After seeing Dai Lijun and Jiang Xin out, Wang Qiqi set down the manuscript she was holding, took off her glasses, and announced, "Comrades, let's have a meeting."

"A meeting?" Shi Man and Zhu Lina wiped their hands clean and walked over to the sofa to sit down. Neither of them understood what kind of meeting could be held at this hour. Was it about stocks? Things were going well, and it certainly wasn't time to sell.

Wang Qiqi nodded, patted the sofa to signal them to sit, and explained what she had been thinking about after her interview that day. "I just feel that when the time comes, talking to her could open up another distribution channel for us."

Zhu Lina pondered for a moment. "Then how much benefit should we offer her?" According to their original plan, they would take a ten-point cut. If Li Qian were added to the equation, their ten points would shrink.

"We still have the tax refund," Wang Qiqi said, bringing up something they hadn't considered initially. "Besides, we should still be able to take at least five points. Even if the profit margin shrinks, we won't have inventory piling up, and I suspect she might not even care about such a small amount of money."

Zhu Lina murmured for a bit. "Do you think she'll use these items to play the good person?" If they used brand-name goods as goodwill gifts, it could be an excellent bridge. "Why don't you talk to her about it when the time comes?"

Shi Man, hearing the topic, spoke up. "I don't mind, but Qiqi, after your interview for the translator job today, you actually thought of a strategy like this."

"I only realized she might be interested in the business we plan to do after seeing the bag she carried when she was about to step out," Wang Qiqi felt she was quite lucky. However, "I'll bring it up after we've gotten to know them better in a while." Bringing it up abruptly now might not result in her agreeing to help; she might just deflect. It would be better to wait until they were more familiar, or perhaps when she mentioned it to Li Qian during their planned trip to Europe in the summer—that would be a good opportunity.

"In any case, Qiqi, I trust you to handle things," Shi Man patted Wang Qiqi's shoulder to show her satisfaction. "Qiqi, oh Qiqi, what would I do without you in my life? You truly are my God of Wealth." Her money invested in the stock market had already doubled, and she had found a sales channel for a major procurement trip to Europe next year—another source of wealth. The more Shi Man thought about it, the more Wang Qiqi seemed like her personal deity of fortune. She excitedly threw herself onto Wang Qiqi to express her gratitude.

Wang Qiqi was completely pinned underneath Shi Man from the impact, and Shi Man's chest pressed against her nose. If she were a boy, being crushed by something so soft would definitely feel like taking advantage, but since they were the same sex, and she had no romantic feelings for women, this was pure suffocation.

Wang Qiqi struggled to push Shi Man off her and, upon finally feeling fresh air again, turned to Shi Man. "I think you just don't like looking at me and are trying to murder me, honestly."

Shi Man looked at Wang Qiqi's flushed face and laughed without restraint. She pinched Wang Qiqi’s cheek. "Red apple, looks good enough to bite," Shi Man said while glancing at Han Tao beside them. Han Tao, however, had his attention largely fixed on the computer and paid little heed to Shi Man's antics, which disappointed her somewhat. Since someone wasn't paying attention, why bother? Shi Man quickly withdrew and stopped her teasing remarks. "How about the pay? These are rush jobs; is there a bonus if you finish them?"

"No," Wang Qiqi shook her head. "I'm just a newcomer; I can't expect too much."

Shi Man heard that there was no bonus and her lips moved, but she ultimately said nothing. "Call me if you need anything."

Although Wang Qiqi really wanted Shi Man's help, what could Shi Man actually do? Translation? Forget it; her English wasn't as good as hers. If she did the translation, Wang Qiqi would have to clean up the mess later. If she did the final transcription? The Li couple would notice the inconsistent handwriting and know she’d gotten help. Wang Qiqi had looked over some of the manuscripts; some were business-related. Perhaps the client didn't want this material leaked, so she had to do all the work herself.

Wang Qiqi could only thank Shi Man for her kindness. Shi Man shrugged, picked up a book, and started reading. "I plan to seriously study English so I can earn some money as a translator in the future." Who would ever turn down more money? Shi Man mused that Zhu Lina would be paid when she interned at her family's company next semester, and Qiqi and Han Tao were out of the question. In that case, she couldn't just live off her family's living expenses; it felt strange to her. She had considered tutoring, but she didn't think she had the ability or the patience to help children with their homework. Besides, she had only gotten into C University by cramming; she shouldn't mislead any students. "Qiqi, do you think I could be a translator?"

"Of course," Wang Qiqi said, quickly typing the first draft of the manuscript onto paper, her handwriting messy—it would be revised later anyway. "Even if you major in English, as long as you have a solid English foundation, someone will eventually hire you. Don't you think so?" Wang Qiqi hadn't expected Shi Man to want to work as a translator. She didn't seem like a child lacking money. These days, few people worked part-time unless their family circumstances were poor, or they wanted to gain experience—the former being more common, the latter very rare.

Shi Man considered it. "Maybe I should forget it and just focus seriously on my studies. I worry that if they aren't satisfied with me, they might scold me severely." Shi Man decided to drop the idea after all. "Oh right, Qiqi, during your interview today, did they have you translate something right away?"

Wang Qiqi suddenly remembered something at that moment. It seemed she had, in fact, helped translate a manuscript. "Oh my god, Manman, I was completely taken advantage of today! I ended up translating a whole manuscript for them, and for no pay, too, and they even complained about this and that being inadequate..." The more Wang Qiqi thought about it, the more it felt like a loss. If she ever opened a translation agency in the future, she could absolutely use interviews as an opportunity to get people to translate manuscripts for free—she’d make a fortune.

"That's not bad; at least they gave you a chance. The key is, what do you think of what they said?" Zhu Lina also put down the materials she was looking at. "You’d really be crying if they only pointed out what you did wrong, not telling you where you went wrong." That was a typical case of complaining after receiving a benefit.

Wang Qiqi smiled without answering and picked up her materials to continue reading. Although the compensation for this material wasn't high, the stack she held now was substantial—a few hundred pages in total. However, there wouldn't be such a good opportunity next time. If the client hadn't been rushing to complete a large order and couldn't find someone quickly for such a small job, coupled with their urgent deadline, such a fortunate break wouldn't have fallen into her lap. Still, precisely because of this, Wang Qiqi felt she absolutely had to do this job well. Even if she didn't get large orders in the future (though she certainly couldn't handle them now, and taking them would only harm her), at least the volume of small orders would be guaranteed.

"You're going to be working late tonight, aren't you?" Zhu Lina looked at the manuscript in Wang Qiqi's hands. Even though she had been relaxing on the sofa looking at materials all afternoon, it seemed Wang Qiqi hadn't even gone through the entire stack yet. "Is it very difficult?"

Wang Qiqi sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "It’s not that it’s difficult, but the problem is I keep worrying that it won't pass inspection and they'll send it back for revisions. I want to translate it even better." That’s why Wang Qiqi was taking so much time. Of course, what Wang Qiqi didn't mention was that if any part was deemed substandard, she would have to redo all the manuscripts from scratch, which would be truly agonizing. If the content was extensive, it would be a killer.

Wang Qiqi stood alone outside the Li family's door with her backpack. Although she had passed the initial interview yesterday, today was the first time she had to present actual results. She didn't know if the client would be satisfied. Yesterday, at least Han Tao had been there, but today Wang Qiqi had to face them alone. Although Han Tao really wanted to accompany her, Qiqi had declined; having someone else submit her first piece of work was simply not done.

Wang Qiqi knocked once and waited a moment before someone opened the door—it was Li Zhe. "You're here. My parents are waiting for you in the study," Li Zhe said before walking back toward his room. To be honest, if Han Tao hadn't called him just now, Li Zhe wouldn't have opened the door for Wang Qiqi so kindly or given her that notice.

Wang Qiqi wasn't surprised by Li Zhe’s coldness; they weren't close, and for him to treat her this way was actually quite decent. "Thank you."

Li Zhe waved his hand. "Don't thank me; thank him."

Wang Qiqi hadn't expected Han Tao to call Li Zhe, this kid, without accompanying her. Was this why he was so confident letting her come alone?

Li Xiangdong was slightly surprised when he received Wang Qiqi's call at noon. However, given the time elapsed, it was normal that she could finish the translation; he just wasn't sure how well it was done. "You're here."

Wang Qiqi made an affirmative sound, took out her manuscripts from her bag, and handed them to Li Xiangdong, waiting for his final verdict.

Li Xiangdong divided half the manuscript to Li Qian to review. Time was running tight; if there were any errors, they would have to be re-transcribed.

The couple were so engrossed in reading the manuscripts that they forgot to ask Wang Qiqi to sit down, and Wang Qiqi watched them anxiously, awaiting the final judgment.

Li Xiangdong finished reading his half, then took the manuscript Li Qian had finished and set aside. After a long moment, he put it down. "Although there are a few minor issues, it’s generally correct. By the way, have you had previous experience with commercial terminology?" This was what truly surprised Li Xiangdong; some of the terms were highly specialized in business, and he hadn't expected Wang Qiqi to translate them all correctly.

Wang Qiqi thought to herself, rather mischievously, that she had dealt with commercial matters before; if she didn't understand these specialized terms, she might as well go jump in a river. "I bought many English dictionaries."

Li Xiangdong offered no definite opinion on Wang Qiqi's answer. If one only looked up dictionaries, one could find the Chinese meaning of these phrases, and finding the relevant translation was easy enough. He hadn't expected to find such a promising talent this time; it was quite lucky. "The translation is very good." Although Li Xiangdong was quite satisfied with the quality of Wang Qiqi’s work, he made no mention of increasing the pay, which left Wang Qiqi slightly disappointed.

It has been a period of high temperatures recently. Fellow book friends staying in air-conditioned rooms should take care. Bubu got hit yesterday, suffering from heatstroke and blocked perspiration. The miserable Bubu has been sweating it out in a room without A/C or a fan since yesterday.