Cheating Craft Chapter 45

Quiz 45: Declaring War

No one was around, just the walls and the school buildings. School hadn’t let out yet, so if they left through the entrance, they’d definitely be seized by the guard. Zhou Lun Yu unconfidently told everyone that there was possibly a back door, so they furtively slipped to the back of the school.

Rather than a back door, the place they’d arrived might as well be the area behind a mountain. The further in they went, the wider the area was, and there were many trees. The muddy ground gradually became buried by sandy soil.　　

“That’s right! There’s indeed a path at the back of the school that leads to Mt. Qing Xiu. This is the forest square, where students occasionally hold activities…” Zhou Lun Yu said with more certainty after looking around.

That meant they should be able to leave, right?　　

They were full of hope, but just as they were planning to walk towards the mountain, they suddenly sensed a dangerous gaze from the square pointed towards them!

When they turned around, they saw a student wearing the Qing Xin uniform standing behind them!　　

Sean?!

Wasn’t he in cla.s.s just now, how…!　　

All of them were frozen, and they exchanged glances. None of them wanted to speak first.　　

The silence lasted for a long time. For some reason, traces of cold air seemed to be emitted between them. Eventually, Meng Ming’s fluent English finally broke the impa.s.se.

“Ah, Sean, why are you here?” Although this dialogue wasn’t very appropriate, it was best to force some etiquette in after having met once before.

“Of course. We just got a break between cla.s.ses to rest,” Sean replied. He was, instead, using the accurate Mandarin he’d spoken in cla.s.s! “I should be asking you guys, why are you here?”　

Just as Meng Ming was about to speak, Zhou Lun Yu stepped forward to hold him back. After staring at Sean for a while, he opened his mouth to say, “We just walked into the wrong cla.s.s.”

“Stop beating around the bush.” The break between cla.s.ses was short, so Sean didn’t want to waste time by idly chatting with them. “Are you guys…spies from other schools sent to scout out information? Which school?!”　　

They were unable to answer yet another question. Or it could be said that they had no clue how to respond.　　

“…Okay, let’s first put aside the question of what school you guys are from. First, I’d like to tell you all that even if you continue scouting around, it will be useless. Everyone here knows that the single spot in the Provincial University of Medicine will definitely be mine.”

“Hmph, you….” Having heard such arrogant lines, Zhou Lun Yu interjected, “Do you think you’re the best person in Qing Xin? I know someone even better than you.” Meng Ming and Huang Qiao Yi knew what Zhou Lun Yu was trying to get at. He was clearly talking about Qiao Shun Zhi, whose chemistry grades were even better than Sean’s.　　

“Oh? Is he from your school? Go ahead and tell me his name,” Sean asked. He seemed to have wanted to know this from the beginning, so he’d specifically come looking for them.　　

“I have no reason to tell you.” Zhou Lun Yu stopped talking, and called out for the others, about to turn around to continue walking into the mountains.　

“Wait a minute!” Sean shouted at them. “Hurry up and tell me who that person is. Otherwise….” When they looked back, they saw that Sean had raised his hand to show the camera on his phone. “I’ve already taken pictures of your faces and the fact that you’re wearing the uniform. As long as I press send, you’ll be charged and reported for infiltrating another school to spy.” 　

The three of them immediately stopped in their tracks.　　

They hadn’t imagined that Sean would’ve prepared this!　　

Zhuge Meng Ming, are you ready? [Zhou Lun Yu]

Yea, destroy that cellphone before he presses send! [Meng Ming]　　

“Also, you’d better not think about using force. I’ve already sent these pictures to my brother.” Sean added, “If anything happens, I’m sure you guys know what the consequences would be.”

There was another moment of silence.　　

Who knew that the reason he’d saved us was…

He wanted to know who’d sent us. He believes that someone other than Qiao Shun Zhi is contesting for that position.　　

“How about it? It’s just an exchange of information. There’s no need to say that this person is the one who sent you to gather information.” Sean seemed pretty practiced in this kind of matter. “I’ve never thought anyone here could beat me in chemistry, but after hearing what you’ve said, I think that I’ve been careless. As long as you tell me who this person is, I’ll clear you of your crimes.”

Zhou Lun Yu couldn’t possibly say Qiao Shun Zhi’s name. He was already down with illness; if he was brought up, Sean would know their true reason for coming!

For a moment, none of them knew how to respond. “Hmph,” Zhou Lun Yu said to scare him. “He’s very amazing, so there’s absolutely no need to make us come gather information about you.”　　

“So it was like that. Then, as long as you can prove he’s stronger than me, there’s no motive for you guys to infiltrate the school. These pictures wouldn’t count as incriminating evidence either.” Sean still pressed, “So you should first tell me who this person is.”　　

“Tomorrow,” Zhou Lun Yu said. “I’ll bring him tomorrow.”　　

Tomorrow? [Huang Qiao Yi]

You’re joking…can we make it?! [Meng Ming]　　

Zhou Lun Yu thought that as long as they were able to get the Yilan root from the mountain top today, Qiao Shun Zhi would be able to start moving tomorrow!　　

“Tomorrow…is when the second years have supplementary lessons.” Sean thought a bit before responding, “Then it’s decided. I’ll have a duel against him tomorrow! Right here.” He pointed at the ground, indicating that he meant this forest square!　

Duel?!

Competing in chemistry experiments?!　　

It was another terrifying proposal!　　

“Of course it’s a duel. How else would I confirm that he’s stronger than me?” Sean asked.　　

There was indeed no better method. But it was so sudden, would Qiao Shun Zhi take up the challenge when he awoke tomorrow? Based on the understanding they’d gained the past two days, as well as what the chemistry teacher had said just now, n.o.body could beat Sean aside from Qiao Shun Zhi!　　

He said he wanted to duel…. 　　

Zhou Lun Yu said, “You want to have a duel with him? Hmph, you’ll definitely lose.”　　

Sean wasn’t afraid of such measly words. Zhou Lun Yu believed that he should be able to make it and get Qiao Shun Zhi to come and go against Sean, so he even explicitly asked Sean about the rules.　　

Sean said, “Just like the rules we’re used to, you can bring one a.s.sistant. The subject of the chemistry experiment will be decided by the teacher alone. After we’ve met up here tomorrow, we can announce it then.” He said all this quite smoothly, and it looked like he had a lot of experience. Sean continued, “I’ll tell the teacher and any interested students. Tomorrow at 10am sharp, we’ll perform our experiments here!”

“Fine.” Zhou Lun Yu immediately agreed after seeing Sean’s arrogant appearance. “I’ll pa.s.s on the message. Then…”　　

Sean knew what Zhou Lun Yu wanted to say. He forcefully said, “I’ll keep the phone’s contents. You’d better not joke around with me. If he wins, I won’t continue pursuing your ident.i.ties, but I’ll at least ask him his name. However, if I win, I’ll be merciless with reporting your information-stealing crimes.”　　

“He definitely won’t lose to you,” Zhou Lun Yu replied, before turning around to indicate his agreement.　　

Tomorrow morning at 10? They were pressed for time, so they didn’t want to waste any bit of it, thus they left quickly.

　　“潜入学校，竟然出现这么大的失误……”

“Infiltrating the school ended up being such a huge mistake…”

　　短暂的周旋，他们已躲开了肖恩的追问，但那只是稍稍拖延了时间而已，几人很明白，事情还没得到根本的解决！这个下午已过去大半了……

During their short interaction, they’d managed to dodge Sean’s questions. However, this only served to drag it out a bit longer. They all knew that this matter basically hadn’t been resolved at all! They’d already lost a large majority of the afternoon….

　　明天上午十点……

Tomorrow at 10am….　　

With no explanation needed, Zhou Lun Yu had to go and retrieve the medicinal plants from Scarlet Dragon Pool. He once again went around asking to borrow a boat. At this moment, Meng Ming suddenly received a text from Duan He. She said that she still had a matter she wanted to know about, so she would meet Meng Ming that night at Scarlet Dragon Pool’s wharf.

The matter had begun to become more urgent. Could both the riddle of Scarlet Dragon Pool and Sean’s duel be resolved in one go?!

　　“说了，不可以！”这个中年人脸紧绷着，“周纶羽，你知道渡潭的下场吧？我可不想我们到了对岸都被搞死！”

“I already said, I can’t!” This middle aged person’s face was taut as he said, “Zhou Lun Yu, do you know of the results of going to that pool? I don’t want to end up dead after reaching the opposite sh.o.r.e!”　　

　　“给我发动机，我自己去还不行吗。”

“Just give me the boat, I can go myself. Isn’t that ok?”　　

　　“不行！”

“No!”　　

Naturally, Zhou Lun Yu was rejected again and again by the speedboat owner. He walked out of the house with an indescribable expression. A duel tomorrow? As if. He couldn’t even borrow a boat. After such a long time, even if they managed to get the Yilan root, being able to bring it back in time to decoct the herb into medicine to cure Qiao Shun Zhi would basically only happen in fantasy!

　　『明晚就得回临仙了。……我答应了的，一定要在这之前弄到倚岚芝……！』

We have to return to Lin Xin tomorrow night…I promised that I’d definitely get the Yilan root before this…!　　

The sky began to darken. Zhou Lun Yu still hadn’t gotten a boat.　　

　　『真的要我如此做的话……』周纶羽走在回去的路上，他曾经问过自己无数次，是不是该采取强硬的态度。时间，决斗，药材，乔顺之的病症……

If I really have to do this….Zhou Lun Yu had asked himself many times on his way back if he should adopt an unyielding att.i.tude towards this. Time, duel, herb, Qiao Shun Zhi’s illness…

　　『……决定了。』

…I’ve decided.　　

Zhou Lun Yu walked towards Scarlet Dragon Pool. He had decided to carve his own boat to cross the water.　　

It was night.　　

While the sky was bathed in darkness, Meng Ming sat alone at the wharf next to the mountain top’s pool, quietly looking at the scarlet eyes amidst the mist.　

　　『诸葛流千术，真是奇丽的骗术。』这两只红眼，是梦明来到这里后最在意的东西，『段荷姐怎么还没来……』

The Zhuge Style Cheating Technique is really a strange and wonderful cheating technique.Those two red eyes were what Meng Ming had paid the most attention to since arriving. Why hasn’t Sister Duan He come yet….　　

Meng Ming suddenly heard the sound of footsteps behind him, and he turned around to look.　　

　　“周纶羽？”

“Zhou Lun Yu?”　　

Zhou Lun Yu wasn’t surprised by the sight of Meng Ming, nor did he speak. He silently walked down to the wharf and walked past Meng Ming. 　　

　　“你要干什么啊？”见他有些不大对劲，梦明马上问。周纶羽还是没有理会，直下码头，一把抓起那把捆快艇的麻绳，两下指法就将它们全数解开。

“What are you doing?” Meng Ming immediately asked after sensing that something wasn’t quite right. Zhou Lun Yu still didn’t pay him any mind, and directly walked down the wharf to grab the ropes tying the speedboat down. With two flicks of his fingers, he cut them all off.

　　“这种绑法怎么可能防住我。”周纶羽冷冷地念。

“How could this kind of knot block me,” Zhou Lun Yu coldly stated.　　

　　“喂，你没有发动机，怎么过去啊？太危险了。”

“Oi, without a motor, how do you plan on crossing? It’s too dangerous.”　　

　　“我可以撑船。”周纶羽手里拿了一只长棍。他望着远方，黑夜中闪烁的两点赤龙眼，没有丝毫畏惧。一条浅色的船被他一脚踏上：“那一定是骗人的，我这就去解开这个骗局。”

“I can propel it.” Zhou Lun Yu had a long rod in his hand. He looked at the two crimson dragon eyes flashing in the distant darkness without any trace of fear. He took a step into the light-colored boat and said, “That’s definitely a scam. I’ll go over and reveal the trick right now.”　　

　　“不用吧，”梦明说，“我已经解开了。”

“There’s no need,” Meng Ming said. “I’ve already figured it out.”　　

　　“嗯？”

“Hm?”

This sentence finally made the constantly moving Zhou Lun Yu stop in his tracks. He turned around to stare at Meng Ming with doubt written all over his face.　　

　　梦明接着说：“段荷姐发了信息来，说了很重要的东西。还让我在这里等她。”

Meng Ming continued, “Sister Duan He just messaged me about some important matters. She also told me to wait here for her.”

Zhou Lun Yu skeptically stood there on his boat. Meng Ming sat back down on the dock in absolutely no rush.　

　　“她呢？”周纶羽问。

“Where is she, then?” Zhou Lun Yu asked.　　

　　“她还没来吧，我们先等会儿。”

“She still hasn’t gotten here, I guess. Let’s wait a bit more.”　　

　　周纶羽只好踏回码头站住：“你说你已经，解开了？”

Zhou Lun Yu could only step back onto the dock. “You said that you already figured it out?”　　

　　“嗯。”梦明很有自信地点头。

“Mhm.” Meng Ming confidently nodded.　　

　　“那有什么用。”周纶羽转念说，“明天要乔顺之起来才行，现在我要过去采倚岚芝。”

“What use is that,” Zhou Lun Yu was starting to have second thoughts. “Qiao Shun Zhi has to be able to get out tomorrow for everything to work out. I need to go retrieve the Yilan root now.”　　

　　“是这样吗……”梦明抬起头，“你真的觉得，现在去采药来得及？”

“It’s like that, huh…” Meng Ming lifted his head. “Do you really think you’ll make it if you go get the herb now?”　　

　　被一语道破，周纶羽恢复沉默。他明知道时间已经不够，只因乔顺之一直卧床不起，他才想努力做做看！……

Meng Ming had hit the nail on the head, sending Zhou Lun Yu back into silence. He clearly knew that there wasn’t enough time, but, because Qiao Shun Zhi had been confined in bed for so long, Zhou Lun Yu wanted to try his best…!

　　“刚才，仔细考虑了一下更好的办法。明天，我们直接去揭开他们的真面目。”梦明指着远方潭中的光，“只要把他们的马脚抓住，让人们相信那两个模糊的东西只是骗人的把戏，那就一切好办了！这样就会有人送我们渡潭，而且根本用不着去和他决斗。”

“Just now, I carefully thought of a better idea. Tomorrow, we’ll just directly uncover their true faces.” Meng Ming pointed at the distant glows, “As long as we catch their secret and convince everyone that those two blurry things are actually just a cheap scam, everything will work out! That way, people will escort us across the pool, and we won’t have to go and duel against him either.　　

　　“你……！”周纶羽这才发觉自己有些冲动过头，语气趋于平和地，重新说，“……真的可以？”

“You…!” Zhou Lun Yu finally realized that he’d been too impulsive. He calmed down as he repeated, “….Is that really possible?”

Thus, Meng Ming slowly and clearly stated his plans for tomorrow.　　

　　……

The night quickly pa.s.sed by. At around 2am, the sky was still dark. A male figure secretly appeared once more in the forest around Scarlet Dragon Pool’s wharf without anyone else knowing. He was currently hiding in a very hard to find place, about to act. His movements were very quick, his actions agile. He had originally thought that n.o.body would find any traces of him, but, just then, he felt a hand lightly tap his shoulder from behind. He immediately turned around to look, and, in a split second, was pierced deeply by a penetrating gaze amidst the darkness.

　　“终于等到你了，请你合作一下。”段荷疲惫地笑了笑。

“I’ve finally met you after having waited for so long. Please cooperate,” Duan He smiled tiredly.