Yes Ma'm He said flatly, knowing full well that she was not going to like the answers that he had. I will use whatever words get the message across, But I'll not give undue insult. Her first question was one he wasn't keen on answering, and he pondered how he was going to word his response. He took a moment to observe the heading of her notebook, but, unable to see anything worthwhile, went back to thinking about his response. He could lie, and he was very tempted to do so. The trick was making it sound convincing, and he wasn't a good liar. His next tactic was telling the truth, but making it sound like a lie, it may have sounded stupid, but if it delayed her, then he deemed it worthwhile.
I..recently insulted someone rather powerful. Going to leeds was my punishment. he said. Better than no answer at all, might save him from the lash.