Chapter 279: You Should Withdraw From the Competition
Ye Ci’s mind went blank.
‘Another notebook?! Ning Li even wrote the next book?’
Zhao Ping flipped open the notebook and looked at it seriously for a while before handing it to Li Guangyuan.
“Mr. Li, please take a look.”
Li Guangyuan took it.
The office was so quiet that a pin drop could be heard. There was only the sound of pages turning.
Ning Li leaned back in the chair with a relaxed posture and looked calm.
Ye C held her breath.
Li Guangyuan looked at it for quite a long time before he looked up at the two girls.
“The questions on this can’t exactly be considered the same as the preliminary exam questions.”
Ye Ci’s heart suddenly sank.
Zhao Ping nodded. “I thought the same thing too.”
According to what Ye Ci had said earlier, they had thought that the notes would be highly similar, but after looking at it carefully, they realized that this was not the case.
Just as Ning Li had said, Ning Li had done a lot of organizing for every relevant knowledge point.
Besides the types of questions that had appeared on the test paper, Ning Li had also listed other derivative topics.
The questions on the preliminary exam were included in this notebook, or rather, a part of it.
At best, it was just the same knowledge points.
From this notebook, it only proved that Ning Li had studied all the papers from the past decade’s physics competitions thoroughly.
Li Guangyuan and Zhao Ping both led many competitive physics classes. Even if the two of them had come together to write a notebook, they might not be able to do it better than this.
How could a student that had such strength and confidence cheat?
Ye Ci could not help but ask, “But…but… How was it so coincidental that the topics tested in the preliminary round were also in the notes?”
‘This probability is also extremely low!’
The competition covered such a wide range of topics, but there were limited questions on the notes and they were all tested.
‘Did Ning Li really not get the preliminary exam papers from other sources?!’
Li Guangyuan pondered for a moment and asked, “Ning Li, where’s the second notebook that you just mentioned?”
“In the dorms.”
“Then can you bring it for us?”
“Okay.”
Ning Li got up and went out.
Ye Ci sat there and felt that her limbs were cold. Her ears buzzed and she still had not reacted to the situation.
Li Guangyuan handed the notebook to Zhu Jingyuan.
“Professor Zhu, you should take a look at this.”
Time seemed to pass by excruciatingly slowly at this point.
Ye Ci wanted to defend herself, but none of the three teachers spoke.
She looked at the notes in Zhu Jingyuan’s hand and the two papers on the table, as well as the sealed preliminary exam’s spare paper, only to feel that it all seemed to form a huge net that engulfed her, making it difficult to break free.
The office was well heated, but Ye Ci felt extremely cold.
Soon, Ning Li came back, holding a notebook.
“Here.” She handed over her notes.
Li Guangyuan took it, flipped it open, and read it.
It was the same as the previous one, except that the knowledge points covered were those that were not in the previous notebook.
Ning Li sat down next to Ye Ci, and at a glance, she could already see Ye Ci’s pale face.
She smiled faintly and quickly withdrew her gaze.
In her past life, Ning Li could send Ye Ci to the national finals, so of course, she could do the same this time.
At that time, Ning Li had tutored Ye Ci and gone over all the learning content in detail with her, but now, Ning Li had only given Ye Ci a notebook.
She had carefully selected and organized this notebook.
At the same time, Ning Li had only given Ye Ci an appropriate amount of time that was enough for Ye Ci to memorize all the topics on the notes, and only those topics.
When Ye Ci came to the winter camp, her real level would be exposed.
“There are no problems with these notes,” Zhao Ping said.
Ye Ci’s hand clenched up tightly.
If the notes were fine, then Ning Li was also fine!
Ye Ci’s lips twitched. She finally could not help but ask, “Is there really no problem with the last notebook too?”
The moment these words came out, several people in the office suddenly looked at Ye Ci in unison with a strange expression.
Ye Ci’s heart thumped.
She hurriedly said, “I’m not doubting Ning Li. I just want to make sure. After all, the only reason I was able to get fifth place in the province in the preliminary round was because of these notes. If others find out about this later and involve Sister Ning Li…”
“So what if it involves me?”
Ning Li looked at Ye Ci with a raised eyebrow as if she found it amusing.
“If I’d read the papers in advance, I would’ve kept it to myself. Why would I have gone to such great lengths to leak the questions to you?”
Ye Ci was instantly dumbfounded.
‘Right…this made sense…’
The competition was fierce and they were not comparable.
Moreover, it was not difficult to know Ning Li and Ye Ci did not have a good relationship as long as one inquired a little.
Ning Li did not have any motive or reason to help Ye Ci like that.
That notebook was at best just a “coincidence”.
Ye Ci opened her mouth, but she did not know what to say and only felt her heart sinking.
Her whole body felt like it was slipping into an abyss. She knew that there was danger below, but she could not escape and did not even have the strength to struggle.
Li Guangyuan finished reading it and gave it to Zhao Ping. He then looked at Ning Li.
His expression was somewhat complicated for a while before he let out a soft sigh.
“Ning Li, I believe that you’re innocent.”
Ye Ci’s eyelids twitched.
“Mr. Li?”
‘It’s settled just like that? Just from reading those two notebooks? They really won’t continue looking into it?’
Zhao Ping seemed to have read Ye Ci’s thoughts and sighed. He tapped on those two notebooks.
“Ye Ci, you may not know this, but if Ning Li is capable of writing these two notebooks, there’s actually no need for her to attend the winter camp classes at all. As long as she takes the exam normally, she’s sure to win the prize at this year’s National Physics Competition.”
Moreover, it was highly likely that Ning Li would win the gold medal.
In this batch of winter camp students, none of them could compete with Ning Li for the time being.
Zhao Ping had put this euphemistically, but it was incomparably harsh in Ye Ci’s ears.
‘I may not know? He’s saying that with my level, I can’t even understand Ning Li’s true strength? That I don’t even know what the winter camp and the national finals even mean?’
Ye Ci had only gotten fifth place in the province, yet she was constantly questioned by people about all kinds of things. What about Ning Li?
It was as if everyone felt that Ning Li deserved to be number one and that all the prestige and honor should also be hers.
‘Does everyone think that I deserve nothing?!’
Ning Li gently nodded and said, “Thanks, Mr. Zhao.”
Li Guangyuan looked at Ye Ci again. His brows were slightly furrowed as if he was hesitating about something.
“As for Ye Ci…your results in the preliminary round is indeed your own effort, and we’re all very sorry that we suspected you. However, your situation is indeed special. Why don’t you go back and think about whether you should withdraw from the winter camp?”