The next day, new invigilators came to the exam hall, so Lu Yao didn't have to sit in the first row.

Everything went smoothly. Lu Yao did well in the comprehensive social science exam in the morning and the English exam in the afternoon. He thought that the exam questions were easy.

The provincial placement exam for high school seniors in Xinlu Province ended.

It also gave Lu Yao a temporary respite.

In the following days, Lu Yao either studied or practiced Tuiyun Hand, the first move of Mixed Spirit King Kong Skills, in his spare time.

...

...

Almost a week later, the exam results were about to be released.

Each time the results of the exam came out, some students would be happy because they made great progress, while other students would cry because they had to leave their original classes.

As soon as Lu Yao entered the classroom in the morning, he heard some of Chu Minghui's lackeys flattering him.

"Boss Chu, three students will be recommended for admission to a university this time. If anyone has got that opportunity besides Lin Jiayi in our class and Dong Xiao from Class 2, it must be you! Would you like to say a few words?"

"That's right. This exam has had a high profile in the whole city and even the whole province. Considering the effort that municipal governments had made to organize the exam, I guess the mayor or even the secretary of the municipal Party committee will meet the top students in person!"

"Come on, Minghui, say something. It's a rehearsal!"

Ma Xiaolin, whose relationship with Chu Minghui was the closest, rolled up his exercise book with a big smile and raised it to Chu Minghui's lips with his hands as if it had been a microphone.

"Xiaolin, stop. I don't want anyone to get the wrong idea!" Though Chu Minghui tried to stop Ma Xiaolin, he was flattered in his heart.

Chu Minghui felt sick as if he had swallowed a fly when he thought that he had flattered Lu Yao the same way as Ma Xiaolin did.

"Lu Yao, you are nothing compared to me. How dare you fall in love with her!" Chu Minghui said to himself.

In Lu Yao's eyes, Chu Minghui and his friends just acted like clowns. But he didn't know that Chu Minghui had regarded him as his love rival. It was hard to guess how Lu Yao might have felt if he had known that.

It seemed that Lin Jiayi didn't care about what happened in the classroom at all. Even though Chu Minghui and his friends repeatedly mentioned her name, she didn't look up at them.

It was not until Lu Yao sat next to her and greeted her as usual that she looked up. She glanced at Lu Yao and quickly lowered her head as usual.

Chu Minghui stared at Lu Yao from the first moment Lu Yao entered the classroom. When he saw Lin Jiayi and Lu Yao looking at each other, he almost wanted to kill Lu Yao.

When Ma Xiaolin and others were still flattering Chu Minghui, Yang Linchi, the class teacher, walked into the classroom with a folder.

"Be quiet, everyone. I have some news for you."

"First of all, I would like to congratulate Lin Jiayi, who is the top scorer in this provincial placement exam for high school seniors in Xinlu Province. Let's give her a big hand!"

As Yang Linchi finished speaking, the whole classroom burst into thunderous applause.

Lin Jiayi seldom talked to others and was the well-known "Ice Queen", but she was the most beautiful girl in the school and she also did well academically. Nowadays, as long as one was good-looking, he or she would have fans, especially among innocent students.

"OK. Well, the next thing I want to tell you is that there are nine students from our class in the top 20. And among the top 10, four students are in our class. This is the best exam result ever in our school!" Yang Linchi waved, signaling to students to be quiet. And then he continued, "Chu Minghui won the fourth place in the exam while Han Dong won the ninth place. These students are role models for all of you. You should learn from them and try to surpass them! So..."

Chu Minghui was stunned when he heard that he only came fourth this time. What Mr. Yang said late didn't register in his brain.

How come?

How come he only came fourth? Although Chu Minghui couldn't compare with Lin Jiayi and Dong Xiao, he also couldn't find anyone else who could surpass him in the whole Shuangta City. Of course, he didn't count Lu Yao in.

Even if it was the Lu Yao, it should be the one who just entered the No. 1 High School in Shuangta City, not the Lu Yao, who refused to hand in his homework and looked unhealthy.

"It's impossible!"

When other students were listening to the class teacher in silence, Chu Minghui couldn't help standing up and yelling, "It's impossible. It's impossible!"

Everyone in the classroom was shocked by his crazy behavior.

As the commissary in charge of studies, Chu Minghui had always been a submissive student. Many students were wondering what happened to him.

Only Ma Xiaolin and several students who had been flattering Chu Minghui knew what happened. They felt numb with shock, too. And they knew that Chu Minghui became crazy because he lost the chance to be recommended for admission to a university because of a student whose name hadn't been released yet.

And Ma Xiaolin even knew a secret that only three people knew.

"Chu Minghui, what's the matter with you?" Yang Linchi was also shocked by Chu Minghui's behavior.

"Mr. Yang, you just said there were four students from our class in the top 10, but you have only announced the places of Lin Jiayi, Han Dong, and me. I want to know who the last student is." It was not long before Chu Minghui realized the key of the matter after his transitory discomposure.

"I can't tell you now because we need to talk to some students to confirm something first. So the final result can't be released for now!" said Yang Linchi.

A buzz of excitement filled the classroom as he finished speaking.

Opinions were widely divided. Some students were even more imaginative than those fortune tellers on the street.

"Well, don't make any noise. Your English class will be changed to self-study this morning." Yang Linchi once again waved as a sign for students to be quiet and then continued, "Lin Jiayi, come out with me!"

Yang Linchi waved at Lin Jiayi. After that, he glanced at Chu Minghui who was still standing dully, then walked to the door.

...

...

"Lin Jiayi, can you tell the headmaster and everyone here how Lu Yao threatened you and copied your answers?"

The headmaster's office was full of people at this time. Liu Taibin asked Lin Jiayi earnestly.

Lin Jiayi stood still, neither denying nor admitting.

"Lin Jiayi, don't be afraid of retaliation. As long as you tell us that Lu Yao did copy your test paper, we will all protect you!" Seeing that Lin Jiayi didn't say a word after she entered the headmaster's office, Liu Taibin said anxiously.

But Lin Jiayi still stood there, neither denying nor admitting.

"Lin Jiayi, what's wrong with you? Tell us what happened!" Liu Taibin raised his voice and almost shouted.

"Well, Mr. Liu, don't push her too hard. I believe that Lin Jiayi will tell us the truth." Yang Linchi, the class teacher, walked to Lin Jiayi and said in a soft voice, "Lin Jiayi, can you tell me whether Lu Yao copied your test paper?"

"No!"

Lin Jiayi finally replied, looking up at Yang Linchi's eyes.

"It's impossible. If he didn't cheat, how could he come third in this exam? It can't be true. Everyone here knows how Lu Yao performed in the past year!" Liu Taibin yelled, glancing around.

"Yes, it's a little weird!"

A middle-aged teacher wearing a suit and tie said.

"That's right! Look, Director Li doesn't believe it either!"

"Lin Jiayi, I hope you can tell us what exactly happened in the exam hall. Not a single detail is to be omitted. Can you do that?"

The headmaster, who had been sitting at the middle desk, walked slowly to Lin Jiayi and said.

Headmaster Hu, who had been the headmaster of the No.1 High School in Shuangta City for more than 20 years, was known for his fairness. Although he would make caustic remarks occasionally, all teachers and students thought highly of him.

"Mr. Headmaster, Lu Yao didn't copy my test paper. At first, his seat was in the last row. It was Mr. Liu who asked him to sit in front of me on the first day of the exam. What's more, Mr. Liu had been sitting in front of him, so Lu Yao couldn't have the chance to copy my test paper."

This time, Lin Jiayi said exactly what she thought.

"On the first day of the exam, I did ask him to sit in the first row and stare at him. But I wasn't in that exam hall on the second day. How could I know whether he cheated?"

Seeing people all stare at him with questioning eyes after hearing Lin Jiayi's words, Liu Taibin quickly explained.

"Well..." Headmaster Hu also wavered and didn’t know what to do.

"Teachers, can you tell me how Lu Yao did in Shinese and math?" Lin Jiayi asked.

"Lu Yao got 141 marks in the Shinese exam and 145 marks in the math exam. Why do you ask that? Did you remind anything else?" Yang Linchi was a little surprised when he heard Lin Jiayi took the initiative to inquire about Lu Yao’s marks.

"In that case, the result is obvious!" Lin Jiayi said.

"What do you mean?"

"You mean that since Lu Yao could do well in his exams under the eyes of Mr. Liu, he didn't need to cheat in other exams, right?" Yang Linchi did a double-take and said happily.

"No. It's impossible. Lu Yao must have played some dirty tricks. Even my eyes were deceived by him..." Liu Taibin was still trying to explain.

"Well, I don't want any arguments. I need to report to the higher authorities. Everyone, get back to work." Headmaster Hu interrupted Liu Taibin, "Lin Jiayi, before we reach a clear conclusion, you should not mention it to anyone. Do you understand?"

"Yes!"

"You can leave now!"