Chapter 20

"What?"

"Actually... he didn’t cheat."

"How did this wastrel... manage to do it?"

Many students were stunned.

Wu Xiaofang was even more stunned.

He didn’t expect that the grade head would personally appear to vouch for Lin Beichen.

No cheating?

On what grounds?

How could this scoundrel, this trash, score so high?

How could he surpass me, a genius?

Does he even deserve it?

Wu Xiaofang gritted his teeth, still unconvinced.

Grade head Chu Heng, seeing this, couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed.

This student, whom he had once highly regarded, was now so impatient and even questioned whether someone could cheat in the joint examination.

Wasn’t he doubting Chu Heng himself?

Thinking back to when Wu Xiaofang submitted his paper, he had confidently claimed a score of at least 95, and possibly a perfect score if he was lucky...

At the time, Chu Heng thought it was modesty.

Now, it seemed to be arrogance and pride.

The more he looked, the more he disapproved.

"Reflect on yourself and settle down."

Chu Heng said to Wu Xiaofang.

"Ah? I... Director Chu, I..."

Wu Xiaofang was flustered.

Grade head Chu Heng ignored him and turned to Lin Beichen, "Come with me."

Lin Beichen smiled and said to Wu Xiaofang, "Did you hear that? Reflect on yourself. Hahaha."

Wu Xiaofang’s face was dark as night.

He didn’t expect that even Director Chu, who had always favored him, would reprimand him because of Lin Beichen.

This was not a good sign.

At this moment—

"Look, the final rankings are out."

Someone pointed to the stone board and shouted.

Indeed, after everyone had checked their scores, it was time for the final rankings. Names appeared on the stone board, from highest to lowest, showing the results of the Empire’s Modern History exam.

Lin Beichen’s name was at the top.

Surprisingly, Wu Xiaofang, who scored 92, was not second.

Because Mu Xinyue, the female genius, scored 93.

Wu Xiaofang, Si Xinlin, and Wu Xi, all scored 92, placing them third.

"This competition is intense."

"Who would have thought that so many geniuses would be outperformed by a wastrel."

Someone remarked.

Wu Xiaofang looked at the rankings on the stone board, his face dark as if it could drip water.

He didn’t expect to be humiliated by Lin Beichen, to be outdone by Mu Xinyue, and to share third place with two others.

This left him with no advantage at all.

"Hmph, the written exam doesn’t mean much, it’s just the beginning."

He thought, his eyes flashing with hatred.

...

In the examination office.

"Lin Beichen, how did you do it?"

Chu Heng asked.

The other instructors stared at Lin Beichen with intense curiosity.

They had reviewed the test papers and found several major traps, designed to be extremely subtle. Even specialized history instructors could fall for them, making a perfect score impossible.

Yet, this notorious wastrel got everything right.

It was unbelievable.

Moreover, they had reviewed Lin Beichen’s paper dozens of times.

They had to admit that his answers were perfect.

"Because I study very seriously."

Lin Beichen said, without any psychological burden.

Others memorize knowledge in their heads; he memorizes it in his phone. The phone is part of him, and he can access it at any time, just like having it in his head.

Chu Heng and the others were speechless.

Out of over a thousand students, you’re the last one to claim you study seriously.

Can you recognize yourself?

But without any evidence of cheating, as the grade head, he couldn’t reprimand him.

"The next exam is on herbal medicine. Do your best. Don’t be arrogant, understand?"

"Okay."

Lin Beichen said.

"Alright, the next exam is about to start. Go back to the examination room."

Another instructor said.

Lin Beichen turned and left.

"What do you think, everyone?"

Chu Heng asked.

The other instructors shook their heads, uncertain.

"Can’t tell much, but at least we can confirm he didn’t cheat."

"Could he have been faking his poor performance before?"

"But why would he do that?"

"Who knows? But we have two more exams on herbal medicine and mystical patterns. Let’s continue to observe. We’ll see if this wastrel can surprise us again."

"Agreed."

The instructors quickly reached a consensus.

The focus of the next exam would definitely be on Lin Beichen.

...

...

In the examination room.

Lin Beichen returned to his seat number 109.

Other students also returned to the examination room one by one.

Wu Xiaofang sat in seat number 110.

He glared at Lin Beichen with eyes like knives and said coldly, "Trash, don’t think you’re anything special just because you got lucky this time. The competition has just begun."

Lin Beichen gave him the middle finger, "Idiot."

Wu Xiaofang almost spat blood in anger.

He gritted his teeth and sneered, "Your perfect score means nothing. You can’t possibly become the top student. Don’t forget the contract. When the time comes, you’ll still be my slave, and I’ll show you the consequences of defying me."

"Is that so?" Lin Beichen said with his usual smug smile, "You said it yourself, the competition has just begun. No rush, we’ll see. There are more surprises waiting for you."

On the other side, Mu Xinyue sat quietly.

She was a beautiful and serene presence, sitting calmly with a very peaceful expression, as if everything happening around her was irrelevant.

But in reality, her heart was still in turmoil.

Why did Lin Beichen score 100?

She couldn’t understand it.

From any angle, she couldn’t understand it.

And she couldn’t accept it.

But at least, everything was still under control.

She didn’t believe that Lin Beichen could become the top student.

So, in her view, this perfect score in history didn’t mean much.

Soon, the examination bell rang.

The exam began.

Lin Beichen infused mystic energy into the stone table, activating the mystic pattern array, which formed a barrier around him.

The light on the table rippled.

The herbal medicine and alchemy exam paper slowly unfolded.

This course was mostly theoretical, especially at the junior college level, focusing on identifying herbs, distinguishing their properties, avoiding conflicts, and basic knowledge of planting and cultivation, without delving into advanced theories of compounding, alchemy, or potion-making.

Lin Beichen took out his phone and opened the "Second Year Herbal Medicine and Alchemy Tutorial" app.

He scanned the exam paper with the app.

One minute to get the perfect answers.

Ten minutes to copy them.

Then he submitted the paper.

Ding ding!

The submission notification sounded.

The mystic pattern barrier disappeared.

"You... finished so quickly?"

Grade head Chu Heng had been waiting outside the barrier.

Lin Beichen honestly replied, "Yes."

Chu Heng: "..."

"How did it go?" he asked.

Lin Beichen said, "Not bad."

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