Chapter 156: Excellent, They’re About to Secretly Pass the Answers
Jane Lancaster turned to look at Julian Lancaster. Their eyes met, and he gave her a barely perceptible nod.
After Quentin Woods agreed to take her on as his apprentice, Julian had guessed that some people would be unconvinced and try to cause trouble.
Rather than trying to block them, it was better to manage the situation. He had discussed it with Quentin Woods and agreed to add a simple assessment. This way, they could control the narrative and silence any doubters.
Jane Lancaster didn’t hesitate. "Alright. So how will the assessment work? Who’s writing the questions?"
"The questions will come from us, of course," Ian Lane said with a smile. The only thing was, he had already swapped them out.
He was closest to Samuel Miller, and this woman had sent Samuel to prison. There was no way he could just let that go.
Luna Morgan started to get anxious. She quietly walked toward Adrian Lancaster, but Leo saw her and put out a hand to stop her.
Luna Morgan nearly tripped. She grabbed Leo’s arm and whispered, "Give this to Miss Lancaster."
Leo’s eyes flickered.
"Please!" Luna Morgan’s eyes were pleading.
A moment later, Leo gave a helpless smile, stood up, and discreetly walked over to Julian Lancaster’s side before glancing at Jane Lancaster.
Mia Lanley had been watching Luna Morgan the entire time and saw the whole exchange. ’Is there something fishy going on here?’
"Luna, you seem a little nervous," Quentin Woods said unexpectedly, his eyes fixed on Luna Morgan.
Luna Morgan jumped, then quickly forced a smile. "Not at all, Professor Woods."
She was a terrible liar; her guilt was written all over her face.
Mia Lanley instantly understood. Keeping an eye on Leo, she walked over to Ian Lane and asked in a low voice, "Did Luna visit your room yesterday or today?"
"She did," Ian Lane replied, startled. He wasn’t stupid; he quickly realized what was happening.
He followed Mia Lanley’s gaze and, sure enough, saw that Leo had his hand in his suit pocket. The pocket was bulging, a clear sign he was clutching something.
’I’ll handle this.’ He thought for a moment. ’Luna Morgan is too naive and kind-hearted. She must have not only stolen the questions, but also secretly written down all the answers.’
He didn’t want Luna Morgan to be blamed by everyone, but he would absolutely not let Jane Lancaster off the hook.
The moment Jane Lancaster took the answers, he would rush in and catch her red-handed!
Leo stood there for a while, but Jane Lancaster still gave no reaction.
While pretending to talk to Quentin Woods, Luna Morgan secretly shot Leo an insistent look.
With a sigh of resignation, Leo moved a little closer to Jane Lancaster.
Now, even Julian Lancaster sensed something was wrong. He discreetly stepped forward, shielding Jane Lancaster.
Nearby, Ian Lane rejoiced inwardly. ’Excellent! They’re about to secretly pass the answers!’
Watching Leo approach, Jane Lancaster was truly speechless.
’I’m already ignoring you, but you just keep getting in my face. Are you insane?’
’Luna Morgan’s acting is so bad, even a fool could see something’s wrong with her. And you guys are playing along with her performance? Are you all crazy?’
’But if this is how you want to play, then I’m going to get serious.’
Jane Lancaster was wearing a dress today. But as luck would have it, because the air conditioning was blasting, her frail constitution made her sensitive to the cold, so she had paired it with a light blazer.
She glanced at Leo. He smiled and stepped forward, preparing to shove the object clutched in his hand into her pocket.
But just as his hand reached out, Jane Lancaster quickly took several steps back, dodging him.
Leo’s expression darkened. He was about to go after her when someone blocked his path.
"You must be Mr. Sean Grant. A pleasure to meet you," Jasper Sterling said with a smile.
Leo’s gaze hardened as he looked at the man before him. "President Sterling, you know me?"
He hadn’t used his formal name, Sean Grant, in a very long time. Even after recently infiltrating Stratton’s high society circles, he only went by Leo, the owner of a distillery and a bar.
Meanwhile, Jane Lancaster had already used the opportunity to get away, hopping onto the stage in the center of the room.
"Can the assessment begin now?" she asked Ian Lane and the others with a smile.
Ian Lane’s gaze discreetly swept over the hand she had tucked into her blazer pocket, and he nodded.
Hearing that there would be a live assessment, all the guests were drawn over.
Willow Summers was getting anxious. "Why is there an assessment? Just accept her or don’t. Isn’t all this just stirring up trouble?"
After speaking, she noticed Beverly Lynch giving her a strange look and froze for a second. ’Was my bias too obvious?’
She couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. "Um, it’s not that I’m defending Jane Lancaster..."
Beverly Lynch walked past her, and only then did Willow Summers realize Beverly hadn’t been looking at her at all.
A man and a woman hiding in the back were gossiping.
"Oh my god, the Lancaster Family is just too much. A live assessment? They’re really overdoing the theatrics."
"I’m speechless. This ’college acceptance party’ was already embarrassing enough. Who knows how Jane Lancaster even got into university."
"You can’t blame the young masters of the Lancaster Family. Jane Lancaster must have insisted on having this party herself. She has no sense of shame."
Beverly Lynch snapped, "You’re the ones who are shameless. Your whole family is shameless, you idiots!"
Willow Summers recognized them. They were Jane Lancaster’s high school classmates and had once been top students on the "Top 100" list.
Compared to Jane Lancaster, however, their grades were nothing to look at; she had consistently outperformed them.
"Who are you calling an idiot?" the man fumed. Although they weren’t in the same class in high school, everyone knew Beverly Lynch for her independent streak.
"Your grades weren’t anything special. You never even made the Top 100 list in high school. What right do you have to call me an idiot?" the man asked, suppressing his anger.
He was wary of the Lynch Family, but he wasn’t a doormat either.
Beverly Lynch replied, "I may not have been on the Top 100 list, but Jane Lancaster was always number one by a huge margin. Did you ever outscore her? What gives you the right to question her?"
The man couldn’t help but laugh. "Bringing up past achievements is just ridiculous. So what if someone was called a genius as a child and skipped grades? Didn’t they just burn out and have to repeat a year later? ’Great in youth, but not necessarily in adulthood.’ Besides... people who’ve been in a vegetative state have brain problems."
Willow Summers demanded, "What are you trying to say?"
"I’m not trying to say anything. Just stating facts," the man said with a smug grin. He hadn’t named anyone, after all.
Willow Summers dropped her ladylike demeanor. "You bastard! You’re the one with brain problems!"
The man’s grin vanished. He could take an insult from Beverly Lynch, but who the hell did Willow Summers think she was?
He saw Pauline Shaw approaching and quickly said, "Committee Secretary, come and be the judge of this."
Pauline Shaw had heard Willow Summers call him a bastard. Since she was the one who had invited him, she felt responsible. "Willow Summers, why are you cursing at people?"
Beverly Lynch turned to look at the stage. Jane Lancaster had already answered more than twenty questions in a row, and she was doing it very quickly.
Hearing Pauline Shaw’s accusation, she turned back and said calmly, "She wasn’t cursing. She was just stating a fact. Some people may look like they can function independently, but they’ve actually been brain-dead for years."
The man’s face changed. He was about to retort when he suddenly heard a few cheers and hastily looked toward the stage.
Holy shit, how was Jane Lancaster reacting so fast? The question had barely been read before she gave the correct answer without a second of thought.
"She’s definitely cheating!" the man said decisively. "No normal person could react that fast."