"Wife, wife, I'm not drunk, I'm really not drunk," Han Tao mumbled, leaning against Wang Qiqi's shoulder, foolishly reiterating to her that he wasn't intoxicated.

Wang Qiqi looked at Han Tao's feigned innocence, feeling both amused and curious. "Okay, okay, you're not drunk, you're not drunk. Shall we head back?" Discussing whether someone was drunk with that person when they were clearly pretending was utterly illogical, but judging by his gait, even if he were drunk, it wasn't severely so.

Han Tao had been wanting to go home for ages; otherwise, why would he put himself through the effort of pretending to be drunk? "Mhm, let's, let's go back."

Wang Qiqi breathed a sigh of relief that the other party also wanted to leave. However, looking at the seemingly inebriated Han Tao, still reeking of alcohol, she worried that taking him home in this state might incur the wrath of his future mother-in-law. If Han Tao had known Wang Qiqi's thoughts right then, forget his mother killing her—Han Tao would have severely disciplined Wang Qiqi; she certainly wasn't acting like a proper wife.

"I'll make you some sobering soup when we get back." Wang Qiqi observed Han Tao, who could still walk somewhat independently, and compared him to one of the groomsmen who had collapsed earlier at noon. She thought her man was doing relatively well. Song Ziwen had initially thought inviting his friends and colleagues for the midday reception would let him off the hook, but he had apparently made too many enemies over the years. Regardless of whether those people had evening commitments, they simply kept pouring drinks. After the midday feast, two of the three groomsmen were down. As for Song Ziwen, well, apologies—his condition was only slightly better, enough only to walk. If he hadn't rested in the afternoon, Wang Qiqi truly doubted he would even have the energy to welcome guests in the evening, let alone the stamina for the bridal chamber.

"No need, no need." The mere thought of drinking that terrible sobering soup made Han Tao's head spin. "A bath is fine. I’m not drinking that disgusting stuff..."

Wang Qiqi found his last sentence incredibly strange. Shouldn't he be drunk? Why was his speech so clear? Just as she was about to press him for an answer, Gong Peixing rushed over. "Qiqi, Qiqi, is Xiao Tao alright?" Gong Peixing had been socializing with relatives, having been pulled out by Song Yao. "Maybe you two should wait; I'll call a friend to drive you." As the brother-in-law today, Gong Peixing had drunk a fair amount shielding Song Ziwen. He certainly couldn't drive, but a friend of his, who needed to take the newlyweds home later, hadn't touched alcohol.

Wang Qiqi waved her hand. "No, we're fine. I can get a taxi back. Brother-in-law, please tell Auntie that we won't be coming over tomorrow." They had taken so much food home from noon, and now dinner was on top of that. The thought of going tomorrow only to eat leftovers gave Wang Qiqi a headache. Now that her man was "drunk," it was the perfect excuse.

"Sure thing, I understand. I'll take you to the train station tomorrow." Gong Peixing wasn't one to stand on ceremony with Wang Qiqi. "We've prepared some things at home that your sister forgot to give you; I’ll bring them along tomorrow."

Gong Peixing glanced around discreetly and lowered his voice. "In a few days, we're heading to the capital city, and Ziwen and his wife will be going too. At that time..." Wang Qiqi had mentioned buying a house in the capital, and they had all agreed. They planned to use Song Ziwen's honeymoon trip as an opportunity for the two families to travel together, sightsee, and look at property simultaneously.

"Don't worry, I've spoken to Nana; we'll take you guys to look around then." Wang Qiqi had been hesitant before, but perhaps because the stock market was doing well, or maybe everyone was too preoccupied with stocks, or perhaps Zhu Lina’s development seemed too remote—whatever the reason, sales weren't great. This gave Wang Qiqi the courage to mention her relatives looking to buy property to Zhu Lina. Zhu Lina immediately offered a discount, which, while not as good as the one Wang Qiqi and Shi Man received, still felt like a steal to Wang Qiqi; any discount was a delightful bonus. When she told Song Yao the news, hoping to find out when they planned to leave for the capital, she discovered they had already scheduled the trip to the capital, meaning they would have gone even without Wang Qiqi’s confirmation. "But the development is a bit far out," Wang Qiqi added as a courtesy, so they wouldn't be terribly disappointed later.

"We know that. How could we possibly afford a place in the city center?" Gong Peixing and the others had done their homework on buying property. Naturally, there wasn't much detailed information, but they gathered tidbits from colleagues who traveled to the capital for business, and Song Ziwen, leveraging his position at the station, had inquired about conditions. They understood that with the small amount of money they had, buying a place in the capital was a major challenge. They saw that Qiqi spent a year and a half studying in the capital just to buy one apartment—a second-hand unit with a mortgage. How much did they have? Because of this, Gong Peixing had considered backing out; the same money could buy two houses back in their hometown's city center. But going to the capital meant their money would shrink considerably.

Wang Qiqi noticed Gong Peixing’s less-than-cheerful expression. She patted his shoulder. "Don't worry. In ten years, you'll realize that buying property in the capital yields far greater returns than buying here. No matter how good this place is, it's still a small city."

Wang Qiqi was about to say more when she spotted an empty taxi. She helped Han Tao into it. "Brother-in-law, we'll talk more once we're in the capital."

Gong Peixing watched her leave, looking as if she had secured a huge bargain, and thought, what good would regretting it now do? Shouldn't he trust Wang Qiqi implicitly? After all, they had made a significant amount of money following her lead. When he returned to the banquet hall, his wife, Song Yao, holding their son, approached him. "Did you talk to Qiqi?" If Song Yao trusted Qiqi one hundred percent, then Gong Peixing was a bit more reserved. "Relax. Even if we don't profit, we’ll have a place for our son when he goes to university." Song Yao felt that keeping the money in the bank wasn't ideal, but buying another house attracted too much scrutiny. "Think about what your parents have been saying recently—that the house is too small, not enough room..."

Gong Peixing felt stifled hearing this. He hadn't taken any money from his family for his wedding, so why were they still nagging? "Just listen to them and let them talk. As the elder brother, I have no obligation to buy a house for my younger brother. If you have the means, live large; if not, live small. Besides, we're still living in your maternal family's place."

Wang Qiqi rolled over, intending to sleep more, but realized she could see bright sunlight through the curtains. She wondered if it was already nine o'clock. Checking the alarm clock made her jump: it was almost ten! She immediately nudged Han Tao beside her. "Wake up, wake up! We still have to go to Shi Man's place." She thought to herself that this guy was just pretending to be weak. Hmph. Yesterday, when she told him to take a shower upon getting home, he claimed he had no strength and insisted she help him wash. Wang Qiqi, being an honest soul, figured she had to help if her man couldn't manage. She hadn't anticipated that the result would be her being completely taken advantage of by him.

Han Tao twisted in the bed. "Let me sleep a little longer."

Wang Qiqi looked at Han Tao, clearly too tired to get up, and despite feeling exhausted herself and her own condition not being ideal, seeing him like this brought her immense satisfaction. She thought, Serves you right for fooling around yesterday and not resting properly! "When you were being naughty yesterday, did you forget we have lunch out today? Five minutes, get up quickly! I need to wash the bedding, too."

"Mom can wash it." Han Tao wondered why she needed to wash the bedding; his mother would come over to help. Since their relationship was established, Luo Hongjuan would come daily to open windows, air out the place, chat with Wang Dajun and his wife, and do a thorough cleaning periodically.

Luo Hongjuan could certainly handle the washing, but Wang Qiqi thought about how wild things got yesterday and wondered if anything was stained on the sheets and pillowcases. "Get up when I tell you to! You can't push everything onto your mother."

Wang Qiqi huffed and went to the bathroom to wash up. Han Tao, having no choice, dragged himself out of bed. When he got up and lifted the covers, he saw the moisture stains on the sheets and understood why Qiqi insisted on washing them. It wouldn't be good for his mother to see this stuff. Even though his mother knew he was staying at Qiqi's these past few days, seeing these intimate items was awkward. With that thought, Han Tao pulled off the duvet cover and sheets, gathered them, and carried them to the washing machine.

Wang Qiqi and Han Tao arrived at the Shi residence and, unsurprisingly, were warmly received by Shi Man's parents. The meal on the table was quite lavish. However, Wang Qiqi had been filling herself with rich meats, delicacies, and refined dishes for days, so the pressure exerted by Shi Man’s parents’ feast was considerable. "Eat more, Qiqi, you've lost weight since you visited during Chinese New Year," Shi Man's mother continuously used the serving chopsticks to place food onto Wang Qiqi's and Han Tao's plates, constantly muttering about how thin she looked. "A little plump is better for a young girl; too thin makes one look unhealthy."

Hearing this, Wang Qiqi felt like crying. Why were all elders the same? Although her mother-in-law never openly said anything about her being too thin to her face, she had privately pulled Han Tao aside and lectured him extensively on fattening her up, claiming that being fuller brought fortune and the look of bearing many children. When Wang Qiqi heard this vague recounting from Han Tao, she was stunned. How could Wang Damei (Shi Man's mother) have the same idea? Her elderly mother-in-law was even more formidable. She’d declared that since she and Han Tao would eventually go to the States, perhaps immigrating, and foreign countries didn't have the one-child policy, they should have lots of babies—to waste the Americans' grain! This fierce old woman had somehow heard that foreign governments rewarded larger families. Wang Qiqi wasn't sure about this claim and hadn't considered it at all.

Wang Qiqi suspected that if Wang Damei knew something, her own mother-in-law would know it too. Since they had dined together during the Spring Festival, the two mothers often called or met up; such news would surely circulate. The idea that she might turn into a broodmare gave Wang Qiqi a severe headache. However, it was possible that Shi Man’s parents shared the same notion. In the eyes of the older generation, many children meant abundant blessings; as long as the family could afford it, having more was perfectly acceptable.

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