"Qiqi, have you packed your bags?" Shi Man pushed open Wang Qiqi’s door, only to find her still sound asleep. She was speechless; their flight was at noon. This young miss was far too leisurely.

Although Shi Man had been to France countless times, this trip was different—it was to America. Disney, Hollywood, seeing celebrities—Shi Man held immense excitement for the American journey, not least because it felt like an intimate trip with Feng Xuanxiang, spurred on by the thrill of hitchhiking for part of the way. Due to final exams, Shi Man had been suppressing her excitement. Now that the tests were successfully completed, Shi Man felt as if she could fly, especially since today was departure day. She hadn't slept well last night, waking up intermittently. Seeing Wang Qiqi sleeping so soundly filled her with envy. If she hadn't rested well, she certainly wouldn't let Wang Qiqi sleep peacefully either.

Wang Qiqi was actually quite thrilled inside. While she had traveled abroad before, this was the US, and they would be staying for over a month. It wasn't like the old days of purely shopping trips abroad; this time, she could wander around leisurely, see Han Tao's work environment. It definitely wouldn't be the rush of getting off the vehicle, snapping a photo, and then getting back in to sleep.

But after packing her luggage yesterday, Wang Qiqi habitually checked her email and found several messages. The dedicated Wang Qiqi, no matter how excited, finished up the tasks at hand before going to bed. Once everything was done, Wang Qiqi was utterly exhausted, and any excitement had vanished; she just felt how hard she had worked.

Wang Qiqi felt as if she had just drifted off when a violent shaking jolted her awake. Her first thought was, Is that an earthquake? But then she recalled there were no rumors of tremors in the capital. As Wang Qiqi groggily opened her eyes, she saw Shi Man vigorously pushing her. "Manman, what are you doing?" Starting the day with such madness! I know you’re excited, but there's no need to bully a kid who was earning money right up until bedtime. "Let me sleep a little longer." Wang Qiqi glanced at the alarm clock by the bed—just past eight. Heavens, the flight wasn't until past two in the afternoon; she could easily sleep until ten.

"No more sleeping, we need to get to the airport early," Shi Man said, seeing the now-conscious Wang Qiqi showing signs of settling back down, and quickly grabbed her arm to prevent her from going back to sleep.

Early? "We arranged for the driver to pick us up at eleven, so we’ll be there by twelve. That’s plenty of time." Wang Qiqi thought to herself that they weren't going duty-free shopping; they were heading straight through. "Why go to the airport early just to sit around foolishly? Can't you let me rest?"

Rest? Actually, Shi Man hadn't rested well either, but she wasn't in a hurry. "The flight is over ten hours. You aren't planning to sleep the whole way, are you?" Being on the plane is boring; everyone sleeps. Can you really start a conversation? Besides, it's a good time to adjust to the time difference.

Wang Qiqi had been dead set against getting up, but hearing Shi Man’s words, she realized how much she was currently sleeping. How she would pass such a long flight time did present a real problem. "Fine, fine, I'm up. I’ll bring a book along." It was impossible to sleep the entire time, especially since the plane would stopover in the Sun Country; Wang Qiqi wouldn't just sleep through that leg of the journey; she needed something to keep her occupied.

Shi Man had assumed Wang Qiqi was just placating her, not expecting her to actually climb out of bed. "You’re really getting up?"

Wang Qiqi nodded. "Mm. I'm up. Then I’ll put away the clothes I washed yesterday and take a shower."

Shi Man could only look heavenward regarding Wang Qiqi’s fastidiousness. She had showered and washed her hair right before bed yesterday, hadn't gone out all night, and still needed this level of diligence?

Although Wang Qiqi got up early, after running through her tasks, she realized it was barely enough time. Just as she was about to sit down for a brief rest, "Qiqi, the car is downstairs. Is everything packed?" Juliana knocked on Wang Qiqi’s door, noticing she was placing a framed photo of the three of them from her desk into the suitcase. She thought, This girl really takes photos everywhere she goes.

Wang Qiqi nodded, looking around to confirm everything that needed to be put away was settled. "I'm ready, Nana. Once you set the dates and flight for your trip to the States, email me, and I'll come pick you up." Although Juliana was also going ahead to scout things out and had serious business to attend to, as the first one arriving, she couldn't neglect picking her up. "We’ll have a good chat then."

Juliana replied, "I'll be leaving about half a month after you. I'm going to take a look at the school I might attend later." Juliana had made some decisions about the graduate school she wanted, but she planned to use this opportunity for an on-site inspection before making the final decision.

"We can go look together then, see if we can end up at the same school," Wang Qiqi said. She hadn't done much research on her future graduate school. She understood that her so-called specialized knowledge wouldn't amount to much in the eyes of foreigners; it was all outdated information. Aiming for a prestigious university was out of the question; just getting into an ordinary one would be enough.

Han Tao yawned, watching Shi Man animatedly pull Feng Xuanxiang along, chattering nonstop. "She must not have slept well yesterday." She even had dark circles under her eyes; it was definitely due to being overly excited yesterday and not sleeping.

"Yeah, she woke me up early," the excitement fading, the sleepiness surging back. Wang Qiqi just wanted to sleep right now. "Let me lean on you for a bit." Wang Qiqi leaned her head on Han Tao's shoulder without waiting for his permission.

Han Tao recalled that Qiqi had mentioned yesterday wanting to sleep early and adjust her sleep schedule so she wouldn't be awake when they needed to sleep on the plane. Why did it feel like Qiqi hadn't rested well? Han Tao assumed Wang Qiqi was just too agitated, so he wrapped his arm around her, adjusting her posture so she could sleep more comfortably.

"Did Qiqi pull an all-nighter working yesterday?" Feng Xuanxiang looked at Wang Qiqi’s state and wondered if she had worked late again. This girl was clearly wealthy, yet she insisted on exhausting herself. Although the income was high, in Feng Xuanxiang's view, she should spend that energy studying finance rather than translating manuscripts. He felt Wang Qiqi should have pursued a career in finance; she seemed to grasp the general direction of many things, like investing heavily in the stock market when it began to rise again, followed by entering real estate. The former was Feng Xuanxiang’s specialty, which he understood, but he hadn't researched the housing market extensively. The puzzle was that Qiqi was just a student, yet she understood it so deeply.

Just as Feng Xuanxiang thought Wang Qiqi would dedicate all her energy to that field, she turned around to do translation work and sourcing purchases. While those were profitable, Feng Xuanxiang considered them small change that tired her out. Yet, Wang Qiqi seemed genuinely happy doing them, which made Feng Xuanxiang feel he truly couldn't read her. You could say she was indifferent to fame and fortune because she was a girl who loved money; but if you said she loved money, she was also quite lazy. The explanation that she did translation and sourcing so she could earn travel funds for her future world travels left Feng Xuanxiang with a wry smile.

"No way. Didn't Qiqi tell them she was going abroad these few days and asked them not to send urgent work?" Shi Man was surprised. But then she suddenly recalled tossing and turning sleeplessly in bed last night, seeming to hear the sound of typing coming from next door. She had initially thought it was the sound of Qiqi typing that lulled her to sleep. "It seems Qiqi was on the computer quite late yesterday. Could it be..."

Han Tao understood; the girl’s hands must have been itching again. "It’s probably her habit—checking emails, seeing an order, and feeling unable to resist translating it through the night." As her boyfriend, Han Tao certainly understood his girlfriend's habit, but she was something else. She said she would rest well but ended up exhausting herself.

Han Tao looked at Wang Qiqi, sleeping quietly nestled beside him. He desperately wanted to wake her up, to ask her why she needed to work so hard. He remembered visiting Wang Damei during the Spring Festival, and she had told him Qiqi was too demanding, saying the girl must be fighting hard in the capital. Han Tao had agreed silently then, but he had outwardly replied that Qiqi wasn't that tired. "When will you ever rely on me completely?"

Wang Qiqi vaguely heard Han Tao saying something to her in her drowsy state, but she was too exhausted to open her eyes and ask. However, she registered the sigh in his final words.

Han Tao looked toward the terminal appearing in the distance. He gently shook Wang Qiqi. "Qiqi, Qiqi, wake up. We’re at the airport."

Wang Qiqi really wanted to say that it felt like just a moment ago, and just as Han Tao was preparing to shake her harder, Wang Qiqi finally rubbed her eyes. "We’re here? That was fast." It felt like she had only just fallen asleep. The route usually seemed long, but why was it over so quickly today?

Fast? Shi Man looked at Wang Qiqi with surprise. Her own feet were aching, and only Wang Qiqi, who called the shots on speed, thought it was fast. "Get out, get out."

Wang Qiqi stumbled out of the car in a daze, clutching her luggage, yawning as she hooked her arm through Han Tao's and walked toward the airport lobby. Han Tao looked at Wang Qiqi like that. "Let me push the luggage."

Wang Qiqi shook her head. "No need. I can handle it myself." It was just one rolling suitcase; she wasn't so delicate that she couldn't manage that. If Shi Man saw her looking so fragile, who knew what she would think.

Hearing the answer, which was exactly what he expected, Han Tao stopped walking. Wang Qiqi found it strange that he wasn't moving. "Qiqi, you really don't need to be so strong. You can afford to be a little weak sometimes. I’m right behind you."

Wang Qiqi initially wanted to ask Han Tao what was wrong. It was just about carrying luggage; did he need to make such a big deal of it? "Han Tao..."

"It's not about this moment, but I feel like sometimes you..." Han Tao wanted to seize the opportunity to voice his thoughts, but he looked at Qiqi’s tired appearance. "Let's have a good talk once we get to America."

【The Double Life of Wuyou】 In public, she is a top student from a prestigious university and a moderately famous online author. In private, she is a psychic strategist serving the Empire, and the future daughter-in-law of the Empire's First Family.