Chapter 138: Instigation

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…Hmm, why do I keep feeling that something here is a bit off…

Su Wanli gazed at the girl with braided hair walking in front of her, frowning slightly.

Granted, she’d acted on a whim, thinking that since she had taken this task for Meng Huange’s sake, it was only reasonable to have her help finish it.

But on closer thought, the main premise of this task was actually that the villainess was supposed to go “frame others for cheating,” while the heroine had to endure tremendous pressure, ace the exam, and then face the ensuing rumors—wasn’t that so?

How had things suddenly turned into the villainess and the heroine sneaking out of the classroom together during the exam, ready to hand over a list of fifty real cheaters to the Homeroom Teacher, as some kind of twisted demonstration?

If this sort of outlandish stunt had been forced on Meng Huange by herself, that would make some sense, but…

The idea of catching cheaters had been Meng Huange’s suggestion. The plan was hers, and even the phone used to collect evidence had been handed to her by Meng Huange.

All she had done was set the number “50” and participate a bit in the planning.

“What’s wrong, Miss Su, why are you slowing down?”

Meng Huange glanced at the notice board beside them, which displayed the school’s floor map. Then she turned her head, giving Su Wanli a gentle smile.

“The Guidance Office isn’t far from here. If we move quickly, maybe we’ll even have twenty minutes left after convincing the Homeroom Teacher, which can be used to prepare for the math exam.”

Tch, this girl’s smile looked harmless, but her schemes were unexpectedly sinister.
Who knew if her plan would really work.

Su Wanli quietly withdrew her gaze, tapping on the Baiying Academy map she’d exchanged ten system points for, and headed straight in the direction of the Guidance Office.

“I just worry that this perfect plan of yours might not work. Don’t let it turn out to be a waste of my time…”

As it turned out, Meng Huange was usually right.

“…Su Wanli, is your idea that you want to patrol discipline in the Exam Hall?”

The man before her, a stern and upright-looking middle-aged man—none other than the system’s so-called Homeroom Teacher, Li Zhengqi—frowned upon hearing Su Wanli’s proposal.

“No, no, that’s not it. Why not?”

“Of course not! You’re both students of Baiying Academy. During exam time, you should be focused on your own test like all the other candidates. The Exam Hall’s discipline will be maintained by the invigilating teachers; we don’t need your help.”

He shook his head sternly, tapping his knuckles on the desk with a heavy thud.

“In fact, you shouldn’t even be here. Did San Ban’s homeroom teacher even allow you to wander around near the Exam Hall?”

Well, as much as she knew her own status allowed her to act as she pleased in Baiying Academy, the sight of the Homeroom Teacher’s stern face scolding her still made Su Wanli feel a little uneasy.

“Teacher, we’ve already finished our test papers and handed them in.”

Meng Huange smiled as she intertwined her hand with Su Wanli’s, then gently nudged Su Wanli’s arm.

“And Liu Laoshi also said, after accepting our papers, that we could go wherever we liked now, isn’t that right, Miss Su?”

Feeling that gentle force on her wrist, Su Wanli’s originally tangled thoughts calmed down a bit.

What’s the point of being nervous? There’s nothing to be afraid of—she was just startled by his position.
Like Meng Huange said, they weren’t here to ask for a favor, but to demand action.
And besides, her own identity wasn’t that of a mere student, but of a major shareholder in Baiying Academy.

“Come on, even if Liu Laoshi didn’t say anything, I’d still want to go wherever I want… What you actually meant was to call me out for causing trouble, right?”

“Ahem, I just think Miss Su… No, Su classmate, as a student, your primary responsibility is still…”

Su Wanli shot a cold look back at the Homeroom Teacher, forcing him to swallow his unfinished words. Then she reached out to Meng Huange for the phone and placed it in front of the Homeroom Teacher.

“Lin Zhengqi Laoshi, isn’t it? Since you say the exam discipline is maintained by your teachers, what about these people? Are they just the ones that slipped through your net?”

“These people…”

Li Zhengqi bent down slightly, sweeping his gaze over the photos saved on Meng Huange’s phone.

Students pulling textbooks out to hide on their laps, others exchanging glances over test papers, people passing notes to desks in front and behind…

The corners of his mouth twitched as he wiped the sweat from his brow.

“Well, I… I’ve already been recording these behaviors. After the exams, the entire school will be notified, and appropriate disciplinary action will be taken…”

“When you say ‘recorded,’ you mean this notebook?”

Meng Huange politely pointed at the notepad by the Homeroom Teacher’s desk.

“But it looks like you only have less than ten students written down, yet in just the twenty minutes we casually observed, we found more than twenty.”

“This, that’s just my personal selection of the most representative cases. Actually, the main force catching cheaters is the teachers outside, who have a better vantage point and can catch them in the act…”

“Right, but Miss Su mentioned that after every exam, the number of cheaters announced on the school broadcast is usually not even ten.”

Meng Huange thoughtfully tapped her chin, glancing at Su Wanli.

“The reason we caught so many this time is just because there were more cheaters than usual, right, Miss Su?”

“No way, most likely it’s because these people know how to curry favor, and the announcements have to consider the students’ backgrounds before naming anyone. A bunch of self-serving folks—if Baiying Academy is left to people like this, it’s doomed…”

“Watch your words!”

Li Zhengqi was about to argue back when Meng Huange beat him to it, raising a finger at Su Wanli.

“Su Wanli, Baiying Academy is the top private school in Nancheng. It gathers the children of powerful officials and wealthy businessmen. But teachers are still human. If someone really holds a grudge, it’ll be hard to deal with.”

Right, right, this new girl makes a lot of sense! I don’t have Sujia’s kind of background. If someone really set their sights on me…

Without realizing it, Li Zhengqi was starting to think Meng Huange was on his side and looked to Su Wanli with a pleading expression, hoping she would understand.

“So what, you’re scared of retaliation? Then what’s all the school fees for—so the students can just mess around all day, sleep in class, and cheat on exams?”

Su Wanli bared her teeth, glaring at Li Zhengqi.

“Our Sujia invested so much money in Baiying Academy, built so many facilities—not for people to waste their time here. A good school should nurture talent and lead people upward! Look at the photos we just took—what have the students in this school become? You want me, Su Wanli, to stand by and watch this happen under my nose?”

Li Zhengqi instinctively clutched his fist in front of his chest, his heart growing heavier.

…She’s right. The most important mission of a school is to cultivate excellent talent for society, but in order to protect my own livelihood, I’ve let things slide, letting discipline slip step by step. Only the Shiyan Lou can barely be considered a sanctuary.

But, are students in Zhiyong Ban not students too? Their parents also hope for their children to improve.

“…Liu Laoshi, from the look on your face, I suppose you don’t want to see the school become like this either, do you?”

Meng Huange smiled at Li Zhengqi.

“But still, teacher, sometimes social pressure forces you to compromise, to the point that you can’t act freely or do what you really want to do.”

“Exactly. That’s why I spent time taking so many photos and came to the Guidance Office at this moment.”

Su Wanli put the phone away, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

“Lin Zhengqi, if you won’t do what’s right, then I will. If the school atmosphere is rotting, then I’ll be the one to correct it. As a member of Sujia and this school, I have a duty to make this a better place.”

She snapped her fingers coolly in the air, then turned and strode toward the office door.

“That’s all I have to say. The next move is up to you.”

“Will you let Baiying Academy become a better place under your management, or let these privileged students hold you back and turn it into their playground…”