“You mean to say, we need to catch more than fifty cheaters?”
After hearing Su Wanli’s plan, Meng Huange pursed her lips and thought for a moment.
“If that’s the case, maybe we’ll have to reconsider our strategy.”
“Huh? Rethink what, is it because the number is so high that you don’t want to do it? To think that when I was giving my grand self-introduction, I even said you were practically half a Su family member, and yet you won’t even risk offending a few high schoolers?”
Su Wanli quietly glanced sideways at Meng Huange.
“If you don’t want to, then forget it. I wasn’t really counting on you anyway. If you can’t do it, just go back to the Classroom and finish your test paper. I can handle it myself…”
Alone?
To be honest, Su Wanli still had no idea how to report fifty cheaters in the entire Xue Xiao to the teachers. In fact, she was already considering abandoning this mission from the System. If no one was willing to help her, this challenge would be almost impossible to get through.
Luckily, Meng Huange was still the radiant Heroine with her halo, and not even such an unreasonable mission made her show the slightest sign of hesitation.
“You misunderstood, Miss Wanli. It’s not that I’m backing out. As for the Chinese test paper, I’ve already handed it in early to Liu Laoshi just like you did.”
Meng Huange smiled gently at Su Wanli as she finished her words.
“I just feel that your motivation is a bit different from what I originally assumed. I thought, like me, you wanted to stand up because you saw something unjust, to vent your anger in your own way. If that’s the case, then maybe dragging them out of their Classrooms directly would be even more satisfying. Although, that method would be less efficient.”
Well, she wasn’t wrong. That had indeed been Su Wanli’s initial plan.
Su Wanli’s gaze drifted away, and she gave a soft snort.
“Ha, you know, if we’re going to make a fuss, it should be a big one. Picking off a few small fry—what’s the point? That’s beneath me as the young lady of the Su family.”
“I thought the same. But Miss Wanli, since you’ve set such a high number, are you… actually trying to clean up the Examination atmosphere of the entire school?”
Whatever works. Anyway, thanks to Meng Huange, if even you can’t do it, then I’ll have no choice but to stand up at the end of the test and point them all out.
As for you, Heroine, you probably don’t want to experience the drama of being wrongfully accused of cheating during the Examination by some “villainess” and then getting talked about by everyone after the test, do you?
Honestly, if not for the fact that the current situation seemed genuinely dangerous, Su Wanli would have already resorted to clinging to Meng Huange’s sleeve and pleading for her help.
But—since acting cute wasn’t going to work, it was better to stick to the tried-and-true methods of a villainess.
Manipulation, peer pressure—
Su Wanli barely lifted her chin, looked coldly at Meng Huange, and straightened her own sleeves.
“If the school’s atmosphere has really rotted to the point where I have to clean it up myself, then this place deserves to be finished. I just can’t stand looking at this crowd, and besides, meddling in your business is a pain too.”
“…Looking for trouble.”
“That’s right, Meng Huange. Aren’t you always telling me about ‘tests of character’ and such? Well, here’s your real test. Since you say you want to be my closest—cough—my best advisor, don’t tell me you can’t even handle something this minor.”
That’s right. The universal method of villainesses: use a condescending tone to provoke your opponent into doing what you want—classic provocation.
Not only does it get you what you want, it also fulfills the essential duties of a villainess.
Sure enough, there isn’t a single proud Heroine who can withstand that move. Not even Meng Huange was an exception.
“If that’s what you want, of course I’ll do everything I can to make it happen for you.”
Meng Huange frowned slightly, pondering for a bit. Then, in front of Su Wanli, she raised an index finger and smiled.
“However… to reach that number in such a limited time, we’ll need a more thorough method and a more legitimate identity.”
“A more legitimate… identity?”
“That’s right, Miss Wanli. What if we act as Disciplinary Committee Members approved by the Homeroom Teacher, using our smartphones to record evidence of cheating, and after the Examination, report all of them at once to the Homeroom Teacher? Wouldn’t that make you feel better?”
Photographic evidence, and Disciplinary Committee Members?
Su Wanli blinked in surprise.
“You mean, you want us to seize the Homeroom Teacher’s authority and have him acknowledge us as Disciplinary Committee Members and let us expose all the cheaters? How could that ever work…”
“It might sound unrealistic, but if we want the cheaters to be punished as they should, ultimately we’ll need to get the Homeroom Teacher’s approval.”
Meng Huange nodded lightly, tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear as she smiled at Su Wanli.
“Of course, we shouldn’t approach him first, but only after we’ve collected enough evidence.”
She glanced at the large clock hanging on the Teaching Building, then took out a sticky note from her pocket and started jotting down her thoughts.
“Still, getting the Homeroom Teacher’s approval will take time. Right now, there are only thirty minutes left until the end of the Examination. Usually, in the last ten minutes, students start getting restless and their actions become sloppier, so it’s much easier to spot cheating. That means, for the next twenty minutes, our actions will be crucial.”
“So you mean, we should act as Make-believe Disciplinary Committee Members first?”
“Rather than pretending, I’d prefer to call it ‘acting first and reporting later.’”
Meng Huange took a Smartphone from her uniform pocket, snapped a picture of a misbehaving student nearby, and handed the phone to Su Wanli.
“Here, Miss Wanli. This Smartphone was given to me by my father before I joined the Su family so we could keep in touch.”
She leaned in with a soft laugh, whispering next to Su Wanli’s ear.
“After all, as you said—if we’re going to do it, we need to do it flawlessly, leaving them with no room to argue, don’t you think?”
Looking at the phone screen and the photo of a student sneaking a peek at a textbook, Su Wanli scratched her head in silence.
As expected, the Heroine really was different—even the System’s brainless missions could be solved with such professionalism.
“Alright, Miss Wanli. Except for San Ban, the percentage of underachievers in other classes shouldn’t be much higher. Let’s try to keep things low-key, focus on the students sitting in the middle and back of the Classroom. It should take us two minutes or so to switch to the next Classroom.”
After offering a few extra tips, Meng Huange waved her hand, motioning for Su Wanli to follow her, and headed straight to the next Classroom.
“However, one subject alone probably won’t get us up to fifty people. During the upcoming math and English Examinations, after you finish your test paper, we can continue—”
“Ahem, I mean, continue our operation…”