As it neared eight in the evening, the wind swept wildly along the riverbank. Lights shone in the distance, scattered in an orderly pattern.
Zhuge Linghao had seemed anxious these past few days. He hadn't slept well, and dark circles hung beneath his eyes.
He was sprawled on a bench, trying to drown his sorrows with soda, even though the exam was tomorrow!
Suddenly, footsteps sounded behind him.
Zhuge Linghao, his stubble unkempt, turned around and asked the blue-haired girl in confusion, "Did Ryuen send you?"
"So what if he did? And what if he didn't?" Ibuki Mio replied calmly.
"So, what do you want?"
"Nothing. I just happened to be passing by."
"But I still want to make sure: are you serious about that proposal?"
"Of course. Don't you think it's the best strategy?"
"The best strategy? Don't make me laugh!"
Ibuki Mio scoffed. "You actually want to gather all the first-year classes, pool their points, and ask the school to choose a specific test paper for this Midterm Exam?"
Zhuge Linghao's face twisted into a wild, almost crazed expression. "This is the dream of all us poor students! What's wrong with it? We make the easiest test, memorize the easiest answers, and everyone gets a high score!"
"Ridiculous! Do you think the top classes would ever allow that? Why should Class D get 100 Class Points too? To be blunt, defective products like you in Class D deserve zero points!"
"Looks like you're not as clever as the rumors said, Zhuge."
After saying that, Ibuki Mio glanced at Zhuge Linghao, who had been thoroughly defeated, then quickly returned to the dormitory.
Sitting on her mat, Ibuki Mio called Ryuen. "I tested him. Zhuge Linghao really did come up with that proposal. But he's given up now; he's no threat at all."
Ryuen replied, "Got it."
At exactly eight o'clock, Zhuge Linghao's phone chimed.
Zhuge Linghao fiddled with his phone and sent three messages in a row.
The day the Midterm Exam results were announced.
Kushida Kikyo sat quietly in her seat, though an eerie air seemed to radiate from her back.
During homeroom, Chabashira-sensei projected everyone's scores.
Zhuge Linghao casually glanced over the results. No surprises!
He'd deliberately kept his score around twenty-first place in the class for almost every subject, except for his perfect 100 in math.
He also took a look at Ken Sudō's score.
Well, how to put it? The redhead's grades were pretty average. He probably wouldn't be expelled.
In high spirits, Chabashira smiled from the podium. "Congratulations on doing well. I admit you've made progress! No one failed this Midterm Exam!"
"And take a look at your Class Points, too."
Zhuge Linghao stared at the projection screen. Several lines of bold text were displayed clearly.
Class A: 940cp➕64cp＝1004cp
Class B: 650cp➕13cp＝663cp
Class C: 490cp➕0cp＝490cp
"Class C gained 0cp?" Horikita furrowed her delicate brows.
Chabashira-sensei deliberately built up the suspense, saving their class's Class Points for the next slide.
The students below were both nervous and expectant!
Chabashira-sensei scanned the room, then called on Zhuge Linghao. "How many Class Points do you think we'll gain?"
Confused, Zhuge Linghao stood up, looking embarrassed. "Uh, you're asking me? I'm feeling pretty confident. I think we'll gain 100 points!"
The classroom filled with laughter, and someone even chimed in, "I think we'll gain 100 points too!"
"Agreed! The bolder the dream, the greater the harvest!"
"Black-haired boy, I'm rooting for you this time!"
Hearing the other idiots shout, Horikita shook her head three times. [Class A only gained 64 points, and Class C gained none at all. How could our class possibly gain 100 points?]
That was more ridiculous than a pig climbing a tree!
[And this exam paper...]
Chabashira-sensei patted the blackboard. "All right, enough suspense!"
"Look at the PPT."
Class D: 0cp➕100cp＝100cp!
Horikita's pupils contracted in shock. She asked herself three questions in disbelief: [How is this possible? How did they do it? Who was pulling the strings?]
Then she slowly turned her gaze toward Zhuge Linghao. "Did you do this?"
Zhuge Linghao was covered in question marks. "Suzune-chan, what are you talking about? Though, we have Kushida to thank for everything this time!"
Horikita Suzune asked in confusion, "What does Kushida have to do with it?"
"Although the test paper she provided yesterday was a great reference, this exam was completely different from previous years!"
Now it was Zhuge Linghao's turn to look confused. "Wait, didn't you get Kushida's message a little after eight last night?"
"What message?"
Zhuge Linghao suddenly slapped his forehead. It seemed Horikita Suzune didn't have Kushida Kikyo's contact information!
Zhuge Linghao had no choice but to take out his phone and open the most recent text. "Ayanokoji, you got it too, right?"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka first gave Zhuge Linghao a long, searching look, then nodded. "I did."
Ayanokoji opened his latest message too.
The two phones were held in front of Horikita Suzune, both displaying the same text: Good evening, everyone! Sorry to bother you! This is Kushida Kikyo. I just managed to get my hands on the real questions and answers for this Midterm Exam! Time for a limited-time offer: for just 5,000 points, each student can make it through this Midterm Exam with flying colors! I also asked the teacher, and if our average score on this Midterm Exam is much higher than on the quizzes, we have a great chance of gaining 100 Class Points. That means each person could get 10,000 personal points—a guaranteed profit! Don't hesitate to buy; the offer expires soon!
Horikita looked thoughtful. Was Kushida behind this? Had she really led Class D's comeback?
At the same time, the system's long-silent voice suddenly rang out, startling Zhuge Linghao.
[Ding! Detected 39 emotion points from Class 1-A, 40 from Class 1-B, 40 from Class 1-C, and 1 from Class 1-D.]
Looking at the strange figures on the panel, Zhuge Linghao rubbed his chin. Could it be that two people...
By the riverbank.
Two figures stood beneath the dim streetlights.
A darkened Kushida and a refreshed Zhuge Linghao faced each other.
Darkened Kushida tried her best to stay calm. "Where did you get the real questions and answers?"
Zhuge Linghao grinned. "Don't! Get! Involved!"
"Then why did you ask me to forward that message to the class?"
"Because you're the only one with everyone's contact information. Now everyone in the class has made a net profit of 5,000 personal points. That's great, isn't it? And it's not like I asked you for nothing. All you have to do now is transfer 145,000 points to me!"
Gritting her teeth, Kushida Kikyo couldn't make heads or tails of Zhuge Linghao's scheme. In the end, she could only transfer the personal points to him.
"All right, stop overthinking it. Hurry up, wash up, and get some sleep!"
After Kushida Kikyo left, the delighted Zhuge Linghao leaped into a dazzling spicy dance!
Three days before the exam.
Zhuge Linghao renewed his Actor Experience Card three days in a row.
First, Zhuge Linghao asked Ayanokoji for past Midterm Exam papers!
He claimed he hadn't been feeling well lately and needed a few extra days to memorize the answers.
Seeing Zhuge Linghao as pale as a sheet, Ayanokoji didn't think much of it and sent him the old exam papers.
With the papers from Ayanokoji in hand, Zhuge Linghao hurried straight to Chabashira-sensei and immediately reported that someone was leaking exam questions.
Zhuge Linghao then requested a new set of questions!
Chabashira-sensei wasn't so easy to fool. After all, the teachers already knew that student groups were secretly trading exam papers.
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