Zhou Xuan and Lin Murun exchanged a look. "Teacher Tang probably heard about this and wants to question you," Zhou Xuan analyzed.
"Yeah, most likely." Lin Murun looked toward the teaching building. "I'll head over first. You guys go ahead and eat."
"Lin Murun," Zhou Xuan called out, offering a reminder. "Teacher Tang isn't the type to make things difficult for students, but he absolutely detests it when students try to be clever or deceptive in front of him. You must explain the advanced question clearly and make sure he knows you didn't cheat."
"I will." Lin Murun turned back. "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind."
Inside the fourth-floor office, the atmosphere was heavy. Teacher Tang silently flipped through Lin Murun’s past assignments and exam papers, not saying a word for a long time.
"Teacher Tang, I believe in my student," Teacher Li, who was standing nearby, spoke up. "He works very hard, and his grades have always been among the best. It’s absolutely impossible for him to cheat."
Teacher Tang looked up, pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, and said calmly, "We’ll talk once he gets here."
"Reporting in." Lin Murun appeared at the office door.
"Come in," Teacher Tang said.
Lin Murun entered the office and found only Teacher Tang and Teacher Li inside.
"Lin Murun, right?" Teacher Tang said. "Close the door."
Lin Murun nodded, turned to close the door, and the noise from the hallway was instantly cut off by the heavy wood. He then walked over and stood respectfully before Teacher Tang.
Teacher Tang looked up. "Do you know why I called you here?"
Lin Murun nodded. "I do."
"Good." Teacher Tang set down the homework in his hand. "I want to hear your explanation."
"Teacher, I didn't cheat." Lin Murun looked him in the eye and said earnestly, "The questions for this midterm were set and graded by external teachers, not by our school. I had no way to cheat."
"Mhm." Teacher Tang nodded. "And what about that advanced question on the geography quiz? How do you explain that?"
Lin Murun organized his thoughts. "I happened to have done that exact problem in a practice book."
"Your teachers always avoid popular exercise sets when picking questions," Teacher Tang noted. "Which practice book were you using?"
"It was geography problems from A University High School," Lin Murun answered.
"A University High School?" Teacher Tang frowned. "Bring the book and let me see it."
Lin Murun had returned that book to Si Bin the day the midterms ended. He couldn't exactly go and borrow it back right now. He explained, "I borrowed that book from a friend and returned it last Friday."
"What a coincidence." Teacher Tang scrutinized Lin Murun with a skeptical gaze. "Which friend?"
"Reporting in." Just then, someone knocked on the office door.
"Go open the door first," Teacher Tang told Lin Murun.
Lin Murun obeyed and opened the door, meeting Si Bin’s gaze.
"Are you okay?"
"Why are you here?"
The two spoke almost simultaneously.
Lin Murun blinked, answering first, "I'm fine."
Si Bin visibly relaxed. He held up a practice book. "I'm here to be your witness."
Ten minutes earlier, Si Bin had finished lunch and was leaning on his desk to rest when Yu Wenbo disrupted his nap.
"Bin-ge, something's happened," Yu Wenbo whispered.
Si Bin sat up, his eyes telling him to get to the point.
Upon hearing the news, Si Bin’s sleepiness vanished instantly. He frowned. "Who said Lin Murun cheated?"
"I don't know. The Confession Wall blurred out the sender's QQ avatar and nickname," Yu Wenbo said quickly. "But that's not the point! The point is, the post included the geography quiz questions from Class 2, claiming that Top Student Lin had done the original questions before the test."
Si Bin paused, remembering what Lin Murun had said when returning the book. He quickly leaned down, rummaged through his drawer, and pulled out the A University High School geography set. "Which question?"
Yu Wenbo looked at the hundred-page exercise book and felt a headache coming on. He pulled up the photo from the Confession Wall and handed his phone to Si Bin. "This one, take a look."
Si Bin glanced at it and scowled. "The Confession Wall?"
"Yeah, it was posted last night. The reposts and comments exploded this morning. I heard Top Student Lin even got into an argument with someone in the cafeteria over it just now," Yu Wenbo said.
"Which idiot picked a fight with him?" Si Bin’s expression darkened as he flipped through the book. "Why are you only telling me now that something this big happened?"
Yu Wenbo felt wronged. "Brother, the whole class knows you and Top Student Lin are close. Without solid proof, who would dare gossip in front of you? Besides, I thought you followed the Confession Wall too."
*Why would I follow that for no reason?* Si Bin thought irritably.
"Forget it, I forgot you have no interest in the Confession Wall." Thinking of Si Bin’s temperament, Yu Wenbo scratched his head. "I thought Top Student Lin would have told you."
"He didn't."
Finally, Si Bin found the question Lin Murun had circled in the advanced practice section. He thanked Yu Wenbo, grabbed the book, and sprinted toward the fourth floor.
"Eh? Eh?" Yu Wenbo watched his retreating back, realizing belatedly, "Wait, do you have a geography book like that too?"
"I'll tell you when I get back," Si Bin threw over his shoulder before disappearing into the stairwell.
The office door on the fourth floor was closed. Si Bin stepped up and knocked.
And that led to the current scene.
Seeing that Lin Murun looked normal and that there were only two teachers in the office, Si Bin secretly breathed a sigh of relief. In his view, Teacher Tang likely had doubts about the cheating allegations and chose the lunch break to verify things personally. This was a good thing; at least Lin Murun didn't have to face the judgment of all the other teachers.
"You certainly are well-informed." Teacher Tang looked at Si Bin, his tone a bit gruff. "What? Are you the 'friend' he mentioned?"
"Yes." Si Bin opened the practice book and handed it to Teacher Tang. "Teacher, it’s impossible for Lin Murun to have known the quiz questions beforehand because I lent him this book. Furthermore, I can prove to you that he did these problems—not just that one multiple-choice question."
Teacher Tang took the book and saw simple pencil marks on every problem. However, the pages were remarkably clean; he flipped through several pages but saw no actual steps or answers. He looked up at Si Bin. "How does this prove he did them?"
"I wrote the answers in my notebook," Lin Murun said. "I'll go get it now."
Teacher Tang nodded.
Once Lin Murun left the office, Teacher Tang looked at Si Bin with a mix of exasperation and amusement. "This is the first time I've seen you so tense. Back when I was trying to convince you to stay in the science stream, you just let it go in one ear and out the other, completely indifferent to what I said. I thought you didn't care about anything."
Si Bin shook his head. "The two situations are different. Choosing the liberal arts stream was my own decision. I'm tense now because I don't want to see a classmate being framed."
"You always have an answer." Teacher Tang sighed. "What is this 'Confession Wall' business anyway? I was shocked when I first heard the news; I thought Lin Murun really had cheated."
"You believe he didn't cheat too, don't you?" Si Bin asked.
"I didn't even know the exam questions myself; where would he get the ability to obtain the original test?" After saying this, Teacher Tang looked at Si Bin. "Suspecting him is less logical than suspecting you. You're the one who might actually know the teachers who set the papers."
Si Bin knew he was joking and said helplessly, "Teacher, I don't have that kind of power."
"Lin Murun used to attend N City No. 5 Middle School," Teacher Li, who had been silent, finally spoke. "He was frequently ranked first in his grade there; that’s all verifiable. Besides, his attitude toward his studies is exemplary, and he’s willing to put in the hard work. These questions aren't actually that difficult for him. He has no reason and no means to cheat."
"But he still needs to give me an explanation for that advanced question." Teacher Tang thought for a moment and then asked, "Si Bin, who runs the No. 1 High School Confession Wall QQ account?"
"I heard it's someone from Class 10 in the sophomore science stream. I'll have to ask to find out exactly who," Si Bin replied.
"No need. I'll go straight to their homeroom teacher later," Teacher Tang said. "The news spread from the Confession Wall, but I don't know if this is just a prank or if the person who posted it actually thinks they have solid evidence."
"Teacher, Lin Murun didn't..." Si Bin started to speak, but Teacher Tang cut him off.
"I know what I'm doing. I will investigate."
"Reporting in." Lin Murun returned to the office with his notebook.
"Let me see." Teacher Tang took the notebook and flipped through it.
Lin Murun stood quietly to the side, waiting for him to speak.
In the notebook, the steps and answers for every problem were written clearly. After finishing, Teacher Tang handed the notebook back to Lin Murun. "Many teachers have praised you before, saying you're a serious student with beautiful handwriting."
Lin Murun took the notebook. "The other students are very serious as well."
"You're quite humble." Teacher Tang asked, "Does your Teacher Xia know about the advanced question?"
"He does," Lin Murun answered. "I explained it to him before, and he was willing to believe me."
"Mhm." Teacher Tang nodded. "Lin Murun, if you have indeed been wronged, I will certainly investigate thoroughly and see justice done. But if you really did cheat..." He paused, carefully observing Lin Murun’s expression.
"Teacher, I did not cheat," Lin Murun repeated calmly.
"Fine." Teacher Tang waved them off. "Go on back. Get ready for class."
After the two left, Teacher Li asked, "Teacher Tang, you seem quite familiar with Si Bin?"
"I am." After talking for so long, he was thirsty; he picked up his tea cup and took a sip. "He wasn't like this when he was a kid. Back then, he talked a lot. Just a primary schooler, coming to lecture me every day."
"Lecture you?" Teacher Li was amused. "What did he lecture you about?"
"About respect. About the history of LGBTQ+ rights in Country M." Teacher Tang sighed. "Back then, I thought it was impressive enough for a kid that age to recognize a few words, yet he was coming to discuss things like that with me. He’s truly something else."
Teacher Li was stunned. "He talked to you about those things?"
"You remember his cousin, right?" Teacher Tang took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Si Bin came because of his cousin. Back then, the matter with Shen Xingzhi was known to everyone. In a fit of anger, I took his photo down from the Wall of Honor..."
"I remember," Teacher Li murmured. "How could I forget? His cousin's boyfriend was a student I once taught."
"I wonder how those two young men are doing now." A smile touched the wrinkles at the corners of Teacher Tang's eyes. "For the first few years after graduation, Shen Xingzhi would send me holiday greetings every year, stubbornly telling me not to be angry with him."
"But in the last two years, he suddenly stopped reaching out." Teacher Tang put his glasses back on, his expression a bit lonely.
"By the way, what about Bei Fan? Do you still have his contact information?" he asked Teacher Li.
Teacher Li shook her head. "No. Ever since he got married, he completely cut off contact with me."
"They got married?" Teacher Tang asked in surprise.
"Not to Shen Xingzhi." Teacher Li pressed her lips together, her expression complex. "They broke up."
***
**Glossary**
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| A大附中 | A University High School | A prestigious affiliated high school. |
| 表白墙 | Confession Wall | An anonymous social media page for students to post news or confessions. |
| 沈行知 | Shen Xingzhi | Si Bin's cousin, a former top student at the school. |
| 贝凡 | Bei Fan | A former student and Shen Xingzhi's ex-boyfriend. |
| M国 | Country M | Usually refers to the United States in Chinese web novels. |
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