Zhou Yi replied in a detached tone, "That's none of your concern. Focus on yourself."
The school bell rang.
Xu Cong entered the classroom carrying a math textbook, his laptop, a stack of test papers, and a thermos. He scanned the room briefly before instructing the class monitor to take attendance.
Class 3's performance in advanced mathematics was indeed subpar, which could partly be attributed to Xu Cong's lackadaisical teaching style—but only partly.
He taught all three classes simultaneously, so if there were issues, they weren't solely his fault.
Overall, most art students devoted the majority of their time to mastering their specialized subjects, leaving little room for studying math—a subject where they naturally lagged behind.
It wasn't that they lacked ability; it was simply a matter of insufficient time dedicated to learning.
Among the three Visual Communication classes, Class 3 had the highest proportion of art students, resulting in the lowest average math scores.
However, they excelled in other specialized courses compared to the other two classes.
Securing spots in the mathematical modeling competition against those classes wouldn't be easy.
Each major within the arts department was allocated only one slot, and in Xu Cong's eyes, Class 3's chances were slim at best.
The original host of Zhou Yi's body had been relatively diligent in his studies, but he squandered too much time working part-time jobs and pursuing romantic relationships.
In addition to studying his own major, he often helped Xia Qiuzhi and Su Ning with their assignments, requiring him to secretly learn material from their respective fields. As a result, precious little time remained for his own academic pursuits.
Failing courses became commonplace for him, relegating him to the bottom of the class rankings.
Zhou Yi understood what Su Ning valued above all else: grades.
To capture the attention of the campus beauty, he first needed to impress her.
Good looks alone did not make a man perfect; true excellence was essential to earn such admiration.
Zhang Wu dismissed Zhou Yi's behavior as mere posturing. With a derisive snort, he fell silent.
"Our major's results last semester were far from satisfactory—we ranked near the bottom of the school. I'm nearing retirement age, so don't let my final year teaching you end in embarrassment," Xu Cong remarked bluntly, though his expression betrayed no trace of anger.
He wasn't the type of teacher who preached tirelessly. For those willing to learn, he taught earnestly; for those unwilling, he saw no point in wasting energy trying to persuade them.
Everyone forged their own path; no amount of lecturing would change the minds of those indifferent to learning.
Both advanced math and English exams used standardized tests across the school, making comparisons straightforward.
"Alright, everyone, let's begin with a quick quiz. It's tied to eligibility for the mathematical modeling competition, so give it your full attention."
"Any volunteers to solve problems on the blackboard? I'll grade them immediately and use them later for explanations to identify areas of improvement."
The implication was clear: those interested should step forward. Checking each paper individually would be too tedious.
Several top-performing students raised their hands, including Su Ning.
Xu Cong selected five students to come up and fill in their answers, then descended the podium with his thermos in hand.
He circled halfway through the classroom.
When he reached Zhou Yi's desk, he noticed his test paper was completely blank—not even a single stroke of the pen.
"You haven't attempted a single problem. Have you given up on studying?"
"Teacher, these questions are too simple. I see no reason to bother."
Zhou Yi's response elicited laughter from the entire class.
True, Zhou Yi had grown more handsome, but one's academic performance and intelligence didn't skyrocket overnight.
Given his previous record of poor grades, how could he possibly justify such arrogance?
Stolen story; please report.
Unfazed, Xu Cong gestured toward the blackboard. "Then go up there and solve them now."
This was a subtle challenge, intending to expose Zhou Yi's incompetence as an example.
Zhou Yi took his test paper and walked up to the podium.
His razor-sharp intellect allowed him to glance at the problems and instantly deduce the answers.
As Zhou Yi stood at the podium, the person next to him happened to be Su Ning.
After finishing her answers, she glanced at him impassively.
Zhou Yi paid her no mind, focusing intently on calculating the solutions.
His concentrated demeanor drew nothing but ridicule from others.
Xu Cong assumed he'd have to wait until the end of the lesson to review Zhou Yi's answers, but to his astonishment, Zhou Yi completed everything in under ten minutes.
"If you're just scribbling nonsense, I'll assign you three additional test papers."
"Teacher, I assure you, I calculated these answers meticulously."
Zhou Yi smiled calmly, exuding unshakable confidence.
Su Ning rolled her eyes. Finishing a math test in ten minutes? How dare he boast like that? Who did he think he was?
Everyone awaited Zhou Yi's inevitable humiliation.
Xu Cong glanced at his answers, then leaned in closer, perplexed.
Setting down his thermos, he began comparing Zhou Yi's answers on the blackboard.
Zhou Yi stood confidently beside Su Ning. From an aesthetic perspective, the pair made a striking image, as if plucked straight from an idol drama.
The other four students on the podium also realized something unusual: Zhou Yi's answers didn't appear to be random guesses.
They matched their own answers by approximately 90%, differing only in two multiple-choice questions and the final problem.
Frankly speaking, the test wasn't easy, and they found it hard to believe Zhou Yi had solved everything independently.
"Did he copy ours?"
"Obviously. Only two or three answers differ."
"Does he think changing a couple of answers will stop us from mocking him?"
"How is this any different from cheating? He blatantly copied someone else's work."
Apart from Su Ning, who remained silent, the other two boys and two girls looked at Zhou Yi with disdain.
Top students might tolerate underachievers, but they harbored an innate aversion to cheaters.
In their eyes, Zhou Yi was lazy, deceitful, arrogant, and undeserving of respect.
How could they possibly view him favorably?
Xu Cong clicked his tongue and chuckled suddenly. "Let me check your answers."
Picking up a piece of red chalk, he began marking correct and incorrect responses.
The first student got two multiple-choice questions and one major problem wrong.
The second student missed one multiple-choice question and one major problem.
The third student erred on one multiple-choice question and two major problems.
The fourth student faltered on one multiple-choice question and one major problem.
The fifth was Zhou Yi.
"Let's see Zhou Yi's..."
"—All correct."
As soon as Xu Cong finished speaking, the classroom erupted into chaos.
"Impossible! Even Su Ning got two wrong. How could he get everything right?"
"His math used to be at the bottom of the class!"
"Is Teacher Xu joking with us?"
"Did he somehow steal the answers?"
"Just dumb luck?"
"No way. The last problem wasn't multiple-choice. Even guessing wouldn't land the decimal points exactly right!"
Regardless of the reactions below, the students on the podium wore expressions of utter disbelief.
Su Ning turned to Zhou Yi in astonishment. "Did you somehow obtain the answers beforehand and have someone else solve them for you?"
Most people suspected that Zhou Yi had someone else do the work in advance.
But Xu Cong refrained from jumping to conclusions. Instead, he asked Zhou Yi to write out the solution process for the final problem on the board.
Zhou Yi responded to Su Ning first. "I solved them myself. If you don't understand, feel free to ask me after class."
Su Ning sneered mercilessly. "Don't think I don't see through your scheme. You believe this will make me pay more attention to you? Dream on."
