Thud.
Tang Xian's resume was placed on the desk by Bai Ling, one of the auditors in charge of promotion for official workers.
"Not a bad resume. Not many survive the mining district, congratulations to you."
Bai Ling knew Tang Xian; a few years ago, when she went to inspect the first layer, she encountered some trouble, and Tang Xian cleverly resolved it for her.
As a result, Tang Xian got his own house.
Seeing that the auditor was Bai Ling didn't make Tang Xian feel any relief. Bai Ling wasn't the decisive factor.
Next to Bai Ling was a young man who, judging by his attire, was at least a big shot on the fourth layer, and even there, he wielded significant influence. He had a handsome appearance and the firmness of a soldier.
"In this life, there is essentially only one opportunity to become an official worker, which is to pass the 'Heaven's Chosen' exam. If you don't do well on this path, the road ahead will be much tougher. My name is Jiang Ming, and you might not remember me since among your peers, hardly anyone was noteworthy enough to catch your eye, Tang Xian."
This was a very bad situation.
Tang Xian truly didn't remember this man, only that he was from the same cohort and had the power to decide his promotion.
"You've chosen a second path, and your luck has been pretty good as well. You kept to your work dutifully. By the third year, you could have been promoted, but you traded rare mining resources for an antique boiler. Many called you a fool, but this exactly shows that you're far from foolish. You knew that your name hadn't been forgotten, that you had to endure a few more years."
"What a shame, for I loathe cheaters the most, and you've crossed paths with me."
Jiang Ming looked at Tang Xian with a mocking smile.
Miss Bai was slightly surprised, not expecting Jiang Ming to know Tang Xian.
"Jiang Ming, there are no issues with his resume, and the state also provides opportunities for promotion to those without inherent talents. His efforts have earned this. I believe you should handle this impartially."
Although Bai Ling had long repaid Tang Xian's favor, she still spoke up for him.
"Do I, Jiang Ming, take personal vendettas into official matters? Miss Bai, you don't know this Tang Xian because you weren't originally from District 669. But let me tell you, this Tang Xian got a perfect score on the 'Heaven's Chosen' exam, the likes of which humans have never seen before. Do you believe that?"
Bai Ling wore an expression of shock.
A perfect score on the 'Heaven's Chosen' exam?
Indeed, such a feat had never occurred in history, though there were a few geniuses who came extremely close.
But those individuals had long gone to the fifth layer of the Pyramid or even higher areas.
"Take another look at Tang Xian's resume. A temp worker looking to become an official worker also has a series of exams. He scored perfectly on the cultural exam before the 'Heaven's Chosen' exam, yet such a person, in the subsequent years of testing, every subject, every exam, scored only around sixty points, fluctuating slightly. I happen to have education department statistics on every cohort's exam scores in the lower levels, and Tang Xian's scores have consistently been the average of everyone's."
Contempt filled Jiang Ming's eyes:
"I abhor cheaters above all else. Tang Xian, you may need to explain your scores."
Tang Xian indeed hadn't expected to encounter a former classmate, let alone one firmly convinced he had cheated.
The survival education, the 'Heaven's Chosen' exam, ultimately tested knowledge from the mining district, which to him was as if it was innately stored in his brain. A single read-through would suffice for him to remember everything and even integrate it seamlessly. While his peers struggled with just one discipline, he reigned supreme across all areas, naturally breeding arrogance.
However, Tang Xian later realized that a prideful person, in making mistakes, attracts even more schadenfreude.
He still retained his pride today, but he had adopted a way of expressing it that was less abrasive to others.
No one knew what he was thinking, but everything assigned to Tang Xian was always handled impeccably well by him.
To avoid drawing attention, he delivered decidedly mediocre results on various tests, just barely passing, without any highlights.
If a hundred people were tested, Tang Xian was always the fifty-first. And it was always the same every time.
He understood everyone in his mining district like the back of his hand: intellectual levels, moral hazards, financial resources, honesty, thinking patterns when making decisions. With the data before his eyes, Tang Xian easily fathomed them.
So he precisely estimated everyone's score levels, and hence he always achieved an average score.
It was a precaution to keep a low profile, but this habitual average-scoring behavior seemed a bit forced and drew attention regardless.
Jiang Ming had noticed it.
Even the instructors didn't dare claim to predict every test's average score, as student performance varied. Some good scorers might decline, while some poor ones might worsen.
Firstly, one would have to know all the answers. Secondly, be aware of each individual's level of knowledge of the mining district. And then calculate the scores they might achieve.
Only by meeting these conditions could one produce the score they needed. Achieving an average score was much harder than a perfect score.
Such a feat was simply impossible.
Jiang Ming took out a stamp, ready to imprint the mark "Never to be Promoted" on Tang Xian's resume.
He indeed had the power to do this.
But just at that moment, Tang Xian suddenly spoke up:
"Next, you'll leave a remark on my resume of another instance of cheating, completing this audit. Although you can't produce any evidence, and haven't figured out how I could cheat without getting caught, you still haven't come to a conclusion. Everything is just your subjective judgment."