Chapter 3: Investigation

Chapter 3: Investigation

To tell the truth, if I said I wasn’t panicking, I’d be lying.

After all, neither of those two exam results had come from my own real ability.

Still, I quickly got my emotions under control. I looked up at Principal Gao and asked, “Principal Gao, why isn’t Ms. Mei here?”

The teachers sitting there all froze. Why was I asking about that?

I said, “Ms. Mei has always been my homeroom teacher. She knows me best. And during those exam days, she was also the main proctor. I want to ask her whether I did anything wrong.”

I knew very well that at a time like this, I absolutely could not play by the script they had set for me. If I did, I would definitely be exposed.

Of course, the main reason was that I felt guilty. So I decided to take a different path.

I remembered Grandma had told me long ago that when dealing with trouble, if you could fight, then fight; if you couldn’t, then reason with them. So I pretended to be angry, raised my voice, and said, “Principal Gao, teachers. There are 125 students in our graduating class, and 98 of us took this exam. Why am I the only one being singled out for a separate review? Before anyone proves I cheated, I have the right to refuse any unfair treatment against me. Is it because I don’t have parents, so you think I’m easy to bully? Or is it because my grades were poor before, so anyone can just suspect me whenever they want? If there’s going to be a review, then every student who took the exam should be reviewed together. It can’t be aimed only at me. Otherwise, it isn’t fair. I don’t think teachers should suspect people without evidence either.”

Honestly, teachers never paid much attention to a slacker like me, so they didn’t know me at all. They also hadn’t expected that I was actually pretty good at talking.

When Gao Minjun saw that I wasn’t cooperating, he immediately played his trump card. “So you’re refusing to undergo the review? If that’s the case, all your scores may be invalidated. This isn’t my decision alone.”

I answered at once, “Then there’s nothing I can do. I don’t know whether a principal has the authority to cancel a student’s scores without any evidence. But I do think that when someone encounters unfairness, they should fight back. Taking it silently and refusing to argue when you have reason on your side—that isn’t what teachers want to see, is it? A national exam like this has strict surveillance. I just don’t understand. If checking the footage can solve the problem, why go to all this trouble?”

When I finished, the teachers in front of me were visibly hesitant. After all, they had no real evidence. Everything was based on suspicion.

Gao Minjun hadn’t expected my attitude to be so firm. More importantly, what I said made sense. So he changed tack, and his tone became much more amiable. “Beichen, don’t get upset. Take another careful look at these questions. They’re all ordinary questions. Even at your previous level, I’m sure they wouldn’t be beyond you. You only need a few minutes to prove yourself to your teachers and classmates. This is also an opportunity the teachers are giving you. Isn’t it?”

Isn’t it, my ass.

Gao Minjun, I’ll remember this.

You’re deliberately making things difficult for me, aren’t you? If I refuse to do it, what can you do to me?

I really wanted to pretend I was furious, tear the papers to pieces, and walk out with my head held high. Let them do whatever they wanted.

But just as I was thinking about what my next move should be, a clear voice suddenly entered my mind.

“Don’t rush to leave. I can help you.”

Who?

My heart jolted. I lifted my head and glanced around at the teachers. My gaze briefly swept over Principal Gao, who was smiling.

Was it him? It couldn’t be. He was the one who had set this trap for me. Besides, I had never been able to sense him before.

“I’ll give you the answers. I’ll speak, you write.”

The voice came again.

I pretended I didn’t know anything and sat there looking wronged, without moving or looking at anyone.

“For that matrix sequence multiple-choice question, the answer should be D.”

That person was giving me the answer.

Gao Minjun.

It was definitely him.

What was he trying to do?

Before I could determine his true intention, I decided I couldn’t act rashly. After all, he had followed me for several days. He had definitely been up to no good. Now, his purpose wouldn’t be kind either.

Right. He wanted to test me.

So I sat there even more firmly and refused to move.

Everyone just sat like that.

In fact, for me, whether I answered those questions or not would lead to the same result. I had a feeling Gao Minjun didn’t necessarily care whether my scores were real. What he cared more about was probably how I had cheated.

But if I refused to cooperate, then at least they wouldn’t have enough evidence to prove there was a problem with my exam.

We stayed deadlocked for a while. Everyone found it rather dull. Fortunately, when I left, Principal Gao and the teachers didn’t say anything too harsh.

When I got home, I felt a little depressed.

Grandma seemed to understand everything. She walked over gently, patted me on the shoulder, and said, “Silly child, don’t be sad. That was something you were meant to experience. Your path is not there.”

I said, “Grandma, I’m not sad because they suspected me. It’s just that I can’t figure out what Principal Gao and the others are thinking.”

Then I told Grandma exactly what had happened that day, from the teachers surrounding me for the review to every detail in between.

When she heard that Principal Gao had secretly transmitted information to me, Grandma immediately became serious and said hurriedly, “You did the right thing. Principal Gao is not simple. You must be careful and stay on guard. In the future, try to keep your distance from him. You’ve basically graduated now. If he calls you again, you don’t have to go.”

Grandma was my only family. So I really wanted to ask her where this sensing ability I had recently developed had come from.

But just as I was about to speak, Grandma cut me off.

She said, “Don’t tell me how you cheated. Don’t tell anyone. You must remember this. Do not mention it to anyone.”

After Grandma finished speaking, her expression suddenly turned grave. The kind old woman I knew became almost unfamiliar. She scolded me, “Don’t tell even me. The person you think you’re facing may not even be real. In time, you’ll slowly understand. This world is far more complicated and cruel than you imagine. Some things have only just begun. I didn’t tell you before because you hadn’t been involved yet. Now that you are, I must warn you: keep your guard up. With anyone, absolutely anyone, you cannot bare your heart. All your secrets belong to you alone. Some things must be buried so deep they rot in your stomach. Judge for yourself. Feel for yourself. No one can truly help you. I can’t help you either.”

Grandma’s sudden change in attitude sent a chill through me.

There was too much information in her words. I couldn’t digest it all at once. Could the world I saw be fake? Could people change into something else? That wasn’t scientific.

Then again, if I could have an ability beyond ordinary people, why couldn’t others?

Grandma continued, “You were never supposed to take that kind of exam. You should understand by now that I never cared about your exam scores before because you didn’t need them. Of course, when you signed up this time, I didn’t stop you. That was because this was also a form of tempering for you, a road you had to walk. Some people are destined for you to meet. Some things are yours to face. I can’t help you with those. That’s why I didn’t interfere.”

After she finished, Grandma gradually became the kind old woman again. She sighed and said, “Don’t count on me. Don’t count on anyone. What you can see is only the small part you’re able to see. What you can’t see is vast, and there is so much of it. Do you understand?”

No.

I especially did not understand.

Grandma, could you please explain it a little more clearly?

But Grandma clearly had no intention of saying anything more.

I tried to sense whether there was more content in Grandma’s mind.

There was nothing.

As for this sensing thing, I still hadn’t figured it out. Was it really an ability? Or was it some kind of controllable resonance of information between people?

Why had I never had it before, but suddenly had it now? Why did it work sometimes, and other times not so well? Where exactly had it come from?

I felt that Grandma was definitely hiding something from me.

But since she didn’t want to say it, I didn’t want to add to her burden.

About two days passed.

Ms. Mei Qili came to find me.

I didn’t actually have any ill will toward Ms. Mei. She had been my homeroom teacher since I was little. Giving her that nickname had been wrong of us.

When she came to me, she told me frankly that Principal Gao had entrusted her to ask me some questions. Of course, she herself really did have doubts too. My usual grades weren’t that good. How could I have suddenly shocked everyone in the gaokao instead?

I told Ms. Mei the truth and said directly, “Ms. Mei, I cheated.”

I admitted it.

I really had cheated.

In any case, I didn’t plan to go to college.

Ms. Mei was clearly not mentally prepared for my confession.

She had heard from other teachers about the school’s collective review of me. At the time, my attitude had been very firm. So she had never expected me to confess so readily.

Faced with my admission, Ms. Mei actually became hesitant. After all, for a child from a mountain place like ours, the gaokao was a major event in life.

If I admitted it just like that, the school would definitely report it truthfully. When that happened, my exam scores would certainly be canceled, and I might even lose my exam eligibility. In other words, I would not be allowed to take the gaokao again in the future.

Those were clear Ministry of Education regulations.

Then my life would be over.

After hearing me, Ms. Mei fell silent for a long time. Then she said, “No. No, you didn’t cheat. I personally checked the surveillance footage and confirmed everything with all the proctors. None of them had any evidence proving that you cheated. Beichen, you can’t give up. You have to keep going. Set an example for the kids from mountain places like ours.”

Ms. Mei’s attitude suddenly moved me a little. It also made me feel somewhat guilty.

I wasn’t actually that noble.

It was only because Grandma had told me that my future path didn’t lie with the gaokao. Even if Ms. Mei hadn’t come to find me, I wouldn’t have gone to college anyway.

About another week passed. Principal Gao came specifically to find me and said he wanted to speak with me alone.

At first, I wasn’t planning to bother with him.

Grandma had told me I could ignore him. In any case, I had already decided to give up the path of applying to universities. He couldn’t do anything to me.

But one sentence from Principal Gao forced me to go.

He said, “Kid, you don’t really matter. But your grandmother is in serious trouble. If you want to protect her, you must explain everything to me clearly. Otherwise, I’ll follow the law and go to your grandmother to get it straight.”

You son of a—

You dare touch my Grandma?

So I decided I would meet him after all.

As the saying goes, if it’s a blessing, it isn’t a disaster; if it’s a disaster, you can’t avoid it.