Standing in the empty corridor, Liao Nan once again looked up at the golden sign hanging on the door. Neatly written on it were three big characters - "Office of Discipline".

He couldn't help but curl his icy fingertips and exchanged a glance with Gu Yan beside him. Gu Yan nodded at him, and he pushed open the door and walked in.

Three heads simultaneously looked up, and Liao Nan remained in the position of pushing the door, freezing the atmosphere for a moment.

A female teacher in a red dress broke the somewhat awkward silence and asked, "Liao Nan, right?"

Liao Nan nodded, and walked in hand in hand with Gu Yan. Gu Yan reached back to close the door.

"Come, sit here." The female teacher in the red dress smiled warmly and motioned for them to come over.

After they sat down, one teacher took out a phone and set the timer, while another male teacher held a scanning device and scanned them from head to toe. Seeing no abnormalities, they exchanged a glance with the teacher in the red dress before leaving together.

The teacher who was keeping time glanced at their tightly interlocked hands and smiled friendly.

"I have a general understanding of your situation. Since it was an accident, there is no way to change it. It's quite laughable and lamentable at the same time. However, because your grades this time have deviated significantly from your usual performance, some doubts are inevitable," the teacher in charge of scheduling calmly said to him.

However, Liao Nan knew very well that it was more than just "a little bit". With a maximum score of 750 points, the difference between a score of 0 and 669 was not a small one at all. It was like the distance spanning across the East African Rift Valley.

He blinked his moist eyes and moved his lips slightly, but in the end, he didn't say anything.

What is there to say? Are we supposed to believe that his previous blank papers were due to a quarrel with his family and not because of his lack of ability? Such a childish reason, if spoken out loud, would only invite ridicule and serve no purpose at all.

It's better to display one's true strength and directly silence those chattering individuals.

The teacher noticed that he was not in the right mood, so he didn't rush to hand out the exam papers. Instead, he decided to chat with him for a while. It wouldn't be too late to take the exam once he relaxed.

"We don't doubt your abilities, after all, you've always handed in blank test papers before and we couldn't see anything from them... To be honest, when you volunteered to take another test, we already believed in your abilities. So, don't feel pressured this time, don't treat it as a disgrace, take it as an obligation to other students and to the school administration――it's a proof for yourself too."

Liao Nan nodded silently, but whether he had truly taken in the words or not... only he knew.

The teacher smiled gently and said, "Then I will distribute the test papers."

He brought over a stool and sat behind Liao Nan Xie. He then smiled at Gu Yan and said, "Gu Yan, why don't you lie down for a while? These past few days have been quite tough."

"It's nothing." Gu Yan leaned on the table, resting his arm as a pillow, facing in the direction of Liao Nan, quietly watching him quickly answering the exam paper.

Before, because I also had exams to prepare for, I hadn't paid much attention to Liao Nan. Now that I have nothing else to do, I can only observe the little Omega beside me who has been holding my hand the whole time.

The little Omega had long, curly eyelashes that fluttered with a light and quick movement when he blinked, just like a butterfly silently flying from the tip of his heart, inevitably giving off a lingering feeling. His skin was fair and delicate, appearing soft and tempting, making people very much want to take a bite.

Perhaps it was because his gaze was too intense, Liao Nan gently furrowed his delicate brows, and his crimson lips pressed tightly, causing his small face to slightly bulge.

Especially adorable.

Gu Yan turned his head in panic and looked at the snow-white wall. The inexplicable sense of panic in his heart finally eased slightly.

His Adam's apple slid up and down as he suddenly felt thirsty. His face also felt a bit hot, and even without looking in the mirror, he could guess his current appearance.

Definitely blushing, with an evasive look in the eyes.

Could it be that he has developed feelings for Liao Nan?

Is it something a person would do to their own good brother?

Gu Yan, who had already implicitly regarded Liao Nan as his good brother, felt a little flustered at this moment.

A young boy's heart, like a little deer, beat rapidly and awkwardly.

Liao Nan paid no attention to whatever the small deer was rambling about, but as he looked at the paper that was already half filled, he furrowed his brows.

Just now... why was Gu Yan staring at him the whole time?

-----

"The time is up." The teacher turned off the timer on their phone, got up, and collected Liao Nan's test paper.

Entering the field of vision, the first thing that catches the eye is the graceful handwriting, each stroke neatly and clearly defined, exuding a sense of sharp beauty.

The teacher glanced at the problem he had solved, finding it clear and direct, without any unnecessary steps. Impressed, the teacher nodded approvingly, placing the test paper on the desk and proceeded to mark it on the spot.

The door was pushed open and the two teachers I had seen before walked in. They naturally approached the teacher who was marking papers with answers.

Liao Nan knew that the Education Department must have installed high-definition surveillance cameras, and not just one. Those two teachers must have gone to the monitoring room when they left. The monitoring room was not far from the Education Department, just around the corner. From the moment the papers were collected to the moment they entered the room, the timing matched perfectly.

The monitoring room probably still has school leaders, they just didn't come over with these two teachers.

What they said about belief was just to appease him. If they truly believed, would they maintain such tight control over everything? It's like treating a prisoner.

But when you think about the school culture at Yizhong Middle School, you can also understand it. From nine years ago, Yizhong has officially adopted a low-grade military-style management approach. Being trapped in this school is like being trapped in a prison. Aren't the students inside all just criminals?

He's nothing more than a low-level criminal.

Liao Nan couldn't help but pull out a sarcastic smile.

"Is there another exam paper? Let's finish them together."

The teacher in the red dress glanced up at him, then exchanged a look with another teacher. "Yes, we do have it... don't you need to rest?"

Liao Nan glanced at Gu Yan upon hearing, and Gu Yan shook his head at him.

Since both of them don't need to rest, what are they waiting for?

So Liao Nan said to Teacher Hong Qunzi, "Finish the exam quickly and announce the results, it will be troublesome if it's delayed."

"Alright then, since you just answered math, let's move on to geography," said the teacher in the red dress. She rummaged through a leather paper bag and took out three test papers, handing them over. "Two test papers and one answer sheet."

Liao Nan took the papers and sat back down on the still warm chair.

The sound of the pen scratching against the paper continued uninterrupted. The teacher, who had finished grading the math papers, looked up and exchanged a glance with two other teachers before nodding with a smile.

The two teachers lowered their heads to look at the papers, only to see bright red ticks all over the pages.

The two of them glanced at Liao Nan, who was sitting straight-backed and answering the test paper, without arranging it beforehand. They then exchanged a look with each other, their gazes transmitting only one message -

He is a top student.