On the 26th of the lunar year, Qi Yan, who had been staying home with her for five days doing homework and practice problems, finally couldn't help but protest. She had finally gotten a holiday, so why were these two just spending all their time studying at home? She hadn't even bought her New Year's clothes yet!

Shi Jing couldn't help but soften when she saw her pitiful eyes and agreed to go shopping together.

Upon receiving Shi Jing's approval, Qi Yan jumped for joy. Shi Jing was both amused and exasperated: "Qi Yan, you're exaggerating too much. If you want to play, just go play. You don't need to learn with us."

Qi Yan replied, "That won't do. You're all working hard to study. Although I can't compare to you, I can't fall too far behind."

Shi Jing and Qi Shuang laughed upon hearing this.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve had a proper rest. Let’s go out for a walk,” Qi Shuang agreed.

“Okay,” Shi Jing said with a smile.

Ever since Qi Shuang learned about her family's difficulties, she has become much more grounded than before, and she comes to Shi Jing to learn from him every day.

Although Shi Jing thought it was good that Qi Shuang was willing to work hard, she didn't want Qi Shuang to bear too much pressure.

It was still early, so the three of them tidied up a bit, put on their small backpacks, and prepared to set off.

Just as they set off, Qi Yan's brother called.

Qi Yan answered the phone and heard her brother ask with a smile, "I heard you've been studying hard lately, that's really tough. How about taking a day off? I'll buy you a gift to reward you."

"Brother, did you install surveillance cameras around me?" Qi Yan asked, amused.

"What?" Qi Jing didn't understand what it meant at first.

"It's nothing. Shi Jing, Xiao Shuang, and I are just about to go shopping. Brother, would you like to come and pay for us?"

"Which way are you going? I'll be there in a bit."

"Okay." Qi Yan readily agreed and sent her brother her location.

After sending the message, she happily looked at her two friends beside her: "Let's go shopping. I'll have my brother pay the bill later."

Both of them were somewhat helpless: "You."

Qi Yan and her brother have a good relationship, so they were naturally happy to see it happen, but there was no need for them to pay for it.

When they arrived at the mall, it was just past 2 p.m. Qi Yan and her brother had arranged to meet at the mall entrance. When they arrived, Qi Jing was already there.

When the three girls arrived, they saw Qi Jing carrying a bag, and the prominent logo on the bag indicated that it contained milk tea.

He handed them the milk tea: "Freshly made milk tea, it's hot."

"Thank you, Brother Jing."

"Thank you, brother."

The group thanked them sweetly.

"Let's go, don't be shy about buying anything from me." Qi Jing led the way.

None of them lacked clothes, but they were thinking of buying new ones for the New Year. However, compared to Qi Yan and Qi Shuang's knowledge of clothing brands, Shi Jing was completely clueless.

She didn't offer any opinions at this moment, and simply followed obediently behind Qi Yan and her brother.

This shopping mall has six floors; the fourth and fifth floors are food and beverage areas, and the sixth floor is a cinema. Shopping is usually done on the first to third floors, with the first floor mainly featuring large tea chains, cosmetics, and gold and silver jewelry. Clothing is concentrated on the second and third floors.

The group first took the escalator up to the second floor before starting their shopping.

Passing by a brand that Qi Yan often wears, she couldn't resist going in to see if there were any new arrivals. Qi Yan is a VIP at this store, and as soon as she entered, a sharp-eyed sales assistant came forward to serve her.

"Miss Qi, it's been a while since you've been here."

"Any new products lately? I'd like to take a look," Qi Yan asked.

"Yes, please come and sit here. I'll have someone bring you all the new clothes that are suitable for you right away," the sales assistant thoughtfully arranged.

Just as they were about to leave, Qi Jing said, "Pick more, take all three of them."

"Okay." This was no small amount, and the sales assistant happily went to prepare it.

"Brother Jing, I don't need to buy new clothes," Qi Shuang quickly refused.

Shi Jing didn't actually want Qi Jing to help pay; she wasn't short of money. Since moving out, Shi Jing had opened a new bank account and transferred 500,000 yuan from her private account. In addition, her private account currently had more than 30 million yuan.

However, before she could speak, Qi Shuang spoke up. Qi Jing smiled and ruffled Qi Shuang's hair, saying, "You three all have New Year's gifts from your brother, so don't refuse them."

Qi Jing and Qi Shuang were very close, so it wasn't surprising that he gave her a New Year's gift. The only change was that Qi Shuang's family was not doing well, and accepting such a kind gift might feel like a burden to her.

Shi Jing changed his mind after a moment's thought, and thanked Qi Jing with a smile: "Then thank you, Brother Jing."

With the Time Mirror as a prelude, Qi Shuang can accept it more easily.

Shi Jing wasn't picky about clothes; as long as they were wearable and didn't look bad, that was enough for her. Therefore, Qi Yan took over the responsibility, with Shi Jing only needing to try on clothes while Qi Yan and Qi Shuang helped her choose.

Shi Jing was like a model, trying on clothes for a long time. The two of them were very picky, and she was exhausted from trying them on. Finally, they helped her choose two outfits.

Qi Shuang also chose two sets.

Qi Yan had even more, choosing five outfits in a row. In her words, it was rare for her brother to accompany them shopping, so of course she wanted to squeeze a hefty sum out of him.

Qi Jing chuckled and patted the back of her head, saying affectionately, "When have I ever mistreated you?"

The three young women were all laughing happily.

After leaving this store, we went to the next one.

Qi Yan, who had spent five days studying with Shi Jing and Qi Shuang, felt completely at ease and revitalized. Qi Shuang, who had worked hard all semester, also felt much more relaxed.

The two went to pick out clothes and accessories. Shi Jing felt tired from shopping, so she went to sit on the sofa and waited for the two.

Just then, she heard Qi Jing making a phone call. The person on the other end of the line seemed very close; Qi Jing looked relaxed and at ease.

After hearing what was said on the other end, Qi Jing suddenly said helplessly, "Brother Zhang, you know that my company was just for practice. Apart from the expenditures on charity and public welfare, almost everything else was invested in the previous project. Where would I get any money left?"

Shi Jing wasn't eavesdropping intentionally, but Qi Jing wasn't hiding it from anyone either, so it probably didn't involve any important business secrets.

After a while, Qi Jing laughed and said, "I know you have a good eye, but I only have two or three million in liquid funds right now, so I really can't touch them."

Shi Jing's mind raced upon hearing this. Although he didn't know what project Qi Jing was talking about, it seemed pretty good.

She glanced at Qi Jing, who was sitting not far from her. Qi Jing noticed her gaze but did not try to avoid it, clearly not minding that Shi Jing was eavesdropping.

After a while, Qi Jing finished his call and said with a smile, "Brother Zhang said that the TV series Xiao Shuang is guest-starring in is already in post-production, and if nothing unexpected happens, it will be broadcast next summer."

Shi Jing suddenly realized who the Brother Zhang that Qi Jing was talking about was. He was Zhang Ningyuan, the producer of the film crew they went to during the summer vacation and a good friend of Qi Jing.

Qi Jing and Zhang Ningyuan have a good relationship, and it's normal for them to have investment dealings.

Shi Jing thought about the more than 30 million yuan in his account. So much money was just sitting there and not making any more money. It would be good if he could follow the two of them to make some investments.