Chapter 173: A Serious Incident
Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations
It was a release that welled up from the bottom of his heart. From the moment he stepped into the room, for the whole 4 hours, Fang Zhengzhi did not stop writing. This feeling of serenity after the anxiety…
It was a feeling that only those who had experienced it could understand.
Therefore, when Fang Zhengzhi sighed, he unconsciously let out his voice. The sound was not loud. It could only be considered as mumbling to himself at the most.
However…
His voice easily propagated through the silent examination room. Everyone’s eyes swept across the room and focused their sights on Fang Zhengzhi.
"Finished?!"
Everyone felt like they were just struck by lightning. Fang Zhengzhi’s voice continuously reverberated in their minds.
"You really finished everything?!" Yan Xiu’s eyes revealed the shock that struck his heart.
"Here you go lying again… Why can’t you be honest for once?" Ping Yang had an indignant look of disbelief.
The rest of the candidates had a variety of expressions. Some faces were shocked, and some were too shocked to even make a sound. However, there were more people that were sneering and mocking.
"He actually said he finished everything? Hahaha… What can be funnier than this?"
"As a human… He should have more integrity and be more humble. One should not be too shameless…"
"I have never seen someone so thick-skinned and despicable!"
The jeering of the candidates naturally attracted the attention of the four invigilators. Four pairs of paralyzing eyes suddenly all focused on Fang Zhengzhi.
After that, one of them noticed that Fang Zhengzhi still had his pen in his hands.
At that exact moment, his eyes flashed. He was entrusted with a mission in this round of invigilation. His eyes were locked on Fang Zhengzhi the whole time.
However, from the start of the examination, Fang Zhengzhi did not move a single centimeter from where he sat. For the whole duration of four hours, he was writing and writing…
Just like an unstoppable mill.
Under such circumstances, even if he was purposely trying to find fault, there was no opening for him.
"Cheating by exceeding the time?!"
Although it was a small violation and they could not cancel Fang Zhengzhi’s eligibility, they could at least nullify the marks for that question. In this way, they could have something to show for.
Thinking of this, the invigilator did not hesitate. He took a few strides and came to Fang Zhengzhi’s side.
"Just now when the gong sounded off, didn’t you hear it?" The invigilator scanned the pen that Fang Zhengzhi just put down, his tone was stone cold.
Fang Zhengzhi who was preparing for a liberating stretch heard the voice. He turned and saw the invigilator looking at him with an icy expression. His heart froze. Could it be that they discovered that he wrote the last sentence after the sound of the gong?
Usually, such an incident would not have any impact. There were many times when the invigilators closed one eye to such a violation.
However...
This did not mean that it was allowed. If the invigilator was to be impartial, then writing his last line did indeed exceed the time.
But will Fang Zhengzhi honestly admit that?
Of course not!
"Yes I did hear it," Fang Zhengzhi replied boldly.
"Since you heard it, why were you still moving your pen?" The invigilator’s eyes revealed the icy chill swirling within.
"Did I? I did not notice... Oh right, I have a habit of spinning my pen. Have a look if you don’t believe," Fang Zhengzhi innocently picked up his pen and started spinning it in his hands...
The invigilator’s eyebrows furrowed. He did not expect Fang Zhengzhi to stubbornly deny. However, in this situation, if he did not produce any evidence, there was nothing he could do to Fang Zhengzhi.
"You moved. I can be the witness. I saw it clearly just now." On the left-hand side, a voice softly floated by, threatening to add oil to fire to satisfy her mischief.
Fang Zhengzhi did not even need to turn his head to know that the voice belonged to Ping Yang.
Someone who had done nothing wrong would not be afraid of accusations. However, this Ping Yang was weird. She had answers on her body yet she dared to report to be a witness?
"With a witness, then that question you were answering would have its marks nullified!" The invigilator’s eyes lit up the moment he heard Ping Yang’s words. He held up Fang Zhengzhi’s script and asked, "Candidate, please clarify which was the question that was answered after the gong?"
"It was on the last…" Ping Yang was preparing to say it was the last page when her tiny cherry lips opened wide.
Because…
She saw on Fang Zhengzhi’s last page was filled with characters scrunched together to fit into the page.
"A whole paper totally filed up?!"
Ping Yang’s eyeballs almost popped out of their sockets. She remembered what Fang Zhengzhi said just now. Her glassy orbs once again shifted to the rest of the papers.
Then, she saw that the previous page was filled and so was the page before that…
At this point, her eyes froze on that page. She stared intently at Fang Zhengzhi’s script and could not look away for even a second.
The invigilators also noticed Ping Yang’s peculiar behavior at this moment.
His eyes also shifted to the paper in his hands. He was stunned. Page after page flew up as he flipped.
One page, two pages, three pages… Twelve pages of the examination script!
All were filled!
There was not a single question left blank!
"My god… What is this that I see?!" The invigilator’s face suddenly changed from white to red, then from red to purple and lastly, it swelled to become a purplish red that matched the color of a pig’s liver.
He had been working for the Imperial Academy for about six years now.
Within that time, he oversaw the conduct of two county examinations, assisted the Imperial Examiner with the conduct of the provincial examinations and had been the invigilator for the Imperial Examination twice including this time.
However…
It was not just him who had never seen it. Even the whole of Imperial Academy had never seen anyone who could complete the scripts.In the whole history of the Great Xia Dynasty, there had never been anyone who could finish the whole examinations script within the allocated time.
"Is this fake?! Cheating?" The invigilator simply could not believe his eyes. However, he had been intently observing Fang Zhengzhi’s hand since he began writing.
He knew it clearer than anyone.
The examination script was produced by Fang Zhengzhi own two hands.
It was just that this matter was too unbelievable. How could such a thing even happen? Even if this paper’s answer was placed in front to let him copiously copy, it would be difficult to even finish copying everything within the allocated four hours.
To do finish…
The mere thought of finishing everything was hard to swallow like a fishbone lodged in the invigilator’s throat. His mouth was gaping yet he was not taking in any breath.
…
Fang Zhengzhi did not know what the invigilator and Ping Yang were currently thinking. Instead, he was only thinking, that damn Ping Yang, since you dared to testify against me, I dare to report you!
"I want to make a report!" Fang Zhengzhi decided to take the advantage of making the first move.
"Oh," the invigilator nodded in a daze.
At this moment, Ping Yang also still reeling from shock. She did not even register Fang Zhengzhi’s voice.
The rest of the candidates and invigilators heard Fang Zhengzhi’s report. However, there was already an invigilator beside him, the rest of the invigilators naturally would not intervene.
As a result, Fang Zhengzhi realized that his proclamation was ignored.
"I said, I want to make a report!" Fang Zhengzhi was peeved. In this broad daylight, as a morally upright citizen, he wanted to lodge a report yet everyone ignored him?
Where is the justice!
"Oh… Ah?!" The invigilator finally reacted, "What do you want to report?"
"I’m reporting her for cheating. She had answers with her. Search her body if you don’t believe!" Fang Zhengzhi pointed at Ping Yang, waiting for her to be searched. After getting her expelled from the room, then there would be no one to act as a witness against him.
"What?! You dare to report me?" Ping Yang regained her sense when she heard the word "answers". Her pale flawless face contorted. She totally did not expect Fang Zhengzhi was actually going forward and report her?
"Answers?!" The invigilator felt that his brain was about to crash, there was no way for him to make a sound judgment.
However, when the rest of the invigilators heard "answers", they could barely suppress the shock on their faces.
If…
Someone really had answers on them, that meant that the examination script was leaked prematurely. If that was true, this incident would shake the whole Great Xia empire. If it was traced, from the bottom Imperial Messengers to the top Chief Imperial Messenger, even the Headmaster of the Imperial Academy would be implicated.