Transmigrating as the Female Supporting Character: Dumb with Deep Pockets - Chapter 12

Chapter 12: The New Semester

Although she was still a bit reluctant, she couldn’t exactly skip going home for the National Day holiday.

“Fine,” Su Su said. After hanging up, she looked at Chen Jia with intense scrutiny and suspicion. “How did you know what my family was going to ask?”

“A guess.”

Chen Jia couldn’t exactly tell her the truth. Even if she wasn’t branded a lunatic, she might be penalized by the system for breaking reality. When she first arrived in this world, she had tried to avoid the main cast by choosing a different dormitory, but the system glitched for ages until only the bed in this specific room was left. Fate, it seemed, was unavoidable.

That night, they were the only two in the room. While Su Su was showering, Chen Jia’s phone rang. Looking at the caller ID—”Mom”—she felt a sudden surge of dread. But she answered, knowing that if she didn’t, the woman would call until the battery died.

“Mom.”

As soon as she spoke, a complaining voice lashed out at her. “What were you doing? Why did it take so long to answer?” Before Chen Jia could reply, the topic shifted. “Forget it. It’s not like you have anything important to do. You’re just enjoying life at school while your father and I work from dawn to dusk to support you and your brother.”

Chen Jia reminded her coolly, “You didn’t give me anything for school.”

The original Chen Jia might not have dared to say that, but the current one felt no burden. Tian Guixiang, the mother, was instantly offended. “You ungrateful child! If it wasn’t for us, you wouldn’t even exist! We didn’t want you to go to school in the first place—you insisted on it. We don’t have that kind of money, so why do you act like we’re abusing you?”

Chen Jia cut to the chase. “Why are you calling?”

“I know you made a lot of money from your summer job. Your uncle said you can work at school too. Your brother has been coming down with colds and fevers lately, and your father and I just built the new house, so we owe the relatives a lot. You’re living for free at school, so you should contribute, right?”

“What do you mean?” Chen Jia’s voice turned icy.

She was a freshman. Most kids were still basking in the warmth provided by their parents, yet her mother expected her to provide for the family despite giving her zero financial support. Even a slumlord wouldn’t be this unreasonable.

Tian Guixiang huffed, “Stop playing dumb. Give the money from your summer job to your brother for his medical bills. Your father’s and my wages have to go toward the debt. We can’t keep owing the neighbors; it’s embarrassing.”

It was clear what was happening: she was being punished for insisting on an education. They wanted her to give up and return to the “death-trap” life they had planned for her.

“I have no money.”

Tian Guixiang’s voice went up an octave. “Several thousand yuan! It’s only been a few days and it’s all gone? I taught you to be thrifty. Ever since you woke up from being sick last time, you’ve been acting weird. I think you’re possessed!”

Not possessed, Chen Jia thought, just awake.

“Regardless, I don’t have a cent. For these four years of university, I won’t ask you for anything. You built that house for your son, so go ask him for money. Don’t come to me.”

“You child! What are you saying? I am your mother—”

Chen Jia hung up, tired of the noise. In her past life, she was an only child; while not spoiled, she was loved and provided for. Even with her good temper, dealing with such toxic family members made her blood boil.

She turned around and saw Su Su staring at her, eyes wide. “I heard everything,” Su Su whispered. She had thought Chen Jia was thrifty because of poverty, but she hadn’t realized her family was actively predatory.

Seeing Su Su looking more upset than she was, Chen Jia’s anger softened. “I’m not as pitiful as you think. I’ll just ignore her from now on.”

Su Su, ever sentimental, was still indignant. “How can they treat you like that? You’re their child too!”

It was a question with no answer. Not all parents love their children, and Chen Jia happened to be the one left out. “Don’t think too much about it. This milk tea has been sitting so long the taste has changed. Let’s go throw the trash away.”

…

The school gave them a day to rest after military training, then the class group chats exploded. It was time for the first class meeting to elect the class committee. Some of the more extroverted students had already networked through their phones and were acting like they were already in charge.

Chen Jia followed Su Su to Building 1, Room 408. Being the Computer Science department, there were far more boys than girls. Su Su took one look around and her shoulders slumped. Apparently, a surplus of boys didn’t mean a surplus of handsome boys. Her beautiful makeup felt wasted.

They sat in a quiet corner in the back. A boy in the row in front of them turned around immediately, grinning. “Hello, new classmates. I’m Lei Lei. What’s your name?”

“Su Su,” she replied with a cold, high-status air that only someone that beautiful could pull off.

“What a coincidence! Our names sound so good together!” Lei Lei chirped, while the boy next to him focused on Chen Jia.

“Where are you from?” the other boy asked. “You don’t look like a Jian City local.”

Chen Jia found his attempt at being “mysterious” funny. “I’m from F Province.”

“No way! My home is right on the border of G and F Provinces. Maybe we can take the same bus home!”

As the awkward small talk continued, the counselor arrived. He was a busy man named Mr. Zhang who made it clear he wouldn’t hold their hands. Then came the elections. Su Su was nervous but decided to run for the Cultural and Sports Representative.

“I’ll vote for you,” Chen Jia promised.

In the end, thanks to her looks and friendly demeanor, Su Su won by a narrow margin. On the way back, she was humming. “I’m a representative now!”

…

As the semester began, clubs started recruiting. Chen Jia had no time for clubs, but Su Su was interested in everything. She ended up signing up for the Music Club and the Art Club. Chen Jia, meanwhile, secured a work-study position in the cafeteria—a highly sought-after job that had only opened up because another student left.

Classes were in full swing. Since Chen Jia had studied Computer Science in her previous life, the coursework was easy. She hoped to start taking on small freelance web projects soon; coding templates paid much better than manual labor.

Soon, the Mid-Autumn Festival gala was announced. Each class needed to provide five performances. In a department full of STEM students with the artistic grace of a brick, this was a nightmare for Su Su. She moped at her desk. “Chen Jia, what should I do? Can you just do five shows by yourself?”

“Go back to sleep. You’ll find the answer in your dreams,” Chen Jia joked.

Su Su didn’t give up. She wheedled, bribed, and nagged. Eventually, the school offered extra credits for performers. Between the credits and Su Su’s persistence, they managed to scrounge up eight acts.

Feeling successful, Su Su decided to reward herself. She hadn’t bought new clothes or done her nails in two months. “Chen Jia, I want to go shopping. Come with me?”

Chen Jia agreed. The weekend was approaching, and she wanted to keep Su Su away from any potential run-ins with Jiang Hanting.

“I want us to do a song-and-dance act,” Su Su suggested excitedly. “I’ll sing, you’ll dance.”

Chen Jia vetoed it instantly. “You should give up on that idea right now.”