Bai Fan instinctively reached out and caught Ruan Mingxi’s body.
He caught a whiff of fragrance, something like Odalis Perfume. Her burgundy hair brushed against his face, tickling it.
“Thanks, classmate.” Ruan Mingxi straightened up with a smile from his arms.
A beautiful girl tripping and falling into the protagonist’s arms—that’s a common fan-service scene in anime.
But right now… Bai Fan didn’t see it as any blessing.
Because in that instant, he felt the gazes of all his classmates land on him.
Envy, jealousy, scrutiny… The male students’ stares were especially sharp.
Looking at Ruan Mingxi’s grinning face, Bai Fan realized… she did it on purpose!
Even Lin Xincheng on the podium raised an eyebrow.
‘What’s going on with them?’ Bai Fan wondered.
Weren’t they supposed to be at the Security Bureau investigating Master Mo’s follow-up?
How did they have time to come to the academy for this “incognito inspection”?
Could there be some clue about a Blood Descendant in this class or something?
Even though he had a lot of thoughts, Bai Fan planned to ask about all this after class.
During the lecture, Lin Xincheng pulled out a set of white test papers.
“Everyone, the nationwide university college entrance exam starts in three months. To assess your current level, I’ve brought a mock test for a quick in-class quiz.”
Murmurs broke out in the classroom. No one expected the new teacher to give them a test the moment he walked in.
“Who starts off with a test?”
But their protests were useless. The moment Lin Xincheng shot them a cold look, the tiny dissent was suppressed.
“Alright, alright. This test experience will be very helpful for your exam in three months, so don’t complain. Focus on what’s in front of you.”
Ruan Mingxi’s reassurance was indeed effective. Seeing her sweet, pretty smile, the students’ protests vanished instantly.
Bai Fan had no objection to this. He hadn’t been to school for over half a month.
He did want to check if his knowledge had regressed.
The test papers were handed out quickly. It was a three-in-one comprehensive test covering geography, Federation history, and physical science engineering.
Bai Fan glanced at it. It looked like a very standard paper, with easy, medium, hard, and advanced questions in a 4:3:2:1 ratio.
The questions were standard too, without any obscure knowledge points.
But… one thing was different. This wasn’t the usual diagnostic test.
Bai Fan knew that the academy’s teachers used the same old papers for the Social Special Class students even during diagnostic tests.
Sometimes they didn’t even change the questions, cutting corners wherever possible.
The students in the class knew this too, and they were fine with it. Old papers meant it was easy to find answers online.
They could just open their phones under the desk, take a picture, search, and the answers would appear.
The teachers would grade the papers, see the acceptable scores, and not bother to make a fuss.
But this time… after reading the paper, Bai Fan’s brow first furrowed, then relaxed.
All the questions on this paper were completely new, nothing like previous years.
He had studied well, so it felt manageable… but the other students who were just coasting would probably have a headache.
However, according to the academy’s usual habits, they should have just reused old papers to brush them off.
Why did they suddenly take the trouble to produce a brand-new paper?
Could it be…
Bai Fan suddenly looked up at the young man on the podium. His gaze was calm, sweeping over the various expressions of the class.
Could it be that he made this paper on the spot?
He could hunt down criminals on the battlefield and then come down and create a math-science paper that made students’ heads spin?
What a terrifying Captain Lin Xincheng.
“Clear your desks. The test is about to begin.”
As Lin Xincheng announced this, the students below simultaneously pulled out their phones from different angles.
They quietly opened the camera, scanned the questions, and searched on Bing Web.
Whispers broke out from the seats.
The whispers spread and gradually turned into panic.
Because… they couldn’t find the answers at all.
That meant all the questions on this paper were original.
The Social Special Class students looked up at the young new teacher on the podium, their hearts trembling.
It seemed he was serious.
Lin Xincheng slowly raised an eyebrow.
“I know what you’re thinking. But since I’m here, I have a responsibility to you. So… don’t cheat or deceive yourselves.”
The students’ hearts quivered in unison.
‘He’s really serious… The other teachers just go through the motions. Why are you being so strict…’
“The test has started. If anyone else gets caught whispering, you’ll come sit by me and grade the papers together.”
Bai Fan’s eyebrows twitched. It seemed… he really was here to be a teacher.
But soon he didn’t think much more about it. The test had started, and he wanted to seriously assess his own level.
As he immersed himself entirely in the paper, the tip of his pen rustled against it.
Time passed quickly, but at one point, a knock sounded at the door.
Bai Fan looked over.
Outside the door stood a young woman who looked about twenty. Her face held a slightly flustered expression.
“S-sorry, teacher, I’m late.”
Lin Xincheng glanced at the smell of smoke and cooking on her and made a judgment.
She probably worked as a waitress at a nearby food stall or something.
“Come in. Sit over there. This is a diagnostic test time.”
The young woman sighed in relief. Good… the young teacher wasn’t giving her a hard time.
When she was late before, the old teacher would always call her out publicly, saying things like “young and undisciplined.”
She quickly found her seat and sat down.
This was just a minor interruption in class, but the moment Bai Fan’s eyes fell on the woman, his body stiffened slightly.
He felt… she looked familiar, like he had seen her before.
Ruan Mingxi placed a test paper in front of the girl.
“Chen Yuanyuan, right? Please take this test seriously.”
So it was her…
Hearing that name, Bai Fan’s expression stiffened. This girl was the same person whose identity he had stolen when he infiltrated the Golden Sand Club last week.
He had disguised himself as a fan of Princess Tianyu, gained her trust, lured her to a corner of the car, and knocked her out.
He took her nameplate and clothes, then passed the club’s security check.
In the days since, he had wondered… whether his arbitrary actions had affected her.
Even though he had plenty of excuses, telling himself he had no choice at the time, that he needed to borrow someone else’s identity to take revenge on Master Mo…
Looking at her tired expression and forced energy, he knew without a doubt that she must have had a rough time recently.
What should he do? Should he find a time to apologize?
While Bai Fan’s mind wandered, Lin Xincheng suddenly tapped the desk.
“Thirty minutes left. Manage your time well.”
Bai Fan collected himself, withdrew his gaze, and focused again on the test paper.
Half an hour later, as the bell rang, Lin Xincheng told the students to put down their pencils and arrange their papers.
Ruan Mingxi went down and quickly collected them.
Watching the students sigh in relief, Lin Xincheng raised an eyebrow lightly.
“Everyone, this test is just a simulation. It only checks your learning results. Even if you fail here, it won’t affect your entrance exam.”
Whispers stirred below, but no one answered him.
“Why are you upset?” Lin Xincheng continued. “Is it because you still have hope? You don’t want to admit that in the future, you’ll be the ones who fail that exam. But at the same time… you lack perseverance. So you muddle along here, comforting yourselves that you’re still trying, until the big exam comes and tears away that final layer.”
He pushed the glasses up on his nose, and cold light glinted. “To put it bluntly, right now you are nothing but a bunch of self-deceiving failures.”
The classroom fell silent for an instant, then someone spoke up indignantly.
“Ha, so you finally dropped the act, huh? I knew you teachers never thought much of us Social Special Class students.”
“What do you mean, ‘failures in life’? In your eyes, we were never worth teaching from the start, right?”
Lin Xincheng said calmly, “My respect is not determined by a person’s identity, appearance, or wealth, but by the character they display. If you think I don’t respect you, then it’s clear that the external personality you exhibit does not match the value of my corresponding respect.”
His words immediately sparked an uproar among the students. The entire classroom was about to explode.
“What is this teacher here for? We pay tuition every year so he can humiliate us?”
“Exactly! I’m going to the Dean’s Office to complain and get him fired!”
“Take our money, at least show some service attitude. Even if it’s fake, put on a smile for us!”
Even Bai Fan couldn’t help but cover his face.
What was he doing? Wasn’t he the captain of the Nine Division Execution Team? Why wasn’t he doing his own job?
Why come here to provoke a bunch of Social Special Class students?
“So—” That force appeared again. Lin Xincheng’s voice wasn’t loud, but it clearly reached everyone’s ears, instantly overpowering all the noise.
“You’d better change your attitude right now. In these last three months, work hard to earn the corresponding value of my respect.”