"My mom told us to add this person on QQ and explain our requirements to him," Han Tao handed a QQ number to Wang Qiqi, who was deeply engrossed in translating a manuscript.

As soon as Wang Qiqi got home, she dove into side jobs to earn money. As for the official work, she handled everything at the company now; if she couldn't finish it, she just stayed a little late. She certainly didn't possess that burning ambition to sacrifice sleep and meals for a job, especially when there was a substantial sum of money she needed to raise. Hearing Han Tao suddenly mention adding someone on QQ and explaining requirements to him was completely out of the blue.

Wang Qiqi lifted her gaze from the computer screen, looking at Han Tao with a slightly bewildered expression. "Add whose QQ? What requirements?" She couldn't recall having anything pressing to deal with lately.

"Mom said the Beijing apartment needs a proper renovation, since it'll be our marital home in the capital eventually, and she said it should be decorated according to our wishes." Han Tao had actually tried to persuade Luo Hongjuan to decorate it her way; they only visited a few times a year, so how long would they even stay? Naturally, it should be decorated according to Luo Hongjuan's preference; who knew, she might end up living there for much longer.

Renovating the Beijing apartment? Wang Qiqi froze. "Isn't it supposed to be done according to Mom's wishes?" Qiqi really didn't intend to involve herself in that renovation at all; it would be better to let Luo Hongjuan take full charge, saving her the trouble of debating every little design choice. "You know how busy I am now. Just let Mom take the extra trouble. Besides, I can't just keep taking leave. I already promised Kan I'd be taking leave around July."

Bringing this up reminded Wang Qiqi of something crucial: she hadn't planned their wedding yet. Although Shi Man and Zhu Lina had given her plenty of ideas, even Song Yao, who had been married for a while, had jumped into the fray, each suggesting how romantic they wanted the wedding to be. Qiqi understood they were trying to make up for their own wedding regrets through her and Han Tao's ceremony. After all, Zhu Lina’s family situation was self-evident, and Shi Man’s parents had so many friends and relatives that they would never agree to her and Old Feng settling things quietly like Qiqi and Han Tao did; a grand banquet would be necessary. Such a wedding, frankly, was mostly about eating and drinking, and one couldn't expect it to adhere to the wishes of the main couple. Consequently, they placed extra importance on Wang Qiqi and Han Tao's wedding. But Qiqi and Han Tao just wanted everyone to gather; otherwise, she and Han Tao could have just registered their marriage directly.

Han Tao noticed Wang Qiqi’s complexion wasn't great recently, remembering how busy she was with both work and home matters. He knew exactly why Qiqi was rushing around. "Actually, we don't have to get that involved. There's no need to push yourself so hard." Looking at Wang Qiqi, he was reminded of Song Yao and Song Ziwen—the siblings really were alike; they shared the same drive for wealth.

"I think so too; might as well earn a bit here and there." What Wang Qiqi didn't say was that Song Yao had recently approached her for money. Although she could get a bank loan through the factory, Song Yao felt awkward using factory loans for personal matters. Even though Qiqi wouldn't mind, it was Song Yao’s insistence that made the difference—that was the distinction between her and Song Ziwen. If it were Song Ziwen, he wouldn't care about such things.

"Sister Yaoyao asked to borrow money from you?" Han Tao considered it. He had long since saved the money for his own wedding, and opening a factory allowed for loans; Wang Qiqi shouldn't have to work herself ragged. He couldn't imagine Song Yao having to ask her otherwise.

Han Tao's words surprised Wang Qiqi; she hadn't expected him to know about it. "I guessed. Right, wasn't it a share swap in the end? Why is there still not enough money?" Han Tao remembered the final agreement involved an exchange of shares between the two families, with no cash difference to cover. How could Song Yao still be short?

"Song Ziwen spoke up, and Song Wenbo chimed in alongside him." Wang Qiqi was surprised that Song Wenbo, who never got involved in these things, had shown up. "He said he helped Song Yao so much back then, and now that she's being asked to help Song Ziwen, he went on about this and that. Sister Yaoyao gave him some pushback, so she felt she had to support him a little. We should help if we can." Actually, Wang Qiqi had already arranged with Old Ye to advance a portion of her salary. "Sister Yaoyao said she’d pay me back by the end of the year."

Han Tao didn't care about the repayment; he knew the character of Song Yao and her husband. What pained him was Wang Qiqi being overly exhausted. "Go to bed early tonight; you're tired at the company all day too."

"I know. By the way, let's keep our wedding simple—just a vacation," Wang Qiqi confirmed with Han Tao again. "We can just set up a buffet on the beach then." It would make for a decent memory. "But the wedding rings must be good." This was Wang Qiqi's firm insistence. No matter how grand the ceremony, the money was better spent on wedding rings—buying a decent diamond ring made it all worthwhile. "If I'm old someday, I can leave it to our son."

Not even married yet, Qiqi was already thinking about a son, talking about leaving the wedding ring to him. "Good, then I'll buy a big diamond ring every year and leave them for our son and daughter." Well, he was someone who intended to have many children; how could one ring be left for the children? Wouldn't that cause friction between them? If they were going to buy them, they should buy several; they would make excellent gifts for future daughters-in-law or when a daughter marries off.

A diamond ring every year? Wang Qiqi immediately checked her own stomach, wondering if Han Tao intended to turn her into a sow. "Right, you must remember the second son takes the Wang surname." Wang Qiqi had initially thought about the firstborn, but then decided against it; she didn't want to stress out her mother-in-law unnecessarily, as that would be a great sin on her part.

"No problem. If the number of children is odd, they take my surname; if it's even, they take yours," Han Tao truly didn't place much importance on the children's surnames.

"Deal." Wang Qiqi readily agreed. Anyway, foreigners didn't have a strict one-child policy; if they could have them, they should. With a large and thriving family, they could afford several children, and having a few while young meant quicker physical recovery.

Song Ziwen stumbled home thoroughly drunk, and Yang Jing had been waiting impatiently. Seeing him this inebriated made her furious, though she knew he was also quite helpless. "Tell me, if Qiqi had been willing to help back then, would things have ended up like this?" Those business deals slipped away—a year's worth of losses that made Yang Jing's heart ache. Although the cabinet factory had secured some deals with Gao Kai’s property developments, the prices weren't high, and even settling the payments was problematic, causing the cabinet factory serious cash flow issues. "Right, when will Gao Kai pay? The factory doesn't have money to restock, and we still have to pay the workers' wages." Yang Jing no longer managed the shops; her cousin managed them, and she just checked in occasionally. Yang Jing handled the cabinet factory's accounts, and the tightening funds were driving her mad. Although keeping the money in the real estate company would yield higher returns, that money had to be paid out.

Song Ziwen was nearly passed out. Hearing Yang Jing mention money made him extremely irritable, but seeing her worried face, he knew he had been difficult on her. "They will send some over tomorrow, enough to cover the workers' wages, and a bit for the goods payment. By the way, has Aunt Luo arrived?" As for Yang Jing's complaints about Wang Qiqi, Song Ziwen no longer wished to comment. What good would more commentary do? Song Ziwen felt quite regretful himself, wondering why, when he partnered with the Zhu family, he hadn't established his proper standing, and why he had allowed Yang Jing to continuously complain to Wang Qiqi afterward.

"Aunt Luo is here. She’s cleaning the house and performing ancestral rites. I heard she plans to take the photos of her uncle and the others with her this time," Yang Jing murmured. At first, she hadn't understood why Luo Hongjuan would do such a thing, but after thinking about it for so long, if Yang Jing still didn't understand, she'd be truly foolish.

Song Ziwen, whose eyes had been tightly shut, snapped them open when he heard Yang Jing's statement. "She really plans to do that? Wait, doesn't she live at my sister’s place?"

"Qiqi has a house in Beijing too, reportedly being renovated in April," Yang Jing said, though she felt she was overthinking things, she had to mention it. "I suspect they planned this a long time ago. Do you think Qiqi knew we were close to Wang Rui?"

Song Ziwen had known this all along but hadn't mentioned it. "You think Qiqi doesn't know? Otherwise, why would she sell her shares in the cabinet factory? And yes, the beauty salon and wellness center she set up with my sister didn't include us. She knew back then." Song Ziwen finally understood. It wasn't that Wang Qiqi hadn't been making moves these past few years; it was just that the moves she made didn't involve them.

The beauty salon and wellness center? Yang Jing was stunned. "What do you mean?"

"Do you think my sister only opened one shop in Beijing?" Song Ziwen scoffed. "She has shares in some foreign language training institute, opened a beauty salon last year, and another wellness center before the New Year. I hear business is pretty good for all of them. Their current life is likely much better than ours." The crucial part was that these ventures required a large initial investment, but once they gained recognition, they could basically sit back and collect money, unlike his own businesses, which, despite appearing highly profitable, took a long time for the cash to materialize.

Yang Jing was dumbfounded. She had worked so hard to build a good relationship with Wang Rui, partly because Wang Rui was always flattering her, and partly because Yang Jing thought real estate was where the money was. She never imagined that Qiqi and the others had quietly set up several businesses behind their backs. "It's just a beauty salon? I'll open one too." Yang Jing had visited beauty salons for treatments, but it never occurred to her to start one. She always thought she wasn't capable of it, but now that even Wang Qiqi and the others were doing it, Yang Jing felt she should be able to.

"Where's the money? Just settle down for now. Wait until the real estate business picks up and we have funds, then you can start one," Song Ziwen said, looking at his resentful wife. He countered her with that single question. "Entertain Aunt Luo well tomorrow; help her with anything she needs. She's family, after all."

No matter how much Yang Jing resented Wang Qiqi, she knew she had to abide by the current situation and reluctantly agreed. However, she made sure to hold a grudge against Wang Qiqi. "Are we still going to Hawaii in July?"

"Yes, why wouldn't we?" Song Ziwen stood up, heading to the bathroom for a shower. "It's not costing us anything; let's treat it as a vacation. Oh, and make the gift money generous."