Chapter Twenty-Six: The Cheating Midterm Exam

The weekend slipped by in the blink of an eye.

On Sunday, Zhou Xuan and Zhou Lin went to school together.

During evening study hall, their homeroom teacher, Mr. Liu, specifically mentioned the outcome of the incident where Vice Principal Li and Director Tian had made things difficult for Zhou Xuan.

Although the principal had caught Director Tian and Vice Principal Li in the act, a single questionable exam question was not enough to prove that they had deliberately tried to frame Zhou Xuan for cheating.

They could come up with several plausible explanations, so the matter ended with only a reprimand at a leadership meeting—no further consequences.

However, it was clear that Vice Principal Li would not dare target Zhou Xuan again.

Through this incident, it was evident that the principal paid special attention to Zhou Xuan, and others would not dare trouble him either.

As long as Zhou Xuan continued to excel, his standing in the principal’s eyes would only rise.

After returning to class, everything was calm, since the midterm exams were scheduled for Thursday and Friday.

Everyone was busy reviewing, hoping to achieve good results.

Compared to his classmates’ frantic last-minute cramming, Zhou Xuan appeared at ease, showing none of the stress others felt.

After this period of study, Zhou Xuan’s grasp of middle school knowledge had reached a high level. By his own estimate, even if the high school entrance exam were held now, he was certain he would get into No. 1 High School.

For this midterm, Zhou Xuan was determined to claim the top spot in the grade.

On Wednesday morning, the midterm exams officially began.

During the exams, each classroom was arranged with only forty seats; the remaining desks and chairs were stacked at the back.

The desks were set in eight rows and five columns, spaced apart, with forty students assigned per room.

All students in each grade were randomly assigned to exam rooms.

The proctors were also shuffled so that seventh-grade teachers could not proctor seventh-grade exams, minimizing the chance of cheating.

Zhou Xuan’s seat number was Room 25, Grade 3, Class 2, on the first floor—toward the back by the window, a good spot.

Six other students shared his exam room, but Zhou Xuan was not particularly familiar with them.

On Wednesday morning, they tested Chinese; in the afternoon, Math and Politics; and Geography in the evening.

On Thursday morning, English; in the afternoon, Biology and History. After the exams, school would be dismissed for break.

At nine o’clock Wednesday morning, the Chinese exam officially began—two hours, with a total of 150 points.

Zhou Xuan first skimmed through the paper to get an overall sense of it; he felt the Chinese test was rather challenging this time.

But for a top student like Zhou Xuan, it posed no difficulty at all.

He glanced at each question, and within seconds, his pen was moving.

He read each question, thought for a moment, and the answer appeared on the answer sheet.

His speed was extraordinary; in about twenty minutes, he had finished all but the essay.

Though he couldn’t guarantee perfection, he was confident about ninety-five percent accuracy.

The essay prompt was to write about “the past, present, and future,” in any form, around eight hundred words.

Zhou Xuan pondered for a few minutes, then began to write.

His pen flew across the page, and in less than twenty minutes, eight hundred words filled the paper.

He read through it once, finding no mistakes.

When he checked the time, it was only 9:45.

Looking up, he saw his classmates still scribbling away in earnest, while he felt completely relaxed.

Raising his hand, he signaled to the proctor.

The proctor walked over and quietly asked, “Is there something you need?”

Zhou Xuan calmly replied, “Teacher, I’d like to turn in my paper.”

The proctor checked the time, then Zhou Xuan’s exam—indeed, everything was completed.

Still, she couldn’t believe Zhou Xuan had actually finished so soon, suspecting he had answered carelessly.

Her expression changed: “There’s plenty of time left. You should check your answers again. Are you being fair to your teachers and parents by handing in your paper so hastily?”

Zhou Xuan was speechless; he truly had finished everything.

Just as he was about to explain, another proctor noticed the situation and came over, asking, “What’s going on?”

“This student says he’s finished and wants to hand in his paper. I told him to check it again.”

The second proctor glanced at the name on the exam and her face lit up in surprise: “Are you Zhou Xuan from Class Six, Grade Seven?”

Hearing this, Zhou Xuan guessed the teacher might have heard of him and answered, “Yes, that’s me.”

The teacher nodded to Zhou Xuan, then turned to the other proctor: “If it’s Zhou Xuan, he’s definitely finished. Go ahead and pack up your things, you can leave.”

Zhou Xuan quickly gathered his answer sheet, pen, and other supplies, and walked out.

After Zhou Xuan left, the first proctor asked in surprise, “Is this student really that talented?”

“More than talented! Last time, he was first in the grade for Chinese, Math, and English. The principal even took special notice of him, and I hear the principal thinks highly of this student.”

For every subsequent exam, Zhou Xuan finished early. His early submissions drew the attention of every proctor—some initially doubted that he had truly finished.

But after the math exam, all the teachers were convinced.

One of the proctors was a first-year high school math teacher. When Zhou Xuan finished, he carefully reviewed Zhou Xuan’s answers and found them almost entirely correct.

Zhou Xuan’s early submissions caused quite a stir among the students. Many glanced over in amazement.

The weaker students started to imitate Zhou Xuan, turning in their papers early and almost prompting the teachers to have a word with Zhou Xuan about it.

The top students, however, insisted on staying until the last minute, checking and rechecking their answers.

They knew Zhou Xuan would likely score very high, and they wanted to earn every possible point.

And so, the midterm exams concluded in this atmosphere of friendly competition.

After the exams on Thursday, Friday was set aside for teachers to grade the papers together.

Truth be told, Zhou Xuan had to admire the teachers’ efficiency—so many exams, all graded in a single day, was no small feat. Many teachers stayed late, working past ten at night to finish.

Once grading was complete, homeroom teachers had to tally the results and submit them to the grade committee for record-keeping and calculation of averages and totals.

So by Friday, everyone would know their midterm results. Saturday would be the parent-teacher meeting, where each parent would sit at their child’s desk and receive the midterm report card.

Back in eighth grade, when Zhou’s father came, he had to endure the embarrassment of Zhou Xuan’s declining grades.

But now, things were different. Zhou’s father could proudly say, “My son is the top student in the grade.”

At that thought, Zhou Xuan felt full of confidence about his results.