Wolf-Raised Cub with a Space: Surviving the Disaster Years

Chapter 217: Chapter 217: Grade A Is Cheating?

When the National Academy broke for lunch that day, Shen Ningning was called aside to the Library by Mr. Han for some special treatment.

Mr. Han had brought many delicious dishes from home: cold pig ear salad, marinated beef, and shredded chicken soup.

Shen Ningning felt it was improper to eat by herself, but she couldn’t resist Mr. Han’s enthusiastic invitation.

In the end, the little girl left the Library with her tummy stuffed round.

Mr. Han caught up to her. "Hey, you ate too little. Everyone in the class is about the same age, but you’re the shortest and smallest one, Commandery Princess. You must eat more."

As he spoke, he pressed a boiled egg into Shen Ningning’s hand.

Helpless, Shen Ningning could only thank him in her soft, sweet voice, "I know, Mr. Han. I’ll eat it in a little while."

Mr. Han nodded. "That’s the spirit."

Cradling her little belly, she waddled back toward her classroom like a little penguin, her feet going PATTER PATTER.

’When Mr. Han piled food into her bowl, it reminded her of how Grandma fed Lang Si.’

’When Lang Si was in a bad mood and lay on the ground refusing to move, Grandma would bring over a bowl, pry open his mouth, and spoon fried rice into it.’

’That was how Grandma had spoiled Lang Si into a chubby little thing.’

Just as Shen Ningning was passing a corner of the long corridor, she heard a clear voice reading aloud.

"Huh?" She peeked around the corner and saw Xu Jingxi sitting in a pavilion, reading with his back to her.

’She’d noticed over the past few days that Xu Jingxi was a very aloof person.’

’He didn’t like to get close to his classmates and rarely ate with them.’

’Shen Ningning often saw him with just a steamed bun and a bowl of soup, a book in his hands at all times.’

’It reminded her of the mad scholar, and she couldn’t help but feel a flicker of goodwill toward Xu Jingxi.’

The little girl walked over and poked his shoulder. "Xu Jingxi."

The boy turned around, his refined yet cold face practically screaming, "Stay away."

Shen Ningning held up the egg. "Why are you only reading and not eating? Here, you can have this egg."

’She really couldn’t eat another bite!’

Xu Jingxi furrowed his brow. "I won’t eat it. Thank you, Commandery Princess."

Then, he went back to his book.

Shen Ningning circled around to his side. "Please, just eat it. I see you only eat steamed buns usually. But Grandma says that since we’re not grown up yet, it’s a critical time to eat lots of meat and eggs. Otherwise, how will we grow tall?"

Her small hands kept trying to push the egg into his.

Xu Jingxi suddenly stood up. "I said I don’t want it."

Shen Ningning hadn’t expected him to pull away so suddenly. Her small hand trembled, and the egg fell to the ground with a CRACK.

Xu Jingxi hadn’t meant for that to happen and froze for a moment when he saw it.

Then, he said bluntly, "Commandery Princess, you’d best not get too close to a commoner like me."

With that, he picked up his book and left.

But Shen Ningning didn’t say a word. Having not gone far, Xu Jingxi couldn’t help but look back.

He saw the little girl squatting on the ground, picking up the egg and examining it from all sides.

Her large, dark, limpid eyes shone with clarity as the little girl let out a sigh of relief.

"Good thing the shell didn’t break, or it would have been wasted!" She stood up, wiped the dust off the egg with her little hand, and then blew on it twice.

A trace of surprise flickered in Xu Jingxi’s cold, dark eyes.

’Shen Ningning was a well-known blessed girl, the Emperor’s personally-bestowed Princess Funing, and now the adopted daughter of Chancellor Xie.’

’Her friends were people like the Crown Prince, General Xie, General Chen, and Mr. Lu.’

’Yet, despite her noble status, she treasured a single egg so dearly.’

Xu Jingxi pressed his lips together, said nothing more, and turned to leave.

Lu Shaoyuan brushed past him. "Shen Ningning, I just saw Mr. Guo putting our exam papers out for display. I made sure to post ours next to each other."

He ran up to Shen Ningning, and the little girl immediately held up the egg. "Want it?"

Lu Shaoyuan paused, a flicker of confusion in his eyes beneath his sharp brows.

’Why is she giving me an egg right off the bat?’

However, he quickly broke into a cheerful smile. "Sure, thanks."

"Why did Mr. Guo suddenly decide to display our exam papers?"

"Who knows? Maybe we wrote them so well they can be used as model examples," Lu Shaoyuan said, looking a little smug.

He wasn’t naturally studious, but to get into the National Academy, he’d had his mother hire five tutors for two months.

In the end, the hard work paid off.

"Oh, right. I heard our dessert shop landed a big order?" he asked while eating the egg.

Shen Ningning nodded. "You’ll be getting a huge dividend at the end of the year, co-owner."

Lu Shaoyuan looked at her innocent face and couldn’t help but grin. "That’s all thanks to you."

"But I also heard you spent a ton of money buying up all the winter gear in the city?"

"If you needed something, why didn’t you tell me? The Meng Family’s business network covers all of Cangyun Country. We could have definitely given you a better price than what you paid."

Shen Ningning shook her head. "Winter is coming soon. If I waited any longer, it would’ve been too late."

Lu Shaoyuan laughed, completely puzzled. "Too late for what? All the merchants out there are calling you the Money Scattering Child."

"Even if you buy out all the winter gear in the Capital City, they’ll just restock from other places."

Shen Ningning hummed. "That’s perfect, then. You should buy more and get ready. This winter is definitely going to be extremely cold."

Lu Shaoyuan said, "Hah, when is winter ever not cold? My family has plenty of charcoal. I’ll have some sent over to you later."

He didn’t take it seriously. Only after Shen Ningning warned him again and again did Lu Shaoyuan finally say, "Alright, alright, I’ll tell my mother."

It was almost time for class, so the two of them headed back together.

As they passed the gate to the National Academy’s front courtyard, Shen Ningning saw that her exam paper was posted on the notice board, along with Xu Jingxi’s and Lu Shaoyuan’s.

A number of students had already gathered to look, their voices a chorus of clicks and murmurs as praises were exchanged one after another.

Shen Ningning felt happy, thinking that she would tell the mad scholar the next time she went back to the village.

He was a great teacher; everyone was so impressed with the essay she had written!

However, over the next few days, Shen Ningning noticed that her classmates at the National Academy were looking at her strangely.

When Muchun and Wanchun accompanied the little girl into the National Academy, other students would stand at a distance, covering their mouths and whispering.

They kept casting suspicious gazes in Shen Ningning’s direction.

Wanchun was hot-tempered. Sensing something was wrong, she instantly furrowed her brow and demanded, "What are you looking at? If you have something to say, why don’t you have the guts to say it to our faces!"

The students hastily apologized. "Nothing, we weren’t talking about anything."

With that, they hurried away one after another.

Shen Ningning furrowed her cute little eyebrows and asked in confusion, "Is there something dirty on my face?"

Muchun and Wanchun studied her face carefully for a moment before shaking their heads. "No, there’s nothing."

When Shen Ningning entered Huangzi Class, she found that all her classmates were present. Mr. Han had also just arrived, his expression somewhat grave.

When Mr. Han saw Shen Ningning, his gaze softened slightly. "Commandery Princess, you’re just in time. Let’s begin class."

However, a young boy stood up. "Teacher, why don’t you ask the Commandery Princess if that rumor is true?"

Mr. Han’s expression turned stern. "Sit down! How can you be so ill-mannered?"

A classmate close to the boy added, "Teacher, you won’t ask, and you’re being so fierce. Are you trying to cover for her, too?"

Shen Ningning was utterly bewildered. "Cover for me for what? What did I do?"

The boy said, "Stop pretending you don’t know! Everyone’s saying that your first-place, top-grade exam paper is a fake! You cheated!"

"Otherwise, why is your handwriting so different from everyone else’s? How could it be that good? Someone must have swapped your paper for you!"