song Wenbo were quite astonished. "Ah, you’re going to put the house only in Yaoyao's name?"

Wang Qiqi also found it quite unbelievable, considering Gong Peixing was making this choice even after understanding the house's future potential. "Brother-in-law, you are truly manly. If I ever meet a man like you in the future, I will definitely marry him." To generously put a house in his wife’s name before marriage—how many men in the world would do that, especially when he himself was short of funds?

"Done, Xiao Gong. You’ve finally done something a real man should do," Song Wenbo said. The moment he realized the house would be registered under his daughter’s name, he breathed a huge sigh of relief. Naturally, he had to instruct his wife to properly educate their silly girl not to be coaxed into doing anything foolish by a few sweet words from her mother-in-law.

How could Wang Damei object now? She finally understood: that one hundred thousand was mostly going toward that shabby house. If this son-in-law ever became disobedient, her daughter could simply walk away with the property. The one who wouldn't suffer losses would be this foolish boy. "Remember, when you talk to your parents, you absolutely must not appear too happy," Wang Damei’s rationality returned. She warned her daughter and son-in-law, "Forget it, Yaoyao, you shouldn't go. I worry if you go, it might make them suspicious. Xiao Gong, you know what to do, right? Remember, what we are doing now is not about getting a lot from your family; everything we secure now is for you and Yaoyao. Do you understand?"

Gong Peixing nodded. "I understand, Auntie, don't worry. For Yaoyao's sake, I will definitely try my best." After going through so much, Gong Peixing realized one thing: those who set high standards for you and look down on you might not necessarily be treating you poorly. While his in-laws were making this decision out of necessity, compared to what his own parents had done, Gong Peixing felt truly disheartened. "And thank you, Qiqi."

Gong Peixing left in a hurry after sitting for a short while. Wang Damei also sighed. "I never thought things would turn out this way. Silly girl, I’m telling you, no matter what happens, you are never allowed to sell that house. Once the deed is transferred, you go and inquire about the rental market over there."

Song Yao was immensely satisfied with her mother right then, crouching subserviently at Wang Damei’s feet, massaging her thighs. "I know, Mom. I’ll call you to come look when the time comes. Hey, Qiqi, do you want to come take a look?"

Wang Qiqi shook her head. "No, I'm going to the capital city." Juliana also said she needed to go early to buy some things to decorate the apartment. Wang Qiqi also thought about taking advantage of the current upward trend in the stock market to open her account sooner, so she could start earning money earlier.

Song Yao hadn't expected Wang Qiqi to leave for the capital so soon. "Isn't school starting in a while?"

"The apartment will be ready by the end of the month; we'll go decorate it then." Although it would only be a place for four years, Shi Man already had countless ideas for decorating that apartment. Whenever she thought of something the room needed, she would call Wang Qiqi. Of course, a few days later, she would likely negate her previous ideas. Wang Qiqi felt that in such a small space, Shi Man’s list of required items might not even be enough to fill the whole room. Such a cold girl wanted to buy a teddy bear, and a life-sized one at that—something Wang Qiqi hated. How could you wash something that got dirty? And it was for hugging! She also wanted a small toy for sleeping; this was something Wang Qiqi simply couldn't accept, but then again, wasn't that what a girl’s room should be like?

"So, just a few more days, right? If you're around then, we can go look together." Song Yao didn't expect Wang Qiqi to offer particularly brilliant advice, but she felt that with Qiqi there, if she and her mother had another conflict, Qiqi would be the best fire extinguisher. Although the old man was also useful, the problem was that he might not always side with her.

Wang Qiqi thought for a moment. "No problem." At this moment, Wang Qiqi suddenly remembered she might have given Han Tao the wrong advice. If he had bought property in the countryside, the same amount of money could yield a much greater return. What a pity, what a shame.

Wang Qiqi truly regretted it at that moment. Alas, there was no medicine for regret. When she mentioned this matter to Han Tao the next day.

Han Tao stared at her for a moment. "That's something neither of us knew. But we can consider buying a similar property once we have money and renovating it?"

Wang Qiqi sighed. "What a loss. But I wonder how much house prices will increase next year. How about we invest in a property together?" Wang Qiqi asked, half joking, half serious.

"I don't have the money. Let's buy one next year when I do," Han Tao thought that Qiqi’s judgment couldn’t be wrong; why wouldn't he listen to her advice once he had money?

"Okay."