Ch 64: After My Mother Returned to the Rich Family

Zheng Wei, who had been ready to make another sarcastic remark, froze when he heard his classmates’ words. He looked like a duck with its neck grabbed, his already dark skin turning red from embarrassment.

The Ruan family was clearly showing him what it truly meant to flaunt wealth!

Shrinking his neck, Zheng Wei didn’t dare to continue his tirade, though his heart burned with indignation. The Ruan family was indeed rich, but didn’t they know how to spare a thought for classmates like him, whose families were struggling?!

Donating 2,000 catties of cabbage pickled with salted fish?

Hmph, tonight he would try some for himself. He wanted to see just how delicious a cabbage worth 1,000 yuan per head could possibly be!

Ruan Cha snapped out of her shock at her parents’ grand gesture and looked back at Zheng Wei. With a “considerate” expression, she added, “Zheng Wei, I can see that you’re not a fan of cabbage. Don’t worry, I’ll inform the cafeteria this afternoon to make sure none of those 2,000 catties of cabbage appears in front of you.”

Zheng Wei’s eyes shot up to glare at Ruan Cha. He was jealous of her family’s wealth, yes, but he also secretly hoped to taste the cabbage once, so he could brag to his old classmates who couldn’t even get into this school.

But Ruan Cha had just said he wouldn’t even get to see it???

Zheng Wei stood there for a long time, his heart torn between anger and frustration. His lips opened and closed, but he couldn’t think of a retort. He hadn’t expected Ruan Cha to hold such a grudge!

As for Ruan Cha, she didn’t linger. She wanted to check on her parents, so after speaking, she grabbed Huang Jiajia—who seemed ready to kick someone—and dashed off, leaving Fu Chen behind. Fu Chen stayed a step behind, blocking Zheng Wei’s path.

By the time Zheng Wei had calmed down, he already regretted his words. Some thoughts were best kept to oneself; saying them out loud in public was utterly embarrassing.

It was all Xie Changan’s fault. He’d just been a little sarcastic, but if Xie Changan hadn’t clapped back, they wouldn’t have spiraled into a full-blown argument, much less been overheard by Fu Chen and Ruan Cha.

Zheng Wei met Fu Chen’s dark, unreadable gaze, his heart sinking with anxiety, though he forced himself to stand straight. His hands clenched tightly at his sides to keep himself from showing fear. “Fu Chen, can you step aside? I need to get back to class and study.”

Fu Chen gave him a long, amused look, his tone light but cutting. “Zheng Wei, you’re very concerned about others’ charitable acts. I suppose you must be living frugally to do good deeds yourself.”

“I—”

Before Zheng Wei could reply, Fu Chen slowly repeated the words Zheng Wei had said earlier. “After all, you’ve got money to buy C-brand shoes. I recall the classic model costs 4,600 yuan. That’s more than many families make in a month.”

Zheng Wei: …

Hearing Fu Chen’s words, everyone, including Xie Changan, suddenly understood and began jeering. “Yeah, if you can afford C-brand shoes, tell us about the good deeds you’ve done! Stop criticizing others if you’re not doing anything yourself.”

“I, I—” Zheng Wei hadn’t expected Fu Chen to use his own words against him. His face flushed red as the others’ taunts set his heart racing like ants on a hot pan. He couldn’t think of a reasonable excuse. If he claimed to have done charitable work, they’d undoubtedly demand proof of donations. But how could he have spare money to donate when he was the one in need of charity?!

Desperate to steer the conversation away, Zheng Wei avoided Fu Chen’s piercing gaze and awkwardly explained, “Buying shoes also stimulates the market economy!”

“Oh? If your 4,600-yuan shoes can stimulate the economy, don’t you think the Ruan family buying several truckloads of 1,000-yuan-per-head cabbage stimulates even more?” Fu Chen replied, his lips curling slightly into a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. His usual warmth was entirely gone. “Do you really have the right to criticize the Ruan family?”

If they were to compare, Zheng Wei’s shoes and the Ruan family’s pickled cabbage were both luxury items in their respective categories. The difference was that one was mid-tier luxury, while the other was high-end luxury.

But Fu Chen didn’t think the Ruan family had done anything wrong. Leaving aside the fact that they grew the cabbages themselves, even if they hadn’t, spending their own money to buy them didn’t harm anyone. After all, their financial foundation supported their actions.

The “Three Salted Fish Cabbage” dish might be unfamiliar to others, but Fu Chen, having tried it in the cafeteria before, could naturally make an educated guess.

Zheng Wei, stung by Fu Chen’s remarks, stiffened his neck, ready to retort. Yet after a long struggle, he couldn’t come up with a flawless excuse. Glancing around at the mocking gazes and hearing the whispers around him, he felt like a complete clown. He wished the ground would swallow him up on the spot!

Why did he have to make those sarcastic comments earlier? Wouldn’t it have been easier to just pretend he didn’t hear them praising Ruan Cha?

—

Meanwhile, on the other side, Ruan Cha and Huang Jiajia spotted Ruan’s parents. They had just finished chatting with the school leadership and were now waiting after asking a classmate to fetch Ruan Cha.

“Uncle, Auntie!”

“Hello, Jiajia.”

Wei Jiao, all smiles, greeted her daughter’s good friend warmly. “Jiajia, come visit us when you have time. Uncle and Auntie would love to have you over.”

“Thank you, Auntie.” Huang Jiajia grinned and nudged Ruan Cha. “Cha Cha, you chat with Uncle and Auntie. I’ll go find the teacher, and we’ll head back together later.”

Though they weren’t in the same class, their classrooms were on different floors of the same building, making them like neighbors.

Ruan Cha stepped forward, hugging Wei Jiao’s arm. Tilting her head, she looked from Wei Jiao to Ruan Zhengfei with a puzzled expression. “Mom, Dad, what made you suddenly decide to donate both cabbages and buildings to the school?”

In her view, her parents didn’t seem like the kind of people who cared about showing off.

She had to admit, though, that the three days at Jintao Base had completely changed her understanding of her family’s wealth. It turned out they weren’t just well-off in the big city—they were far from poor.

Ruan Zhengfei reached out to ruffle her hair with a cheerful smile. “Your school could use a new building or two, so we donated three. As for the cabbage, your Uncle David mentioned that your classmates liked it. We want the hardworking students to enjoy their meals.”

Since childhood, aside from living in a welfare institution, Ruan Zhengfei had followed his grandfather’s advice on doing good deeds. If Grandfather Ruan said to do charity, he did it.

In the past, with his laid-back nature, Ruan Zhengfei usually just donated money or supplies without further involvement. After all, the people in charge always seemed trustworthy enough.

Wei Jiao nodded eagerly. “Exactly! Your Uncle David also said your classmates were very diligent during their farming lessons at Jintao Base, with most of them studying late into the night. Hearing that, how could Mom and Dad not do what we can to help?”

After speaking, Ruan’s parents exchanged a look and let out a sigh of relief.

In truth, they had been inspired by something their daughter said the night before. If a hotpot dinner or a new house could make several classmates add their daughter on WeChat, wouldn’t donating more improve her social circle at school? Then she might not feel so out of place anymore.

Last time, they had only invited a few classmates to a banquet. Next time, who knows, they might manage to invite the entire class.

But they couldn’t say this outright. Their daughter never shared her school life, staying up late to study just to avoid worrying them. Since she didn’t want them to know, they pretended ignorance. Bringing it up would only upset her.

After hearing their explanation, Ruan Cha fell into deep thought. She returned to her classroom still preoccupied, her face lacking its usual cheer.

Fu Chen, who had been waiting for a while, noticed her somber expression and frowned slightly. “Still thinking about what just happened?”

The earlier incident naturally referred to Zheng Wei’s comments.

Ruan Cha first nodded but then shook her head after a moment of reflection. When she looked up, her eyes unexpectedly met the concern in Fu Chen’s gaze. She paused briefly, then smiled and said, “It’s not really about him. I was just thinking about what my parents said and realized I need to make some changes myself.”

“Changes?” Fu Chen raised an eyebrow.

“Yes.” Ruan Cha picked up a chemistry textbook she had just previewed two chapters from and lightly waved it in front of Fu Chen with a smile. “I realized I should learn more.”

In the past, whenever Ruan Cha saw her parents donate money, the only thing she could do was contribute her piggy bank savings, hoping to help in her small way.

But learning about the reason behind their donations of buildings and cabbage today made her realize she wasn’t limited to a little piggy bank anymore. She had access to an entire library filled with books on futuristic technology!

When she first got the library, she had once shown a book from it to Xie Changan, but all he saw was a regular high school textbook. Unless Ruan Cha memorized and fully understood the knowledge in the books, she couldn’t write or speak about it.

She had always thought that a high-tech system was frightening, but now she saw it as a double-edged sword. It was a real treasure trove, a resource that no one else could currently possess. Letting it sit idle without making use of it would be a waste!

Her parents were working tirelessly, making plans to contribute to education. As their daughter, how could she simply think about taking it easy after solving Yu Zheng’s problem?

After all, Virus X thrived because the current world’s technology lagged behind its original dimension, leaving it unchecked.

If she could thoroughly understand the knowledge in the library and gradually disseminate it, she could help advance the world’s scientific capabilities. Then, even if Virus Y or Z appeared, there would be no need to fear being held hostage by them.

Of course, Ruan Cha didn’t think she’d live to see that success herself. But seeing it wasn’t the point—trying was.

At that moment, a lazy fish suddenly decided to turn over in earnest.

Fu Chen glanced at the senior chemistry textbook in her hands and then at the pages of a workbook on her desk, already filled with dense notes in the blank spaces.

After a moment, he seemed to understand what Ruan Cha had meant earlier by shared ideals. While he couldn’t speak for university goals, the ideal for high school was clearly striving for academic excellence.

Fu Chen composed himself and said warmly with a smile in his voice, “It seems we share the same goal. If the opportunity arises, I think we can motivate and help each other in our studies. What do you think?”

Ruan Cha smiled brightly. “Yes! Let’s motivate each other!”

Even as she turned back to her desk with her book, her smile didn’t fade. Fu Chen was truly wonderful—not only did he play along with her dramatics perfectly, but he also agreed to help her with her studies!

Thinking about how Fu Chen had already given her review materials multiple times in Class Ten, Ruan Cha felt a surge of confidence. With him around, her innate laziness didn’t stand a chance.

Hmm.

Resting her chin in her hand, she tapped her notebook with her pen. With Fu Chen here, it seemed unnecessary to find a boyfriend who shared her ideals to supervise her studies.

Fu Chen could do that just fine—why waste time finding a boyfriend? That time could be spent reading more books.

Seeing the system return after completing its counterattack on Ren Qingqing, Ruan Cha poked the dumpling-shaped system with her finger. “1128, help me find a few supplementary books for senior year and some basic ones on artificial intelligence from the library. Our future goal should be—”

“Feeding the energy pool.”

[???]

[Understood! Right away!]

The system was so happy it almost cried. After spending time with Ruan Cha, it had learned her temperament well.

Initially, it feared that once Yu Zheng was defeated, its useless self might be destroyed. But now, it seemed that Ruan Cha was planning to promote it to the position of library administrator!