Chapter <b>223 </b>


    Colton’s body jolted, and he unconsciously pinched his hand, offering a strained smile. “You’ve got it all wrong, sir. I didn’t mean it that way.”


    Mr. Hammond’s eyes held little warmth as he reached for a stack of exam papers and a report card on his desk, handing them to Colton. “Do me a favor, Mr. Colton, and take a look. Does this look like poor performance to you?”


    Colton’s gazended on the papers Mr. Hammond passed to him, hesitating for only a second before taking them.


    The papers were the monthly exams for various subjects, along with the perfect score set Mirabe hadpleted online before entering Parkside High School. They were all printed


    out.


    The report card summarized cumtive scores for each term, and the name topping the list for several terms was unmistakably Mirabe.


    Colton stared at the bright red perfect scores and rankings on the papers. His face was etched with disbelief. He flipped through them again and again as if to ensure he wasn’t seeing things. “Do you really think someone with these grades needs to cheat with some shoddy review materials?” Mr. Hammond’s lips curled with a touch of sarcasm.


    “This…this can’t be right. Her grades weren’t like this,” Colton muttered, shaking his head in denial. Even if his foster daughter had improved, it was unthinkable for her to skyrocket to the top of the ss<b>. </b>


    Sensing his skepticism, Mr. Hammond picked up another set of photocopied papers from his desk. “Here, take a look at these as well.” They were the photocopies of the current term’s


    . </b>


    “Mr. Colton might not quite understand them, but no matter, you can have your friends at the Education Associationpare them. See if the way Mirabe answered the questions matches the methods in yourpetition materials.”


    Mr. Hammond’s voice was calm, but his presence wasmanding. Even his most understated remarks carried a sharp edge.


    Colton had nned to push all the me onto his


    foster daughter upon arriving at the school. After all, the Gilbert family had raised her for seventeen years. A little hardship could be considered repayment for their kindness, and he could alwayspensate herter with


    money.


    Compared to his own daughter’s future, he naturally didn’t want her to have any blemishes. Looking at the papers in his hand<b>, </b>Colton felt uneasy. He truly hadn’t expected his foster daughter’s academic performance to improve so dramatically, nor did she seem to have


    Chapter <b>223 </b>


    gained Mr. Hammond’s favor…


    “Still nning to put all the me on Miss Mirabe?” Mr. Hammond sneered, not in the mood to smooth things over. Mirabe was his recruit, so he would not tolerate any further attempts to tarnish her reputation.


    Colton was now in a tough spot. He had made the usation, so retracting it would be tantamount to pping his own face.


    Pressing his temples, Colton looked towards Mr. Hammond and was about to speak when Mr. Hammond’s phone rang from his pocket. It caused him to abruptly close his mouth.


    Mr. Hammond pulled out his phone, nced at the caller ID, and after a moment of hesitation, walked over to the window to answer. It was a call from the head office of the Education Association.


    Two minutester,” Alright, I understand<b>.</b><b>” </b>


    After hanging up, Mr. Hammond’s gaze grew darker. He turned back to Colton and said firmly. “The matter of the leakedpetition materials ends here.”


    Colton exhaled a sigh of relief upon hearing this. He had called an old friend, the chairman of the Education Association, beforeing. It seemed that the call was likely from his friend.


    Mr. Hammond watched Colton visibly rx, and his lips twisted coldly. “However, Summer’s nationalpetition eligibility is hereby revoked.”