Running his hands over his perfectly trimmed haircut, Brian Bolton stood up, and the whole class’s attention focused on him. Not feeling particularly nervous, Brian Bolton simply began to speak slowly: “My name is Brian Bolton, I’m from Yangmiao, and as for my looks, you can all see for yourselves. If you want to compliment me on being handsome, there’s no need to say it out loud—just keep it in your hearts. As for my idol…”

In this era of strict formality, Brian Bolton’s flippant words seemed quite amusing.

A few girls were already stifling their laughter—this sharp-looking guy was really funny.

Or perhaps they were secretly laughing at how thick-skinned he was.

Either way, Brian Bolton didn’t care what a bunch of half-grown kids thought of him. After a moment’s thought, Brian Bolton continued, “My idol is Mr. Brooks.”

“Who is Mr. Brooks? Is he a teacher at our school?” Natalie Young asked curiously.

The other students also looked at Brian Bolton with curiosity, so Brian Bolton explained, “Mr. Brooks is a famous photographer from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of our country. He once used simple equipment to take nearly 2,000 stunning and renowned photographic masterpieces celebrated throughout the Chinese-speaking world. Whether or not anyone will surpass him in the future is hard to say, but as for being unmatched in the past, Mr. Brooks truly deserves that title.”

Seeing that everyone was still interested in listening, Brian Bolton went on, “Most of Mr. Brooks’s works are portraits, all taken in simple yet warm settings, capturing the subjects’ expressions of confusion and bewilderment, with eyes reflecting a persistent and unwavering search for meaning in real life. Every piece is the result of deep communication and contemplation about life. The unadorned style of realism is a true portrayal of the hardships faced by disadvantaged groups.”

“The famous war photographer Capa once said: If your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough! All of Mr. Brooks’s works embody Capa’s philosophy—shooting up close. We have every reason to believe that Mr. Brooks’s name will be engraved in the history of photographic art, becoming a shining pearl, an everlasting Ethan Brooks!”

Having lived a second life, Mr. Brooks had already faded into the river of history, so Brian Bolton dared to talk nonsense like this.

Just as no one knew who Edith Södergran was, no one knew who Ethan Brooks was either. Natalie Young nodded, signaling for Brian Bolton to sit down: “Brian Bolton, the teacher believes that as long as you study diligently in the future, you can definitely become a famous photographer like Mr. Brooks.”

Brian Bolton smiled, “Thank you for your encouragement, teacher. I have never doubted that.”

Chapter 012: Detective

Natalie Young let the students take a break, go to the restroom, and said that they would be electing class officers soon. Those who wanted to run should start thinking about what to say for their campaign.

The classroom instantly erupted into a buzz, with the ambitious students gearing up.

In his previous life, Brian Bolton had never run for class officer, and in this life, he had even less interest.

So he simply got up to go to the restroom. The restroom was next to the next building over, meaning there were two buildings in between. The restroom looked like a castle, newly built, with snow-white walls.

On the way to the restroom, Ethan Carter followed along with Brian Bolton.

Blending in with the familiar or unfamiliar crowd, Brian Bolton walked with his hands in his pockets, humming a tune: “On the banyan tree by the pond, the cicadas are singing about summer… Why hasn’t that girl from the next class passed by my window yet…”

With his trendy haircut, hands in his pockets, swaggering walk, and humming a pretty decent song, Brian Bolton was still quite eye-catching.

He could feel many eyes focused on him.

But that didn’t stop him from enjoying his own little world.

To be honest, Brian Bolton now had the mindset of someone who had “already been reborn”—everything around him felt like reliving a dream. He didn’t have the usual anxiety and diligence, just a leisurely ease. Whether you live your whole life with a bitter face or a smiling one, Brian Bolton chose to smile.

“Hey, hey, hey, look, a beauty!” Ethan Carter suddenly interrupted Brian Bolton’s self-indulgence, pointing not far ahead.

Not far away, three girls were walking side by side, apparently just returning from the restroom.

Brian Bolton turned to look and immediately understood—he knew all three girls, since after the class reshuffle in sophomore year, they were now classmates.

The girl on the far left was very ordinary—so ordinary that Brian Bolton couldn’t even remember her name. The girl in the middle was Chloe Reed, who looked a bit like Faye Wong and was now a student in Class 2, Grade 1—one of the four great beauties of Grade 1. The girl on the right was Lauren Lewis, with a smile that seemed second nature, looking especially like the Japanese action star Yua Mikami, and was also one of the four great beauties of Grade 1.

As for the title of the four great beauties of Grade 1, Brian Bolton couldn’t remember where it started—maybe it was an internal nickname in Class 2, since they had four very pretty girls.

Then it gradually became the “four great beauties” of the entire grade.

In Brian Bolton’s opinion, this was completely unreasonable, because Grace Lawson was no less attractive than them—in fact, she was even more innocent. All four of these so-called beauties had some unsavory rumors about them; early romances and flirtatiousness were their trademarks. After all, Shuangdun Middle School wasn’t a particularly good school, and its student quality couldn’t compare to the schools in Changfeng County, with a wide range of abilities.

“Back then, it seemed that three of the four great beauties ended up in Class 7, Grade 2…” Brian Bolton thought to himself as he looked at these simple, old-fashioned schoolgirls of this era, reminiscing.