Chapter 58
The three days after the final exams were designated as school return days.
Grades were released, and winter break homework assigned. Official supplementary classes during breaks were now banned, leaving students to seek outside tutoring.
With the pressure of the upcoming college entrance exams, tutoring centers were already fully booked.
Usually, students spent these days discussing tutoring schedules and making plans for winter break.
But Class 6 was unusually quiet and serious.
The results of the bet between Chi Lin, Lu Ke, and Ms. Hu would be revealed soon.
“What do you think you’ll get?” Lin Xiaozhi asked Chi Lin. “Over 140?”
Having tutored Chi Lin, she was confident in her progress. The exam had covered familiar material.
“At least 145,” Chi Lin replied.
“Then you’ll have the highest score in the class. I think I’m a few points shy of 145.”
Chi Lin smiled faintly, her mind seemingly elsewhere.
At 9 am, the grades were released.
Chi Lin looked at her score, her expression unreadable.
Lin Xiaozhi, noticing her unusual calmness, glanced at her tablet, her brow furrowing.
“How is that possible?”
The other students, eager to know Chi Lin’s score, crowded around her.
Chi Lin closed her tablet and shook her head, silencing them.
Lu Ke had also received his score. Chong Zhiwen, glancing at it, saw 136.
“What happened?” he asked Lu Ke. “I got a 130.”
“Shut up,” Lu Ke muttered. “Everyone has bad days. A 136 is still a high score. More than enough to crush that loser.”
They looked at Chi Lin, who remained impassive, clearly having seen her score, but her expression revealed nothing.
Wei Zhuoning, her heart pounding, opened her grade report.
The first thing she saw was her class ranking:
43rd.
She blinked, then checked again. It was real!
Mom! I’m not last anymore!
Despite Lin Xiaozhi’s annoying flirting, her tutoring had been effective. Wei Zhuoning had not only kept her promotional spot on the writing website but also improved her grades.
She called out to Chi Lin, wanting to know her score, but Lin Xiaozhi, turning around, put a finger to her lips, silencing her.
Wei Zhuoning: “?”
What was going on? Even she had passed, thanks to Lin Xiaozhi’s tutoring. Chi Lin, much smarter and a quick study, couldn’t have failed.
The school return days followed a set schedule: teachers summarizing the semester, reviewing exam results, praising those who had improved, scolding those who hadn’t, and assigning winter break homework.
Mr. Xia, the Chinese teacher, started, lamenting Class 6’s second-to-last ranking in Chinese, a slight improvement, but still far behind the other classes.
Ms. Hu arrived next, her face grim.
“Class 6, average score: 96,” she said, her tone almost… resentful. “Highest among the regular classes.”
The class, initially surprised, erupted in cheers.
If textbooks were still made of paper, the ceiling would have been covered in them.
“Quiet! Quiet!” Ms. Hu shouted, finally silencing them. “What’s so impressive about a single victory? You should be aiming for consistent excellence!”
Gao Xiang scoffed. “Why can’t we celebrate a victory?”
“Look at your other subjects. Still at the bottom. You’re giving your homeroom teacher gray hairs. Show some respect.”
Lin Xiaozhi said, “Ms. Hu, everyone improves gradually. We should celebrate our achievements, no matter how small. And this victory is a reflection of your teaching skills too.”
Ms. Hu knew she was no match for the sharp-tongued class president. Lin Xiaozhi was always stirring up trouble.
Ms. Hu continued her rambling lecture, avoiding the topic of individual scores, much to Lu Ke’s annoyance.
He raised his hand. “Ms. Hu, can we please see our scores? We have a bet to settle.”
He looked at Chi Lin. “Chi Lin, what did you get? I only got a 136. You probably beat me.”
Lu Ke, despite his anxiety during the exam, had still managed a high score. The difficulty of the exam was evident in the class average of 96.
Chi Lin didn’t answer. Lu Ke, his confidence growing, turned to Ms. Hu.
“Ms. Hu, you have the scores, right? What did Chi Lin get?”
Ms. Hu, glancing at Lu Ke and her tablet, hesitated, then said, “Eighty-six.”
The class erupted in disbelief.
“What?!”
“Impossible!” Gao Xiang exclaimed, jumping out of his seat. “I got a 95! How could Chi Lin only get an 86?! We reviewed all the difficult points! Even Lin Xiaozhi explained everything!”
Sha Xinyu also protested. “Chi Lin is a faster learner than any of us! Ms. Hu, are you sure you’re looking at the right score?”
Ms. Hu, annoyed by their accusations, her own anxiety turning into anger, said, “I’m not mistaken! Come see for yourself! Or ask Chi Lin to show you her score!”
Sha Xinyu turned to Chi Lin. “Is it true, Chi Lin?”
The entire class waited for her answer.
“The system shows an 86,” Chi Lin said. “But that’s not my real score.”
“What?!”
Lu Ke almost laughed. “Whose score is it then? Yours? You’re just like your sister, making excuses after losing a bet! You should have thought about this before accepting the bet!”
“Say that again about Lou-jie, I dare you!” Gao Xiang yelled, kicking his desk and lunging at Lu Ke.
“She’s a sore loser! What are you going to do about it?”
Gao Xiang’s friends restrained him.
“Calm down!” Sha Xinyu said. “Don’t start a fight!”
Lu Ke, seeing Gao Xiang restrained, took advantage of the situation and punched him in the face.
Gao Xiang watched as Lu Ke’s fist approached, then suddenly… vanished.
Gao Xiang: “?”
Lu Ke, filled with a long-simmering resentment towards all of Lou Mi’s fans, had put all his strength into that punch.
But a force had redirected his fist mid-swing, sending him stumbling forward, his face landing in a nearby trash can.
The class: “…”
“Chi Lin! How dare you hit him!” Ms. Hu exclaimed.
It had been Chi Lin, her movements too fast for anyone to see, who had deflected Lu Ke’s punch.
“Ms. Hu, you’re mistaken,” Chi Lin said, pointing at the newly repaired security camera. “It’s all recorded.”
Ms. Hu felt a chill run down her spine.
The cameras were recording during exams. And these were modern, AI-powered cameras with facial recognition technology. Had they captured the content of Chi Lin’s exam paper?
If so, her manipulation of the scores would be exposed.
She noticed Chi Lin observing her closely, her expression unreadable.
No, it’s impossible. The cameras can’t see the exam papers. That would be a security risk. Students could cheat by hacking the system.
They can’t see the papers. I’m safe.
She took a deep breath, her anxiety slightly abated.
“Regardless of what the cameras recorded,” she said, “I saw who started the fight. Lu Ke, are you okay?”
Lu Ke, his head still ringing from his collision with the trash can, his pride bruised, couldn’t speak.
He was too embarrassed to blame anyone.
“I’m… fine…” he mumbled.
Ms. Hu, seizing the opportunity, declared, “So Lu Ke won the bet. Chi Lin, you know what to do.”
She avoided looking at Chi Lin, eager to end this unpleasant situation.
Chi Lin, however, walked towards her and asked, “Ms. Hu, are you sure I got an 86?”
“Of course,” Ms. Hu replied. “It’s in the system. Whose score would it be otherwise?”
“I estimated over 145.”
“One hundred and forty-five…” Ms. Hu chuckled. “Your estimation skills are… questionable. Do you even know what a 145 means? That would be the highest score in the class, even top 5 in the grade. Be realistic. You’ve never even scored a 100 before.”
“So you still believe people can’t improve,” Chi Lin said, her voice calm, then made a simple request. “I want to see my exam paper.”
“You’ll get it back next semester. But by then, you’ll be… gone,” Ms. Hu said, a smug smile on her face.
“I want to see it now,” Chi Lin insisted.
“We don’t return exam papers until next semester. Why make an exception for you?”
Chong Zhiwen, defending Ms. Hu, said, “Are you accusing Ms. Hu of tampering with your exam? Don’t be ridiculous.”
Ms. Hu glared at him. Shut up, you idiot!
Chi Lin, unfazed, continued her relentless questioning.
“If there’s nothing wrong with my exam, why can’t I see it?”
“It’s not that I can’t show it to you. I’m not allowed to,” Ms. Hu said, emphasizing the distinction.
Lin Xiaozhi said, “It’s just a graded exam paper, not a state secret. Why can’t she see it?”
Ms. Hu, exasperated, said, “The exam papers are graded and verified by the system. Do you think the system can make mistakes? Do you think it deliberately lowered your score?!”
“The system might not make mistakes,” Chi Lin said, her voice soft, but her words sharp, “but people can manipulate the system.”
Lu Ke, having recovered from his trash can encounter, approached Chi Lin, keeping a safe distance, mindful of her… reputation.
“Are you accusing Ms. Hu of changing your score?” he asked. “Do you really think you’re better than me? A 145? Seriously?”
Chi Lin ignored him, her gaze fixed on Ms. Hu.
“I anticipated this,” she said, smiling faintly. “So I made… preparations.”
Ms. Hu’s heart sank.
Chi Lin’s expression turned cold, her eyes like ice.
“You have three days, Ms. Hu. If you don’t restore my original score, I won’t be the one leaving this school. It will be you.”
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