Transmigrating as the Female Supporting Character: Dumb with Deep Pockets - Chapter 20

Chapter 20: A Different Kind of “Introverted”

Su Min felt it was high time to have a proper talk about this.

“How exactly do I ‘not understand’?”

Bai Xue rolled her eyes at him. “You’re thick-headed; I can’t be bothered to explain it to you. I actually quite like Jiajia. Although she’s a girl of few words, she’s very sincere. I feel quite at ease with her playing with our Bao Bao.”

Having watched Bai Li and Pan Yuanyuan get to where they were today, she didn’t think there was anything wrong with two girls being together, but as a mother, she still felt a lingering sense of unease.

…

Chen Jia and Su Su had stayed up late playing, so when Su Su woke up the next morning, she found herself alone in bed. The spot next to her was already empty. The bathroom door was shut, and the faint sound of running water reached her ears.

She sluggishly tapped on the door. “Chen Jia?”

Chen Jia pulled the door open, her damp bangs clinging to the sides of her face.

Su Su grumbled, “Why didn’t you wake me up?”

“I was going to call you once I finished getting ready.”

A month ago, Su Su had been someone who struggled to get out of bed. It was only after military training and the start of classes that her habits began to change; now, her biological clock was firmly set.

Waking up and remembering that a certain “annoying person” was coming to the house today, Su Su’s mood turned sour. “So annoying!”

Chen Jia clearly had the same thought, a faint trace of worry lingering between her brows. “Stay away from Jiang Hanting later.”

Not expecting her to say that, Su Su looked confused. “Huh?”

“Just… stay away from him.”

For some reason, because of that one sentence, Su Su’s irritability vanished instantly. “Why?”

Chen Jia obviously couldn’t tell her why, nor did she dare to repeat the warning too many times. She looked Su Su in the eye and said seriously, “I won’t lie to you.”

It wasn’t the answer Su Su was looking for, but meeting those eyes—clear and bright as crystal—she dazed for a moment. Her gaze fell to the white porcelain tiles. “I know. I hate him anyway, so I’ll definitely stay far away.”

Because today was the turning point of the entire plot—and the turning point of Su Su’s fate in the book—Chen Jia had barely slept last night. Listening to Su Su’s steady breathing, her mind had been a chaotic mess of original plot details.

In the book, Lin Yue’er would throw a massive tantrum because Jiang Hanting came to Su Su’s house for this meal, leading to a breakup. After that, Su Su would fall hopelessly in love with Jiang Hanting. Under Su Su’s various obstacles, the “dog-blood” drama of the male lead chasing and the female lead fleeing would begin.

To prevent this, the first task was to stop Su Su from falling for him. The second was to ensure the lead couple still reached a Happy Ending after removing Su Su’s antagonistic role.

Pulling Su Su back wasn’t hard, but the real question was how to handle the leads’ “angst” phase—or rather, how to just hand them the answer key to their love life and make it an open-book exam.

As she planned this out, she stepped out of the bathroom. Su Su grabbed her wrist and reached out to touch the faint dark circles under her eyes. “Wait, did you have insomnia last night? Is the bed at home uncomfortable? Why didn’t you tell me?”

Since she was the one who brought Chen Jia back, Su Su felt responsible for her comfort. She hadn’t expected Chen Jia to hide away and suffer from insomnia.

Chen Jia touched her eyes. “Do I have dark circles?” She hadn’t noticed them in the mirror earlier.

“Yeah.”

Chen Jia looked closer and indeed found a faint ring of dark blue. Completely forgetting her “penniless student” persona in this world, she said naturally, “Let me use some of your concealer.”

This startled Su Su, who had always viewed Chen Jia as a “country girl.” “Ah?”

Chen Jia realized her slip and quickly explained, “Oh, didn’t you just let me use it last night?”

Su Su nodded understandingly. “Oh, right.”

…

While Su Su was freshening up in the bathroom, Chen Jia applied the concealer. She looked out the window and saw the butler leading the Jiang family into the courtyard.

Although Jiang Hanting looked reluctant, he wore a polite smile, though his eyes lacked any warmth. Simultaneously, Bai Xue came upstairs to call them down.

Su Su was brushing her teeth, so she told Chen Jia to open the door.

“Good morning, Ma’am,” Chen Jia said.

Seeing Chen Jia, Bai Xue hesitated. “Good morning. Did you sleep well last night?”

“Very well.”

Without Su Su there, the atmosphere turned slightly awkward after the greetings. Bai Xue’s gaze made Chen Jia uncomfortable—it was an inquisitive, analytical look, as if trying to poke a hole through her.

Just as the silence became unbearable, Bai Xue suddenly asked, “How is our Bao Bao doing at school?”

So serious… so she’s asking about her studies?

“She’s doing great. She’s been studying very hard lately.”

“Studying? You mean our Bao Bao?”

The mention of studying made Bai Xue swallow whatever else she was going to say. Since high school, Su Su’s grades had been lackluster, usually hovering in the lower-middle tier. It was only through a semester of elite tutors before the college entrance exam that she managed to get into a bottom-tier university. No one knew who Su Su inherited her lack of academic interest from.

But since she had at least made it to college, the parents had stopped worrying about her grades. To hear that she was “passionate about learning” in university was a shock.

Seeing her surprise, Chen Jia nodded. “Yes, she really likes her major. Maybe it’s not that she suddenly fell in love with ‘studying,’ but that she’s finding a sense of fulfillment in what she’s doing.”

High school was too competitive; only a few people could be at the top. But in university, many were starting fresh with art and design. Su Su found that her imagination and creativity were far ahead of the others. Once that sense of achievement kicked in, she naturally became more diligent.

Bai Xue nodded, feeling emotional. “Her father and I were too busy in the past. When it comes to raising children, I’m not even as good as her aunt. I’m glad she has you to play with. This child has been clingy since she was small. She looks cheerful, but she’s incredibly stubborn about certain things. I’ll have to trouble you to be patient with her—but don’t indulge her too much, or she’ll take an inch and want a mile.”

Chen Jia couldn’t help but laugh; the description was quite fitting. However, the tone of “entrusting” her daughter to her felt strangely heavy.

Before she could dwell on it, Bai Xue remembered the purpose of her visit. “There are guests today, so don’t be nervous. It’s just a casual family gathering. Although the Jiang family wants an alliance, it all depends on Bao Bao’s own decision.”

If she had known it would come to this, she never would have agreed to the Jiang family’s request, no matter how “excellent” their son was.

When Su Su finally emerged, she saw Chen Jia and Bai Xue chatting happily and couldn’t help but smile. “What are you two talking about?”

Bai Xue poked her forehead dotingly. “Talking about how slow you are.”

“What time is it even?” Su Su grumbled. Wasn’t it a lunch meeting? It was only 9:00 AM—why were they here so early?

That Jiang Hanting is so annoying! On one hand, he acted like he wanted to be far away from her, yet on the other, he didn’t even sleep in and showed up this early.

Despite her inner monologue, Su Su quickly changed her clothes.

…

Downstairs in the living room, the Jiang parents and Su Min were engaged in deep conversation.

The Jiang family had recently run into some business trouble and wanted Su Min’s help. Hearing that the Su family was wealthy but only had one daughter, they brought their “excellent” son along. A marriage alliance would be a permanent solution, securing a massive amount of capital for the Jiangs—the kind that didn’t need to be paid back.

Even though Jiang Hanting was dissatisfied with the arrangement, he had no choice. At this stage, he wasn’t yet the man who could “cover the sky with one hand.” He was still under his parents’ control.

After testing the waters a few days ago and confirming Su Su really didn’t like him, he felt slightly more at ease about this transactional gathering.

As Su Su walked down the stairs, Jiang Hanting’s mother, Xie Ting, looked at her as if she were a gold mine.

“Little Su is here! When did you get back? I heard you and our Hanting are at the same school? What a coincidence!” She patted the seat next to Jiang Hanting. “Come, come, sit here. Being at the same school, you two must have so much to talk about.”

The over-enthusiasm made Su Su frown in annoyance. She stayed right where she was.

Bai Xue’s business-like smile also dimmed. In the past, she and Su Min had considered finding a capable man for Su Su to ensure her future. But now, with Chen Jia in the picture and Xie Ting’s blatantly fawning attitude, she found herself disliking the idea.

“Actually, that won’t be necessary,” Bai Xue said. “Even if they’re at the same school, they might not know each other. Sitting together like that is a bit inappropriate.”

Xie Ting realized she had been a bit too pushy and chuckled awkwardly. “Yes, yes, I didn’t think it through.” She shot a look at Jiang Hanting, who kept his eyes down and pretended not to see.

Xie Ting and Jiang Botao felt the awkwardness. “Our Hanting is a bit… introverted.”

Introverted? Su Su thought. What a blatant lie.

She hated Jiang Hanting, and now that she understood the intent behind this meal, she wanted to dig a hole and bury his whole family in it.

“How is he introverted?” Su Su blurted out. “He wasn’t ‘introverted’ at all when he was kissing that girl under the dorm building.”

“…” “…”

The entire living room seemed to hit the pause button. Even Jiang Hanting, who had been looking down, snapped his head up to glare at her.

Su Su, seemingly oblivious to the awkwardness, continued, “I’m not lying. Ask him yourselves! Right, Chen Jia? We both saw it.”