As he watched Zhou Zedong's figure disappear into the distance, he couldn't help but sigh.

"No wonder he's from the Zhou family, just as aloof as Zhou Laoda."

Shaking his head, he was about to leave when he noticed Little Brother sniffing and staring at him.

He was startled.

Little Brother had been playing in the water yesterday and caught a chill, compounded by the large temperature difference between morning and evening, making him prone to sniffles.

He always paid attention to his image in front of his mother, occasionally sniffing discreetly.

But in front of others, he didn't care. He licked his lips after the sniffle and, sensing the awkward expression on the man's face, grasped his shoulder straps and asked, "Uncle, isn't my big brother's little red flower nice?"

The man nodded.

Little Brother raised his chin confidently. "I've got one today too."

"Oh?" The man raised an eyebrow. "Where is it?"

"After a while, it's with the teacher," he said confidently, adjusting his backpack and hurriedly catching up.

There weren't many teachers at the school, many of them teaching multiple classes throughout the day across different grades.

For instance, Zhou Zedong's homeroom teacher was also his younger brother's Chinese teacher.

They both arrived early, with his younger brother coming to play, but Zhou Zedong was different—he came to review his lessons.

Normally quiet and unremarkable in class, being both thin and short, he didn't attract much attention.

Yet despite his lack of presence, he consistently ranked first in the entire class in exams.

He and his younger brother were the two extremes in the school.

So even if Zhou Zedong didn't want to be famous, it was difficult.

Previously, Zhou Zedong was dark, small, and short, looking like a monkey and not particularly good-looking.

Even though he was good at studying, no one paid much attention to him.

Many people even mistakenly thought he was poor.

Until one day, his father drove a handsome motorcycle to drop him off at school.

Everyone then realized that Zhou Zedong was actually a low-profile second-generation rich kid.

Since then, the wheels of fate began to turn.

Not only did he get dropped off by a motorcycle every day, but he also started wearing stylish new clothes and carrying a new backpack. His popularity soared.

Perhaps it's true that clothes make the man, as Zhou Zedong suddenly became more noticeable. Every move he made was observed, and the number of girls approaching him to discuss homework increased significantly.

However, Zhou Zedong was usually quiet and reserved. Even when approached, he often remained aloof and indifferent, which only fueled curiosity about him.

Today, seeing someone who usually buried himself in studies standing at the doorway as if waiting for someone, naturally puzzled everyone. After all, Zhou Zedong didn't make friends. Apart from spending time with his younger brother daily, he avoided interacting with others altogether.

So, whom could he be waiting for?

Soon, their questions were answered when the homeroom teacher approached. Zhou Zedong immediately straightened up and walked over.

The teacher looked at him with curiosity. "Zedong, what's up? Do you need something?"

Zhou Zedong paused, standing firm.

Looking at his teacher, he remained silent for a moment before calmly speaking up.

"Teacher, I want to be the academic committee member."

The homeroom teacher: "?"

"You just became the class monitor, didn't you?" the homeroom teacher asked.

"Yeah," Zhou Zedong confirmed.

"So why do you want to be the academic committee member now?" the teacher inquired.

"I want to," Zhou Zedong replied simply.

The homeroom teacher scratched his head, looking puzzled. Zhou Zedong had changed a lot recently. While his academic performance had always been excellent, he had never shown interest in class leadership roles before. Even when he made requests himself, he usually didn't pay much attention to them.

Because in his view, his time was dedicated to studying and taking care of his younger siblings.

He had no time for anything else, let alone being a class monitor, collecting homework for teachers, or helping classmates with their questions.

He simply didn't want to do these things.

Living in prolonged suppressed circumstances had led him to believe there were no good people in the world, so he had to live selfishly.

However, a few days ago, when it came to electing a class monitor, he suddenly raised his hand.

This surprised the homeroom teacher.

When asked why he wanted to do it at the time, his answer was the same.

He wanted to.

The teacher was pleased at the time, thinking this child was gradually developing in a positive direction.

But now, after just two days, why had his thoughts changed again to wanting to be the academic committee member?

The bewildered teacher asked, "So you're not going to be the class monitor anymore?"

Zhou Zedong glanced at him and said, "I will be."

"You're going to take on two roles?"

Zhou Zedong nodded, his calm and composed expression leaving the middle-aged man in awe.

"Is that not allowed?" Zhou asked.

The homeroom teacher paused for a moment, considering his response. "It's not that it's not allowed, I'm just worried you'll be tired."

"I won't be tired," Zhou replied.

"And I can handle the other responsibilities," Zhou added, looking directly at him. "Just remember to give me the little red flower."

With that said, he turned and walked back to the classroom, leaving the bewildered teacher standing there.

After finishing a class, he was pondering whether to let Zhou Zedong take on the role of academic committee member when he went to teach first graders.

As he walked to the classroom door, he saw someone standing there.

Shorter than Zhou Zedong, with a rounder face that lacked Zhou Zedong's mature demeanor.

Approaching him, the teacher asked, "Xiao Han, why are you standing here? It's time for class."

Zhou Zehan immediately straightened up, eagerly looking at him. "Teacher, I want to be the class monitor."

The homeroom teacher was speechless.

What's going on with these two brothers?

If Zhou Zedong wants to be a class monitor, fine, given his good grades, it's understandable.

But Zhou Zehan, who's always at the bottom of the class, also wants to be the class monitor?

Was he perhaps feeling challenged?

"Why do you want to be the class monitor?" the teacher asked.

Zhou Zehan innocently replied, "Because being the class monitor gets you a little red flower."

The homeroom teacher was at a loss for words.

If he remembered correctly, Zhou Zedong also reminded him not to forget the little red flower.

Are these two brothers competing to see who can get more little red flowers? Is he part of their game?

The homeroom teacher was at a loss.

Recently, Lin's family's pastries were selling well, and the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law had made a good amount of money. This drew a lot of envy from the villagers. Many regretted not continuing to learn when Si Nian offered to teach them, thinking the ingredients were too luxurious. Now, seeing the Lin family making money, they were too embarrassed to ask to learn again.

It wasn't just about whether they wanted to; it was also about whether Si Nian would be willing to teach them again. After all, who would share their money-making secrets?

Especially with Lin's mother and Zhou Sui Sui frequently visiting the Zhou family, the aroma of delicious meat wafting from their house every day told everyone they were learning something new. Everyone knew Si Nian could cook and had learned many profitable skills in the city. Now, she was clearly passing them on to the Lin family.

Before, it was pastries; now, it's meat dishes. For others, it might be impossible, but the Zhou family ran a pig farm. If Lin's family wanted to make something, they could get ingredients cheaply or even for free. It wasn't a hassle for them.

Though Si Nian and Lin's mother hadn't said anything to outsiders, word spread.

One day, as Lin's mother and Zhou Cui Cui were carrying marinated meat back home, they were approached by several curious villagers. They didn't hide anything because Si Nian had said that everyone would find out eventually. Keeping it a secret now might only lead to malicious speculation.

"Why not be open about it? After all, making marinated meat isn't something just anyone can manage. Just buying a large quantity of meat is beyond the means of most people in the village, not to mention the special spices Si Nian uses. Without knowledge, people can't even buy the right ingredients.

By openly talking about it, they could generate interest and set the stage for selling marinated meat. It could attract many villagers. People from ten miles around buy meat from Zhou Yueshen, and while everyone is frugal, this could still be a substantial customer base.

When Lin's mother mentioned they were starting a new business, everyone was envious. But there were also those who were jealous, like Zhu's mother-in-law. Initially, she wanted her daughter-in-law to learn pastry making, thinking she could teach them and they could start their own business. She even gritted her teeth and sent a large basket of eggs to Si Nian as an apology. Si Nian accepted the gift but brushed them off, which left her feeling bitter.

Especially after hearing about the Lin family making money with pastries, she became even more displeased. Now, learning that Si Nian was teaching her own family how to make marinated meat, but not helping the villagers, she felt even more resentful. Si Nian had so many skills but was only using them for herself, which she thought was incredibly selfish.

Seeing them leave, she couldn't help but sneer sarcastically, 'Oh, she said she'd teach the villagers, but in the end, she only teaches her own family!'"

When everyone heard this, they felt a bit uncomfortable. Some even considered going to Si Nian to learn again, since she had previously offered to teach them. They conveniently forgot that when Si Nian offered to teach them before, they had rejected her because they found the ingredients too expensive.

Of course, there were only a few who supported this idea. Most people still believed that running a business wasn't that easy. They thought the Lin family's success was solely due to the help from the Zhou family. Without someone like the Zhou family to support them, they couldn't easily start a business.

When Zhou Yueshen first started the pig farm, everyone was envious and wanted to learn. But no one succeeded, and many lost everything they had. With this as a precedent, people were naturally more cautious now.

Seeing that few people were agreeing with her, Zhu's mother-in-law felt increasingly resentful, thinking that the villagers had been brainwashed by Si Nian.

On her way back, she happened to run into Wang Cui, the wife of the eldest son of the Lin family. Her eyes lit up immediately. She had met Wang Cui a few times, as they often took the same road to the market. She greeted her warmly and then brought up the matter.

Upon learning that Lin Dabo's family didn't know about this, she exaggerated the story, saying that Si Nian not only refused to teach them but also didn't even teach her own uncle's family. She claimed that Si Nian was only focused on secretly making money for her own family.

As expected, Wang Cui's face changed upon hearing this. Her family had always been better off than the second son's family because they had fewer people and, due to the favoritism of the elders, had received the best house and land, leaving the rest for the second son's family. Therefore, the second son's family had always lived in hardship.

Who would have thought that after the second son's family married into the Zhou family in Xingfu Village, they would rise to prominence? Not only did they not have to return the stolen three thousand yuan, but they also spent money for Lin Xiao to get a driver's license to become a truck driver!

In these times, there weren't many people who could drive, let alone drive a truck, which was a highly lucrative skill.

The Lin family's eldest son, Lin Wei, was twenty-three years old, about the same age as Lin Xiao, but because he was lazy and liked to eat, no one wanted to marry him. Wang Cui was deeply worried about this.

Their second daughter, Lin Xue, considered herself quite attractive and looked down on everyone, remaining unmarried. Although their family was relatively well-off, it was only because they had land.

The two children of the eldest son's family were raised by their grandparents, who doted on them excessively. Moreover, Wang Cui's maternal family was strong and ran a small shop in town, which made them value the eldest son's family even more.

In contrast, Lin's mother had no family support. The second son married her despite a family split, so the relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law was strained, and the children of the second son were not favored.

When the second son got married, they were immediately separated from the family. Although they said it was a separation, eighty percent of the good things were left to the eldest son, while the second son only got a shabby house and a few pieces of dry land.

However, the second son was hardworking and capable. Despite having a large family and working harder than others, they managed to live a decent life. Their daughter grew up beautiful and had excellent academic performance, which only fueled Wang Cui's jealousy even more.

Later, when it was revealed that Lin Sisi wasn't their biological daughter and their real daughter refused to return from the city, Wang Cui felt a perverse satisfaction. After all, how could someone as excellent as Lin Sisi be the daughter of the foolish second son? The fact that their biological daughter didn't even acknowledge them was the ultimate misfortune.

Their own daughter didn't recognize them as her parents, so she couldn't be anything good. But when everyone thought that Lin's second family was down on their luck, their biological daughter came back. Not only was she stunningly beautiful, but she was also highly educated and talented!

She effortlessly married the richest man in the neighboring village and even brought prosperity to her maternal family. Who wouldn't be envious?

Especially Wang Cui's family, who had always lived better than the second son's family. Seeing the second son's family getting better and better, with the children wearing new clothes and using fancy city toiletries, Wang Cui was filled with resentment.

Even though they were all part of the same family, Wang Cui's family still used soap and detergent for bathing. Why should the second son's family live so well without helping them? And now they were secretly trying to start a business. Wang Cui couldn't stand it.

She thought that if she could learn this skill and pass it on to her son and daughter, they wouldn't have trouble finding good spouses. So, after being instigated by Zhu's sister-in-law's mother-in-law, she immediately went home to discuss with her husband. They both felt that the second son's family was being selfish.

They had let the meat incident slide, but now the second son's family was secretly making money again. It was intolerable. So they took Lin Xue and went to demand that Lin's mother and Zhou Sui Sui teach them how to make pastries and marinated meat.

Lin's mother refused. She had a soft temperament, but she wasn't stupid. This was a money-making skill taught by her daughter, so how could she casually teach it to others?

This refusal angered the always domineering Wang Cui, who immediately sought support from her mother-in-law. One thing led to another, and the whole family ended up fighting.

At that time, Lin Xiao wasn't home, and only Zhou Sui Sui and the mobility-impaired Lin's father were there. Lin's mother suffered in the conflict.