Chapter 45 Alice and Hannah thought that after hearing this , Mason would look into Shermaine's alleged cheating and hold her accountable . But to their surprise , he just sat there with a stern face , seemingly disappointed with their nonsense . He slammed his hand on the desk and said , " " since you're all model students , I'll pretend you never brought up this cheating thing . Now , go back to class ." No one expected this kind of outcome . Fidgeting nervously with her sleeve , Alice said , " Mr. Moe , we're telling the truth . You don't believe us ? " " Yeah , Mr. Moe , if you check , you'll find something for sure ," Hannah chimed in . Of course , Mason wouldn't look into it . After the bet was made , Shermaine might have anticipated that if she scored too high , Mason , the teachers , and all the students would suspect she had cheated . To avoid any trouble , she had Mason personally monitor her exams through the surveillance cameras . Besides , Mason , being extra cautious , had secretly swapped the A version of the test for the B version , which was stored in the secure vault . With all these precautions in place , there was no way Shermaine could cheat . Honestly , if Mason hadn't been so biased against Shermaine because of her background and everything her mother said , and hadn't treated her so coldly when she first arrived , things might have turned out differently . Shermaine would have completed the test he assigned , and he would've seen her true academic abilities . Then , he wouldn't have rushed to put her in a regular class . He still couldn't forget the shock he felt watching Shermaine tackle the math exam . She breezed through the multiple - choice questions without needing scrap paper to calculate . Before long , she was already onto the long - form problems , solving them with ease and writing out the simplest solutions. They looked simple , but the formulas she used were advanced - knowledge that wasn't even taught until university . That day , Mason felt like his world had been turned upside down . He regretted dismissing Shermaine as a poor student so easily . Now , he saw her in a new light - not only was she brilliant academically , but she was also exceptional in ways he hadn't expected . Her values were more solid than his , too . Manson had a glaring flaw . He had always favored students with good grades , treating them like precious gems , unwilling to criticize them too harshly , no matter what they did . But with average students , he would push them and hold them accountable when they did something wrong . In his mind , only good grades mattered - they were the only thing that could earn his leniency . He knew this wasn't right , but he couldn't help it . His bias was exactly why there was so much tension between average students and high - performing ones . It often led to conflicts , and in the past , some low - achieving students had even sent him hate letters after the SAT , cursing him and claiming he didn't deserve to be an educator . He couldn't care less about that before . Over the past few days , he had been reflecting on his actions . While his treatment may have motivated average students to do better , it also created countless problems . Shermaine was right - he shouldn't treat students differently based on their grades . And just now , the model students whom he had always favored had slandered another student for cheating without any evidence , driven purely by jealousy and spite . From that , Mason realized that academic excellence wasn't everything - character mattered just as much . A student with only good grades and questionable morals would be nothing but a disaster to society after graduation . Mason was furious . " Enough ! I can tell you for sure , Shermaine did not cheat . If you keep spouting nonsense , I'll have no choice but ive you a demerit . If you put half as much effort into studying as you do scheming , would your grades have dropped so much this time ? " His outburst startled Alice and Hannah . They lowered their heads , not daring to Mr. Moe's attitude shift so drastically ? What's going on ? ' another word . But inside , they were furious and thought , ' Why did They might be young , but they were quite shrewd . They felt there had to be some hidden agenda behind the sudden change . It was the first class of the day - math class . The math teacher walked up to the podium , holding the math papers , looking in a good mood . She 1/3 Chapter 45 instinctively glanced at Shermaine , smiling warmly . She hadn't expected that one of her students would be this amazing " I'm sure by now , you all know how you did on your exams , " she said . " Yeah . And we all know Sheary got straight A's ! " someone exclaimed excitedly . " Yep , that's right . Shermaine's amazing . The rest of you all did okay , but you could've done better . Now , I'll pass back your papers . And we'll review the test together , " said the math teacher . Shermaine's paper was right on top . The teacher glanced at it repeatedly , a proud smile spreading across her face . Then she said to Shermaine , " You did an excellent job . But don't get too cocky . Keep up the good work , and next year , you'll surely be the top scorer on the SAT ." Shermaine smiled lightly and nodded . Once everyone had their papers , the teacher started going over the questions . The class listened carefully , but halfway through , the math teacher suddenly had to use the restroom and paused for five minutes . When she returned , she was surprised to find that Shermaine had taken over and was explaining the problems . She decided to just sit at the back and listen to Shermaine . She had to admit that Shermaine's way of explaining the problems was clearer and more concise than hers , and it was easier for the students to understand . Shermaine quickly drew them into the world of mathematics . As the class was about to end , Mason entered the classroom , looking a little awkward . He cleared his throat before saying , " I'm here today to apologize to the few boys I accused the other day . " I didn't handle things properly and unfairly blamed you . I'm sorry . Honestly , each of you has faced a lot of challenges . I want to assure you all that I'll be fair and just from now on , and I won't let anything like that happen again . " When he finished , some of the students applauded . Though they still didn't like Mason , his willingness to admit his mistake and correct it earned their respect . The bell rang . Afterward , Mason pulled Shermaine aside and said , " It's a bit of a waste for you to take regular classes . With your grades , you could take honors classes and AP classes . What do you think ? " Hearing this , the math teacher couldn't help but think , ' Typical Mr. Moe , always putting so much emphasis on grades . But Shermaine should do it . It'll give her a better chance to improve herself . ' How Shermaine explained the problems earlier is remarkable . She definitely deserves advanced lessons . Her level is far beyond what we can offer . ' It might sound unfair to the teachers with master's degrees , but that's the undeniable truth I've realized after listening to Shermaine's class . ' Shermaine calmly declined . " No need . Regular classes are fine , and I really like my classmates here ," she said . Her classmates were simple , kind - hearted , and easy to get along with . More importantly , they needed her . Besides , she had already mastered the high school knowledge and skills required , so she wouldn't be taking any other classes . " Alright then ," Mason said before leaving . Shermaine's classmates were overjoyed that she wasn't going anywhere . Despite that , rumors about Shermaine cheating on the exam started circulating in the school . And as with all rumors , they only spread further . Whether in the cafeteria , the convenience store , or on the sports field , Shermaine's classmates could overhear the gossip . " What idiots , just believing whatever they hear , " someone muttered . " I wish Shermaine could tutor them once - let them know what a genius looks like . Besides , if she did cheat , do they think the school would just let it slide ? " Naturally , some of them wanted to confront the gossipers , but Shermaine stopped them , saying that instead of wasting their time arguing , they might as 2/3 12:45 Mon , 2 Jun G Chapter 45 well focus on their studies . That evening , Shermaine headed to the Jean residence . Janice , who had traveled all the way from the suburbs to Basterel , had no plans to leave anytime soon . She hadn't even seen her grandson yet , and she wanted to spend more time with Shermaine to strengthen their bond . So , Shermaine planned to stay for a little while and keep her grandmother company . After school , the driver took Shermaine straight to the Jean residence , where Janice had been waiting . As soon as Shermaine arrived , Janice rushed over to take her schoolbag , but Shermaine stopped her . She said , " Grandma , I'm not a kid anymore . The bag's heavy - don't strain yourself . " She set it down on the couch , planning to take it upstairs later . Janice chuckled warmly . " I've prepared some fruit for you . You must be tired after a whole day of classes , right ? Have a bite to hold you over . " Shermaine wasn't tired , but she couldn't turn down her grandmother's kind gesture , so she agreed . At dinner , the table was filled with delicious dishes Shermaine loved . It didn't take much guessing to know that Janice had asked the chef to prepare them . At this point , Janice was eagerly recommending the food to Shermaine . Meanwhile , Wendelyn , who had never been treated like this , could only watch with a sour expression and no appetite . Ever since her humiliating experience , Wendelyn had been staying in her apartment off - campus for several days . She had finally come to terms with the fact that she would never win Joshua's heart . But the thought of such a man willingly marrying Shermaine filled her with a destructive rage . If she couldn't have him , she'd make sure Shermaine couldn't either . Wendelyn took a sip of soup and asked , " Shermaine , I heard from Leslie that you had midterms this week . The results should be out today , right ? " Shermaine replied , " Yeah . " Wendelyn gave a half - smile . " How did you do ? " Shermaine responded flatly , " Not very good . I just got straight A's . " Wendelyn and Ruth were dumbfounded . AD Comment Send gift No Ads Chapter 46 Discover our latest featured short drama reel. Watch now and enjoy the story!