Chapter 332
Si Nian calmly reassured them, "Teachers, please don't get angry just yet."
She knew that incidents like this would naturally infuriate any teacher.
After all, cheating was a disgraceful act.
However, Si Nian also knew that these teachers were generally quite good-natured. They were only exceptionally angry because they had just comforted her moments ago, only for her to seemingly turn around and cheat.
Thus, she started by calmly trying to defuse the situation.
Although she hadn't noticed exactly where the piece of paper came from, she did recall a student raising his hand complaining of a stomachache.
Normally, students weren't allowed to use the restroom during an exam. But if someone was truly unwell, the teachers couldn't force them to hold it in—who would take responsibility if something happened? Besides, this wasn't a major official examination.
That student had just walked right past her desk.
She was almost certain that the note had been dropped by him.
However, she didn't know him at all, so the cheat sheet couldn't possibly be for her.
Si Nian lifted her gaze and swept a glance over the people around her.
The surrounding students were all staring at her, their faces filled with shock and bewilderment.
However, the boy sitting directly in front of her kept his head lowered and did not look back.
Given that the paper had rolled to her feet, it was inevitably meant for the student sitting in front of her. The sender had simply been too nervous and accidentally tossed it a bit too far, causing it to land by her side.
When she first arrived for the exam, she had purposefully observed this group of test-takers.
Many of them were students retaking their exams from the Second High School, so it was highly likely that quite a few of them knew each other.
It certainly wasn't out of the realm of possibility for them to collude and cheat.
The teachers demanded, "What do you have to say for yourself? Who passed you these answers?"
Si Nian replied, "I suspect it was dropped by the boy who just walked by to go to the restroom. No one else would have had the opportunity. But I can guarantee these answers weren't meant for me. They were likely intended for a student sitting in front of me, who failed to catch the note, allowing it to fall by my desk."
The boy sitting in front of her instantly stiffened. He whipped around furiously and snapped, "You're talking nonsense! I don't even know him, so why would we pass answers to each other? It's obvious that you were the one cheating, and now you're trying to frame someone else!"
Si Nian sized him up, her gaze sweeping over the designer logo on his clothes. She said mildly, "I only mentioned a student sitting in front of me. I never named you specifically, so why are you so quick to get defensive? Besides, the reason I dare to say this is because I have basically finished my paper and have no need for an answer sheet. Teachers, you can inspect my test paper and then compare it with his. The truth will be obvious."
The teachers exchanged glances, finding her logic sound.
To ensure they didn't wrongly accuse anyone, the teachers stepped forward and took both of their test papers to compare.
Sure enough, Si Nian had already reached the final section of her exam. The answers she had filled out in the previous sections were neat and meticulously written.
More importantly, they were all correct.
The teachers shot her a look of surprise.
When they pulled out the boy's test paper, however, it was more than half empty. Any question with even a slight degree of difficulty had been left blank.
After a quick comparison with the answers written on the cheat sheet, the truth was glaringly obvious.
The teachers' expressions instantly darkened.
"Wang Wei, how do you explain this?"
The boy named Wang Wei turned pale but stubbornly refused to admit it. "It's true that I don't know how to answer the questions, but that doesn't mean I was cheating! What right do you have to falsely accuse me? That piece of paper wasn't even found on me!"
"Maybe she's been cheating this whole time! Otherwise, how could she have finished so quickly? The exam hasn't even been going on for an hour!" He glared at Si Nian with sheer resentment.
The teachers exchanged another glance, feeling a bit perplexed themselves. They had noticed that Si Nian's answers were almost entirely correct. Yet, these questions were notoriously difficult past exam problems, easily on par with the actual college entrance examination.
For Si Nian to achieve such a high accuracy rate, she shouldn't have needed to retake her exams in the first place.
Furthermore, the First High School had refused to admit her. This made the teachers worry that there might be some hidden issues regarding her academic background.
They couldn't help but look at Si Nian.
"Si Nian, could you tell us exactly why the First High School refused to admit you? Or perhaps you could tell us about your past academic records?"
Si Nian replied, "I find it strange too. My grades were always consistently in the top three of my entire school..."
Before she could even finish her sentence, Wang Wei scoffed. "Tch, anyone can brag. Top three of your school? And you still couldn't get into a university? Do you think we're all idiots?"
The teachers also looked incredibly skeptical. Let alone the First High School, even in their own school, any student who ranked in the top three was considered extraordinary.
How could the First High School possibly reject a student of that caliber?
Si Nian shot the boy a sideways glance and said, "I have no reason to lie. The teachers can easily look into my records and verify this. As for last year, it wasn't that I failed to get into a university; it was that I didn't take the college entrance examination at all."
"As to why the First High School wouldn't accept me, I truly can't think of any other reason than the fact that I am already married. But surely there is no rule in this day and age that forbids married individuals from taking the college entrance examination, is there?"
Si Nian stroked her chin thoughtfully.
Everyone was stunned.
The teachers were equally dumbfounded.
"Wait, hold on a second. You're married?"
Si Nian nodded. "Yes, I've been married for almost a year now."
Everyone was rendered speechless.
"The First High School is known for its strict traditions. If you are indeed married, their refusal isn't entirely impossible to understand. So, did you miss the college entrance exam because you got married?"
Si Nian replied, "That is my private matter, so I'd rather not elaborate. In short, if the school suspects I'm lying, you are more than welcome to investigate. Right now, everyone is in the middle of an exam, and I don't want to hold up anyone's time. I only hope to have my name cleared."
Her words successfully redirected everyone's attention away from her personal life and back to the cheating incident.
Seeing how confident and resolute she was, the boy sitting in front of her began to panic.
Still, he remained as stubborn as a mule, insisting, "I don't care what your excuses are! The paper landed by your desk, which means it was for you! You can't just drag me into this. I have nothing to hide!"
For a moment, the gazes of everyone in the room shifted back and forth between the two of them.
Right at that moment, the boy who had been escorted to the restroom by a teacher returned.
He looked rather pale and unwell.
Had the cheating not been exposed, everyone might have simply assumed that his stomachache was due to exam nerves.
But in light of what had just happened, the true reason behind his pale complexion was suddenly open to interpretation.
Sure enough, upon seeing a group of teachers gathered at the desks, his face drained of even more color.
"Fan Cong, did you drop this cheat sheet just now? Who exactly are you helping to cheat?" a teacher demanded sternly.
Fan Cong instantly panicked, his eyes subconsciously darting toward Wang Wei.
Wang Wei's face darkened, and he deliberately looked away, pretending not to notice.
Si Nian observed the newcomer. He was wearing faded, washed-out clothes, thick square-framed glasses, and a pair of worn-out, misshapen liberation shoes.
He was clearly from a completely different social class compared to the boy in front of her, who was dressed in name-brand clothing.
Fan Cong stammered, "Teacher, what are you talking about? I don't understand what you mean. I wasn't cheating."
With everyone refusing to confess, the teachers were beginning to lose their patience!
"You were the only one who just walked past this aisle. If it wasn't you, who else could it be?"
Fan Cong's lips trembled. Lowering his head, he said, "I really don't know anything about it. My stomach was hurting, and all I could think about was rushing to the restroom. A teacher even went with me. The teacher can vouch for whether I cheated or not."
Since no one had actually witnessed the act, the teachers couldn't jump to conclusions about who the culprit was, though they were growing increasingly frustrated.
Just as they were about to lose their tempers, Si Nian spoke up. "Teachers, it's actually quite simple to get to the bottom of this."