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How could this person have such good luck to coincide with the wind blowing back the paper ball?
Truly infuriating!
In frustration, Zhang Zhenghao threw out another paper ball wrapped in leaves, this time tossing two in annoyance.
The wind picked up again, not as strong as before, not causing any vision issues this time. However, Zhang Zhenghao watched in disbelief as the paper balls wrapped in leaves hesitated in the air for a moment before being blown back once more.
The paper balls wrapped in leaves landed back on his table and, due to their lightweight nature, bounced around a few times on the surface.
Infuriated by this turn of events, Zhang Zhenghao felt like even the heavens were against him!
His eyes were now reddened as he grabbed all five paper balls wrapped in leaves from his table and forcefully tossed them out.
This time, there was no gust of wind.
However, just as the patrol official who had passed by returned unexpectedly, the paper balls thrown by Zhang Zhenghao landed perfectly on the official’s uniform.
Startled by the impact, the official examined what had hit him.
Upon realizing they were paper balls wrapped in leaves, he fixed Zhang Zhenghao with a stern gaze. “Cheating in the Imperial College examination hall? How dare you!”
“I… I…”he stammered, at a loss for words.
Caught red-handed, Zhang Zhenghao was almost rendered speechless, barely able to string a coherent sentence together.
“Take him away!” The patrol official called for the attendant, who promptly lifted the desk in front of Zhang Zhenghao and dragged him out.
“I-I was supposed to throw it for someone. They promised me silver to help them cheat by passing notes!” Zhang Zhenghao shouted desperately, trying to explain.
“Any accomplices, confess now, and perhaps your punishment will be less severe!” The patrol official’s anger was palpable.
Cheating in the Imperial College exams was a grave offense. Each year, individuals were publicly shamed and exiled to desolate lands. Despite the severe consequences, some still dared to take such risks, which was truly despicable.
“It was him, it was him!” Zhang Zhenghao pointed towards Song Jingyun.
“Him?” Following Zhang Zhenghao’s direction, the patrol official observed Song Jingyun diligently answering the questions as if no one else existed.
The patrol official approached Song Jingyun, who seemed unaware of his presence, still focused on answering the questions diligently. After glancing briefly at Song Jingyun’s responses, the official proceeded to inspect the crumpled papers on Zhang Zhenghao’s desk.
Not a single question had been answered properly; instead, there were numerous poorly answered questions, with papers crumpled into disarray.
Understanding the situation, the patrol official turned to Zhang Zhenghao. “You claim he paid you to cheat for him. So, tell me, what is his name, how much silver did he give you, when did he give it, were there others present at that time, how did you two meet, why did he ask you to cheat, and why did you agree?”
“If you say he sought your help to cheat, why is it that he seems to have answered almost all the questions while you haven’t written a single one? If you were helping someone cheat, tell me, what did you write for him, and what did he answer?”
With a series of pointed questions, each addressing crucial aspects, Zhang Zhenghao, already prone to fabricating stories, now frightened, struggled to respond, unable to utter a coherent sentence.
Seeing Zhang Zhenghao’s behavior, the patrol official understood the situation. He let out a cold snort. “You incompetent fool! Unable to answer the questions yourself, you sought to falsely accuse others, willing to ruin someone else’s future even at the cost of your own?”
“Your malicious intent runs deep. Despite being an aspiring scholar, you have forsaken all virtues. It’s fortunate that your foolishness knows no bounds. Otherwise, even if you were to pass the exams and become an official, you would still be a menace!”
“Take this man away and give him seventy lashes! I will report to superiors to ensure he gets exiled for twenty years, stripping him of his scholar title. Let him learn the consequences of his actions!”
“Yes, sir!”
With trembling and regretful expressions, Zhang Zhenghao was led away, realizing the grave mistake he had made.
To prevent Zhang Zhenghao from causing a disturbance and disturbing the other candidates, his mouth was gagged with a rag before being dragged out of the Imperial College and taken to another courtyard for punishment.
Although efforts were made to keep the incident from escalating and disrupting other candidates, nearby students witnessed the entire unfolding saga, feeling a mix of emotions.
The presence of such malevolence in the world, someone who not only had no hope in the Autumn Examinations but also sought to hinder others, was truly despicable!
The fear lingered that his target, though currently one person, might resort to indiscriminate attacks, endangering everyone nearby.
Just the thought of such a possibility was chilling!
Fortunately, the patrol official was astute, seeing through the scheme and acting promptly to prevent the deceitful individual from achieving his malicious goals.
However, circling back to the situation, the incident initially involved the young scholar sitting diagonally across from Zhang Zhenghao. Yet now, he appeared unperturbed, diligently focused on his own exam paper.
At this moment, Song Jingyun had just finished writing on a sheet of paper and was about to change it when he noticed the curious gazes of those around him.
Expressions of surprise, sighs, and reflections met his eyes.
Song Jingyun tilted his head slightly.
What’s going on here?
But he hadn’t heard any commotion just now.
Come to think of it, why was the desk diagonally across from him empty now? He could have sworn someone was there before.
Could it be that person suddenly fell ill, couldn’t continue the exam, and left?