Wang Qiqi dragged her exhausted body home again. The moment she closed the door, disregarding any pretense of grace or the cleanliness of the floor, she collapsed onto the wooden planks. After a long moment catching her breath, she managed a weak plea, "I... I'm back. Is there any water in the house?"

Wang Qiqi truly felt miserable—hungry, tired, and parched. Her life experience had cemented one clear belief: being a good person was impossible; she herself was the perfect testament to that fact right now.

Shi Man, who was cuddling with Lu Qiaowei on the sofa discussing English, first heard the door open, followed by the distinct sound of a thud. Neither woman displayed any surprise; this kind of entrance had become commonplace recently. Their internal debate was whether Qiqi needed water or food more urgently.

"Yes! I guessed right!" Hearing Wang Qiqi's words, Shi Man jumped up with excitement.

Wang Qiqi could only roll her eyes. She had every reason to suspect that Shi Man wasn't just staying here with Lu Qiaowei to study at night; she was probably hoping to witness her misfortune. "Truly an unloved friend," Wang Qiqi muttered, taking several deep breaths. Ah, she decided, she didn't need to worry about gaining weight eating fast food in America anymore. She was actually too thin domestically. Nor did she need to fret about her skin tone not following the natural path of development; she was tanned to a wheat color now, looking every bit the child who loved sports.

"Husband, Husband, your wife is home! Bring me some water," Wang Qiqi called out with the last vestiges of her strength.

Han Tao had heard Wang Qiqi arrive, but at that moment, he was engrossed in a real-time chat resolving an issue with someone in America. Just as he finished dealing with it and was about to stand, he heard his wife crying out for help. "Qiqi, which places did you visit today?" He sighed. The little bit of flesh his wife had managed to build up was gone again. Han Tao found the thought unsettling; a wife needed some curves, making her comfortable to hold. But now, Han Tao felt like he was being jabbed by Qiqi’s bones.

Han Tao swiftly scooped up Wang Qiqi. With almost no flesh left on her, he walked steadily to the sofa and gently set her down. "I'll fetch you a glass of cooled boiled water. And we made dumplings today. I’ll get some for you to eat."

After lying on the sofa for a long while, Wang Qiqi finally let out a long, relieved sigh. The sofa was indeed comfortable. "Hmph, in the crucial moments, one still has to rely on one's own man. Counting on you two is hopeless," Wang Qiqi declared, pointing a finger at the two women who were still chuckling.

Shi Man looked at Wang Qiqi sprawled on the sofa, her mind fixated on the image of Qiqi being like a lifeless fish. "Qiqi, how many more days do you have to run errands for the storefront?" It seemed Song Yao hadn't been this exhausted when looking for a shop last time. In fact, Shi Man felt that Qiqi had shown signs of plumpness from eating well lately.

Wang Qiqi could only manage a wry smile. "I sincerely hope we finalize the shop lease today, but alas..." Finding a place with the right price, good location, and good structure—such a property was hard to come by. "Right now, I feel like I'm searching for a needle in a haystack. The agents are starting to feel like they know both me and Baige personally."

"Not just know, but they must have a deep impression of you two. They must be wondering why these two keep looking at commercial properties without ever signing a lease," Shi Man mused. She remembered Qiqi’s previous property scouting process and thought it had been tedious, but now it seemed quite simple in retrospect.

Wang Qiqi nodded bitterly. If she continued being this picky, she truly worried the agents would stop showing them listings altogether. But that wasn't something she could control. "Thanks, Tao." Wang Qiqi took the water and a large bowl handed over by Han Tao, immediately gulping down a large glass of boiled water. "I need another one," she pleaded pitifully.

"You mean you didn't drink any water the entire trip?" Shi Man wondered if, even if Baige was frugal and wouldn't buy water, Qiqi wouldn't just endure such thirst.

"I did drink," Wang Qiqi swallowed a dumpling and held up three fingers. "I drank three bottles of water, but by the time I reached the complex entrance, I was so thirsty. I thought, since it's just this short distance now, I should save some money. I didn't expect..." The further she walked, the thirstier she became. The path hadn't been long, but Wang Qiqi was utterly exhausted today. "I really shouldn't try to save money like that in the future." If not for sheer willpower, Wang Qiqi feared she would have completely collapsed.

Shi Man was speechless. She picked up her book and calmly resumed studying with Lu Qiaowei. So, it turned out this ordeal was self-inflicted.

Han Tao was surprised his wife was so severely dehydrated due to such a reason. "Are we really short on the money for one bottle of water for you?" Han Tao deliberately placed the water glass down on the coffee table with a solid thud, demonstrating his displeasure.

Wang Qiqi jumped at Han Tao’s action. Although his words weren't harsh, she knew he was unhappy. "I was just worried about wasting it. You know, the water I bring back and only drink halfway always ends up being thrown out; it’s such a waste." Wang Qiqi disliked drinking water from plastic bottles; outside was one thing, but she absolutely refused to drink it at home.

"Wasting it is better than you getting dehydrated," Han Tao countered, knowing that dehydration could lead to serious problems. "From now on, even if you only take one sip, you are not allowed to be frugal, understood?"

Han Tao’s expression softened only after Wang Qiqi nodded. "Right, when will the storefront issue be resolved?" His wife was tanned a bit dark. "Remember to apply more sunscreen. Don't give me that 'healthy color' talk." Foreigners’ tastes are different from ours. My wife looks best when she’s fair; the slightly rosy-white complexion is what Han Tao loves most.

Sunscreen. The memory of the greasy film it left on her face made Wang Qiqi instantly uncomfortable, but constrained by his gaze, she could only nod in agreement, consoling herself that she was protecting her skin and preventing skin cancer. "Alright, alright, you go back to work. I’ll take a shower and go to bed soon." Since starting this routine of intense daily exercise, Wang Qiqi felt her stamina improving, but her feet were still sore and numb. Moreover, Wang Qiqi worried her calves were developing muscle, which concerned her greatly—once muscles formed, weight loss became notoriously difficult.

Seeing Wang Qiqi’s impatient expression, Han Tao seized the moment when the two 'light bulbs' weren't looking and made several funny faces at her. Sighing, he thought having light bulbs around was inconvenient. If it were just him and Qiqi in the house, Han Tao mused, he wouldn't let Qiqi act so boldly in front of him; he would have already pounced and taken care of things right then and there.

Han Tao saw the fierce glint in Qiqi’s eyes, along with something else, and had no intention of making a move. For now, his safety was paramount. As for the evening? Sorry, he was too tired and would likely be asleep long before; she could do whatever she wanted then.

Watching Wang Qiqi calmly eat her dumplings, Han Tao ruffled her hair and went inside. Honestly, Qiqi hadn't had the energy to deal with him these past few days, and Han Tao himself had been working until the early hours, leaving him equally exhausted. When would this period end? Han Tao genuinely wanted to raise his hands to the heavens and ask why so many tasks had suddenly descended upon them.

"Your man is getting annoyed; be careful you don't have bad luck tonight," Shi Man said once Han Tao’s figure disappeared. She immediately dropped the book she was holding, sprang onto Wang Qiqi, swiftly grabbed a dumpling, shoved it into her mouth, and mumbled, "Not bad." After chewing and swallowing rapidly, just as she was reaching for another dumpling, she realized Qiqi had hidden the bowl containing them. This infuriated Shi Man. "Qiqi, what is the meaning of this?" These dumplings were made by her and Lu Qiaowei together; although Shi Man had done most of the work, she felt she deserved to eat them far more than Wang Qiqi, who was just consuming the finished product.

"This is exactly what it means," Wang Qiqi replied, carefully retrieving a dumpling from behind her back and popping it into her mouth, her expression dismissive of Shi Man who hadn't helped prepare anything but still wanted to eat. "If you want some, there should be some in the kitchen; go get it yourself." She knew these were the ones her man brought specifically for her. Hmph, hadn't Shi Man been laughing at her just moments ago? "You're always lounging on the sofa like that; be careful you don't get fat. And have you weighed yourself recently?"

Wang Qiqi hadn't really paid attention until this argument, but now that it was brought up, she suddenly noticed something—Shi Man's waistline seemed to have expanded. What used to be considered a relatively slim waist now bordered on what could be called a barrel waist, whereas Wang Qiqi, without meaning to brag, considered herself definitely possessing a slender waist. "Be careful your man doesn't ditch you if you get this chubby." Even if she had a steady partner, a little attention was necessary.

"And your arms are thicker lately, and your thighs too..." Wang Qiqi kindly pointed out Shi Man’s physical shortcomings one by one. Alas, it seemed a lack of romantic fulfillment, coupled with missing out on a certain type of exercise, was a major issue for Shi Man.

Though Shi Man verbally refuted Wang Qiqi’s points, her tense expression betrayed her worry. "No wonder this skirt feels a bit tight today. I thought I was developing again." Shi Man joked self-deprecatingly. This skirt wasn't expensive, but it was the first gift Feng Xuanxiang had ever given her, so Shi Man cherished it greatly.

Developing again? Wang Qiqi nearly spat out the dumpling in her mouth. This girl Shi Man certainly had a way with words. "I think you're gaining weight, not developing. You must work hard on losing weight for the sake of this skirt; you don't want such a sentimental piece of clothing to be retired so soon, do you?"

Shi Man looked at her skirt with reluctance, then recalled the agony of the 'dummy' dieting before, and cried out, "I don't want to diet or exercise to lose weight!" Exercise was manageable, but dieting was something Shi Man absolutely could not accept. For a self-proclaimed foodie like her, watching others eat while she couldn't was a feeling worse than death.

No exercise and no dieting to lose weight? That meant there was only one path. Wang Qiqi was just waiting for her friend to willingly jump into the trap.

Merry Christmas Eve (To be continued)