After I Cheated on the Heiress of a Powerful Family - Chapter 19
Chapter 19
After pushing aside the strange thoughts swirling in her mind, Wen Yan dived back into her studies, preparing for the final two exams scheduled for the next morning.
Once the morning exam was over, Wen Yan finally allowed herself to relax a little.
At No. 1 Middle School, the teachers graded papers very quickly. After the morning test, they marked the math papers that afternoon and handed back the answer sheets.
Wen Yan had lost two points on a multiple-choice question. Though she performed steadily and scored perfectly on the standard-answer questions, those two lost points stung.
“Ugh! Only two points lost and I’m already behind!” she thought. A wave of discouragement washed over her, feeling that the top scholarship of 1,500 yuan was slipping further out of reach.
Fang Sihui noticed her gloomy expression during class and asked, “You did well on the exam. Why do you look like the sky is falling?”
Wen Yan soon resumed studying and proposed transferring directly into the top class. After some discussion, the teachers agreed on one condition: Wen Yan had to catch up with the curriculum within two months, and her grades had to rank within the top 50 by the next midterm.
Although the midterm results hadn’t been released yet, Fang Sihui believed Wen Yan was likely to break into the top five based on her current performance.
Wen Yan just shook her head, quietly wrestling with her disappointment.
It wasn’t just the ranking she lost—it was the actual scholarship money.
Fang Sihui comforted her gently, “You’ve only been back at school for two months, and your results are already great. With more time, first place is definitely within reach.”
During her two-year break, Wen Yan hadn’t stopped studying. She even tutored Zhang Zixuan and her sister to make up for time lost during their first year of high school.
At first, Wen Yan’s weekly test scores were low after joining the advanced class, simply because the pace was too fast and she wasn’t fully familiar with the new material.
Still, the feeling of being among the top students was gratifying. She thanked Fang Sihui sincerely, though she didn’t say much.
When Xie Buyi was called out by the English teacher to review her paper, Fang Sihui took the chance to ask Wen Yan, “People are wondering if you’ll beat Xie Buyi this time.”
The reason Wen Yan and Xie Buyi were always mentioned together wasn’t just because Wen Yan had the best grades after Xie. It was the sharp contrast between the two: one was diligent, the other careless; one had a wealthy family, the other modest means.
Despite rumors and tension, their names seemed permanently linked.
Wen Yan sighed and replied, “I’m probably going to disappoint everyone this time. Better to prepare them in advance.”
Some classmates secretly envied Wen Yan’s background, grades, and appearance more than they wanted to see her win first place. They hoped she’d stay average.
Fang Sihui encouraged her, “Don’t be sure of the outcome yet. You only got one subject’s results so far.”
The next day, three more subject scores were released.
Besides worrying about her own grades, many people quietly compared Wen Yan and Xie Buyi’s scores.
Their totals were close, but Xie had an eight-point lead overall. Only Chinese and English scores were missing.
Wen Yan calculated silently.
Xie Buyi rarely made mistakes and often scored full marks in other subjects. She admitted her “weakness” was Chinese, while Wen Yan’s was English.
With each having strengths and weaknesses, Wen Yan wasn’t confident she could surpass Xie in those final subjects.
It seemed certain she’d place second, but first place was out of reach.
The top scholarship was 1,500 yuan; second and third received 1,000 yuan each—a 500 yuan difference. The thought frustrated her deeply.
Why couldn’t that money be hers?
Wen Yan silently cursed the unfairness hundreds of times, feeling restless.
In the end, she admitted she simply hadn’t worked hard enough. She couldn’t rely on others making mistakes; she had to improve herself.
No one could depend on luck—only her own effort.
She repeated this thought quietly three times, then opened her books, determined to study harder for the next exam and take the lead within a month.
She wasn’t just chasing the current scholarship—she aimed for first place one day.
Three days after the exam, the English answer sheets were handed back, and Chinese scores were said to be out. However, there was no Chinese class that morning, so no one knew the exact Chinese results yet.
Impatient, Wen Yan decided to visit the school office between classes.
Having a good relationship with teachers was valuable; it was a low-cost, high-return investment. She often helped out teachers and thus was a familiar face in the office.
Xie Buyi stayed behind in the classroom to rest, while Wen Yan found the head teacher, Mr. Zhou, who taught Chinese.
“Has the Chinese paper been graded? Can I help in any way?”
Mr. Zhou smiled, “You’re eager to see your rank, huh? The Chinese scores are ready. Just in time, you can help me input the results for our class.”
Wen Yan was experienced in this task and nodded, sitting down to enter the scores on the computer.
She had come hoping to see her rank. She was almost certain first place would be Xie Buyi’s, but the second and third places were still uncertain.
Still anxious, she quickly entered the scores without double-checking deductions, flipping through papers nervously.
Near the end, she spotted the highest score: 124 points—not Wen Yan’s, but Xie Buyi’s.
Her heart raced as she searched for Wen Yan’s score.
Finally, she found her name—90 points.
A shockingly low score for Xie Buyi.
Though Chinese was her weak subject, Xie usually scored around 120 points.
90 was more than 30 points below her normal performance.
Wen Yan examined Xie Buyi’s answer sheet closely and noticed the multiple-choice section was left blank and the essay was very short.
What did this mean?
Was it an accident? A deliberate gesture?
During the first Chinese test, had Xie Buyi intentionally underperformed to let Wen Yan win this time?
With mixed feelings, Wen Yan entered the rest of the scores and sorted the rankings.
Her name was at the top.
Yet she didn’t feel pure joy—just confusion.
What was she thinking?
Hadn’t she wanted to win the scholarship badly? Didn’t she wish for first place?
Now that it was hers, why did she feel uneasy?
The family’s debts still pressed down, and her mother’s illness might return. Money was tight—so winning this should have meant relief.
She wasn’t supposed to entertain such complicated feelings now.
Taking a deep breath, Wen Yan looked at Mr. Zhou, who was busy writing.
“The results are in.”
Mr. Zhou glanced at the screen, then smiled broadly, “Congrats on first place! But wait, why is Xie Buyi only fifth with a 90 in Chinese?”
Wen Yan explained frankly, “Maybe when you mentioned the scholarship, Xie Buyi was in the office and overheard.”
“She probably didn’t want the scholarship, so she left the multiple-choice blank on purpose.”
Mr. Zhou seemed surprised but accepted the explanation with a sigh. “Alright, I’ll print the grade list and post it in class.”
Back in the classroom, Wen Yan handed out the grade list amid excited whispers.
She approached Xie Buyi and asked, “Why didn’t you fill in the multiple-choice on the Chinese exam?”
Xie Buyi looked at her quietly and said nothing.
Wen Yan half-joked, “Was it to let me get first place?”
Xie, wearing headphones, calmly replied, “I don’t need the scholarship.”
A wealthy girl didn’t care about the money; she could easily give up the honor others fought hard for.
Wen Yan nodded, understanding at last.
Though she took first place, Xie’s fifth place still earned a scholarship.
Xie looked genuinely surprised. “I didn’t expect that.”
She didn’t say more, but Wen Yan got the message: Xie didn’t anticipate that giving up those points would still put her so high.
“Why are you so good at this?” Wen Yan muttered, half in admiration, half in frustration.
“Not your fault,” she added, teasing, “Thank you, you’re such a good person.”