There are many beautiful girls.

"Hey, get in, get in!"

Fang Lusheng was always attentive and courteous to Fang Luguo, who taught in town, but he never thought much of the brothers Fang Lujun and Fang Luyong; it was evident in his words and manner, so much so that even Fang Chang'an in his previous life had noticed it.

But from childhood, Fang Lusheng had always treated him and his younger sister Fang Yanran very well, greeting them warmly from afar whenever they met—except for those two years in high school when Fang Chang'an's grades plummeted.

For a long time, this left Fang Chang'an with a good impression of this uncle, because he never had to worry about how to greet an elder or whether he should at all.

As for Fang Changming, whose grades had been poor since elementary school, Fang Lusheng assumed a different attitude, often lecturing or belittling him in order to praise Fang Chang'an or Fang Yanran.

His differing treatment of the three siblings essentially summed up Fang Lusheng's character.

Once the three were seated in the carriage, Fang Lusheng got out, grabbed the crank, and turned it vigorously to start the engine. He had already turned the vehicle around in advance, so he could set off at once.

Since there were lots of people in front of the school gate, Fang Lusheng didn't dare drive fast, following the crowd slowly.

"Class monitor!"

The call came suddenly from the side. Fang Chang'an turned to see Li Dongfeng and Hao Mingci, perched on their bicycles, greeting him with their feet on the pedals, their eyes sizing up Fang Dianqiu and Fang Ying.

He waved dismissively, "Go away."

Fang Dianqiu and Fang Ying had heard the shout but hadn't expected it to be for Fang Chang'an. Turning to look, they saw the two boys staring at the carriage, puzzled.

When they heard Fang Chang'an respond, they were even more confused.

Li Dongfeng grinned, "Can't get through. Are those girls from your village?"

"Yes, both are in their third year of junior high."

Fang Ying, being older, could pass for a third-year; Fang Dianqiu, a year younger than Fang Chang'an and still so youthful, could easily be believed to be in fifth grade.

Li Dongfeng had seen Fang Dianqiu visit Fang Chang'an before, so he didn't believe his words, but didn't press the matter, just laughed.

Spotting a clear path, he quickly pushed off and sped ahead, Hao Mingci following, leaving two calls behind, "We're off!"

Fang Ying watched them go, then turned to Fang Chang'an. Fang Dianqiu had already asked, "Are you the class monitor?"

Fang Chang'an nodded, "Same as elementary school—except for chores, it's not much use."

He had been a vice monitor in elementary school, since a girl had scored higher when the monitor was appointed.

"Still, you're the class monitor," Fang Dianqiu said with a look of amazement, then muttered, "But you're first in the grade, so being monitor makes sense."

Fang Lusheng turned to ask, "Chang'an, are you the class monitor?"

Chang'an nodded shyly. Fang Lusheng clicked his tongue and exclaimed loudly, "That's great! Impressive!"

He continued, "Ying, look at you, you even repeated a year in junior high, and you're still not as good as Chang'an."

Fang Ying rolled her eyes and pursed her lips, saying nothing.

Fang Dianqiu grinned, "Grandpa Sheng, you don't know, in our placement exam, Fang Chang'an was first in the grade!"

"Really?"

Fang Lusheng was even more surprised, turning around to confirm. Fang Chang'an nodded shyly again.

"Wow—" Fang Lusheng drew a sharp breath and sighed, "That's impressive, really impressive. Your school has so many students—all the top kids from each village, not to mention those from town..."

"To get first place, that's truly remarkable!"

After praising him for a while, he asked, "Do your parents know?"

Chang'an laughed, "I haven't been home yet, how could they?"

Fang Lusheng nodded, suddenly remembering, "Right, your house doesn't have a phone... For things like this, you could call Qiuqiu's family instead, or just call me and I'll tell your parents! This is such good news!"

"Okay!" Chang'an responded shyly, "If I get first again next time, I'll call you so you can be happy too."

"Deal!" Fang Lusheng replied emphatically, eager as ever.

The tricycle slowly made its way out of the most congested stretch in front of the school and continued along the gravel road, bicycles passing by from time to time.

As they neared the end of the gravel road, a clear girl's voice called out, "Class monitor!"

Chang'an turned—it was Wang Yuwei, riding a brand-new blue bicycle, eyeing the passengers and smiling as she asked, "Is your family picking you up?"

Chang'an waved back with a smile, "My uncle."

Fang Ying and Fang Dianqiu both studied the pretty girl, blinking repeatedly in surprise—so many pretty girls in Chang'an's class?

Fang Lusheng also glanced back, and Wang Yuwei, unafraid of strangers, greeted him sweetly, "Hello, uncle!"

"Hello!" Fang Lusheng smiled back, equally surprised.

They continued straight onto the cement road, Wang Yuwei turned left, waving, "I'm off, see you next week!"

"Bye-bye!" Chang'an responded, feeling as if he'd been taken advantage of.

"Is she a classmate of yours?"

This time, Fang Dianqiu didn't get a chance to speak; Fang Lusheng asked first.

"Yeah," Chang'an replied.

Fang Lusheng said, "She's from town, isn't she? Not shy at all, very confident, and quite pretty."

Before Chang'an could respond, another clear voice rang out, "Fang Chang'an!"

He turned to see Wang Ke, following two boys, riding up joyfully and a bit smug, waving vigorously before pedaling hard to pass them, "I'm off!"

Chang'an sighed, calling out, "Bye-bye!"

Watching her ride off, Fang Dianqiu and Fang Ying finally withdrew their gaze, now looking at Chang'an with something odd in their eyes.

Fang Lusheng exclaimed in surprise, "Wow! Even prettier than the last one! Also your classmate?"

"Yeah," Chang'an could only reply again.

Fang Dianqiu and Fang Ying exchanged glances. Fang Dianqiu said, "Wasn't that the girl we bumped into in the corridor on the first day?"

Fang Ying pursed her lips again, "I know, her name is Wang Ke. Lots of people in our class know her."

Fang Dianqiu was surprised, "How do you know?"

Fang Ying replied, "Of course I know. The boys in our class are always talking about it, saying Class Four has the most pretty girls, Wang Ke is the prettiest, and there's another one, named Shen—"

She was trying to recall the name when another girl's voice called out, "Fang Chang'an!"

Chang'an, who had just shifted to the back seat, saw Cheng Mengfei riding an electric bike, carrying Shen Mo, approaching. It was impossible to pretend not to notice, so he waved and greeted, "Hello, Teacher Cheng!"

Cheng Mengfei nodded with a smile, glancing at the two young girls in the carriage, then slightly sped up. Seeing it wasn't Chang'an's parents driving, she accelerated again and slowly passed them.

As the two vehicles moved side by side, Shen Mo turned to look at Chang'an, waving her little hand as she overtook him, her eyes shining as if they were lit from within, smiling sweetly, dimples showing.

The electric bike turned ahead and disappeared. Fang Ying finally withdrew her gaze, looking at Chang'an, "She seems to be called Shen Mo."

Fang Lusheng turned to ask, "Is she also your classmate? Is that an electric bike?"

"She's in our class, and the rider is our homeroom teacher," Chang'an nodded, then added, "I'm not sure if it's an electric bike."

"Your homeroom teacher is so young?" Fang Lusheng was surprised. Fang Dianqiu replied, "She's really young and very pretty. Lots of people in our class say your teacher is beautiful, but it's a pity she doesn't teach us."

Fang Ying nodded too, her expression showing a hint of regret.

Chang'an thought to himself that Teacher Cheng's level was enough to wreak havoc in Class Four; if she taught all the advanced classes, would the school allow it?

"Electric bikes are expensive, even more than motorcycles."

They were still rare in those days, nowhere near as ubiquitous as in later years. Fang Lusheng's tone was tinged with amazement and envy.

Chang'an had expected him to marvel at Shen Mo's beauty again, but Fang Lusheng's attention was entirely on the electric bike. After commenting on the price, he added, "Electric bikes aren't just expensive, they're hard to buy. I doubt there's any for sale in our town; you'd have to go to the county."

The tricycle couldn't go fast on the street. When they reached the intersection ahead, Fang Lusheng asked, "Want to go to the market street? Do you want some buns? I'll buy you a few."

The three exchanged glances and replied in unison, "No!"

Fang Lusheng, having finally decided to spend a yuan to buy them a few buns, was surprised by their refusal, momentarily stunned. "Ah?"