fraud
Following Yao Suran's identification, the hall fell into a deathly silence once again.
The Imperial Clan Academy has always been strictly disciplined. Even the most unruly prince, such as the Fifth Prince, is often punished for missing his homework or falling asleep in class. However, because of his noble status, his companion Cao Yuan takes the blame for him.
For years, he endured punishments ranging from copying the rules of Zhiqiong Hall to standing for half a day, and the Doctor never showed him the slightest leniency or mercy. The most serious offense was when the Fifth Prince neglected his studies and verbally abused the registrar. Fu Sheng punished him by making him kneel before the palace and lashing him with more than ten lashes. After the punishment, Cao Yuan's back was soaked with blood.
Now, such a serious matter as cheating has occurred, involving Yao Suran, who is always arrogant and comes from a prominent family, and Lin Xu, who is always diligent, studious, low-key and down-to-earth in school.
The crowd erupted in uproar. After all, given Fu Sheng's rigorous academic attitude, if the cheating allegations were true, wouldn't the punishment be far more severe than a simple reprimand?
Yao Su'an, who was watching from the sidelines, was already so anxious that her face turned pale.
Upon hearing Yao Suran's words, both Fu Sheng and the school administrator's expressions darkened. She repeatedly accused Lin Xu of cheating, while they themselves were merely innocent bystanders who accidentally discovered crucial evidence.
Mr. Gushi narrowed his eyes, his gaze sweeping over Lin Xu's face before settling on the pen holder placed calmly on Lin Xu's desk.
There were five pens in total, but two were now empty. One of them was obviously the one that was lent to Yao Suran, and the last one was now in Lin Xu's hands.
Lin Xu calmly put down the wolf-hair brush in his hand, the corners of his lips curving upwards, a perfect arc mixed with a hint of solitude.
"The student meant well, unable to bear seeing his classmate suffer, so he lent Yao Suran a pen for the time being. But the student was only focused on today's exam and had no idea that he could have ingeniously incorporated such a clever trick into the pen."
The old man, looking at Lin Xu's pen holder and the pen he had just put down, asked in a solemn voice:
"In that case, would you be willing to let me and the professor examine all the pens?"
Lin Xu smiled even more deeply, but instead of nodding, he said gently, "What Yao Suran said puts me, Lin Xu, on the hot seat of fire. It would be good if you examined it carefully, so that you could clear my name."
Fu Sheng exchanged a glance with Zhang Gu, then picked up the three remaining pens from the pen rack and examined them carefully. Zhang Gu also picked up the pen that Lin Xu had been using from her desk and compared the two pens.
In no time, the two completed the inspection.
It turned out that what Lin Xu held was just an ordinary-looking medium-sized white cloud-patterned brush, made of a combination of sheep hair and purple hair. Perhaps due to long-term use, there were noticeable wear marks on the handle, but apart from that, there was nothing else unusual about it.
The other three brushes were two wolf-hair brushes and one Huzhou brush. The Huzhou brush was exactly the same as the brush with the hidden mechanism in Yao Suran's hand. Not only were the handle and brush hairs the same material, but even the color of the hairs was very similar.
The only difference is that there is no mystery inside.
Fu Sheng then took two Huzhou brushes and compared them carefully. He found that the two brushes, in terms of their age and the stiffness of their handles, seemed to have been made in the same batch.
Students traditionally need to prepare a complete set of writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones before entering school. Wealthy families often buy them in complete sets, enough for half a year at a time. The two Huzhou brushes are very similar in appearance, so they are very likely from the same set. In this case, the brush with the hidden mechanism probably does indeed belong to Lin Xu.
The historical records were nearby, and indeed, the two pens looked identical. However, given the gravity of the situation, it was not wise to make a hasty judgment. He then glanced at Yao Suran, pondered for a moment, and finally asked:
"Since you say that Lin Xu lent you this money, were there any other witnesses besides the two of you?"
As soon as these words were spoken, a voice echoed softly from a corner.
"Yes, sir, I saw it."
Yao Su'an's voice was usually gentle, and she rarely spoke with such certainty.
Fu Sheng frowned slightly. The two were biological sisters; their testimonies were naturally unreliable. Before she could speak, Yao Suran chuckled softly, then said in a sweet voice:
"Although I saw it with my own eyes, to avoid the bond between us sisters, it's best not to be a witness. After all, even if what you said is true, others won't believe it."
She turned her head slightly to look at Song Jiaoling, who was sitting diagonally in front of her, and a bright smile curved her lips:
"When I borrowed the pen just now, Song Jiaoling was not far from us and witnessed the whole thing. Jiaoling, please tell the master whether it is true or not?"
Song Jiaoling was taken aback by Yao Suran's sudden question, and her brow twitched immediately. Seeing that everyone's eyes were on her, her palms quickly became sweaty, and she panicked, so she hurriedly looked at Lin Xu sitting behind Yao Suran.
She still had a beautiful face, so clean it seemed untouched by any dust, and her expression was as calm and serene as ever.
For some reason, Song Jiaoling felt a sharp pain in her heart.
She pursed her lips, hesitated for a moment, and then whispered:
"The student...did see it. That brush was indeed handed to Yao Suran by Lin Xu himself."
These words caused an uproar among the other students.
So, it really was Lin Xu who cheated in secret, but accidentally handed the evidence to Yao Suran? Was it really just such a coincidence?
Cao Yuan snorted coldly, his face showing an expression of expectation: "Since that's the case, then the cheating is confirmed. I believe it should be dealt with according to the school's rules."
As the Fifth Prince's study companion, even though he never made a mistake in his words or deeds, he still received the most punishments in Zhiqiong Hall and was never treated kindly by the Doctor. Why was Lin Xu, whose family background was not high, allowed to slip through the net? Besides, he had long seen that Lin Xu was not an honest and gentle woman.
Lin Xu remained calm, even excessively so.
At first glance, her expression was like a clear, bright pool of water in spring.
But upon closer inspection, one can discern an undercurrent flowing beneath the gentle murmur. However, it is temporarily concealed by the calm surface.
Her eyes swept lightly over Song Jiaoling, paused briefly, and then looked away, fixing on the two pens in the doctor's hand.
"Then I ask you all, if it is truly me, Lin Xu, who secretly kept the note and set up such an ingenious trap, intending to cheat in today's examination—"
Then why should I personally hand over the pen I prepared to someone else?
In that case, wouldn't I be neither able to use this pen to cheat, nor would I be handing over evidence of my own fraud to someone else?
Her voice was clear and crisp, yet there was no trace of fear in her tone.
Upon hearing this, everyone thought for a moment and nodded in agreement.
Yes, surely no one would make such a simple and foolish mistake...
Yao Suran snorted coldly and immediately retorted:
"Xu'er, you're quite the smooth talker. But you might fool a three-year-old with this, but don't think you can fool the Doctor. Everyone saw it; Lin Xu clearly had two almost identical Huzhou brushes, practically indistinguishable from the outside. When I borrowed the brush from you, it was purely accidental, and in your panic, you mistakenly took the one you'd tampered with. Luckily, I'm observant and noticed the discrepancy. Otherwise, you really would have gotten away with it!"
The two argued back and forth, turning the once quiet school into a scene of courtroom debate.
Everyone watched with curiosity, sometimes thinking that Lin Xu's words made perfect sense, and sometimes thinking that Yao Suran's words were so convincing and reasonable.
The clerk also felt a headache coming on. He glanced at Fu Sheng and saw that she also had a solemn expression. He felt that this was a difficult situation. After all, cheating was no small matter. According to the school rules, the instigator would probably not escape severe punishment. That was why the two female students were arguing so fiercely.
Under everyone's gaze, Lin Xu slowly stood up from his seat. His messy hair was slightly damp with fine sweat, but his eyes were exceptionally firm.
“Since entering the university, I have been diligent in my studies and have never slacked off. I can handle the entrance exam with the knowledge I have acquired through my hard work. Why bother preparing cheat sheets and risking being exposed in public?”
Moreover, eight out of ten questions on today's exam were based on classical texts. The pen that had been tampered with was in Yao Suran's hands the whole time, but I had already finished the eight classical text questions on my own answer sheet, so I had no chance to use the cheat sheet to cheat.
If it is convenient, I would appreciate it if you, Doctor, could take a look at my answers and see if this note is necessary to pass today's examination.
Unlike Fu Sheng's daily lessons, who was already very familiar with Lin Xu, he couldn't help but be intrigued by Lin Xu's confidence. He picked up the answer sheet from Lin Xu's desk and, after a quick glance, immediately understood.
The handwriting on the answer sheet was neat and pleasing to the eye. The eight questions on the scriptures were answered fluently and without a single mistake.
The little girl answered all the questions correctly.
Zhang Gu had also made up his mind. Judging from the words of these two female students alone, Yao Suran was aggressive, while Lin Xu was neither humble nor arrogant, and her words were calm and composed. No matter how you looked at it, she did not seem like a student who would do something cheating.
Yao Suran, however, refused to back down in the slightest, coldly scoffing:
"The tampered pen was handed to me by you, Lin Xu. Now that there is both witness testimony and physical evidence, why are you still lying and denying it! Even in front of all your classmates and teachers, are you still going to resist like this?"
She turned her gaze to Fu Sheng, who had remained silent, and said earnestly:
“Sir, as a student of Zhiqiong Hall, I always remember your teachings: honesty is the most important thing in everything. But now Lin Xu has not only committed a serious mistake, but also disregarded integrity and refused to acknowledge me, delaying such an important examination for a long time. The school has strict rules and regulations, and we cannot treat this lightly! I beg you, sir, to act impartially and clear my name!”
She bit her lip, as if making up her mind, and looked at the Third Prince not far away, her words filled with sorrow:
"Moreover, Song Jiaoling and my elder sister Su'an are not the only witnesses. When Lin Xu handed me that pen, His Highness the Third Prince also turned around and witnessed the whole thing."
The Third Prince, who had been sitting in his seat with his eyes fixed straight ahead, completely oblivious to what had just happened, now heard Yao Suran's words. His eyes filled with impatient weariness. He yawned lightly, slowly covered his mouth, and lazily said:
"Today there is such an important matter as the promotion exam. I am too worried about the exam to care about such trivial matters."
His gaze swept lightly over Yao Suran's beautiful face, his eyes as unfathomable as a dark abyss:
"It's strange today; it's rare to see you so tense. I suppose it's because you've been restless ever since the only brush tip broke this morning, and everyone seems like a weirdo to you."
His tone was flat, but it carried an undisguised look of disgust.
Having never seen him act this way before, Yao Suran was momentarily stunned. Before she could even process why the Third Prince was being so harsh with her, a child's voice rang out from the corner:
"Strange, this purple bamboo wolf hair brush is always the hardest, how could it break so easily?"
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