The rising star of Imperial University—has fallen!
Su Shu held a pack of liquid nutrient in her mouth, blankly browsing the hot, red-highlighted stickied thread on the Imperial University forum—
*Is it the distortion of human nature or the decay of morality? A discussion on how the former top freshman of the Imperial University Military Academy plummeted into a slacker who barely scores passing grades.*
Replies accumulated rapidly, but Su Shu browsed even faster. In just a short moment, she had completely digested over seven thousand replies.
Inside the thread was a crowd of named and anonymous whistleblowers. Relying on rumors and their own wild imaginations, they speculated on how this former star student turned into a slacker—making up glorious deeds about her skipping classes, failing to turn in homework, and engaging in improper industries on the side.
—Although there were over seven thousand replies, anything past the five-hundredth floor had essentially devolved into a contest of utter nonsense.
If it weren’t for the fact that the Imperial University Military Academy was notoriously strict and brutal, those troublemakers might have even started claiming her previous test scores were forged.
Su Shu, the protagonist of the thread, clicked her tongue, scorning the lack of imagination among her classmates who were just watching the spectacle and egging it on.
The thread became increasingly boring further down. Su Shu pulled up her keyboard and tapped her fingers a few times—
A prompt immediately popped up on the screen: *Delete this thread?*
In the lower corner of the computer screen was a horrifying report card. Su Shu could see it out of the corner of her eye: a quiet list of bright red numbers, with the highest no more than 66 and the lowest no lower than 60. She reckoned the academy professors gave her those extra pity points just out of sheer goodwill to let her pass.
Su Shu pondered for three seconds, moved her mouse slightly, and ultimately chose “No”.
Deleting the thread was no hard task for her, but…
Su Shu knew full well that attempting to block public outcry was less effective than letting it drain naturally. If this agitated crowd suddenly noticed the thread had vanished…
It might actually make her academic scandal “set in stone” and solidify the rumors against herself.
Su Shu returned to the top post of the thread, watching the reply count continuously climb, and curled her lips into a smile.
It was fine to let it blow up like this. Once the people keeping tabs on “Su Shu” behind the scenes saw how utterly “useless” she was, they would likely stop monitoring her after the observation period ended.
Su Shu drank the last drop of her liquid nutrient and tossed it backward without turning her head—
With a clatter, the nutrient packaging landed accurately in the trash can.
She turned off the screen, picked up the miniature optical computer beside her, crumpled the report card into a ball, tossed it into the trash can at the same angle, picked up her backpack from behind the door, and went out to class.
The Military Academy of Imperial University was one of the finest military institutions in the entire Interstellar Alliance. Aside from being naturally gifted, most of its students were wealthy or noble. Su Shu’s admission into this school—
Or rather, her predecessor’s ability as a commoner to get into this school through the Interstellar Alliance’s joint entrance examination was a true leap across social classes through raw effort. Furthermore, besides her excellent grades, Su Shu herself was exceptionally beautiful.
A beauty that couldn’t be hidden even if she wore a burlap sack.
However, because she was too destitute to even fill her stomach with liquid nutrients, she could hardly be called beautiful in her current sallow and emaciated state.
And the Su Shu currently carrying her backpack was merely an unfortunate soul who had stayed up late reading a novel, gotten so disgusted by the main couple’s trashy romance that she could barely sleep, and ended up transmigrating into the book as a supporting female character with the same name.
Looking at the entire book, the original Su Shu’s looks and experiences would have been an inspirational story of a poor, beautiful girl fighting her way forward in reality. But unfortunately, the original Su Shu was merely a female cannon fodder in a Mary Sue interstellar novel—
A cannon fodder who was used by the green tea bitch female lead until her reputation was ruined!
The original host’s talent and excellence were merely stepping stones on the grand romantic journey of the book’s male and female leads.
At first, the current Su Shu resisted it. After all, no normal person would be happy to suddenly transmigrate into a cannon fodder whose tragic fate was foretold, even though she genuinely pitied the original girl.
So, under her roommate’s gaze—as if looking at a lunatic—she spent half a month obsessively searching for a way back, all to no avail, before finally settling down.
And then, she went from being Imperial University’s top student to a top slacker who suffered a catastrophic failure.
This couldn’t be entirely blamed on Su Shu. Although she inherited part of the original Su Shu’s memories and knowledge upon transmigrating, there was still a gap between “memorizing textbook contents” and “scoring full marks” through practical application.
Although Su Shu could soon master the material through application, she recalled the unfair treatment the original host suffered due to her “excellence.” After weighing her options, she decided that before gaining the strength to protect herself, scoring just enough to pass would keep her safe.
After all, no matter the era, the rafter that sticks out is always the first to rot.
Su Shu left late, and only the back row of seats was left in the classroom.
She had no objections to where she sat. She decisively carried her bag, sat in the innermost position by the window, placed her bag on the desk, swiped open her optical computer, and began looking for part-time job postings at Imperial University.
As one of the top institutions of higher learning in the galaxy, Imperial University’s academic standards and faculty strength were top-tier. However, to keep students focused on studying hard, the university was located in a remote town on the far edge of the Empire.
Any recreational or dining establishments around the campus were completely non-existent.
In other words, even if Su Shu wanted a part-time job waiting tables, she couldn’t find one.
Su Shu tossed the miniature optical computer onto her backpack and took out her textbook.
The original host was poor—so poor that she only had three sets of clothes to rotate through each season.
The reason the original host studied so hard, aside from her own drive, was that she was aiming for Imperial University’s scholarship. But now that Su Shu had destroyed her own progress, getting a scholarship was out of the question.
According to her previous conversation with the department head, if she scored like this next time, she could pack her bags and get out.
Recalling the department head’s look of disappointed exasperation, Su Shu couldn’t help but sigh—
Scoring like this wasn’t what she wanted, but if she didn’t…
“Su Shu, is anyone sitting next to you?”
A sweet voice sounded beside her. Su Shu tilted her head slightly; a girl in a long white dress was already standing next to her seat.
With the light behind her, Su Shu couldn’t see her face clearly.
Su Shu quickly searched her own memories and those of the original host, realizing there was no such person in her mind.
However, no one was sitting next to her anyway, so Su Shu casually nodded in agreement.
The girl sat down beside Su Shu cleanly.
She seemed quite familiar with others, saying as soon as she sat down: “Su Shu, scoring like this on your finals… did you run into some kind of trouble?”
Su Shu stopped her pen and turned her head to look at the girl.
The girl had exquisite features, red lips, white teeth, and a pair of obsidian-like eyes that sparkled like a porcelain doll’s.
She smiled brightly and warmly at Su Shu.
Su Shu couldn’t help but say: “Excuse me, beauty, do I know you?”
The girl: “…”
A crack appeared in the girl’s smile.
Su Shu was a sucker for good looks and hated sudden awkwardness with beauties the most.
Recalling the original host’s personality, she gave the beauty an apologetic smile: “Sorry about that, I’m not good at recognizing faces.”
Given that the original host’s grades made her a top student at Imperial University, her IQ and memory were bound to be exceptional. Whether the beauty believed the “not good at recognizing faces” excuse was another story, but it gave her a way out.
The beauty didn’t look awkward either, laughing gently: “I know you’re usually busy with your studies, so it’s only normal you don’t recognize me.”
The beauty reached out and took one of Su Shu’s hands: “I’m your classmate, Mu Qing.”
Mu Qing, the female lead of the original novel.
Su Shu’s hand paused.
Mu Qing remained all smiles: “I’ve noticed you for a long time. Can we be friends?”
“No,” Su Shu’s pleasant mood upon seeing the beauty vanished completely. She pulled her hand back, a fake smile gracing her face: “A slacker isn’t worthy of being friends with a top student.”
With that, Su Shu packed up her optical computer and book, stood up, supported herself against the back of the chair with one hand, flipped over the seat, and walked toward the doorway.
Mu Qing’s smile froze on her face.
Su Shu’s posture as she walked away was very stylish, and the department head’s posture as he threw his book upon entering the podium and seeing her ditch class was also very stylish.
Thus, almost simultaneously, a new thread appeared on the Imperial University forum—
*Shocking! Former top student and current slacker gives the school beauty the cold shoulder and arrogantly skips class!*
1L: *What on earth happened to Su Shu?*
8L: *It was the department head’s class! The department head’s face turned pale with anger on the podium!*
11L: *Has Su Shu been cursed or something?*
28L: *Mu Qing is such a nice person, what right does she have?!*
78L: *By virtue of being a impoverished student, I guess.*
79L: *So is Su Shu feeling inferior?*
233L: *Isn’t this a classic case of ‘I’m poor, so I’m in the right’?*
…
Imperial University’s student forum required real-name registration. Although nicknames could be used for posting, the forum developers had added a feature out of humanitarian concern: if you knew a student’s ID, that person could be tagged. As a result, Su Shu’s optical computer chimed continuously all the way back to her dorm.
Su Shu pulled it out and glanced at it.
Originally, when her grades plummeted, some people spoke up for her, but now that she had clashed with the school beauty…
The backlash was overwhelmingly negative.
Su Shu wasn’t surprised.
In the original book, Mu Qing always acted like a beloved, kind-hearted saint, whereas the original host, though equally outstanding, was constantly outshone by Mu Qing due to her impoverished background and her submissive nature toward her friend.
After Mu Qing actively befriended her, the original host foolishly poured her heart out to Mu Qing. In the end, Mu Qing and the male lead achieved fame and success, while the original host was convicted of treason by a military court and mysteriously committed suicide in prison.
Although the author left the ending unfinished without explaining why a cannon fodder like the original host met such a fate, it wasn’t hard to guess from the context that her tragic end was inextricably linked to the female lead.
Mu Qing came from a prominent family, and Su Shu currently lacked the resources to compete with her. So, she chose to make herself appear useless, cutting off any chance of getting involved with the female lead.
Only…
Su Shu touched her optical computer, feeling a bit troubled.
Her status as a slacker was fake, but her poverty was real.
Without her scholarship, if she didn’t earn money properly, she would be forced to pack up and leave due to an inability to pay tuition and housing fees long before the next semester’s exams.
Su Shu closed the forum and searched for part-time job information again.
In truth, the most suitable job for Su Shu was ghostwriting papers. However, the Interstellar University Alliance had strict rules: anyone involved in academic fraud, regardless of their role, would be expelled. Thus, Su Shu didn’t dare take the risk.
Until Su Shu stumbled upon a message—
*1:2 ratio, buying game currency.*
Su Shu stopped her sliding finger on the optical computer.
Before transmigrating, Su Shu was also a game nerd, so the 1:2 ratio was easy to understand: a 1:2 ratio between real currency and game currency. Clicking into the detail section of the message, as expected, the job details read: *1 Alliance Credit for 2 Dream of the Martial World game coins, long-term purchase.*
During the half-month since transmigrating, although Su Shu was dedicated to finding a way back, she had heard of this game.
In this hyper-modern interstellar society where even housekeepers were robots, retro styles had become the trend. *Dream of the Martial World*, a game blending Eastern and Western retro elements, had been popular in this world for nearly a century, becoming the undisputed favorite game among young and middle-aged people alike.
If Su Shu remembered correctly, Mu Qing and the male lead met through this game.
Moreover, the development of this game seemed connected to the upper echelons of the Interstellar Alliance.
Su Shu stroked her chin. She wasn’t interested in what it was connected to right now, but making money by playing games…
This fit her persona as a fallen slacker perfectly!
Holographic games required a gaming pod.
Su Shu checked the prices in the mall. There were two types of gaming pods: a sitting headset type and a lying full-body type. The headset type was nearly two-thirds cheaper than the full-body type.
Su Shu touched her tailbone, thought about her occupational ailment from before transmigrating, bit her lip, and bought a full-body gaming pod.
She then exchanged all her remaining money for liquid nutrients.