Study Monster Cultivation System
Chapter 256 - 255 All are fake mothers

Li Zheng didn’t know that when he and Lin Yujing were looking at their scores, people checking their own scores were also watching them.

As if they were looking at two monsters.

"Quiet God and God Zheng are just too terrifying..."

"This year’s theory question... even a perfect score?"

"Could it be that studying together as a boy and a girl is more conducive to learning?"

"As everyone knows, learning ability can be... transmitted."

"Then, can boys study together?"

"You guys scram, they are the duo of gods crossing together."

"Just really curious, if those two had a kid, what would that be?"

"Dare not think... it might be the end for all humanity..."

Lin Yujing was forced to hear all this and just wanted to scratch someone and run away, but it was so crowded around her that she could only scratch Li Zheng instead: "Trash, make way!"

"Hold on." Li Zheng didn’t mind the gossip, he was more concerned with his big brother beside him who was distraught, "Yingnan, don’t panic, the worst case is me, not you—a perfect 400 points, lose by one point, lose for a lifetime."

"No... I didn’t mean there’s a problem with you guys." Qi Yingnan pointed listlessly towards the announcement board, "Look further down..."

Li Zheng then looked at the announcement board once more, scanning down from his name.

[Third place, Du Zicheng, Xiangnan, Xiangnan Normal University Affiliated High School.]

[Theoretical total score: 246. Ranking: 3]

[Experimental total score: 79.3. Ranking: 6]

[Overall total score: 325.3.]

[Fourth place, Yu Tao, Zhejiang, Huihu Middle School... Total score 320.4.]

[Fifth place, Cai Wanyi, Zhejiang, Huihu Middle School...]

[Sixth place, Xu Ran, Zhejiang, Huihu Middle School...]

[Seventh place, Fang Haizhe, Shanghai, Hua University No. 2 High School...]

[Eighth place, Peng Haofei, Zhejiang, Huihu Middle School...]

...

[Eleventh place, Huang Lingqi, Yu Men, Yuehua Middle School... Total score 305.5]

...

[Thirteenth place, Yuan Yixuan, Zhejiang, Huihu Middle School]

...

[Fifteenth place, Sun Xiao, Zhejiang, Huihu Middle School]

...

[Twenty-seventh place, Zhou Bohan, Jijing, Ren University Affiliated High School]

...

[Thirty-second place, Sun Yiran, Zhejiang, Huihu Middle School]

...

[Fifty-first place, Qi Yingnan, Jijing, No. 4 Middle School... total score 276.9]

...

"Damn..." Li Zheng cursed in shock, "Really...missed by just one spot..."

Everyone who came here knew that the top 50 contestants before the final would be selected for the national training team.

More importantly, being selected for the national team was a solid criterion for direct admission to Jingbei.

Thus, every year there would be an unfortunate fifty-first place.

It wasn’t that he didn’t try hard.

It was just too unlucky...

Who would have expected, it would be Qi Yingnan’s turn.

Losing one point and losing a lifetime is a myth.

Missing by one ranking and losing a chance at a prestigious school is reality.

"This... this... There are way too many people from Huihu Middle School..." Qi Yingnan was staring at the public board with red eyes, a typically loud and shameless guy about to cry out of frustration, "9 people... Huihu has 9 people making the training team... Even Xiangnan at its peak, a province could only have at most 8 in a year..."

It was only then that Li Zheng realized why he had felt uneasy upon arriving.

People around, just like Qi Yingnan, saw the results but still stood there, unwilling to leave.

Of course, there were also continuous curses under someone’s breath.

"Damn."

"None the year before last, one last year, nine this year?"

"Bullshit..."

"Four in the top ten... the number one middle school in the universe..."

"No, no, no, I think Lake Ying is the number one middle school in the universe, aren’t God Zheng and Quiet God even tougher?"

"It’s not the same, God Zheng became famous through Chem Competitions."

"Who’s the guy in 51st place? I’m 52nd, let’s get acquainted..."

Some distance away, the male assistant struggled to squeeze out of the crowd and walked anxiously up to Huang Lingqi.

Seeing his expression, Huang Lingqi roughly knew the result.

"It’s okay, just tell me."

"Um..." the male assistant handed over the phone, "Lin Yujing and Li Zheng ranked first and second, you’re eleventh."

"..." Huang Lingqi’s face darkened as he took the phone and looked at the photo, "Not even in the top ten..."

The assistant shook his head secretly: "Something’s off, I had Shary check the data from previous years."

A moment later, Huang Lingqi closed the phone and shoved it back into the assistant’s arms.

Without a word, he turned and left.

"Peter..." The assistant hurriedly followed him, "Eleventh is still a very good result, you can still strive for IPHO and APHO..."

"No, eleventh means nothing, especially when it’s hung up in the news, you look like a fool," Huang Lingqi said with an ashen face, his eyes filled with a murderous look, "Go check, check Huihu, we need to find something tonight, tomorrow will be too late."

"Wait..." The assistant, panicked, nervously looked around, then leaned in and pressed urgently, "Are you... planning to confront the organizing committee?"

"The organizing committee is already opposing everyone."

"But... don’t make trouble, Peter."

"I told you," Huang Lingqi glared back coldly, "Not. To. Teach. Me. How. To. Do. My. Job."

...

Meanwhile, in the meeting room, including Yang Changle, almost every provincial team leader surged toward the event organizer to demand a review of their team’s scores.

With a host of complaints filling the air, the room became tense within minutes.

The organizer had no choice but to pick up the microphone and announce a temporary suspension of the public posting.

In a flurry of cursing, the students reluctantly left the venue under the guidance of their respective team leaders.

Without wasting a moment, Yang Changle gathered the students in his room and started an informal meeting.

It had been crowded in the meeting room, but the moment they entered his room, someone started cursing immediately.

"Dammit, has Huihu gone insane?"

"Teacher Yang, you need to stand up for us!"

"Calm down... we also have Li Zheng and Lin Yujing... at least the champions."

"But we also have Qi Yingnan!"

In the corner, Li Zheng kept patting on the dispirited Qi Yingnan: "Ying Bao’er, don’t cry... don’t cry..."

"Fuck off..." Qi Yingnan cursed with red eyes, "I’m not panicking... I’ve got a solid signing... not depending on admissions through recommendation... but... but... damn, it’s way off..."

"Um..." Lin Yujing also comforted, "Don’t cry, don’t cry, just study science and math well..."

"But I hate chemistry..."

"It’s okay, I hate it too..."

"Alright, alright... stop trying to comfort.... It’s not a big deal." Qi Yingnan wiped his eyes and forced a smile, "Haven’t congratulated you guys yet, Lake Ying Duo has finally made a name in Jianghu, haha."

"Don’t be like that, you laugh worse than you cry," Li Zheng shook his head and opened his arms, "Forget it, come cry on my shoulder."

"Screw off! I might consider crying on Lin Yujing..."

"Screw off!!"

"Lin Yujing hadn’t told me to get lost, so what’s your hurry?"

"Get lost!" Lin Yujing exclaimed.

"Fake mom..." Qi Yingnan said with a mournful face, "All fake moms."

On the other side, Yang Changle and Tao Feifei finished their discussion and raised their hand to signal everyone to be quiet.

"Alright, let’s not all speak at once."

"We’ve looked into the situation at Huihu Middle School."

"They started to focus on the Phys Competitions the year before last."

"That year, one person was selected for the provincial team, and no one was selected for the national team."

"The second year, which was last year, seven people were selected for the provincial team, and one person was selected for the national team."

"This year, fifteen people were selected for the provincial team, and from the current results, nine are expected to make the national team."

"Although it’s exaggerated, there is a basis for this progression in results."

"From the current situation, any allegations of cheating by Huihu are merely speculation and slandering."

"I ask our Jijing Team students not to believe in speculations, not to spread them, and certainly not to create them."

"Please everyone, hold steady, do not blow this out of proportion, nor slander other schools without evidence."

"Teacher Tao and I will do our best to contact the grading panel and review the papers."

"We will try by all means to rectify the scores before they are finalized tomorrow night, scoring even a single point if possible."

"If there is any definite news, Teacher Tao and I will notify you all immediately."

"Just one last thing, before we have clear evidence, do not make a fuss."

Long after Yang Changle finished speaking, someone suddenly looked up.

"So you mean, if, just if, we do get evidence, then we can make a fuss?"

Yang Changle immediately turned to look at the scenery: "Don’t look at me, I didn’t say that."

Seeing his attitude, the students finally relaxed a bit.

Yang Changle’s implied message was quite clear.

We shouldn’t wrong a good school based on speculation.

But if it’s not speculation.

Then let’s take them down.

After gaining approval from the students, Yang Changle dismissed most of them, keeping only the trio including Li Zheng.

He first approached Qi Yingnan: "Yingnan, I understand how you feel, although I’m not a teacher at No. 4 Middle School, please believe me, I will try my best to lift your scores, but it will depend on your paper."

"Thank you, Teacher Yang." Qi Yingnan scratched his head, "I’m... okay, I guess... and also, if you lift my scores, wouldn’t that mean pushing someone else down?"

Tao Feifei couldn’t help but laugh and cry: "What are you worrying about at a time like this?"

"Heh..." Qi Yingnan grinned sheepishly, "I just think, if that really happens, the other guy will definitely cry worse than me, which would be pretty embarrassing."

"You’re just overthinking it," Yang Changle chuckled as he patted his shoulder, "Every year after the results are released, everyone checks the papers and tries to score a point or two. If everyone else is doing it and you’re not, you’d be at a loss. The current ranking is only provisional. Final rankings will definitely change, though..."

Yang Changle looked at Li Zheng and Lin Yujing, "You two are leading by more than 40 points... It’s just too much... Don’t worry, even if we tried to elevate scores to the sky, your rankings won’t change."

"Wait." Li Zheng suddenly interjected, his pupils flashing, "What if I could scrape up a point or two? Wouldn’t that mean a change then?"

"..."

"Teacher Yang!!!" Li Zheng suddenly leapt in front of Yang Changle, "Please help me score! This is a lifetime matter, I’m begging you!!"

"No... you have a perfect score, there’s no room for improvement, and a real review of the paper would only bring down your score..."

"What about the experimental score?"

"Experimental scores can’t be adjusted, they were set on the spot."

"Ah!" Li Zheng pounded his leg in frustration.

Lin Yujing couldn’t help but scoff, "Scoundrel’s ambition, lousy..."

"Alright, if there’s nothing else, Teacher Tao and I will go try to score," Yang Changle finally looked at Li Zheng and Lin Yujing and gestured towards Qi Yingnan, sending a meaningful look.

The implication was clear – comfort Qi Yingnan during this time.

Li Zheng immediately nodded in understanding.

With that, the group packed up and left the room.

As the three exited the elevator, Yang Changle suddenly held the door.

"Stop messing around, don’t cause any trouble..." Yang Changle instructed, still uneasy, he further cautioned, "At least don’t be the first one to start trouble."

"Don’t worry, Teacher Yang," Li Zheng smiled, "I’m more inclined to believe that Huihu Middle School has made rapid progress, after all, our Lake Ying... You see, right?"

"Alright, alright, that puts me at ease. You all relax a bit more." It was only then that Yang Changle waved his hand and pressed the button to close the door.

Once the elevator doors closed, Tao Feifei shook her head and laughed, "The first and second place... are they sick to still be causing trouble?"

Yang Changle slightly pursed his lips. Despite his thinning hair, his face still carried a youthful spirit.

"No, you don’t understand, young kids always seek justice."

...

In the penthouse suite, the female assistant walked quickly to the desk to report.

"I’ve done a preliminary check. There was definitely something off with Huihu’s scores in the semifinals this year." The assistant quickly said, pulling herself a chair, "Two people scored above 380 points, which is on par with Lin Yujing, but in the actual finals, they were about 50 points behind Li Zheng and Lin Yujing."

"And the others?"

Upon hearing this, the assistant pulled her chair closer and lowered her voice.

"The rest are all hearsay, mostly talked about by the classmates you treated to dinner the night before yesterday."

"Some people reported that Huihu covered examples during training that closely resembled the final exam questions, but there’s no evidence."

"Also, a teacher revealed that there tends to be some degree of home-field advantage most years, and the experts in charge of setting the questions are mostly from the province’s education system, so it’s hard to say whether they wouldn’t give hints to their provincial schools."

"This is also without evidence, considered a kind of unspoken rule."

"Usually, such advantages affect schools across the province, but it has never been heard of being confined to a single school."

"There are also some unrelated matters."

"Regarding Huihu’s situation, the schools in Zhejiang are those that have complained the most."

"The Jijing Team complained the least, perhaps because they’re well managed by their teachers, or perhaps because they secured both the champion and runner-up spots, they just want to keep quiet and make big money."

"Lastly, as the sole representative from Yu Men Special District, you’ve made history for Yu Men. Next year, you’ll likely get an additional spot in the final. Personally, I suggest you don’t delve any deeper."

"Hmm…" Huang Lingqi pondered for a moment and then asked, "About that first piece of information, the leaked example question, where did it come from?"

"It was disclosed by a local contestant from Hangzhou," the assistant explained, "who seemed to be dining at the same table when someone from Huihu let it slip, but the topic was quickly changed by others, leaving no chance to ask more."

"Who?"

"Do we need to be that precise?"

"No, no, no, I’ve changed my mind. I don’t need to know who it was," Huang Lingqi said, waving his hand, "There are only 15 people in total, just investigate all of them. If nothing useful turns up, check the other Huihu contestants who participated in the semifinals."

"...Peter, we are not police."

"Do we need the police?" Huang Lingqi spread his hands and said, "Discarded draft papers, WeChat, QQ, statuses, Moments—there’s plenty in these."

"But… surely they wouldn’t be so naive as to leave sensitive stuff out in public spaces, right?"

"No, no, you’re mistaken," Huang Lingqi lightly tapped his forehead, "If a Huihu teacher were to leak the questions, do you think he would say, ’Hey students, we managed to get the final exam’s real questions, everyone take note!’? Would it happen like that?"

"Let me think..." the assistant pursed her lips in thought, "If it was passed to just one person, maybe... no, that’s not possible either... A teacher would definitely go over it like any regular example question. Otherwise, openly admitting to leaking questions would make the students uneasy and the school would be in great danger, even bound to cause more widespread leaking of the questions."

"So?"

"So..." The assistant’s eyes lit up, "Before the theory exam, Huihu’s own students wouldn’t even know they were leaked the questions, they wouldn’t hide it nor realize they had something sensitive."

"Exactly," Huang Lingqi nodded, tapping on the table, "They might even discuss the leaked questions in their study groups or let it slip out unknowingly in other unusual places. Our job is to find it before they realize and delete it."

"Got it!" the assistant stood up excitedly, "You really don’t need me to teach you how to do things, Peter."

"By the way, try to find those who hate Huihu the most, they might also be able to provide some leads."

"Right… I’m on it…" the female assistant hurriedly stood up, "A few of those who came for dinner that night really want to connect with you, probably just wanting to add a star’s contact to show off back home."

"Ignore them, and let’s not make it seem like we’re doing something big. Keep it low-key if possible."

"Absolutely." The assistant walked to the door and then turned to ask, "If we really find something, are you sure about making a fuss?"

"Very unsure," Huang Lingqi said gravely, "but I at least want to know the truth. Right now, I feel like a monkey being played with, eleventh place... I don’t even have the face to post on Weibo, damn."

With that, he swayed the mouse and started typing on the keyboard, his expression finally easing a bit.

"OK, just leave it to us; you should also take a break." The assistant’s expression softened, watching Huang Lingqi’s mischievous smile, she asked, "Do you play games too?"

"No, I’m choosing a car," Huang Lingqi said with a slight smile, "How about a pink Beetle? Quite the princess vibe, right, Zheng Zheng, little princess?"

"Ugh… Peter, your jokes really cost you," she said.