Volume 10: Pro and Con
Chapter 7: The Bad Woman
Zhu Xi didn’t react.
The other two examiners began to pick up their scoring sheets, preparing to call out names in order. Just then, Lu Li stood up and, under the puzzled gazes of everyone, placed a letter on the examiners’ table.
It was his Character Evaluation Book.
The classes in Shenzhou were fragmented. Most ordinary people would never come into contact with the aristocratic clans in their entire lives. This Character Evaluation Book was completely meaningless in the eyes of the students. Jiang Zhouzheng picked up the Character Evaluation Book and looked at it over and over again, checking the three words “Superior-Superior” again and again.
“Falsifying a Character Evaluation Book is a criminal offense,” Jiang Zhouzheng said to Lu Li with dissatisfaction, handing the book to the other examiners.
“Professor Jiang, what is a Character Evaluation Book?” It wasn’t a student who asked this question, but surprisingly, the other two examiners. “What are we supposed to be checking here?”
Jiang Zhouzheng didn’t answer them. Instead, he stared intently at Lu Li, his eyes wide like copper bells, trying to put psychological pressure on him. He didn’t like Lu Li, didn’t like such an arrogant person, didn’t like his indifferent gaze.
“I know. This is real. It has the committee’s seal on it,” Lu Li said.
“You need to prove it.”
“How do I prove it?” Lu Li asked with confusion. “I’ve already graduated. Am I supposed to run back to the school to get a certificate of proof? By the time I get back, the interview will be over, right? Besides, isn’t it the school’s job to verify this?”
Jiang Zhouzheng felt as if ants were crawling in his heart. He really hated Lu Li’s attitude. How dare he question him, an elder, so matter-of-factly?
“Can you bear the responsibility for forging a Character Evaluation Book? Causing other students to lose their chance of admission because of a fake certificate—can you bear the responsibility for the loss of their future?” Jiang Zhouzheng said righteously. “I am acting according to procedure. Classmate Lu Li, please cooperate and show some consideration for the bigger picture!”
Lu Li was relentless. “What procedure? Is there a red-headed document? You say there’s a procedure, so there’s a procedure?”
Jiang Zhouzheng was hit with a fatal question. He had never thought a student with no social experience would dare to rebut him so harshly. The tips of his ears gradually turned red—the red of anger.
“Why are you so inconsiderate of the bigger picture? I’ve already said I don’t have the authority to make a judgment on the Character Evaluation Book. You must obtain a certificate of proof beforehand. Your lack of preparation is because you didn’t prepare sufficiently for the interview beforehand!” The cruelest form of attack is to use the system and the greater good as a pretext. Jiang Zhouzheng’s words were delivered with impassioned righteousness, and his red ears were seen by the students as a symbol of a teacher’s authority.
Lu Li took out his phone.
“What are you doing?”
“Calling the admissions office.”
“Taking out your phone during an interview is tantamount to cheating,” Jiang Zhouzheng said through gritted teeth. He couldn’t let Lu Li make the call. Once his superiors got involved, he would lose completely. The Mulan admissions brochure stated that priority would be given to students with a Character Evaluation Book—although Mulan University hadn’t admitted many students with one since its founding.
Just as the atmosphere in the room was becoming more and more tense, Zhu Xi, sitting in the back row, said, “There’s no need for a certificate of proof. I can vouch for him.”
“?” A big question mark appeared in everyone’s mind, including Lu Li’s.
“He is a student of Chuanhai No. 1 High School, so he should have a Character Evaluation Book. I can prove that he is indeed a student of Chuanhai No. 1 High School, and I can also guarantee that his Character Evaluation Book is authentic.” Zhu Xi’s voice was a bit listless, as if she didn’t want to get involved in this dispute. “This is simply a farce. Professor Jiang, is this sufficient?”
Jiang Zhouzheng still wanted to struggle a bit, but then he remembered some unpleasant rumors and sweat beaded on his forehead. “Er, um, let’s leave it at that.”
The two young examiners were still asking, “Professor Jiang, you still haven’t told me how many points a Character Evaluation Book is worth.”
“Full marks!” Jiang Zhouzheng roared, venting his anger on his own people. “Didn’t you read the notice sent out last week? A Character Evaluation Book in the upper three grades is directly counted as full marks, and in the case of a tie, priority is given for admission!”
Everyone fell silent, chewing on the words “full marks” with trepidation. Full marks was one thing, but priority admission in the case of a tie—wasn’t this just a guaranteed pass?
Various gazes shifted between Lu Li and Zhu Xi, one part shocked at Lu Li’s background, another part puzzled about the relationship between Lu Li and the princess. As for the Character Evaluation Book, this was perhaps the first time in their lives they had heard of it, and it would also be the last.
Those who reacted quickly had already turned ashen. Since a maximum of only three people could pass from one examination room, and Lu Li had already been guaranteed a pass because of the so-called “Character Evaluation Book,” and Zhu Xi, as a princess, couldn’t possibly be failed by Mulan University, plus Zhao Lulu was favored by the main examiner… was the result of this interview already decided before it even began?
“Alright, let’s begin the interview!” Jiang Zhouzheng didn’t ask anyone else for relevant materials. He just wanted to end this self-humiliating interview as soon as possible. His dignity as a professor had been completely shattered in just a few short minutes. The gazes of admiration and envy from the students that had originally belonged to him had now shifted to Zhu Xi and that Lu Li. This feeling was not good. Not good at all.
The interview ended hastily. Jiang Zhouzheng only asked some stereotypical questions, mostly “Why did you apply to our university?”, “How will you arrange your study plan?”, “What is your target school?”, “Will you accept a transfer to another major?”, “Do you have any special skills?”. He didn’t even ask Lu Li and Zhu Xi before declaring the interview over, saying that the school would send a text message to notify them of the interview results in the evening.
Lu Li’s examination room was the first to be dismissed. When he walked out of the classroom, An Baili and Wen Hupo hadn’t finished their interviews yet. He noticed that the other students looked at him with a sense of awe. Humans are naturally animals that admire strength, with an obedience like sheep. Most people are like this.
Some people are not sheep, nor are they sheepdogs, but wolves that eat sheep. For example, Zhu Xi. She strode toward Lu Li with her long legs. Yes, he had to use the word “strode,” because the aura Zhu Xi gave off was as sharp as a blade. With the blade pointed at him, Lu Li still had the leisure to appraise Zhu Xi’s figure: long legs, thin waist, a standard supermodel figure. And on the surface, her chest wasn’t small either. Sure enough, girls from rich families were just born good-looking.
Lu Li felt that his mentality had changed a lot in this life. In his past life, he would never have looked at a woman with such eyes.
“You’re not with Chu Jingyi?” Zhu Xi was smiling when she said this, a mischievous smile. It seemed she was deliberately trying to poke at Lu Li’s sore spot.
“…” Lu Li wanted to retort sarcastically, but he couldn’t think of her weakness. It was as if this woman were made of iron, invulnerable. He thought pettily, I must find this bad woman’s weakness in the future.
“Aren’t you going to thank me?”
“Why did you help me?”
“I just didn’t want to watch a farce. It was wasting my time.” Even when Zhu Xi smiled, it was a cold smile. Did she not know what a real smile was?
“Goodbye, Lu Li. Or should I say, never see you again?” Zhu Xi walked past Lu Li with a flourish. Lu Li was suddenly reminded of the time “Zhu Xi” had chatted with him, and he became more and more suspicious whether that “Zhu Xi” was this Zhu Xi. If it wasn’t the same person, then who was she?
The thought of having to be in the same school, or even the same year, as this bad woman in the future made Lu Li’s brows furrow tightly. For the sake of his own safety and that of those around him, it was best not to have any more contact with this bad woman. The next time she called his name, Lu Li planned to pretend he was deaf.
