Gong Yiying froze instantly. She hadn't expected Wang Qiqi to sidestep her question and instead probe into her accommodation. Flustered, she blurted out, "I'm staying out today, I found a guesthouse outside." Gong Yiying quickly concocted a response.

A guesthouse? Wang Qiqi chuckled, glancing pointedly at Deng Zhi behind her. "I heard you rented a place. Go help your man clean up. Claiming you're staying in a guesthouse is quite fitting, really." It was fitting, after all—you couldn't exactly roll in the hay in the dorm, so 'guesthouse' was a rather apt cover.

Gong Yiying had assumed Wang Qiqi wouldn't be returning to campus until the next day. The fact that she knew about Deng Zhi renting a place caught her off guard. Internally, Gong Yiying kept warning herself to stay calm and collected; panicking now would just play right into Wang Qiqi's hands. Wasn't the best defense always a good offense?

Gong Yiying slanted a look at Han Tao. Up close, she noticed he was quite handsome—big eyes, dark eyebrows, a high forehead that suggested good fortune. However, in Gong Yiying's estimation, he still fell a bit short compared to her own man. "Qiqi, you bought so much stuff—aren't you cohabiting too?" Tsk, I'll just be straightforward; why mince words?

This was the first time Deng Zhi had seen Wang Qiqi’s boyfriend, Han Tao, face-to-face; last time, he’d only caught a glimpse of his back. "Deng Zhi, Qiqi's classmate." Deng Zhi deliberately omitted his other identity, especially since he stressed 'Qiqi.' He wanted to plant suspicion in Han Tao’s mind. He didn't believe Wang Qiqi would ever reveal his true status to Han Tao; he wasn't that significant, and besides, Wang Qiqi and Han Tao seemed to be getting along so well, there was no reason for her to invite trouble by mentioning him.

Deng Zhi’s little scheme was clever, but unfortunately, he was dealing with Wang Qiqi and Han Tao. Han Tao stared at Deng Zhi with a slight smile for a long moment before saying, "I know you. You used to pursue Qiqi, but now you're dating her roommate, Gong Yiying, right? Congratulations to you both. Qiqi always mentions her roommate; she even said you two are quite a good match." Still, the fact that Wang Qiqi mentioned they were a 'good match' while wearing an expression that suggested she was anticipating a good show was the only real clue that she was, indeed, watching a spectacle unfold.

Deng Zhi hadn't expected Han Tao to know about him, but what hurt more was Wang Qiqi claiming he and Gong Yiying were a good match. A good match? Fire flared in Deng Zhi’s chest. Wang Qiqi was there when Gong Yiying was involved with Zhang Han; how could she say such a thing? Did she truly believe he deserved nothing better than a flighty woman? Deng Zhi forced himself to take deep breaths, recognizing this wasn't the time to erupt. "Yingying is lovely, certainly. But when are you treating us to a meal? We've heard so much about you." Hmph. You've been with Qiqi this long and haven't treated anyone? What a cheapskate.

Han Tao caught the implication immediately. "Once school starts and everyone has time, I'll host a dinner." The two men faced off with their gazes, and if looks could kill, they would have exchanged countless blows, though Han Tao clearly held the upper hand.

How could he not? Wang Qiqi’s boyfriend was Han Tao, whereas Deng Zhi was merely the man who pursued Wang Qiqi and was subsequently rejected.

"Cohabiting?" Wang Qiqi hadn't realized the tension already brewing between the two men. "Yes, I'm cohabiting, with Manman and Lina." What was so sensitive about that?

"One person per room. That means you and your man get a room to yourselves," Gong Yiying pointed out the flaw in Wang Qiqi's statement. The thought of the seemingly pure Wang Qiqi living with a man was explosive gossip.

"If you want to cohabit with Deng Zhi, that's your business. I'm living with Manman, and Han Tao is staying with Dai Lijun and a few seniors from the Computer Science department. If you don't believe me, go ask the seniors." Wang Qiqi secretly thanked fate that she had played good Samaritan a few days prior, warming soup for the seniors, which allowed her to learn their names. Wang Qiqi calmly listed the four other names. I’m not just babbling; I have witnesses.

Gong Yiying was stunned speechless. No way, I got excited for nothing, and Qiqi actually managed to lecture me.

Deng Zhi, however, was relieved. So Wang Qiqi and Han Tao were still innocent. Thinking this, Deng Zhi scrutinized Han Tao from head to toe. He wondered why this stunning beauty and wealthy woman was still untouched. Was he waiting until the wedding day? What an idiot. Who knew who the groom would be by then? That would be a massive loss. This realization sparked an idea in Deng Zhi: since this certain someone didn't know how to cherish his woman, Deng Zhi felt obliged to lend Han Tao a hand.

Wang Qiqi couldn't read Deng Zhi's mind, but his look made her deeply uncomfortable. She worried he was cooking up some new scheme. With that thought, Wang Qiqi rallied her spirits, raising her guard against Deng Zhi several notches.

Having gained no advantage, Gong Yiying saw no reason to linger. She tugged at Deng Zhi and, without bidding Wang Qiqi farewell, pushed their cart away. Regarding her man's dazed and strange expression, Gong Yiying naturally assumed it stemmed from another defeat at Wang Qiqi's hands. As for the names Wang Qiqi listed, Gong Yiying planned to investigate them. Hmph. She knew Wang Qiqi named those people because either Han Tao truly lived with them, or Wang Qiqi was close enough to them that they would lie for her. Given that Dai Lijun was among them, anyone could see the newness of their relationship.

Wang Qiqi didn't believe that simply listing a few names would solve the Gong Yiying problem so easily. She might devise another scheme to smear her reputation. "Let’s go." Wang Qiqi stared at the direction Gong Yiying had left for a long time before turning to Han Tao. "Oh, right, I still need to buy some shampoo. The quality of yours isn't great."

Since Wang Qiqi wanted to continue shopping, Han Tao wasn't about to spoil the mood by telling her to stop browsing and head home.

Wang Qiqi vented her frustration through shopping. By the time she snapped back to reality, the cart was overflowing. "Did I pick all this?" she asked, astonished. She remembered having only a little over half a cart before the encounter with Gong Yiying. This... this... Wang Qiqi looked down and consciously scanned the items again, realizing quite a few weren't things she actually needed. It made her wonder if she had been sleepwalking.

Wang Qiqi thought how lucky she was not to have mindlessly headed to the checkout. Otherwise, she’d have lost a fortune—not only spending the money but also having to lug it all home, which was physical labor. "Why didn't you stop me?" Wang Qiqi began picking out the things she didn't want, intending to put them back shortly. What made her feel particularly embarrassed was that she had purchased quite a few sanitary products. Bringing those back would make Shi Man laugh herself silly, even though the house would eventually host three and a half women (it turned out Jiang Xin’s parents had arranged for her to only stay over on weekends, which relieved Shi Man, who, despite their good relations, kept certain things private).

Han Tao simply nodded, thinking to himself that he dared not stop her when she was radiating such fierce energy moments ago. "Since you bought them, they'll get used eventually. I noticed they are mostly daily necessities."

"No, Manman will laugh herself to death when I take these back." Wang Qiqi spent some time putting the unwanted items back in their respective places, but even after that, there were still several necessary purchases left.

Shi Man and Zhu Lina were nestled in Wang Qiqi’s room and didn't come out when they heard the door open. They figured Han Tao must be there, but when they waited and didn't hear his voice, they assumed he had left.

When Shi Man heard what Wang Qiqi encountered at the supermarket, her face immediately soured. She hadn't run into any 'drama queens' at the dinner, only to meet one while grocery shopping. This made Shi Man, who had been lazy and hoping to give Wang Qiqi and Han Tao some privacy, regret her decision deeply. "Are they living together?"

"I don't know. Maybe not. Perhaps she just stays over occasionally." If I gave her concrete proof, maybe she would actually move in—I’m setting the example, after all. But the truth was, they weren't living together, so she had to be cautious.

"She won't give up that easily. Be careful in the future, and stay away from Deng Zhi." Zhu Lina felt this way after hearing Wang Qiqi’s account of the confrontation. Though she wasn't there, she had met Deng Zhi a few times and sensed he was not a good person.

Wang Qiqi nodded, signaling she understood. "I know. Oh, right, we need to make a trip to the stock market in a few days." Wang Qiqi felt she was forgetting something; she had only remembered it while chatting with Han Tao on the way home. It wasn't that she didn't care, but she was focused on pinpointing the exact moment to sell—selling too early meant less profit, which she disliked, but selling too late meant massive losses.

When Shi Man heard about the stock market trip, she stopped worrying about how Gong Yiying might make her move. There was no point dwelling on that now; she could react if Gong Yiying made a move later. However, the stock market directly impacted her savings and her summer plans. "Are we ready to sell?"

Zhu Lina knew the stocks they held had been rising well recently, but she recalled the final number was slightly off from what Qiqi had originally predicted. "We haven't hit the target yet, have we?"

"I know, but I think we should consider selling in batches," Wang Qiqi voiced her concern. "Didn't a certain someone mention discussing stocks mutually last time? I feel like we’re close enough; we might as well switch to a better performing stock rather than cling to the last dregs of profit."

Zhu Lina thought it over and strongly agreed. Whether that 'certain someone' would actually take the bait and discuss the market was up to him. Of course, they couldn't just ask directly—wasn't there Qiqi? She was studying finance. Listening to that person explain things would boost her professional knowledge, and more importantly, make money. The market was booming, certainly, but not everyone profited. Maximizing gains depended on individual skill levels.

Shi Man’s reaction was to burrow under her covers and avoid the topic. But would avoiding it help? Absolutely not. Wang Qiqi and Zhu Lina were never going to let Shi Man off the hook.