Good heavens, the woman actually gave Zhao Rongrong an ultimatum: choose one of them. Wang Qiqi stroked her chin, watching Shi Hongrui, chin held high, stare fixedly at Zhao Rongrong. Well, this move certainly fit Shi Hongrui’s personality. Wang Qiqi actually admired it. She had expected Shi Hongrui, upon hearing Zhao Rongrong’s reluctance to follow her, to launch into some diatribe about how her parents had wronged her, or something similar. To her surprise, she hadn't. Good riddance; it saved her ears from another assault.

"There’s no need for this to escalate so fiercely. We’ve all lived under the same roof for so long; why make everyone unhappy?" Wang Qiqi felt compelled to interject a few cautionary words. She gave Shi Man a significant look, but seeing Shi Man completely ignore her, the reluctant Wang Qiqi had to step in herself. Still, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she looked smug, a sentiment that the other party would certainly not appreciate.

"Don't pretend to be kind-hearted," just as Wang Qiqi predicted, Shi Hongrui snapped, her anger blazing. "Rest assured, it is my decision to move out. You didn't force me. Now, all of you are busy earning money and writing theses; who has time for cooking and housework? Since that’s the case, we might as well go our separate ways..."

Hearing this, Zhang Yan flared up. She desperately wanted to ask: And what housework have you been doing? If it weren't for Zhao Rongrong picking up the slack, she thought, perhaps people would feel differently about her. But the words died on her lips. There was no need to fight this battle to determine absolute right or wrong. As long as the outcome was Shi Hongrui moving out, everything else was just noise.

"How could we force you? We agreed that Qiqi and I would handle the kitchen, and the three of you would take care of the common areas. Even though Qiqi doesn't cook now, I’ve cooked every meal required, haven't I? Have I let you starve?" Shi Man said with perfect calmness. "As for the division of cooking between Qiqi and me, that’s something we can discuss. Why do you need to be so agitated?" Shi Man thought: You only focus on others not working, but never consider how long it's been since you last cleaned. The last time I asked you to mop the floor, your lip stuck out so far, hmph. Wait until you move out alone; let's see how you feel cleaning such a large space by yourself. I bet you’ll wish you were dead.

"I haven't starved you, but I feel I can’t rely on such constant care forever." Shi Hongrui took two deep breaths. Forget it; there was no point in having a full-blown fight with them. They would still be under the same roof, and she might need their help someday. "Rongrong, have you decided?"

Zhao Rongrong looked at the stubbornly staring Shi Hongrui. For a moment, her heart softened, but she knew she couldn't afford to be weak now. This issue hadn't been provoked by Wang Qiqi or the others; it was Shi Hongrui's insistence on this path.

Zhao Rongrong couldn't guess every nuance of Shi Hongrui's thoughts, but she grasped seven or eight-tenths of them: Shi Hongrui wanted her because she was capable of cleaning. Otherwise, why choose her? Zhao Rongrong understood this and wasn't overly saddened. "I still choose to stay with Manman."

The result of the ultimatum was still this—something Shi Hongrui found hard to accept. She didn't dare look at the expressions of the others, knowing without looking that they were all mocking her. She had acted so forcefully because she was sure Rongrong would stick with her, right? But the outcome was this. What was left of her dignity?

Furious, Shi Hongrui stormed off. She wouldn't even eat the steak now; she was full enough of anger to last. How could she possibly squeeze food in? "Since that’s your choice, I won't force you. I hope you won't regret it. Regardless of what happens between us, the business will continue, right?" Honestly, Shi Hongrui desperately wanted to say, Since you won't choose me, there's no need for us to continue cooperating. But she knew that she only handled the purchasing abroad, and the entire overseas operation was established by Zhao Rongrong's mother. If she quarreled with Rongrong, she would be the one suffering in the end. Purchasing items wasn't difficult, and besides, Shi Man was right there. Shi Man would surely take Zhao Rongrong sourcing items soon enough, leaving Shi Hongrui with neither partnership nor profit. Helplessly, Shi Hongrui could only utter those words.

Simultaneously, Shi Hongrui made a resolution: once she graduated, she absolutely had to return home and find a new partner. Then, she wouldn't have to worry about Zhao Rongrong's mood, and she could earn more. Although her current capital wasn't vast, it was definitely enough for the personal shopping business.

Zhao Rongrong watched as Shi Hongrui, despite her ashen face, forced herself to speak those measured words. She sighed internally. Shi Hongrui had changed. In the past, she would have certainly erupted. Now, she was uttering nothing more than polite formalities. "The business will continue." However, Zhao Rongrong also knew that by August at the latest, the partnership would dissolve. Even if she wanted to continue, Shi Hongrui, having suffered such a loss, would surely seek a new collaborator. If Shi Hongrui chose to do that, Zhao Rongrong wasn't incapable either. Sourcing specific brands wasn't beyond her, just a bit more troublesome. If she wasn't starting her own venture, Zhao Rongrong might have walked away from the business, but now she needed money. Before finding a better avenue for income, Zhao Rongrong wouldn't abandon such a lucrative channel.

Shi Hongrui stared at Zhao Rongrong for a long moment, then slapped hands with her, intending to leave. This setting was unsuitable for someone as isolated as she felt. "Ruirui, since you plan to cook for yourself, we need to sit down and discuss things properly."

Shi Hongrui stopped only at the kitchen doorway, fighting back tears that threatened to fall. "What is there to discuss? Haven't you already won?" she choked out. "You've already tricked your friend away; must you still torment me? That's too much."

Was there a 'winner' in this situation? Shi Man shook her head. Had this girl still not understood? Ultimately, this situation arose because Shi Man had been too strict with her standards for Shi Hongrui, while being relatively lenient with herself. "Of course, there are things to discuss. Before, the division of labor was for five people. Now that you're splitting off, public hygiene must be managed by rotation—the five of us take turns. Do you have an objection? For the kitchen, you must clean your own pots and dishes after cooking, and the sink and stove must be returned to their clean state." These were non-negotiable requirements.

"No problem," Shi Hongrui replied after a moment of hesitation. She knew that out of five days, she would be the only one responsible for cleaning; no one would help her. The other four could work together or separately. Calculating it all up, she was the one taking the loss.

Shi Hongrui gave a bitter smile. Hadn't she schemed and calculated precisely to avoid loss? Yet, in the end, she was the one losing out. But even knowing she was being disadvantaged, she couldn't bring herself to ask to return to the previous arrangement, especially since she knew Shi Man wouldn't agree even if she begged. "I choose last." The later the rotation, the more benefit gained.

The others weren't surprised that Shi Hongrui chose the last slot for cleaning duties. "No problem."

Shi Hongrui didn't turn around. Since the cleaning schedule was settled, the next step was to settle accounts. "What about the food we bought earlier? I contributed money too, right?" If they were settling scores, they needed to do it thoroughly now, ensuring everything that was hers remained hers, lest they accuse her later of taking advantage.

"Do you want the food or the money?" Shi Man gave Shi Hongrui a direct choice. In Shi Man's view, it was best if she chose the cash settlement, saving her the headache of dividing up the contents of the refrigerator later. However, Shi Man knew that if Shi Hongrui truly started consuming items in the fridge that belonged to 'them,' she wouldn't be able to stop her. She just hoped the other girl wasn't that shameless.

Food or money? This choice, in Shi Hongrui’s mind, wasn't a choice at all. Many of those items had been purchased by Wang Qiqi last time. How long ago was that? Many items wouldn't be fresh anymore. It was smarter to take the money, provided they refunded her fairly. "How will the money be calculated? How will taking the items be calculated?" She wouldn't make a choice without knowing the exact terms. She had already conceded enough losses; she absolutely wouldn't suffer another one here.

Shi Man knew she wouldn't want to lose out, but she probably would opt for the money. How much they offered was up to them. Shi Man couldn't decide, especially since some of the last purchased supplies had already been consumed. She turned her gaze to Wang Qiqi and the others.

"We'll return the exact amount of money she contributed for the last grocery run. As for the surplus like the flour left over from previous purchases, that stays with us," Wang Qiqi said, opting for a clean break rather than dividing physical goods, which would be far messier.

"I agree," Zhang Yan said. Refunding the money was fine, and giving her half the items in the fridge was also acceptable; it would stop her from constantly claiming they were bullying her. "Yes, remember to draw up an agreement." Dealing with people like her required written documentation to prevent future backtracking.

"I agree too," Zhao Rongrong added, having no objection. To her, both sides were friends, and she genuinely found it hard to choose.

Seeing that everyone had reached the same conclusion, Shi Man breathed a sigh of relief, and Shi Hongrui, in turn, relaxed slightly. Her money from the last purchasing trip refunded? That wasn't bad at all. Considering at least half the purchased goods had been eaten, she was actually coming out ahead. As for the remaining stock, there wasn't much left. Calculating it carefully, she realized she had benefited slightly.

Thus, the physical division of goods and the chore schedule were settled. Wang Qiqi took the existing housemate agreement—which they had discussed earlier—and revised it again. "Take a look and see if there are any issues." Having a digital copy was a blessing, and with a printer handy, the document printed out swiftly, resolving quite a few problems.

Shi Hongrui took the printed copy and examined it seriously. "No problem." She grabbed a pen from the coffee table and quickly signed her name. As her signature dried, Wang Qiqi and the others collectively exhaled a deep breath of relief. Now, their relationship with her was strictly limited to cohabitation. Wang Qiqi was especially happy that she wouldn't have to lend her car anymore. This made Wang Qiqi immensely grateful that she hadn't agreed to the group pooling funds to buy a car for shared use, which would have presented a huge problem now.

As Shi Hongrui gathered the multi-copy contract, she suddenly remembered something. "Qiqi, can I still borrow your car in the future?"

Shi Man hid her face behind an A4 sheet of paper, making exaggerated retching noises. She felt that a certain level of modification was necessary for that person’s audacity; her nerve was thick enough to be a shield. She had been attacking Qiqi relentlessly moments ago, and now, as soon as the dust settled, she was asking to borrow her car? The nerve! While it was true that Shi Hongrui had used the car a fair amount, she had rarely contributed to the gas money. Last time they went sourcing together and agreed to split fuel costs, Shi Man always ended up filling the tank, and she felt too awkward to chase after the reimbursement. Now, she realized how foolish she had been.

Borrowing her car? Wang Qiqi wondered if she looked like a pushover. After attacking her so viciously, Shi Hongrui now felt entitled to her car? "I need to use my car too," Wang Qiqi stated. "It’s not like she punched me and then offered a piece of candy to make me forget the punch." While it wasn't exactly polite, the relationship had already fractured; why bother pretending to be polite or virtuous? Wang Qiqi regretfully admitted she lacked those fine qualities.

Shi Hongrui had expected Wang Qiqi to be restrained, perhaps out of consideration for Zhao Rongrong, but she hadn't anticipated such blunt refusal. Shi Hongrui was furious. Now she understood: right after splitting up, she was already running into one problem after another. She could buy a used car, and if her requirements weren't high, the cost wouldn't be astronomical, but it was still money she had to pay out of pocket all at once. Shi Hongrui felt that wasn't worthwhile.

"Rongrong, without a car, how will we source things in the future?" Shi Hongrui turned to Zhao Rongrong, who had clearly remained aloof. There was no way she could avoid this topic.

Zhao Rongrong looked up at Shi Hongrui, catching the expectant look she directed her way. But she sighed internally. Qiqi had clearly refused to give Shi Hongrui face; even if Zhao Rongrong stepped in, it would only be an exercise in futility. "If we don't have a car, perhaps we can rent one, and the costs can be split among us?" Buy a car? Zhao Rongrong knew Shi Hongrui wouldn't agree. Since buying wasn't an option and borrowing was impossible, renting was the logical step. Zhao Rongrong had calculated that the frequency of car use for sourcing trips wasn't very high. Their main base for procurement was London; they could simply take the train there. That would be less tiring for everyone: sleep on the overnight train to London, source during the day, and take the train back that night. No accommodation costs needed. In Zhao Rongrong's view, wasn't that much better? And it avoided owing favors.

Shi Man inwardly cheered, Yes, exactly! Why use sourcing trips as leverage to force Rongrong to step in? That was too much. And Zhao Rongrong’s response was sharp enough: if you want a car, you either buy one or rent one. Renting isn't complicated; it just costs money. Hahaha, let's see how you plan to leech gas money now.

Zhao Rongrong felt her chest tighten at Shi Hongrui’s reaction. She secretly cursed the girl for being so disloyal. Didn't she remember Zhao Rongrong had tried to save her face regarding Wang Qiqi earlier? Now, Wang Qiqi was clearly angry, and she still dared to ask to borrow the car. She truly didn't understand the workings of Shi Hongrui’s mind. What disappointed her even more was the look Shi Hongrui gave her after she suggested renting—she genuinely didn't understand.

Shi Man stared at the retreating figure at the top of the stairs and let out a long sigh of relief. "Finally, I don't have to go sourcing trips with her. We clearly agreed to split the fuel costs, but in the end, she never paid." Honestly, whether she was there or not, Shi Man ended up paying for gas anyway, so it was better to have it easy and avoid future hassle.

Zhao Rongrong’s body stiffened upon hearing Shi Man’s words. "You mean she never paid for gas?" What was going on? Ruirui had claimed she had helped cover fuel costs. Of course, Zhao Rongrong didn't think Shi Man would lie, but she needed a final confirmation.

"Yeah," Shi Man confirmed with a nod. "Is there a problem? Don't tell me she claimed she paid for gas?" Shi Man asked cautiously. If that were the case, she felt Shi Hongrui’s shamelessness was beyond measure. "She did pay two or three times, only at the very beginning," Zhao Rongrong admitted. At that time, it would have been too awkward for Shi Hongrui to refuse payment, or perhaps she was testing the waters to see if Zhao Rongrong would report her gas payments to Shi Man and Wang Qiqi.

Zhao Rongrong nodded. "Mmm, sigh." The two interjections conveyed her current feelings. "I never thought she would do that." While the amount wasn't huge, her actions deeply chilled Zhao Rongrong. They were business partners, after all. How could Shi Hongrui behave this way? Moreover, in the eyes of Shi Man and Wang Qiqi, this might make it look like Zhao Rongrong was also freeloading on their fuel expenses. "I'm really sorry. How much fuel expense do we owe?" Now that she knew the truth, she intended to compensate them.

"It's fine," Shi Man waved her hand dismissively. "That little bit of money is nothing. If we really wanted that money, we would have chased her for it long ago. We thought you guys were just starting your business, so we let it slide. I just didn't expect..."

Wang Qiqi noticed Zhao Rongrong’s expression turn grim and quickly patted her thigh, signaling her to calm down and not bring up the fuel issue in front of her again.

Shi Man thought to herself that she had said it on purpose—she wanted Zhao Rongrong to know why they were reluctant to lend the car. To her surprise, Shi Hongrui not only failed to pay but also inflated the expense report. This revelation was a bigger win than expected. Shi Man wondered if even Heaven was on her side. "Alright, let's eat, let's eat."

"I'm not eating. I’m going upstairs," Zhao Rongrong couldn't stomach anything now. She decided to go back to her room to rest before forcing herself to finish her report. She needed some time alone and quiet.

Seeing Zhao Rongrong’s visibly poor spirits, Zhang Yan patted her shoulder. "Go on up. It will be okay." Zhang Yan hadn't expected such a situation to arise so early in their business collaboration. How could they continue working together in the future? Even if Zhao Rongrong didn't voice her feelings, a fissure had formed in her heart. Could such a partnership last?

"I'm fine," Zhao Rongrong replied, though she was still very shocked, she quickly composed herself. "By the way, don't mention this to her. Just pretend I never knew." Knowing some things was enough; there was no need to blow the matter up further.

"Got it," Shi Man agreed immediately.

Wang Qiqi watched Zhao Rongrong slowly ascend the stairs. "The prospects of the partnership look grim." Wang Qiqi didn't know how they divided profits, but if Shi Hongrui wanted to earn more through this, she could simply propose that since she was doing all the legwork and sourcing, she deserved hazard pay or extra compensation. If she had proposed this, wouldn't Zhao Rongrong have considered it? Wouldn't that have been much better than falsely inflating expense reports?

"One controls the sales channel, the other controls the procurement channel. I truly don't understand what she was thinking," Shi Man poured three glasses of red wine, handing two to Wang Qiqi and Zhang Yan. "If it were me, I wouldn't make such a mistake over pocket change." They had only just started cooperating, and she was already playing petty games. Zhao Rongrong must be absolutely disgusted. If she were truly malicious, she could manipulate the sales figures, potentially earning far more than these fuel costs. She was clearly someone willing to risk huge losses over trivial gains. However, Zhao Rongrong was a proud person; she would probably find another way to handle things.

"Once we graduate, they won't continue the partnership anyway. Shi Hongrui has her own agenda; she'll probably go back and find a new collaborator," Zhang Yan took a sip of wine, stating her conviction firmly. "Rongrong didn't side with her this time, which already made her unhappy and colored her view of Rongrong. Even if Rongrong never found out about these things, their relationship can never return to what it was. I'm just curious: if she can manage a partnership this poorly with a friend of so many years, how well will her next partner fare?"

"As long as the partnership agreement is well-drafted—for instance, specifying how much she sells the goods to the domestic partner for, and how much the partner sells them for is her own business—I think that partnership could actually continue," Wang Qiqi reasoned. She thought that kind of arrangement was better, requiring less capital lockup, provided the partner had solid financial backing to sustain operations.

"That's why if you're friends, especially if the relationship isn't too deep, you shouldn't partner up. Otherwise, you might lose the friendship itself," Shi Man finished the wine in her glass. "I'm going upstairs to set up the duty roster and return the food allowance she gave. We should settle this end of things tonight and not let it linger, lest she accuses us of shortchanging her on that small amount of money."

Zhao Rongrong stumbled back into her room, utterly drained, and collapsed onto the bed. For a moment there, she’d desperately wanted to rush into Shi Hongrui’s room and demand an explanation for her actions. It wasn't about the petty amount of money; it was the flagrant crossing of a line. How could they possibly continue working together if Shi Hongrui acted like this? Shi Man and the others had been partners for three or four years already. Wasn't it better not to cooperate at all? Zhao Rongrong had always believed she and Shi Hongrui could maintain their partnership, but now that idea seemed impossibly distant. “Never mind it, I’ll just wait until graduation.”

Perhaps Shi Hongrui had her own reasons. Finding a new partner back home wouldn't be difficult. Zhao Rongrong thought she should discuss the whole affair with her mother and see what she advised. RS