Wang Qiqi was utterly thrilled at the prospect of the spectacle awaiting them today. She had picked out her outfit early, marveling at it, "What a truly marvelous day." Gazing outside at the brilliant sunshine, Wang Qiqi didn't need to consult the almanac to know this was destined to be an auspicious day, a perfect day.

Han Tao rolled over, watching Wang Qiqi standing before the wardrobe, fruitlessly holding up clothes. He propped himself up on one elbow. "What are you mumbling about to yourself in the mirror?" While the clothes were certainly nice, there was no need for such a sinister grin. "We know there's a good show coming, but everyone else is in the dark. Don't overdo it, or we’ll end up being the ones on display."

"We are supposed to be there to watch the show," Wang Qiqi pouted. "Don't worry, I know how to maintain appearances. Besides, if we grin too broadly, I'm worried your uncles will just turn their guns on us."

"Exactly. We need to be low-key, extremely low-key. We'll just act like we know nothing about the situation. Furthermore, I’m sure many relatives already know about their financial troubles," Han Tao mused. Based on Xue Hong's temperament, if she could borrow money from anywhere else, she would never have resorted to asking her own family.

Wang Qiqi could only shake her head. What a terrible mess. On the joyous occasion of the son’s wedding, they needed money for the ceremony, yet no one was willing to lend it. This spoke volumes about how insufferably awful someone must have behaved previously. "I’m half-tempted not to wear new clothes, lest they mistake us for being rich and bleed us dry."

"Why wouldn't you wear them? Just because we dress well, they assume we're wealthy enough to bleed? If we were rich, why wouldn't we lend the money?" Han Tao thought that they should deliberately dress well for the wedding, just to upset Xue Hong, though they still needed to manage the surface courtesies. "Besides, if we look shabby, those relatives will certainly gossip about how poorly we’re doing—why else would we dress like this for such an important event? And Qiqi, this is your first time participating in the Han family's affairs; so many eyes will be on you."

Han Tao knew for a fact that many relatives would inevitably compare Qiqi with Han Jun's wife, Ding Meina. Hmph, maybe her family had money, but could they compare to Qiqi’s own standing? Moreover, in Han Tao's view, a girl barely twenty years old, getting involved with an aimless boy and ending up pregnant—it simply suggested she wasn't particularly bright. Despite her young age, rumor had it she worked at her father's company, supposedly preparing to inherit it. In reality, to put it crudely, she hadn't applied herself during her studies, and now, working at the old man's company, which boss would hire her otherwise? It was only fools like Xue Hong who were holding onto such a daughter-in-law.

Seeing Han Tao’s insistence on dressing finely, Wang Qiqi stopped arguing. After all, judging by the performance of that extraordinarily capable man yesterday, she knew he wouldn't hesitate to 'fire cannons' again if provoked. "Then I’ll bring the LV bag I bought this year." Although this bag was very expensive domestically, Wang Qiqi had stumbled upon it at a massive discount in the States and found it quite lovely, so she’d bought it as a nice addition to her collection of designer goods.

Han Tao saw his wife had finally seen the light. He climbed out of bed, walked behind Wang Qiqi, and wrapped his arms around her waist. "That’s right, we need to flaunt it a little. My relatives are such social climbers. The better your standing, the more they’ll suck up to you, even if you ignore them, their attitude won't change." Han Tao believed his relatives were absolute devotees of the principle of favoring the rich and despising the poor. In Han Tao’s memory, all his relatives, from his childhood until now, had praised Han Jun for being clever and promising. Now, Han Jun was nothing but a good-for-nothing hoodlum. "I actually think it’s a blessing in disguise that Han Jun’s former girlfriend broke up with him; maybe she can find a decent man now."

Wang Qiqi didn't know much about Han Jun's ex-girlfriend. "You think leaving Han Jun was a good thing for her, but maybe your grandmother and the others think it was a good thing that your brother left that girl. But your uncle's family—they’re going to lose money on this, aren't they?"

"If they don't lose money, they aren't human. I heard that girl had two abortions," Han Tao truly couldn't fathom what Han Jun was thinking. Knowing how harmful abortions were to a woman, he never once considered that factor. He was just as brainless as the girl, who was also clearly lacking sense. In contrast, his own wife was completely different; without the proper precautions, his wife would absolutely never sleep with him. It wasn't that he couldn't afford a child, but both were currently focused on their studies, making such an accident impossible. Could it really be as Qiqi suggested: the lower one’s level of inquiry, the greater the yearning for children, and the earlier the age for childbearing?

Luo Hongjuan emerged from her workplace exit and spotted her son waving from inside a taxi. She hurried the last few steps over. "You look quite sharp today. Oh, do you two know? Xue Hong went to borrow money from someone yesterday?" After settling into the taxi, Luo Hongjuan immediately lowered her voice conspiratorially. She didn't bother with formalities or titles when mentioning names; after all, everyone present had torn away all pretense of respect and facade yesterday.

Han Tao shook his head. "Would anyone lend her money overnight? If they were willing, they would have done so already, why wait until now?"

"Old Lu—he used to be in the triads, and apparently, he’s now involved in high-interest lending." Luo Hongjuan was stunned that Xue Hong had the nerve to seek a loan from someone connected to organized crime. She knew such money was easy to borrow but hard to repay, with exorbitant interest, especially since refusal to pay was not an option.

Borrowing from loan sharks? Han Tao’s mouth dropped wide open. While he had no dealings with such people, he knew they were not easy to deal with—cutthroat individuals who swallowed people whole. How did Xue Hong muster such courage? "Mom, how did you find out?" He couldn't imagine Xue Hong having the time or inclination to tell his mother about what happened last night, especially considering how busy she was today.

"Old Lu was a classmate of your father’s back in the day, and they were quite close. It’s just that he got locked up during those years when your father's health declined. Otherwise, your father wouldn't have ended up like this, alas." Luo Hongjuan had, in fact, met with Old Lu privately a few times, but due to his profession, she hadn't kept in close contact. Early this morning, Old Lu had sought out Luo Hongjuan, telling her that some debts were due for collection, and he intended to teach Xue Hong a lesson this time. Only then did Luo Hongjuan learn the truth.

Han Tao was hearing for the first time that the uncle who occasionally sent home New Year’s goods was involved in the underworld. Although his appearance didn't suggest legitimate business, he had always been kind to Han Tao and his mother, often sending things over. In Han Tao’s mind, Uncle Lu was a good man. "Mom, being in that line of work only gets harder as you get older. Uncle Lu is quite old now." So many young people today who didn't study hard ended up as thugs after leaving school, and those people would do anything for money, never minding about honor or loyalty. Uncle Lu was getting on in years; how could he compete with them?

When Wang Qiqi heard that Xue Hong had resorted to high-interest loans, she immediately started plotting. Judging by the expression on that woman Xue Hong’s face when she left yesterday, Wang Qiqi feared the worst: that Xue Hong would bring the loan sharks right to Luo Hongjuan’s doorstep. Those people were ruthless. What if Luo Hongjuan was terrified to death? It wasn't impossible. But to think Xue Hong had gone to borrow money from Han Tao's father’s friend, and apparently, that person held no favorable opinion of her at all. Wang Qiqi suspected this IOUs might just be the beginning of Xue Hong's miserable life; these people made money compound upon money, and they would stop at nothing if the payments weren't made. How could Han Jun’s father-in-law be willing to pay this debt? She hoped the old Han family house wouldn't have to be sold off. Perhaps Old Madam Han would be so furious at her once-favored daughter-in-law that she’d spit blood. She certainly looked forward to it.

"Don't worry, your Uncle Lu said he’s getting out of that life by the end of the year; he’s planning to retire and move abroad." Luo Hongjuan hadn't stopped advising Old Lu. At his age, with his son doing well in Australia, why endure such hardship domestically? Furthermore, several of his subordinates had developed their own independent ambitions, so why should he struggle to hold things together? Now Luo Hongjuan finally understood why Old Lu always claimed it wasn't time to retire—he had essentially been waiting for Xue Hong. "Son, you must remember those who helped your mother and you, understand?"

Han Tao certainly grasped the concept of repaying kindness, but the issue was, "Uncle Lu... I truly don't know how to repay him, and moreover, the party involved..." Han Tao suspected that because the other party was set on getting revenge on Xue Hong, they likely didn't intend for Xue Hong to know about their connection to him. If that was the case, why would the matter be revealed so easily now?

Luo Hongjuan certainly understood that. "It just means smiling at Uncle Lu if we run into him on the road. When he’s finished settling this mess here, we'll treat him to a nice meal. We won't have many opportunities to meet again." Luo Hongjuan knew that without Old Lu’s quiet support, she and her son might not have lasted this long. Just because Old Lu didn't say certain things didn't mean Luo Hongjuan was oblivious to them.

Han Tao hummed in response and stared straight ahead. "What a shame. I was looking forward to a good show today, but now it seems there won't be one." While sleeping, Han Tao had dreamt of people at the gathering pointing fingers at Han Ximing and his wife, utterly shaming them. But then he felt a sense of satisfaction thinking that perhaps in the future, Xue Hong would become the person Old Madam Han accused of squandering the ancestral property by selling the house—that was one of the primary reasons the old woman was determined to reclaim the property anyway.

"If there’s no show, then we won't watch. We’ll just have a quiet meal. We'll have plenty of shows to watch in the future anyway," Wang Qiqi thought. In this scenario, it was best if the old lady didn't end up kneeling at your feet, forcing you to decide whether to lend the money or not. Since Xue Hong had already sorted out her money problem, they would just pretend they knew nothing.