Wang Qiqi diligently searched for information about the Maldives islands. Although the internet existed, it wasn't as instantly omniscient as it would become later; you couldn't know everything happening on the other side of the earth the moment a connection was made. Wang Qiqi searched and searched, only to find that very few hotels had websites, and even those that did offered minimal content, clearly showing they weren't sold on the concept. This left Wang Qiqi quite disheartened.

Dai Lijun poured a cup of tea and returned to his seat, noticing Wang Qiqi staring blankly at the computer, motionless for a long time. He found it strange. "Haven't you had any assignments these past few days?" The Fatty had, in fact, noticed something off with Wang Qiqi for a while; even her previously prickly attitude toward Anna had softened to mere complete disregard—she used to occasionally let out a cold snort. Being glued to the computer without moving absolutely meant something was wrong.

Assignments? "What assignments?" Wang Qiqi looked at the Fatty, bewildered. She thought to herself, I'm just an assistant, I don't have any tasks. Did someone assign me something while I was spacing out?

Dai Lijun looked at Han Tao with concern. "Is your Qiqi alright?" Why was she asking him back?

Han Tao understood Wang Qiqi's uncharacteristic behavior, but he didn't know how to answer. He had also searched for data online—there was genuinely very little. He had even sent Qiqi to the library to look for books, but nothing useful had turned up. "She's looking for some information, but she can't find it."

The Fatty gave an "Oh," and though he was about to drop the subject, seeing Qiqi look so troubled made him pry a little further. "What exactly are you looking for, Qiqi?" Perhaps the current assignment was difficult, requiring her to look up reference materials.

"Information on the Maldives," Wang Qiqi said listlessly. "I want to look up the hotels there." At this time, the Maldives should be one island, one hotel, right? She just didn't know how many hotels were operational, and she certainly needed to check.

Maldives data, and specifically hotel information? The Fatty wondered why Wang Qiqi would suddenly research such a thing. Then, he recalled the year-end holiday—the company absolutely wouldn't have overtime then. "You're not thinking of taking a vacation to the Maldives, are you?" The Fatty squinted at Wang Qiqi, occasionally glancing at Han Tao, thinking how selfish his brother was for planning a trip without considering his buddies.

Han Tao caught the Fatty's look and immediately lowered his head to type on the keyboard. He had previously promised to ask the Fatty if he wanted to go, but instead of asking, he had told Qiqi that the Fatty and the others already had Christmas plans.

Wang Qiqi also realized the situation had taken a turn. She silently swallowed the words she was about to say: Didn't you say you weren't going? "Shouldn't we make a plan first? I haven't even talked to Manman about it."

When the Fatty heard even Shi Man wasn't aware, he let go of his resentment. "Vivi and I are definitely going to the Maldives." Even if he didn't know how fun it would be, it was better than being stuck at home working overtime staring at the computer. "I originally promised to take her out when she got to the US, but since Vivi arrived, I haven't taken her anywhere—even when she went to college, she went by herself." Even though Vivi said it was fine, the more she said that, the more the Fatty felt he was letting her down.

"I was already thinking about how to spend Christmas. Since you guys are going to the Maldives, let's all go together; it'll be more lively with more people," the Fatty said, watching their reactions. He saw Qiqi looked completely agreeable. As for his brother Han Tao, it was obvious he was planning to ditch the Fatty. Hmph. If a certain person had discussed it properly with him earlier, the Fatty wouldn't have minded choosing a different vacation spot. But since the other party had resorted to such tactics, he shouldn't blame the Fatty for fighting back.

"I'll ask Manman if she wants to come." To divert the fire aimed at him and further provoke the other party, the Fatty decided to play big. "Oh, I heard Nana is dating someone now too, right? Should I ask her if she's coming? I haven't met her boyfriend yet, and it would be a good chance for us to gather."

Han Tao's face darkened further. If Qiqi hadn't been present, he really would have thrown a punch. How could one have such a friend? The Fatty could have easily chosen another place to vacation, allowing everyone their own space and preventing a large group of women from congregating. Han Tao could already foresee that if the women truly traveled together, the daytime might just consist of a few men hanging out alone.

Should I call Juliana? Wang Qiqi hesitated. "She's a busy person; I don't know if she has time." Wang Qiqi felt a little guilty thinking about it. If she invited Nana, she wondered if her older sister would insist on coming too. Sigh, never mind, she'd ask about Nana first. It was possible Nana wouldn't come anyway. Even the densest person would have noticed something was wrong with that certain someone.

Just as Wang Qiqi exchanged pleading glances with Han Tao, hands clasped in silent apology, the Fatty had already contacted Shi Man. "Manman says her Old Feng is free this Christmas and she's also considering where to go for vacation. If we all go to the Maldives, she'll go too." Hahaha, Shi Man was in! A great start. The Fatty could already imagine Han Tao’s face turning pitch black if Juliana also agreed.

"Manman is really going?" Wang Qiqi was astonished. "Isn't she going shopping for the massive sales?" Wang Qiqi suddenly felt her vision blur; she could already picture Shi Man demanding an explanation from her later. She glanced back at her computer and saw that Manman was indeed messaging her on QQ.

Wang Qiqi stopped pleading with that certain person for forgiveness. Hmph. If he hadn't mentioned earlier that Manman might be busy shopping, she wouldn't have forgotten about Manman, and she wouldn't be in such a predicament now.

After a round of explanations, Shi Man magnanimously forgave Wang Qiqi and, out of boredom, took over the task of selecting hotels. "Manman said she'd be very happy if Nana comes too. We always talked about traveling together after college graduation, but it never worked out." As originally planned, they were supposed to travel to Southeast Asia or Japan. But because the company ran into some trouble, Juliana had to rush over to handle it, and then Qiqi and the others got busy with family matters and moving abroad. The plan kept getting postponed. To think this task would finally be completed a year after their graduate studies! "Manman said she’ll ask Nana and handle the hotel selection too. Yay! It’s great to have travel companions; my job just got a lot easier."

Han Tao looked at the beaming Wang Qiqi and decided he’d better go back to programming. Earning money didn't hurt his health, and more importantly, the Fatty’s judgmental gaze made Han Tao feel like a complete failure.

After Han Tao conceded defeat, the Fatty also felt bored. "By the way, Qiqi, don't pick anything too expensive. I don't have a lot of money saved up; I still need to buy a house. The company is moving next year, so we can't rent anymore." He needed to keep that money aside.

"Don't worry, none of us have much money," Wang Qiqi comforted him. "We'll pick a hotel with mid-range conditions and average expenses, and then book the flights early."

After getting Wang Qiqi's promise, the Fatty put his head down to handle work, while Wang Qiqi was constantly chatting online with Shi Man about the arrangements.

"Nana said she's coming too, but she needs to check with her boyfriend later to see if he has time," Wang Qiqi said excitedly. "Even though this trip is late, it counts as our delayed graduation trip."

Han Tao was no longer agitated by news of who was joining. No matter how excited he got, those people would come anyway. It was better not to let the Fatty see him sweat. "Right, ask Sister Yaoyao if she's coming, and while you’re at it, ask my mom if she wants to go. Oh, and are your brother and his family going?" Since enough people were already coming, a few more wouldn't matter.

When the Fatty heard Han Tao listing names relentlessly, he thought Han Tao must have realized he couldn't reverse the situation and had decided to be generous all at once. At that moment, Dai Lijun felt a pang of regret. Would Han Tao hold a grudge later? Alas, he shouldn't have teased Han Tao. If he hadn't, even if he had to shamelessly go to the Maldives with Han Tao, the Fatty would have guaranteed that even if Han Tao disliked him, Han Tao would have been the one in the wrong first. Now, the Fatty was completely unjustified. Dai Lijun felt his future was exceedingly bleak.

Just as the Fatty was deeply regretting his actions, Han Tao looked up and stared menacingly at the Fatty.

Just as Dai Lijun was about to lower his head and return to work, he felt an ill-intentioned gaze fixed on him. The Fatty knew that look belonged to Han Tao. He didn't want to look up at all; he could only bury his head lower and lower. If he could, Dai Lijun wished he could become invisible—Han Tao's stare was terrifying.

Seeing Dai Lijun's reaction, Han Tao felt quite satisfied. Hmph, he needed to put some pressure on the guy, otherwise, he’d think he could get away with anything forever. Hmph, this was too much—ruining a young couple's vacation plans! If he didn't scare him straight now, he might keep pulling stunts like this in the future.

Wang Qiqi hadn't noticed any of the exchange between Han Tao and Dai Lijun. She was happily discussing vacation details with Qiqi (a typo, should be Shi Man). If the Fatty or Han Tao had glanced over, they would have seen that their conversation had long since devolved into discussing how many clothes to pack, with the main focus being on how many swimsuits to bring and what styles they should be. According to Shi Man, bikinis were a must for a place like that. After all, they were all young with great figures and glowing skin. Shi Man was enthusiastically suggesting they take lots of swimsuit photos so they could look back when they were old and see how good their figures were in their youth. This suggestion made Wang Qiqi, who had been slightly hesitant, immediately agree. This was essentially a youth commemorative album.