Electronic Nezha

Chapter 183 New Learning Methods
Liu Zhenhua's gaze fell on a female teacher, who was probably their Chinese teacher.

The female teacher became the center of attention, and she awkwardly asked Liu Zhenhua, "What is the title of your essay?"

"It's a small matter at the farmers' market," Liu Zhenhua said.

"Oh, I remember that essay, cough cough, it lost three points because..." The female teacher stammered for a long time without getting to the point. A teacher next to her tugged at her, indicating that she didn't need to answer at this time.

What everyone wants to understand right now isn't why they lost three points on their essay...

Why did a student who ranked 323rd in the midterm exam become the top student in the grade at the end of the semester? That's what people really want to know!

"Report!" With a shout, a tall, thin student walked in before the teacher could speak. It was Zhang Jingxuan, the top student in the previous grade.

Wang Aili frowned and said, "Zhang Jingxuan, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in class?"

Zhang Jingxuan glanced at Liu Zhenhua and said arrogantly to Wang Aili, "I want to know how the school will deal with Liu Zhenhua's cheating?"

A buzzing sound filled the office.

I think this is perhaps the answer the teachers want to find out—not how Liu Zhenhua got first place in the grade, but how he cheated.

The paper was still in my hand. I glanced at it and saw that Zhang Jingxuan's name was indeed below Liu Zhenhua's. He scored 648, 12 points away from a perfect score. This score was already incredibly strong. Even if he lost the same amount of points on the essay as Liu Zhenhua, he only lost 9 points in all the other subjects combined.

Those who have been away from exam-oriented education for many years may not understand what it means to be only 9 points away from a perfect score. The subjects in the second year of junior high are already quite demanding. These are exams where teachers rack their brains to set traps, subtly test your ability to analyze questions, and openly ask questions beyond the syllabus. In other words, theoretically, you can't get a perfect score on this kind of exam. Zhang Jingxuan's score is consistent with the ability of a top student. As for 657 points, the only explanation is that you obtained the correct answers to all the questions beforehand and memorized them, even the essay. You should know that an essay that only loses three points is still a model essay! Teachers with many years of experience wouldn't be unaware of this basic common sense.

Now that Zhang Jingxuan has revealed this fact, it's quite like the story of the child in "The Emperor's New Clothes."

Wang Aili looked at Liu Zhenhua and said, "Liu Zhenhua, are you...?"

Liu Zhenhua calmly replied, "I didn't cheat."

Zhang Jingxuan sneered, "You really dare to say that! Memorizing the answers must have been hard work, right? If I were you, I would deliberately get a few questions wrong."

Liu Zhenhua said, "You have too much cleverness, so you won't get a perfect score."

"You!" Zhang Jingxuan was furious, but he realized that he had the upper hand now, and said coldly to me, "Uncle Liu, you were able to get the exam papers. I didn't realize you had so much influence."

Wang Aili looked at me with a sudden realization.

I shrugged, speechless. "Why are you looking at me? Do I have the answer on my face?" This was a common slang term used by teachers, and I returned the favor. By now, I was really going all in; Liu Zhenhua had given up on pretending. What could I do?

Zhang Jingxuan asked, "Teacher Wang, how should this matter be handled?"

Liu Zhenhua said, "Let me tell you, you need to apologize to my dad twice."

At that moment, a middle-aged man strode into the classroom and said directly to Wang Aili, "Liu Zhenhua is with you, right? Tell him to go to the principal's office right away." Another "right away." I'd seen this man before; he was Director Li from the Third Middle School's Academic Affairs Office.

Wang Aili asked, "The principal knows too?"

Director Li said, "How could I not know about something like this? Principal Ding just came back from a meeting and immediately sent me to find someone."

At this moment, Ma Chaoran could no longer hold back. She walked in from the door and said, "What do you mean by 'this kind of thing has happened'? What kind of thing is this?"

Director Li asked, "Who are you?"

I waved my hand at Ma Chaoran and said to Director Li, "You withdraw your question. I should be the one asking this. What kind of matter is this?" Director Li replied, "And who are you?"

"I am Liu Zhenhua's father!"

Director Li said, "That's perfect, let's go together."

Ma Chaoran blocked the doorway and said, "Wait, let's clarify the nature of this matter before we go. Is it a conversation, verification, or interrogation?"

Liu Zhenhua said, "It's alright, Lao Ma, I'll handle it." He then asked Director Li, "Director Li, is our agreement still valid?"

Director Li asked in bewilderment, "What agreement?" It turned out he hadn't remembered the bet between my son and me, or with Liu Zhenhua.

"I'm number one in my grade now, where's the computer lab key you gave me?"

Director Li suddenly realized: "You actually cheated on this!"

Ma Chaoran glared at her and asked, "Do you have any evidence?"

Director Li's eyes said it all. He looked at Liu Zhenhua and said, "As long as you can prove that you got this score yourself, you can come to me anytime to get the key!"

On the way to the principal's office, the teachers followed in twos and threes. When they arrived at the door, Director Li rolled his eyes and said, "You all have nothing to do, right? Teacher Wang, stay. The rest of you can go do whatever you need to do."

Zhang Jingxuan asked, "Can I stay?"

Director Li said, "You are... the top student in the grade?" See, this is the special treatment for the top student.

Zhang Jingxuan said defiantly, "It's not like that now."

As Director Li knocked on the door, a dignified voice came from inside: "Come in."

As Liu Zhenhua brushed past Zhang Jingxuan, he said to him, "It won't be like this anymore."

Principal Ding was not yet fifty years old, and he was wearing a neat administrative jacket. This was the first time I had ever met the principal of this school. In the past, when there were speeches by various leaders at the school, it was always the vice principals who spoke.

Principal Ding, seeing the large group of people arriving, didn't waste any words. He let us in, closing the door slightly, and said, "You're all here, right? I was in a meeting at the bureau when I suddenly heard that our school had produced a top scorer. I saw the name was unfamiliar, so I came back. Teacher Wang, what do you think about this?"

Our city has several districts under its jurisdiction. The final exam time for middle school students is unified, but each district has its own exam papers. Today, all the scores for all subjects were released. What he said meant that Liu Zhenhua had the highest score in our district, but it sounded sarcastic to me.
Wang Aili's expression was unpredictable, and she couldn't utter a single word.

"Don't you know your own students? What is Liu Zhenhua's actual level? Why did he suddenly go from being average to becoming the top student in the grade? It's a good thing to have a top scorer, but don't let it turn into an accident." As expected of the principal, he spoke with perfect discretion. He didn't mention cheating at all, but every sentence was full of hints.

Liu Zhenhua stepped forward and said, "Don't make things difficult for Teacher Wang, I'll just retake the exam."

Principal Ding sat back down, tapping the table with his pen, and said, "Logically speaking, it's wrong to draw conclusions without concrete evidence—"

Liu Zhenhua said, "Then let's not follow the rules. I'm prepared. Let's start right away. If I don't get a perfect score in any subject, you can expel me for cheating. Uh, the essay doesn't count."

Wang Aili said, "Liu Zhenhua! Don't talk nonsense!"

Principal Ding said with a half-smile, "It's a good thing that young people are energetic. I'd like to know how you get so confident?"

Liu Zhenhua said, "I've mastered a new learning method and I'm just about to test it out."

(End of this chapter)