The moment Wang Qiqi and the other two stepped into the stock market area, they realized it was quite crowded. A throng of people had already gathered around Meng Fei, all inquiring about opening accounts. "The market's looking good; more people want to strike it rich." Entering the market now still offered a decent chance to profit, though it entirely depended on greed. If one wasn't greedy, making a modest sum and selling the stocks in about a year to buy a house would be a fine option.

"Let's go upstairs and check the stocks first," Shi Man said excitedly. Even though she knew the stock prices were rising, she longed to see the actual figure reflected in her funds card.

Wang Qiqi concurred, "Let's go take a look." It was common knowledge that this girl had been muttering about her net worth for ages. She had been cheerful all the way there, and though she hadn't mentioned total sums, her beaming smile and excited comments about the recent market conditions made it obvious to anyone not completely dense what she was thinking.

When Shi Man and the others rushed upstairs, their pace naturally slowed. Although Shi Man was anxious to check her stocks, she understood that it was the middle of trading hours; everyone was glued to their respective stocks, so silence was essential.

Shi Man walked slowly but lightly toward two empty computers in a corner, booted them up, and then pulled Wang Qiqi over, asking for help with the operation. Wang Qiqi could only shake her head watching Shi Man feign ignorance, "You really need to learn how to operate these things."

"Don't I have you?" Shi Man looked at Wang Qiqi quizzically. In Shi Man's view, her foray into stock trading was entirely thanks to Qiqi; thus, even if she didn't come to the brokerage firm, Qiqi certainly would, so why bother learning?

Given her assertion, what choice did Wang Qiqi have? "We won't be together forever."

Hearing this, Shi Man looked utterly startled. "No way, are you planning to ditch us?" Shi Man suspected that Qiqi and someone else were making good progress, perhaps thinking about taking things further, like...

Ditch them? Was it that serious? "Will we still be together after we graduate from university?" Wang Qiqi retorted. As far as she saw it, there was a hundred percent chance Zhu Lina would go abroad after graduation. As for herself and Shi Man, it was uncertain right now, though Wang Qiqi wasn't strongly leaning toward returning to her hometown to develop her career, nor did she plan to work too far away from it. "Maybe I'll end up working in Shencheng."

Hearing Wang Qiqi's words, Shi Man realized she hadn't understood the underlying meaning. "You're going back to Shencheng?" Honestly, Shi Man had always thought Wang Qiqi held no particular fondness for Shencheng, precisely because of the supreme jerks who resided there. "Aren't you worried about running into them?"

Them? Hmph. It wasn't arrogance speaking, but four years later, what could those people possibly do to her? People with no money and no standing. Still, she did need to be cautious; a cornered dog might jump the wall, and they might concoct some nasty tricks. "Shencheng is close to my home, and besides, they might not even cross paths with me."

Shi Man was speechless. Sometimes she genuinely couldn't fathom Wang Qiqi—one moment incredibly sharp, the next utterly naive. "Are you done? Hurry up and check mine." Finally seeing the familiar yet unfamiliar interface, Shi Man had no time left to worry about Wang Qiqi's gossip. Besides, was it her place to concern herself with that girl's affairs?

Wang Qiqi looked at the impatient Shi Man and could only open up her statement first. When Shi Man saw her total funds amount flash on the screen, her mouth dropped open so wide that Wang Qiqi genuinely worried the girl might let out a joyful scream. Even though the stocks were rising, they hadn't peaked yet; they would continue to climb, only slowly dipping around the fifty-plus mark. However, because the downward trend wasn't obvious, interspersed with signs of further ascent, coupled with widespread rumors that this stock might even hit over a hundred, more people were jumping in—unfortunately, these were the ones picking up the tab. Right now, the market makers had likely finished accumulating chips and were slowly pushing the price up, with minor fluctuations interspersed—which Wang Qiqi knew was just shaking out weak hands. This served two purposes: making small gains on trades to absorb more shares, and driving off a few timid investors.

Wang Qiqi had no intention of sharing the inside track on her holdings. Even if someone knew a bit of insider information, she could guarantee that no one in the mid-account room possessed this specific insight. If they had that much clout, would they be stuck in the mid-account room? Putting aside everything else, the brokerage firm could see trading volume flow. If they saw such massive capital movement, they would immediately direct you to the high-roller room. It wasn't that Wang Qiqi was stingy; who would share such excellent news with a stranger? Impossible. Even friends might not be told.

Shi Man ultimately managed to suppress a laugh. Her mouth was still agape, but it was opening time on the market floor, and everyone was focused on their own stocks; how could they notice a few young girls? Shi Man cautiously glanced around, saw no one paying attention, and pulled Wang Qiqi closer to look at her current stock value.

Wang Qiqi saw that Shi Man's funds were nearing 120,000 and offered congratulations. "Lina, do you want to check yours?" Wang Qiqi had no desire to look at her own; it was what it was, and since she wasn't selling, looking was pointless.

Zhu Lina shook her head. "Not interested. By the way, weren't you here to copy down records?"

Wang Qiqi quickly nodded. "Mm-hmm. Oh right, Manman, could you go downstairs and ask Meng Fei for the data for me?" Wang Qiqi pulled out her notebook from her bag and began filling in the data in the pre-drawn grids. At this moment, Wang Qiqi desperately wished for a laptop. The last time she mentioned buying one, she regretted it upon visiting a computer store—the prices were exorbitant, and the performance wasn't great. So, the consequence of not buying a computer was having to record everything manually.

Shi Man acknowledged with an "oh," though she regretted not seeing the value of Wang Qiqi's and Lina's stocks. Still, she figured they were probably nearing 300,000 now, which was normal since their initial capital investment was higher. "You owe us dinner tonight." Since she knew the two big earners had made a killing this time, there was no letting them off the hook.

"No problem. The two steamed buns and a bowl of soup at the school cafeteria, we can afford that," Wang Qiqi whispered quietly.

Shi Man, hearing Wang Qiqi suggest that, looked utterly contemptuous. "If you have the nerve. And if you're actually willing to eat that." Shi Man didn't believe Wang Qiqi would settle for two steamed buns at night, even if she'd had a decent lunch; she’d insist on a good meal in the evening.

Wang Qiqi's pen paused. Well, kids nowadays weren't that easy to fool.

After Wang Qiqi finished copying all the required data, she noticed Shi Man still hadn't returned, which struck her as odd. It was just a matter of going downstairs and back up—how long could that take? After waiting a few more moments and still seeing no Shi Man, Wang Qiqi murmured, "Why hasn't Manman come back yet?"

Zhu Lina shrugged, indicating she didn't know. "Should I go down and check?"

Wang Qiqi considered it. It seemed everything she needed to do today was finished; there was no reason to stay longer. "Let's go together, then head back."

Go back? Zhu Lina had assumed Wang Qiqi came out partly to check the market, and partly to avoid the ostentatious behavior of others in the dorm room. "You're going back now?"

"It’s a good time to go get a library card; I completely forgot." Without a student ID or faculty card, the library wouldn't issue one. By the time the student IDs came out, they would be done with military training, followed by a long break. "Bai Ge and the others have already gotten their cards."

Zhu Lina sighed. "Then let's go get ours together. It'll be easier to review materials at the library then." Although reviewing materials in the dorm was more casual and felt safer, the space was small, and people were always coming and going. Zhu Lina couldn't just slam her materials shut every time someone entered, as that would look suspicious to her roommates. "I regret it; I should have applied for a four-person dorm room."

"We can apply next year, but aren't we planning to move out anyway?" Wang Qiqi countered. "Forget it, if we apply for a four-person room next semester, we'll stir up more rumors again." They'd be accused of being aloof and having bad relationships with their dorm mates. Besides, she planned to live between two places initially, and then move out completely, making it unnecessary to apply for the deluxe version of a four-person room.

Zhu Lina was just venting. Although the current atmosphere among them was polite enough, Zhu Lina still couldn't quite adapt to the constant flow of people in and out. "Just think of it as training," she conceded; what else could they do?

The two packed their bags and strolled slowly down the stairs, only to find Shi Man wasn't at the service desk. What surprised them most was seeing Meng Fei standing there instead. "Lina, you wait here, I'll go ask." It made no sense that Shi Man wouldn't be here while Meng Fei was, given that the only way up to the second floor from the service desk was this very staircase.

Wang Qiqi edged up beside Meng Fei. "Hello, did my friend come looking for you just now?"

Meng Fei, having just finished answering someone else's query, was about to reach for her water when she saw her lucky star standing beside her. "She went up a while ago; I already gave her the materials." Although a month had passed since that incident, Meng Fei genuinely remembered Wang Qiqi and the others. It was their substantial investment that allowed her to complete her probationary period and become a full employee. Afterward, she seemed to hit a streak of luck; people came one after another to open accounts, and her performance kept improving. Naturally, she delved deeper into stock research in private, and the stocks she traded performed better and better. Of course, Meng Fei wasn't using her own name for these trades, but rather her cousin's.

Thanks to Mo Nü Xi Yao Jing for the Jade Bi reward, and thanks to everyone for the rewards, subscriptions, and Pink tickets.