Chapter Summaries

Su Can’s parents hired two assistants for their shop while he focused on his studies and tried to prepare for trouble from Yue Zijiang’s allies. At school, Tang Wu’s playful wink left Su Can flustered, while Chen Lingshan’s friend Li Lumei began trying to bring Su Can and Chen closer.

• Su Can’s parents hired Li Yulian and Wang Yue to help at the shop, while they watched over Su Can’s studies as midterms approached.
• Su Can told Liu Rui about his troubles with Yue Zijiang, and Liu Rui promised to come help if Wang Haoran’s group caused trouble.
• Yue Zijiang sent a messenger to invite Tang Wu out, but Tang Wu declined, then winked at Su Can as she returned from the restroom.
• During PE, Chen Lingshan joined Su Can and his friends, while Li Lumei hoped Su Can would grow closer to Chen and upset Tang Wu.

Su Can and Chen Lingshan shared an awkwardly intimate moment before separating, while Li Lumei worried about how close they were becoming and how Tang Wu fit into the situation. Later, Su Can found two attackers beating a student in an alley and tricked them into fleeing, then returned to help the battered boy.

• Chen Lingshan took Su Can by the wrist to lead him away from the girls' teasing, then invited him to join a gathering after midterms; he agreed.
• Li Lumei stopped the girls' romantic gossip and privately worried about Su Can and Chen Lingshan's growing closeness, especially in relation to Tang Wu.
• Su Can entered the alleys near City First Middle School and found two males beating a student with chair legs.
• Su Can shouted that help was coming, frightening the attackers into fleeing with their clubs.
• Su Can returned to the injured student, who recognized the ruse and praised him.

Su Can learned why Wang Yue had joined his family’s shop and offered to help her build a business rather than dismissing her. He promised to help her reach a bigger world, leaving Wang Yue stunned by his confidence.

• Su Can left the injured boy after advising him to get checked and stop getting into fights.
• At his family’s shop, Su Can recognized Wang Yue, who had previously worked at a store near City No. 3 Middle School.
• Su Can confronted Wang Yue about hiding her real reasons for applying to work at the shop.
• Wang Yue admitted she wanted to learn how to run a business and escape a life spent tending her mother’s shop.
• Su Can proposed that Wang Yue’s family join his family’s business as a branch and promised to help her go farther in life.

Su Can discussed opening a branch of his parents’ shop, hoping to give them a new direction beyond relying on secure work-unit contracts. His parents were cautious but began considering the risks and possibilities, leaving the expansion undecided.

• Wang Yue laughed off Su Can’s claims about the future, though she still seemed hopeful that his mother might help expand her family’s shop.
• Su Can recalled his mother’s enduring care as she served him peeled walnuts and fruit at home.
• Su Can proposed opening a branch, but his parents initially urged him to focus on studying and questioned whether the shop needed to expand.
• Zeng Ke noted that the shop’s designated-supplier contract lasted only a year, while Su Licheng said retail mattered too and any branch should be near schools.
• Su Can agreed to revisit the idea later and returned to his room, recognizing that his promise to Wang Yue had been premature.

As midterms approached, Xiao Rihua learned that Su Can and Tang Wu were rumored to be close, unsettling him after his earlier conflict with Su Can. Meanwhile, a dispute over a basketball court drew first-year Class Five into a looming confrontation with Wang Haoran’s allies, who arrived at the classroom door.

• Xiao Rihua overheard Yin Xiaotian and Zhou Wu discussing rumors that Su Can and Tang Wu often left school together, and he was shocked.
• Mao Xiaoshi and Zheng Dong took a basketball court from junior-high students and learned that one boy was Wang Haoran’s cousin.
• Mao Xiaoshi and Zheng Dong sought help from Li Ai, who became alarmed when he heard whom they had offended.
• Zhang Xi told the worried Class Five students to wait, while the class rallied around Mao Xiaoshi.
• A group of second-year boys gathered outside Class Five, and Wang Haoran’s cousin identified Mao Xiaoshi to Brother Chen.

Zhang Xi failed to stop Chen Chong’s group from summoning Mao Xiaoshi to the school gate, while Gao Fan promised Chen Lingshan he would try to intervene. Mao Xiaoshi was then brutally beaten by Wang Haoran, Zheng Zhichao, and their group as Li Lumei and Chen Lingshan watched in distress.

• Zheng Zhichao demanded that Mao Xiaoshi come out, and Chen Chong told Zhang Xi to have him wait at the main gate after school.
• Yue Zijiang spoke with Tang Wu, while Gao Fan told Chen Lingshan he would try to dissuade Chen Chong and Wang Haoran from fighting Mao Xiaoshi.
• Gao Fan teased Chen Lingshan about Su Can, and Su Can kept working at his desk as the disturbance ended.
• Wang Haoran’s group attacked Mao Xiaoshi in an open space outside the school, knocking him down and leaving him bloodied.
• Zheng Zhichao kicked Mao Xiaoshi as Li Lumei cried, while Gao Fan held Chen Lingshan back from intervening.

Su Can stepped into Wang Haoran's gang's beating of Mao Xiaoshi and endured Chen Chong's taunts and physical abuse. When Zheng Zhichao patted his head and the others dismissed him, Su Can picked up a brick and struck Chen Chong from behind.

• Su Can stopped Xue Yiyang from leading him away and walked toward Wang Haoran's group as they beat Mao Xiaoshi.
• Su Can reminded Wang Haoran that he had helped him before, and Wang Haoran acknowledged knowing him but watched as Chen Chong and the others jeered.
• Chen Chong jabbed Su Can in the face and struck his collarbone, leaving bloody scratches before Wang Haoran stopped him.
• Zheng Zhichao patted Su Can's head, and Su Can bent down, picked up a brick, and brought it down on the back of Chen Chong's head.

Su Can struck Chen Chong with a brick and tried to rally Mao Xiaoshi and the others against Wang Haoran’s group, but Mao Xiaoshi lost his nerve and stayed down. Su Can fought the second-years alone until Xue Yiyang joined him with a brick, and the clash escalated into a chaotic brawl.

• Su Can hit Chen Chong in the back and then struck him in the face with a brick, knocking him down and shocking Wang Haoran’s group.
• Su Can challenged Mao Xiaoshi to stand up and fight, hoping to draw him and his basketball teammates into the confrontation.
• Mao Xiaoshi looked at Wang Haoran and lowered his head, while Li Lumei’s hopes of seeing him stand up faded.
• The second-years attacked Su Can, who fought back with his brick despite being outnumbered.
• Xue Yiyang grabbed a brick and charged in to help Su Can, spreading the melee as the second-years fought back and Wang Haoran’s calls to stop went unheard.

Wang Weiwei and his companions arrived as Su Can and Xue Yiyang fought Wang Haoran’s group, and they watched from a nearby snack stall. Wang Haoran stopped the brawl and recognized Wang Weiwei’s powerful connections, leaving him wary of provoking the newcomer.

• Wang Weiwei’s group arrived and sat at a snack stall to watch the fight, while Lin Luoran praised Su Can’s fighting spirit.
• Wang Haoran separated the fighters, and Su Can dropped his brick as he and Xue Yiyang faced the shaken group.
• Xue Yiyang challenged the others again, while Su Can noticed Wang Weiwei smiling at him and giving him a thumbs-up.
• Wang Haoran silenced his companions when they threatened Wang Weiwei’s group.
• Wang Haoran recalled Wang Weiwei’s standing among the city’s powerful families and decided that provoking him could bring severe consequences.

After Wang Weiwei stopped Wang Haoran’s group from escalating their clash with Su Can, Wang Weiwei and Lin Luoran transferred to City First Middle School. Su Can wondered whether his actions had changed the future, while rumors of the fight spread and the anticipated retaliation never came.

• Wang Haoran called off his confrontation with Su Can after Wang Weiwei intervened, and Wang Weiwei checked that Su Can was all right.
• Su Can declined Wang Weiwei’s invitation to join the beer stall, then left with Xue Yiyang.
• Wang Weiwei, Lin Zouwen, and Lin Luoran enrolled at City First Middle School in separate classes.
• Xue Yiyang told Su Can that Wang Weiwei and Lin Luoran had transferred to their school, and Su Can wondered whether his choices had caused the change.
• Rumors about Su Can’s fight with Wang Haoran spread, but Wang Haoran’s group did not retaliate.
• Yue Zijiang’s class challenged Class Five to a ball game, while Li Lumei teased Chen Lingshan about Su Can.

After watching Yue Zijiang openly pursue Tang Wu, Su Can decided he had to court her rather than interfere from the sidelines. He later encouraged Mao Xiaoshi to stop fearing Yue Zijiang and give everything on the basketball court.

• Yue Zijiang invited Tang Wu to watch him play in next month's basketball tournament, and she answered, "We'll see."
• Su Can reflected on Tang Wu's growing choices and decided to pursue her so he could legitimately stand by her.
• Mao Xiaoshi told Su Can that he knew Su looked down on him for freezing during their past confrontation.
• Su Can reassured Mao Xiaoshi that fear was a normal response, then told him he could not beat Yue Zijiang while he remained afraid of him.
• Su Can urged Mao Xiaoshi to give everything he had, and Mao Xiaoshi recalled Su facing danger with a brick.

Su Can asked Mao Xiaoshi to teach him basketball as he began revealing his abilities ahead of the midterms. When Lin Luoran arrived at the court, she stunned Su Can and the others by demonstrating extraordinary basketball skills and teasing him about his reason for learning.

• Su Can analyzed Mao Xiaoshi and Yue Zijiang's contrasting play, then asked Mao Xiaoshi to coach him in basketball.
• As midterms approached, Su Can began showing his academic ability and decided he had to stop keeping a low profile.
• While practicing with Mao Xiaoshi and the others, Su Can was struck in the face by a basketball and injured his fingers.
• Lin Luoran watched Su Can practice, mocked his skill, and took the ball from the tall center.
• Lin Luoran dribbled past the boys and made a striking shot, then teased Su Can about learning basketball to chase girls.

During the midterms, Xiao Rihua learned that Su Can had clashed with the influential Wang Haoran and feared the trouble it would bring him. After the exams, Su Can spent time with Lin Luoran on the basketball court, where she revealed that she no longer needed to guess why he was practicing.

• Xiao Rihua overheard Yin Xiaotian and another teacher discuss Su Can's fight with Wang Haoran, then realized the other homeroom teachers knew about it too.
• Xiao Rihua worried that Su Can's family background and relationship with Tang Wu would make the incident a problem for him, and he tore through his lesson-plan paper with his pen.
• Mao Xiaoshi and the other boys compared answers to the midterm exams while Su Can reflected that the hardest questions had taken him only fifteen minutes to solve.
• Lin Luoran joined the boys on the basketball court, dismissed questions about her exam results, and later sat beside Su Can while they watched the others play.
• Su Can asked Lin Luoran how she had known he was practicing basketball for a girl, and she said she had guessed before adding that she no longer had to guess.

Su Can spoke with Lin Zouwen, who asked him to keep an eye on Lin Luoran, and grew curious about the group’s backgrounds. Two days after his midterms, Su Can learned that his father was being targeted at work over a city construction project that had begun years ahead of schedule, leaving him to wonder whether his rebirth had changed events.

• Lin Zouwen approached Su Can with beer, admitted he had followed Lin Luoran to see who she was spending time with, and introduced himself.
• Lin Zouwen probed whether Su Can was interested in his circle’s backgrounds, but Su Can said their shared enjoyment of basketball mattered more than their origins.
• Lin Zouwen asked Su Can to watch over Lin Luoran and alert him if anyone tried to pursue her.
• Su Licheng came home angry after Zhao Chengrong criticized his work and withheld his performance bonus following Su Licheng’s public disagreement with the company chief.
• Su Can learned that construction on Xinghai Square had begun years earlier than expected and wondered whether his rebirth had caused the change.

Su Can encouraged his parents to modernize their busy shop and supported Su Licheng as he pursued evidence against Zhao Chengrong. Mao Nan examined Su Licheng’s case files at home, his ambition stirred by Zhao’s contemptuous look.

• Su Can saw that his family’s shop was thriving and advised Zeng Ke to replace its hazardous glass shelves and buy a cash register.
• Su Licheng told Zeng Ke and Su Can that he had given Mao Nan documents about suspicious Linnan and Airport projects involving Zhao Chengrong and Accountant Shen.
• Su Can praised his father for standing up to Zhao Chengrong, giving Su Licheng renewed confidence to keep fighting.
• Rumors spread that Mao Nan was cooperating with the investigation team and held evidence against Zhao Chengrong.
• Mao Nan read the two case files from Su Licheng under his desk lamp and gripped them, driven by Zhao Chengrong’s earlier contempt.

Su Can’s family met with investigator Tong Jianjun, who confirmed Su Licheng’s reports had exposed serious problems in Zhao Chengrong’s projects. At school, Xiao Yunyun told Su Can that her father had been transferred to Linchuan County and that she might move to Rongcheng for school, leaving their relationship uncertain.

• Su Can met Tong Jianjun and Xiao Luo at home as Tong questioned Su Licheng about his reports on the troubled projects.
• Su Licheng answered the investigator’s questions, and Tong praised his work as the investigation into Zhao Chengrong advanced.
• Su Can recognized that Mao Nan could benefit from Zhao Chengrong’s likely downfall because he might gain control of the Fourth Engineering Division.
• Xiao Yunyun visited Su Can at school and told him her father had been transferred to head the Linchuan County Planning Bureau.
• Xiao Yunyun said her parents were considering sending her to National Key No. 27 Middle School in Rongcheng, though she was not certain she would leave.

After school, Su Can and Tang Wu shared a quiet walk that ended with Su Can taking her hand and Tang Wu gently squeezing his in return. The next morning, teacher Xiao Rihua confronted Su Can, apparently alarmed by what he had witnessed, and summoned him away from break-time exercises.

• Du Ting said goodbye to Tang Wu and Su Can, leaving them to walk together toward the bus stop.
• Tang Wu told Su Can that he should focus on his grades and dreams rather than worry about learning basketball.
• Yue Zijiang rode past Tang Wu and Su Can on his motorcycle, while Su Can wondered how his actions might affect their futures.
• While waiting for the Route 3 bus, Su Can took Tang Wu's hand; she initially drew back, then squeezed his palm before boarding.
• Xiao Rihua witnessed the hand-holding and angrily clashed with Tian Feng at a staff meeting the next morning.
• Xiao Rihua ordered Su Can to skip break-time exercises and come with him.

Su Can defended his friendship with Tang Wu when Xiao Rihua confronted him, and his Chinese exam score undercut Xiao's attempt to portray him as a poor student. Xiao threatened to judge him by his midterm results, leaving Su Can wary that their conflict was not over.

• Xiao Rihua confronted Su Can about his relationship with Tang Wu, but Su Can calmly denied wrongdoing and said he had focused on studying.
• Xiao showed Su Can his Chinese exam paper, and Su Can's score of 128 surprised him.
• Su Can explained that he and Tang Wu were longtime friends who encouraged each other, and Xiao reluctantly told him to be more careful.
• Xiao threatened to hold Su Can accountable if his midterm results were poor, and Su Can left without arguing.
• Xue Yiyang praised Su Can for handling the confrontation, while Su Can worried that Xiao would use the midterm results against him.

Su Can’s midterm score of 645 placed him among the top ten in his class, surprising his classmates and delighting his mother, Zeng Ke. While shopping together, they ran into Chen Lingshan and Gao Fan, and Zeng Ke’s confident new bearing revealed how much her life had changed.

• Xiao Rihua handed out the midterm results, and Su Can’s 645 points drew quiet astonishment from his classmates, while Tang Wu scored 690.
• Zeng Ke celebrated Su Can’s top-ten ranking by taking him shopping for winter clothes and shoes.
• Chen Lingshan and Gao Fan visited Langpai Sports, where Gao Fan admired Nike shoes he hoped his parents would buy him after finals.
• Su Can and Zeng Ke arrived at the store, and Zeng Ke warmly greeted Chen Lingshan while Gao Fan learned that Su Can’s mother had gone into business.
• Zeng Ke bought Su Can a pair of shoes for 650 yuan, then left with him as Chen Lingshan felt a faint sense of loss.

Tong Jianjun took over as director of Xiahai Engineering Division Four, surprising Mao Nan and earning Su Licheng’s trust after a heartfelt dinner at the Su family home. He began reorganizing the division and promoted Su Licheng to deputy director, though someone at Darong Construction Group dismissed his efforts.

• Zhao Chengrong retired, and Mao Nan expected to become the new director after helping bring about his downfall.
• Darong Construction Group appointed Tong Jianjun, rather than Mao Nan, to lead Engineering Division Four.
• Tong Jianjun shared a welcome dinner with Su Licheng’s family, where Su Licheng’s wife recounted how the division had treated him unfairly.
• Tong Jianjun and Su Licheng bonded over their similar disappointments and Tong promised to treat him well.
• Tong Jianjun began rectifying construction quality and submitted a report promoting Su Licheng to deputy director.
• A faction at Darong Construction Group approved Tong Jianjun’s report but mocked his attempts to change the division.