Accompanied by Mr. Wickfield, David makes a preliminary visit of his new school. He meets Doctor Strong, the kindly man who runs the school. David also meets Annie who at first David mistakenly infers is Doctor Strong’s daughter; Annie is the doctor’s wife.
Subsequent to exchanging a word with Mr. Wickfield about the career of Annie’s cousin Jack Maldon, Doctor Strong introduces David to his new classmates.
Alas, fearful that his sordid past in London will alienate him from his classmates, David keeps an arm’s length from his classmates. In contrast, David feels at home at Mr. Wickfield’s. Indeed, David rejects Mr. Wickfield’s notion that life is dull at Mr. Wickfield’s. When Mr. Wickfield suggests that it would be only natural for David to want to move out and find a place of his own, David argues otherwise. After a moment of gloomy reflection, which puzzles David, Mr. Wickfield agrees that it would be best for David to remain.
To that end, David accepts Mr. Wickfield’s invitation to keep him company while Mr. Wickfield attends to some business before going to bed. David is about to peruse one of his school textbooks when Uriah Heep’s presence nearby attracts David’s curiosity. By and by, David engages Uriah Heep who is busy reading a law book. When David suggests that one day Uriah’s knowledge of the law would enable him to become Mr. Wickfield’s partner, Uriah harps on his humility, denying that such a thing could ever happen. Nevertheless thankful of David’s compliment, Uriah invites David to visit his humble home to partake of tea.
As the days pass, David forgets about Murdstone & Grinby and his new life as a student flourishes. Through his schoolmates, David learns that a mere 12 months have passed since Doctor Strong’s marriage to Annie, and even though Annie does not have a penny to her name and her relatives are so poor that given a chance they would rob Doctor Strong blind, that they have married out of love. David also learns that Doctor Strong is at work in compiling a dictionary, and that his habit of falling into a reverie is attributable to the doctor’s attempt to get at the Greek root of a word. Finally, David learns that Doctor Strong is of so kindly a disposition, the entire school is on alert to prevent the doctor from coming in contact with a begging vagabond lest the doctor literally give the vagabond the shirt off his back.
Mr. Wickfield eventually makes arrangements for Jack Maldon to go to India. Naturally, a sending off party is held on the eve of Jack Maldon’s departure. Present at the party is Mrs. Markleham, Annie’s mother. She is referred to by the school as the Old Soldier on account of her skill in marshaling her poor relations against the doctor. Presently, to Annie’s dismay, the Old Soldier alludes to the age disparity between Doctor Strong and her daughter, all the while asserting that the marriage is nonetheless a blessing. As the evening wears on, David senses that the company is growing melancholy. When Jack Maldon finally departs, David notices that Jack Maldon has something cherry-colored in his hands. To everyone’s alarm, subsequent to Jack’s departure, Annie is nowhere to be seen. She is eventually found lying on the hall floor. She has passed out. When she is brought to, she inquires about a lost cherry-colored ribbon. An extensive search is made for the lost bow to no avail.
Eventually, Mr. Wickfield, Agnes, and David take their leave, but as they’re on their way home Agnes mentions a handbag that she has absentmindedly left behind. David offers to fetch it for Agnes. Presently, as David passes Doctor Strong's study, he notices Doctor Strong reading to Annie from his Dictionary. David notices the devotion Annie has for the doctor, not to mention her haunting youthful, beauty.