Date (Seeking Follow-up Reads)

"Continue sending men to search for Wang Jiu. Use the Zheng Yuanpei residence as the center; I want to see him alive or his corpse if he is dead."

After a long silence, the cold voice of Lin Xiu rang out.

"Yes, Section Chief!"

Officer Liang hesitated for a moment before asking, "Then, regarding this Fang Shuwen, should we simply arrest him and subject him to interrogation?"

"No need. Just have men monitor him in secret."

Lin Xiu's gaze darkened as he glanced at Officer Liang.

"Understood."

Officer Liang hurriedly replied, then bowed and left.

Once the office fell silent, Lin Xiu's gaze became inscrutable.

A useless son from a fallen family—even if he had luckily entered the Elite Class, he only possessed the strength of a hundred-odd catties in one arm and the power of a single bone-cracking sound.

Therefore, Wang Jiu's disappearance should have nothing to do with him; it was more likely that Wang Jiu had met with an accident himself.

Or perhaps, had Zheng Yuanpei made a move?

He pondered slightly, his mind already made up.

The bells of the Western-style clock tower chimed.

Fang Shuwen carried his bookbag and stepped through the gates of the Public Middle School.

The students passing by were either wealthy, wearing Paramount suits, or dressed in exquisite Western-style dresses.

Those without money, At the very least, wore clean and tidy school uniforms or simple, plain-colored clothing.

By the time Fang Shuwen walked into the classroom, more than half of the Elite Class was already seated.

Fang Shuwen walked to his seat in the third row by the window and stuffed his cloth bookbag into the desk compartment.

The surrounding students gathered in twos and threes to chat.

If not for the situations he had encountered in recent days, Fang Shuwen would have thought he had returned to his old school days.

Just then, the classroom door was pushed open.

The Dean, Zhou Changping, walked in clutching a stack of documents, his gaze behind his spectacle lenses sweeping across the entire room.

The classroom instantly fell silent.

"There are two things to announce today."

Zhou Changping stood on the podium; his voice was not loud, but every word was clearly delivered to the ears of everyone present.

"The first matter: starting this week, the school will implement New Martial Arts instruction. Your Elite Class is the first pilot group."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over every student present.

"The second matter: three months from now, Jiangnan Province will host the first Middle School Martial Arts Tournament. Xikou County has two entry spots, which will be selected from your Elite Class."

As his voice fell, the classroom erupted like a pot of boiling water.

"Martial Arts Tournament?"

"The whole province? Doesn't that mean competing against students from big cities like Shenghai and Jinling?"

"Two spots, and there are forty of us in this class..."

The discussions rose and fell, with expressions of excitement and nervousness intertwined on everyone's faces.

Zhou Changping raised his hand to signal for quiet.

"The selection rules are very simple. When the time comes, there will be a school-wide martial arts assessment. The Elite Class and the ordinary classes will compete together, and the two students with the best results will represent Xikou County."

"So, do not think that just because you have entered the Elite Class, you can rest easy."

He paused, his gaze lingering on Han Tieshan for a moment before sweeping over Fang Shuwen.

"Alright, let's begin the lesson."

Academic classes in the morning, martial arts classes in the afternoon.

The martial arts instructor for the Elite Class was not the original physical education teacher, but a special instructor from the Xikou County National Martial Arts Hall, Chen Zhengqing.

He was a true martial artist at the late stage of Bright Force.

The instructor's teaching level was quite good; under his explanation and demonstration, the common Body Strengthening Fist even took on the appearance of a high-level martial art.

Time flew by until sunset.

The school dismissal bell rang.

Fang Shuwen carried his cloth bookbag out of the school gate, bought a bag of hot roasted chestnuts on the street, tucked them into his coat, and walked toward the Zhao Estate.

Just as he turned into the alley behind the Zhao Estate, his footsteps suddenly slowed.

Two people stood beneath the old locust tree at the mouth of the alley.

Moonlight leaked through the gaps in the leaves, and one of them was none other than Cuicui.

She wore a worn, floral-patterned cloth shirt, and her hair was not tied into a braid as it usually was.

Instead, it hung loose, with a few stray strands blown by the night breeze, clinging to her cheeks.

The other person's face was obscured.

But judging by the silhouette alone, it was undoubtedly Li Tong.

As expected, Cuicui had not listened to his advice and was still entangled with Li Tong.

Fang Shuwen shook his head, intending to take a detour back.

It is hard to save a soul determined to die; since Cuicui would not listen to him, there was no need to get too involved.

There was no point in being a warm face pressed against a cold backside.

"Brother Tong!"

Cuicui's voice drifted from the alley entrance, carrying a soft, girlish shyness.

Fang Shuwen pressed himself against the base of the wall and slipped silently into a side path.

Behind him, Li Tong's voice followed, low and gentle, like poison coated in honey.

"Cuicui, is what you said earlier true... did Master Zhao really reward that kid with a hundred silver dollars?"

"Of course it's true... I don't know what kind of dog-shit luck that Little Fang had... to get into the Elite Class with such a high rank."

"I only got a twenty-dollar reward, but he got at least a hundred. Plus two bolts of silk..."

"A hundred?"

Li Tong's voice rose slightly before he quickly suppressed it, as if restraining something.

"Cuicui, tell me... that kid, he's just the son of a gatekeeper, how does he deserve that?"

"Who knows."

"Cuicui, help me lure Little Fang out tomorrow."

"Why do you want to meet him?"

"Nothing much, just want to make a friend."

Li Tong's voice rang out again, carrying a deliberate casualness, as if it were just a passing question.

"Alright, I understand."

On the other side, Fang Shuwen stood at the corner of the wall.

The intermittent words drifted into his ears.

The corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

It was not a smile, but an expression that was difficult to define.

Cuicui was not exactly bad, but she could not be called good either.

She was just the most ordinary kind of person.

When she saw others doing well, her heart turned sour.

When she saw others suffering, a bit of sympathy would arise.

Most people in this world were like this.

As for this Li Tong, having witnessed his behavior and knowing that he relied on his looks to traffic women, he was definitely not a good person.

What was his purpose in wanting Cuicui to lure him out?

He was likely eyeing those hundred silver dollars.

After all, in this day and age, selling two people would only fetch fifty silver dollars!

Fang Shuwen straightened up from the wall and pushed open the side door without a sound.

He did not continue listening, nor did he need to.

He pushed the door open and walked into the courtyard.

The kitchen light was on, and Hu Da was squatting at the doorway smoking a pipe; seeing him enter, he grinned.

"Little Fang, you're back? There's braised pork on the stove today; Steward Chen said to save a bowl for you."

"Thank you, Uncle Hu."

One evening, before school was even out.

Cuicui, who usually never interacted with Fang Shuwen, came to his side.

"Fang Shuwen, are you free after school today?"

Fang Shuwen looked up and glanced at her.

Cuicui wore a smile, but it looked unnatural, and she didn't quite dare to meet his eyes.

"What is it?"

Fang Shuwen's tone was flat, revealing neither joy nor anger.

"I... I would like to treat you to a meal."

Cuicui's voice dropped even lower, as if she were afraid of being overheard by the surrounding classmates.

"A new restaurant opened at West Street Crossing, and I heard the food is good. Shall we meet there after school?"

Fang Shuwen looked at her, silent for two seconds.

Cuicui felt uneasy under his gaze; she lowered her head, her fingers twisting together even tighter.

"Fine."