We agreed not to date, so why are you crying now that I've become the richest man?

Shen Anran's long eyelashes trembled slightly.

I felt a strange, intense curiosity about this boy.

"See you at the driving school tomorrow morning at eight o'clock."

Ye Chen held the receipt and waved to Shen Anran.

Sunlight shone on his sharply defined profile, making him look confident and dazzling.

Shen Anran's heart skipped a beat for no apparent reason.

She nodded slightly.

"Okay, see you tomorrow."

After the mother and daughter walked away, Zhao Peng immediately began to stab Ye Chen wildly with his elbow.

"Did you hear that? They said see you tomorrow!"

Ye Chen walked leisurely towards the roadside with his hands in his pockets.

"I heard you, I'm not deaf."

Zhao Peng was so anxious he was jumping up and down.

"Wait, why aren't you reacting at all? Shen Anran looks really good now!"

Not far ahead, Shen Anran's pace noticeably slowed down.

She didn't turn around, but just stuffed the receipt in her hand into her bag again, her fair ears showing a hint of pink.

Today she wore a fitted floral dress.

The fabric clung to the girl's graceful curves, and the cinched waist design perfectly accentuated her slender waist.

Her skirt fluttered gently in the breeze, revealing a pair of long, straight, shapely, and dazzlingly white legs.

As she walked, her shapely figure was visually striking, completely shedding the bulkiness of her high school uniform.

Ye Chen glanced at it, a sunny smile curving his lips.

"She's not ugly to begin with; she has a great natural look. You were just too busy reading novels to notice."

Zhao Peng stroked his chin, deeply agreeing.

That makes sense.

"You could never tell when she was wearing those baggy school uniforms, but now that she's changed into a skirt, it's like opening a blind box and finding a hidden gem!"

Ye Chen stopped and turned to look at his best friend.

"Fatty."

"Um?"

"You should talk less in public from now on."

Why?

"You're easy to beat up, really."

Zhao Peng puffed out his chest defiantly.

"I call this having eyes that can see beauty!"

Ye Chen smiled and patted him on the shoulder.

"That's just plain rude."

The two bickered all the way to the old-established barbecue stall on the back street of the county's No. 1 Middle School.

The college entrance exams have just ended, and the backstreets are bustling with life ten times more than usual.

The curb was filled with folding tables, almost all of which belonged to senior high school students who had been suppressed for three years.

Some people were shouting that they'd be staying up all night at the internet cafe, while others were discussing going to the provincial capital to see Jay Chou's concert.

Some people were holding heavy Nokia phones, frantically pressing the 9-key keypad in the QQ group.

As soon as Zhao Peng sat down, he skillfully waved to the boss.

"Boss! Twenty skewers of lamb, ten skewers of pork belly, two grilled mantou slices, and two insanely spicy chicken wings!"

"Two more bottles of chilled Da Bai Li!"

The owner was a shirtless, burly man who looked up as he flipped the skewers.

"The college entrance exam is over, how about a couple of beers to celebrate?"

Just as Zhao Peng was about to agree with great enthusiasm, Ye Chen spoke first.

"Let's get some soda."

Zhao Peng looked aggrieved.

"Chenzi, the college entrance exam is over, why don't you let me have some alcohol to numb my nerves?"

Ye Chen picked up the boiling water on the table and rinsed his chopsticks with it, his movements slow and deliberate.

"I'll practice driving at eight o'clock tomorrow morning."

"You want to go see the coach reeking of alcohol?"

"Believe it or not, the coach can berate you so badly that even your own mother wouldn't recognize you!"

Zhao Peng immediately pictured his driving school instructor's face, as black as the bottom of a pot, and backed down.

"Soda is soda, a real man can bend and stretch."

Ye Chen picked up his plastic cup and clinked it against his.

"You're just the right amount of cowardly."

Zhao Peng was so choked up that his eyes rolled back.

The skewers were served quickly.

The lamb skewers were still sizzling with oil, and the aroma of cumin and chili powder filled the air.

Zhao Peng ate two skewers of meat, then suddenly slapped his thigh.

"Damn, I almost forgot about the important matter!"

"Chenzi, our class is having a reunion, are you going?"

Ye Chen took a bite of the golden-brown, crispy bread slice, speaking casually.

"What party? Nobody told me."

Zhao Peng's eyes widened.

"you do not know?"

"The QQ group is practically exploding with this, haven't you seen it?"

Ye Chen then realized what was happening.

In the few days since his rebirth, his mind has been filled with studying, making money, snatching the World Cup title, and writing code.

That old Nokia phone was never used for anything other than sending and receiving text messages; it never even had mobile data enabled.

After all, these days, five yuan for 30 megabytes of data can bankrupt you just by browsing a few web pages.

Zhao Peng took out his chipped cell phone and pressed buttons for a long time.

The familiar penguin icon pops up on the small screen.

"Look for yourself, they've even changed the group name."

Ye Chen leaned over and glanced at it.

Group name: Class 2 of Senior Three, Never Gone.

Ye Chen almost spat out the soda in his mouth.

"Who changed this unconventional name?"

"Who else could it be but Li Hao?"

Zhao Peng flipped through the chat history while pursing his lips.

He said that since the college entrance exam was over, everyone had to get together to mark the end of their youth.

"The location is set in the Peony Hall on the second floor of the Yingbin Hotel."

"It's all split equally, eighty yuan per person."

Ye Chen put down his cup, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes.

"eighty?"

In a small county town in 2010, eighty yuan was a huge sum of money for a high school student.

Many people only have fifty yuan a week for living expenses.

That kid Li Hao, he's trying to show off even to his classmates.

In his previous life, Ye Chen also attended this gathering.

At that time, he had just been rejected by Lin Wanqing, and his college entrance examination results were also terrible.

At the dinner table, Li Hao, taking advantage of his status as the organizer, stole the show.

Not only did he fawn over Lin Wanqing in front of the whole class, but he also sarcastically stepped on Ye Chen's foot several times.

In his past life, Ye Chen was insecure and cowardly, and could only drink alone with his head down, becoming the laughing stock of the entire room.

But now?

Ye Chen touched the bank card in his pocket containing a huge sum of 450,000 yuan.

He now sees Li Hao as a grasshopper hopping around in a mud puddle.

Zhao Peng pushed his phone towards Ye Chen.

"Look, he even tagged all the members."

On the screen, Li Hao's message was prominently displayed in the group chat.

Li Hao: [Tomorrow night at 6 PM, in the Peony Hall on the second floor of the Yingbin Hotel, everyone come!]

Li Hao: [This is the last class reunion. Anyone who doesn't come is disrespecting me, Li Hao.]

A bunch of lackeys followed up with replies.

"receive!"

"Brother Hao is so generous; he arranged everything perfectly!"

Someone else timidly chimed in.

"Eighty is a bit expensive... Could we find a cheaper place?"

The message popped up and Li Hao replied instantly.

Li Hao: [What's so expensive about it? The college entrance exam is over, and after three years of friendship, you can't bear to part with just one meal?]

Li Hao: [Besides, the Yingbin Hotel has a great environment. I've already spoken to my dad, and the minimum charge for the Peony Hall is 1,500 yuan. I managed to get a waiver of the private room fee for everyone!]

Immediately following behind was a string of people making a fuss.

"That's right, this is the last time, so stop being so stingy."

"Brother Hao even waived the room fee, that's really generous!"