After they started running, the children of Shili Gou began learning how to box from An Ning.

Even though televisions weren’t common yet and the wuxia craze hadn’t started, the children had all been raised on their elders’ war stories, and each dreamed of driving out invaders.

Every one of the children was a serious student. After just the first lesson, they felt incredibly powerful.

They would walk around with their chests puffed out, convinced they could take on three opponents at once without breaking a sweat.

After the half-hour boxing session, An Ning ran home to eat.

For breakfast, Lin Cuihua made noodles.

She boiled the noodles in a large pot and fried the sauce in a small one. It was ready in no time.

At the dining table, An Guoming groggily ate his noodles. He had been out selling vegetables the day before and gotten back late.

No one had even called him for the fight last night.

Of course, it had little to do with how tired he was. It was mainly because his reputation for being a bit of a weakling was firmly established in everyone’s minds.

"Big Brother, how about we start your driving lessons today?"

"Huh?"

An Guoqing stared at An Guoming, utterly confused. Since when was he supposed to learn how to drive?

An Guoming rubbed his face to wake himself up. "An Ning and our little brother are going away for school, and I’m not always home either. We have a truck, we can’t just let it sit there, right?"

"In a little while, I’m planning to buy a few shops in different places to sell our family’s products exclusively. Once we have a steady stream of customers, we’ll just need to make deliveries on time."

"That way, if I’m not home, you can drive and make the deliveries, Big Brother. Nothing will get held up."

An Sancheng, having listened, was the first to voice his support. "I think that’s a great idea. Eldest, once you’re done with your chores, go learn from your second brother."

"Oh, okay."

An Guoqing agreed, and they all went back to their meal.

After breakfast, An Guoming called An Ning away.

The two of them took out several ledgers to go over the accounts.

An Guoming insisted on reconciling the books once a week. He believed that for siblings to work together long-term, finances had to be crystal clear.

Once they finished with the accounts, they started discussing buying the shops.

"An Ning, I’ve been asking about shop prices down south. The prices from last year are completely different from this year’s."

"I figure, even though the north isn’t developing as fast as the south, the trend will be the same. So I want to buy a few storefronts now while we have the spare cash."

"If you have extra money, you should buy some too. And don’t just buy in one city. If you can afford to buy in the big cities, you should."

An Ning listened intently.

"I’ll buy. I have the money."

An Guoming nodded and continued, "Dad and I discussed it. He’s going to sell some of his things to get cash, and he’ll buy three shops for each of the four of us."

"Dad said for any others, we should buy them ourselves and not mix our finances."

"As for the business itself, the one selling our goods, that will be a venture for the An family. You’ll get a seventy-percent stake. Big Brother, our little brother, and I will each get ten percent. This is for the end-of-year dividends."

"Dad will advance the money for Big Brother’s and our little brother’s shares."

An Guoming had laid it all out clearly, but An Ning disagreed. "Count Mom and Dad. That makes five parties. We can each take two shares out of ten. That would be perfect."

An Guoming didn’t reject the idea outright, saying only that he’d discuss it with the rest of the family first.

After their talk, An Guoming went off to teach An Guoqing how to drive.

An Ning, meanwhile, went to teach her class.

After class, she still had chores to do.

After her class, An Ning headed toward the greenhouses. From a distance, she could see An Guoming’s head sticking out of the truck window, his face beet-red, yelling, "Kill it! Kill it! Kill it!"

An Guoqing, who was at the wheel, asked with a bewildered expression, "Kill who?"

An Guoming felt like he’d been struck by lightning. He roared in anguish, "Kill me!"

An Guoqing stopped the truck and tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. "Second Brother, what’s this about not wanting to live? Is someone bullying you?"

An Guoqing’s words left An Guoming fuming, unable to vent his anger but also unable to calm down.

An Guoming took a deep breath. "Big Brother, I meant ’kill the wheel’! It means turn the wheel all the way until it won’t turn anymore!"

"Ohhh—well, you should’ve said that in the first place!"

That one sentence made An Guoming’s neck flush red all over again. ’If it were any colder out,’ An Ning thought, ’I bet I could see flames shooting from his nostrils.’

"Big Brother, Second Brother."

An Ning walked over, carrying a small hoe. To An Guoming, she looked like a savior.

"An Ning———!"

BANG!

An Guoming threw open the truck door, jumped out, and ran eagerly to An Ning.

"An Ning, I’m going to work. I love working."

Without another word, An Guoming snatched the hoe from An Ning’s hand.

"Second Brother, since when did you like to work? Who started that rumor?"

"It starts right this second."

An Guoming pointed back at the truck. "An Ning, you know how to drive, too. Why don’t you teach Big Brother for a bit?"

"Alright."

An Ning didn’t give An Guoming a hard time. She was afraid he’d have a heart attack before An Guoqing even learned to drive.

An Ning got in the truck, and An Guoming scampered off with the small hoe.

An Guoqing sat dumbly in the truck, staring blankly at An Guoming’s retreating back.

"It’s okay, Big Brother. I’ll teach you."

"Second Brother’s acting a bit shifty."

They spoke at the same time. An Ning thought her brother was upset, but An Guoqing just looked at her in confusion and asked, "Huh?"

"Nothing. Let’s get started."

An Ning explained all the controls in the truck to An Guoqing—what each one did and which foot to use for the pedals.

An Guoqing was a serious student and not particularly slow.

He remembered every single thing.

Then came the practical part.

An Ning finally understood how An Guoming felt.

After what felt like the hundredth lurching attempt to start, just as An Ning was about to be shaken until she threw up, the truck finally started moving.

"Big Brother, turn left. And use your left signal."

"Okay."

An Guoqing turned on the right signal. An Ning wanted to cry.

But her emotional control was much better than An Guoming’s. She even had the presence of mind to joke, "A classic feint. Very nicely done."

An Guoqing paid no attention to what An Ning said. It was hard enough for him to focus on one thing at a time.

All his attention was focused on driving, on keeping the truck moving forward in a straight line.

After driving for a bit, An Guoqing stopped.

"Big Brother, why’d you stop?"

"There are police up ahead."

An Ning looked ahead and, sure enough, saw two police officers on bicycles.

"Big Brother, I didn’t know you had a record."

"Huh? I don’t."

An Ning looked at An Guoqing. "Then what are you afraid of?"

A knowing smile spread across An Guoqing’s face. He leaned toward An Ning and whispered, "The sentence is harsher if you hit one of them."

An Ning was left speechless. ’He actually has a point,’ she thought.

The two of them waited for the police to pass before starting to move again.

But now, An Guoqing couldn’t get the truck started smoothly again.

The truck bucked like a mechanical rocking horse, lurching forward inch by inch.

An Ning clutched her chest and couldn’t help but ask, "Big Brother, can we please stop all this lurching?"