Qiao Wanqing reminisced about her own college days, which felt similar.

But during her senior year, when she went out for an internship, she was hit hard by the reality of society.

Society isn’t an ivory tower like school; sometimes, just saying the wrong thing can lead to misunderstandings.

For example, there was a time when a colleague, whom she thought she got along well with, went out to lunch together.

Halfway there, Qiao Wanqing remembered a document she needed to send to her leader, so she rushed back to send it and asked the colleague to help her get the food.

That colleague said no, with a tone that clearly indicated it was a joke.

Qiao Wanqing jokingly replied, “Then next time, if you ask me to do something, I won’t cooperate with you.”

It was all in good fun, and Qiao Wanqing even forgot what she said.

But the next day, during a departmental meeting, that colleague told everyone, “Qiao Wanqing said she wouldn’t cooperate with me.”

Qiao Wanqing was flustered and insisted, “I was just joking!”

The other person coldly said, “Work is serious; there’s no room for jokes. We must keep personal and professional matters separate.”

Such a blunt statement surprisingly received the manager’s approval, advising Qiao Wanqing to pay more attention in the future.

…

After three months of training in this environment, Qiao Wanqing matured a lot and learned not to speak carelessly.

Qiao Wanqing asked her, “Do you understand what the teacher talks about in class?”

“It’s okay. I find it a bit simple because my major is related to this. Don’t you understand?”

“…I only grasp it partially,” Qiao Wanqing admitted, feeling embarrassed.

“Then how did you get into this class?”

“I read some books about e-commerce before, so it didn’t seem difficult when I was doing it.”

Qiao Wanqing also had a tendency to perform well on exams. Even if she didn’t learn everything perfectly, she did well on tests, especially multiple-choice questions, where her intuition was often spot on.

“Well, that makes sense. You probably just need some time to adjust. After attending a few more classes, it’ll be easier,” Chen Yu comforted her. “Don’t worry; besides teaching you how to operate a Taobao store and other practical stuff, you don’t need to master everything perfectly—just a basic understanding is enough.”

Qiao Wanqing had seen the schedule for their advanced class.

In the first week, they would cover e-commerce basics, like the differences between Taobao, Tmall, and JD, which confused her a bit.

By the second week, they would start practical training, teaching how to set up a Taobao account and upload products.

As the course progressed, the content was expected to be more practical, combining hands-on experience with theory, which she believed would be helpful.

At first, Qiao Wanqing was struggling to keep up, but after hearing what Chen Yu said, she felt more at ease.

She decided to relax during the classes: if she understood something, she would remember it; if not, she would skip it and focus on the next part.

By evening, at 5:30, Gu Yanqing came to pick her up after class.

Their training was held in an entrepreneurial park on the outskirts of City C, about a 40-minute drive from Gu Yanqing’s company.

After her teacher delayed the class a bit and chatted with her first friend, Chen Yu, it was about time to leave.

When Qiao Wanqing saw Gu Yanqing’s message saying he was almost there, she said goodbye to Chen Yu, grabbed her bag, and walked to the road where she spotted Gu Yanqing’s car.

She got in, fastened her seatbelt, and sighed.

After eight hours of class, she felt a bit nauseous from the long day.

Gu Yanqing turned to kiss her cheek before starting the car and asked, “How was class today?”

“I didn’t understand much,” Qiao Wanqing admitted, sticking out her tongue. “My brain feels foggy; I can’t keep up.”

Gu Yanqing seemed to have expected this and wasn’t surprised.

He just asked, “What did you learn?”

Qiao Wanqing summarized what they covered in class.

After listening, Gu Yanqing shared the same sentiment as Chen Yu, saying, “It’s okay. Whether you master this knowledge or not doesn’t matter. It’s just to broaden your understanding. Otherwise, when you meet professionals later, and they mention terms like B2C, C2C, or B2B, you’d just be confused.”

That’s true.

In the past, whenever Qiao Wanqing came across those terms in books, she would feel completely confused.

Later, she looked them up on Baidu but still only had a vague understanding.

However, after the teacher explained them vividly today, she finally understood and could differentiate between them.

Qiao Wanqing sighed and said, “I posted on my friend circle that I’m training to learn about e-commerce, and one of my friends laughed at me. She said you don’t need to take classes for Taobao; you just need someone to guide you. Going to class is a waste of time and doesn’t teach anything useful.”

That friend was someone added by the original owner of the account.

Qiao Wanqing searched her memories but found no related messages, so she must have added her sometime as a casual connection.

She also mentioned her brother didn’t even graduate from middle school, yet he learned how to run a Taobao shop on his own and now easily earns a six-figure income, starting with 2 and sometimes 3.

Her tone was full of disdain for those who casually went to training sessions.

“If you just want to sell dried vegetables, of course, I could easily help you set up a Tmall store and find an experienced operator to guide you, and you’d be up and running in no time.”

At a red light, Gu Yanqing playfully flicked her forehead and said, “Ms. Qiao, your goal is to become a respected entrepreneur, not just a silent wealthy person.”

“…” She just wanted to quietly get rich.

However, Qiao Wanqing understood what Gu Yanqing meant.

This project was supported by the government, so achieving results wasn’t just about making money; it was also about gaining prestige.

In terms of money, Gu Yanqing already earned plenty.

No matter how much Qiao Wanqing earned, she couldn’t compare to him.

But becoming an outstanding female entrepreneur would elevate her status significantly.

That’s why he wouldn’t let her take shortcuts.

If she simply wanted to set up a store, it would be easy—just throw money at it, and as long as the products weren’t too bad, she could achieve sales.

But thinking about it, that seemed meaningless—like cheating without real effort.

Gu Yanqing parked the car in the garage.

Since it was the opening ceremony today, they ended up having a late lunch.

To not feel out of place, Qiao Wanqing had lunch with everyone instead of going home and only had time for a quick video call with Kou Kou during the break.

Gu Yanqing pinned her against the car door, his hand on her waist. “You haven’t seen me all day. Didn’t you miss me?”

“You’re even jealous of vinegar!”

“I consume the most vinegar from that little brat.”

“…I even secretly sent you WeChat messages during class.”

Qiao Wanqing had never dated in college before and had no idea that studying and being in love could be so blissful.

As she listened to the lecture, she tightly gripped her phone.

Whenever it buzzed, her heart would flutter, as if honey was flowing out, making her heart sweet.

If too much time passed without a buzz, she felt down, and even class became uninteresting.

Even though they were already together, she couldn’t understand why she had such rich emotions.

She would play little games, like waiting 20 minutes to reply after Gu Yanqing replied in 15 minutes.

In those 20 minutes, she checked her phone at least 10 times.

So, love affecting studies… was completely true.

“Not enough.”

Gu Yanqing whispered as he slowly kissed her lips deeper and deeper.

Finally, Qiao Wanqing breathlessly leaned into his arms.

He straightened her disheveled clothes and half-carried her into the elevator.

Just as they entered the door of their home, their child flew over: “Mommy, Daddy!”

Qiao Wanqing crouched down, arms open to catch him, and lifted him up. “Baby, do you miss mommy?”

Koukou hugged her neck and said without hesitation, “Miss!”

Qiao Wanqing kissed his little face repeatedly. “Mommy misses you too.”

“Daddy.”

After cuddling with Qiao Wanqing for a while, Koukou remembered daddy.

He leaned over to give him a kiss and softly said he missed daddy.

At such a young age, he knew how to spread his love evenly!

The three entered the living room.

Madam Gu was sitting on the sofa tidying up toys for Koukou.

After greeting them and chatting briefly, Madam Gu said to Koukou, “Koukou, what did you learn today? Show mommy and daddy.”

Koukou’s desire to perform immediately surfaced.

He obediently got down from Gu Yanqing’s arms and sat on a small stool.

Qiao Wanqing and Gu Yanqing sat down, eagerly watching him.

“Okay, baby, ready, go.”

Madam Gu clapped rhythmically and sang, “Clap your hands, clap your hands, stretch out your fingers, stretch out your fingers…”

Koukou followed her rhythm, extending his little fingers, and pointing at his own feet, looking adorable and serious.

Madam Gu continued singing, “Where are your eyes? Your eyes are here. Point them out with your fingers, point them out with your fingers.”

Koukou thought for a moment, then pointed to his own little eyes with his finger, earning Madam Gu’s approval and smiling happily.

Next, Madam Gu asked about his nose, ears, and mouth.

Koukou tilted his head in thought and accurately pointed to each with his little hands.

When the song ended, Qiao Wanqing and Gu Yanqing applauded enthusiastically. “Koukou, you’re amazing.”

Qiao Wanqing had never played such games with him before.

Koukou still had a short memory, and if asked to remember something alone, like hands or feet, he could do it well.

But for nose, eyes, and ears, which were closer together, he tended to mix them up.

This little game had helped him distinguish them completely.

Koukou was happy to receive praise from mommy and daddy, proudly puffing out his little chest. “Koukou is very smart!”