Seeing his mother being bullied, Alan Cooper inside the house instantly flared up. “You think you’re civilized? If you’re so civilized, why are you throwing garbage out the window?” Last time, when Alan Cooper and his mother came back from outside, they had almost been hit by a garbage bag thrown from a window—he wasn’t sure if it was Little David or Director Parker who did it. The neighbors often complained that the family of Director Parker on the fourth floor frequently threw things out the window. But since he was an official and the rest of them were just ordinary folks, everyone was angry but didn’t dare speak up.

His mother hurriedly tugged at his arm. “Xuebin!”

Little David glared at Alan Cooper. “What do you mean? Who the hell threw something?”

Alan Cooper replied coldly, “You know perfectly well yourself!”

“Is this any of your business?” Director Parker looked at Alan Cooper. “You got my shoes dirty and you think you’re in the right?”

“It was you who—” Alan Cooper started to say, but his mother anxiously pulled him back.

Aunt Parker tried to smooth things over. “Old Xu, why argue with a kid? We’re all neighbors here, let’s just drop it.” Then, Aunt Parker smiled at Alan Cooper’s mother and said, “Xiaoping, we’re off to eat. Hmm, you really shouldn’t have put that garbage bag there by the door. Don’t do it next time.”

Alan Cooper was about to explode with anger. It was clearly that Xu who didn’t watch where he was going and kicked the bag, and now they were blaming his family?

Director Parker lowered his head and wiped his shoes with a napkin, then turned with a stern face. “What bad luck! Let’s go, let’s go! The car’s still waiting!”

Little David gave a contemptuous look at Alan Cooper and his mother, then followed his parents downstairs.

His mother kept a smiling face the whole time. Only after they had gone down to the second floor did she quickly close the door, sighing weakly. “Xuebin, we can’t afford to offend those people, you…”

Alan Cooper said angrily, “What kind of people are they! Just because they’re officials, they don’t have to be reasonable?”

“Sigh…”

In the evening, after work, Evelyn Carter knocked on Alan Cooper’s door, carrying lots of groceries.

These days, Evelyn Carter seemed to have transformed from an ordinary neighbor into a part of Alan Cooper’s family. After so many days of getting used to each other, the relationship between Alan Cooper, his mother, and Aunt Xuan had grown closer and closer. They ate together, chatted, and laughed, as if they really were a family.

“Yunxuan, here, eat some more.” His mother picked up some food for her.

“Luan-jie.” Evelyn Carter hesitated slightly, then asked worriedly, “When I came back, I heard from the aunt downstairs… what happened?”

This old building from the 1980s had terrible soundproofing; there were hardly any secrets between neighbors, and everyone knew when someone argued. His mother patted Evelyn Carter’s hand earnestly. “Yunxuan, listen to me, never look for someone like Little David as a partner. I’m not badmouthing them behind their backs, but they really are bullies…” Then she recounted what had just happened.

After listening, Evelyn Carter frowned, then held Sophie Grant’s hand and sighed. “I’ve known for a long time that their family isn’t decent. There are some things I haven’t told anyone. Isn’t Little David pursuing me? But I’ve never agreed, and I’ve made my attitude clear. But during a recent day off, I ran into Director Parker at the entrance of the supermarket to the east. He pointed at my nose and said, ‘Our Little David likes you, that’s giving you face. Don’t think you’re something special.’ Anyway, he said some really nasty things, and I just… sigh…”

Alan Cooper clenched his fist. “Who does he think he is! The mayor? The governor?”

“Let’s not talk about this.” Evelyn Carter smiled gently, pulled out a napkin, and thoughtfully wiped a grain of rice from the corner of Alan Cooper’s mouth. “Do your best on the exam tomorrow. Try to become a civil servant and make Luan-jie and me proud. Let Director Parker’s family see that it’s not just their Little David who can get into government work—our Little Alan can do it too!”

Alan Cooper held back his anger and replied forcefully, “Don’t worry, both of you!”

Chapter 7: [Civil Service Exam]

The next day.

Early morning.

Alan Cooper was sitting on the sofa, getting ready to go out.

Evelyn Carter seemed even more nervous than if she were taking the exam herself. “Little Alan, make sure to manage your time when answering questions. If you don’t know one, just guess and move on. I heard the exam time is really tight. Oh, did you bring a black gel pen? Remember to take a spare. What about an eraser? 2B pencil? Do you have your exam admission ticket? Don’t forget anything.” She smoothed the wrinkles on his T-shirt, then grabbed a half-wet cloth, rolled up his pant leg, and squatted down to wipe the dust off Alan Cooper’s canvas shoes.

Alan Cooper was flustered by the attention and stopped her. “No, no, I’ll do it myself, I’ll do it myself!”

Evelyn Carter carefully wiped his shoes and said gently, “The exam starts at nine sharp. Review your notes a bit more.”

Wow, Aunt Xuan was treating him better and better—almost like a real sister.

At that moment, his mother came out of the kitchen with a bag. “I packed you some fruit. If you get thirsty or hungry, have a bite.”

Inside were bottled water, snow pears, and apples. Evelyn Carter saw this, stood up, and took the bag from her. “Luan-jie, let me take it. I’ll go to the exam site with Little Alan later. When he finishes at noon, I’ll take him to a restaurant to eat, so we won’t come back. The test center is too far from home, and there’s a second subject in the afternoon.”

His mother was surprised. “Don’t you have work today?”