The Abused Heroine Stops Pretending [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 1

Tang Jing sat inside the car, quietly waiting.

Her index finger tapped lightly on the steering wheel as she occasionally glanced out the window. A film crew was working ahead, shooting a scene. She was here for one reason — to wait for someone.

The sky outside had already turned completely dark. This place was near a rural area, with no streetlights, and everything around her was pitch black.

Just as she checked the time again, a figure appeared at the far end of the road. The person was using their phone flashlight, walking slowly in her direction.

Tang Jing opened the car door and stepped out to greet her.

“Sisi.”

“Big Sister Tang,” Sun Sijia called out with a smile as she walked over. She was walking too quickly and twisted her ankle, stumbling forward. Tang Jing quickly caught her.

“Be careful,” Tang Jing said, holding her steady.

“I’m sorry, Sister Tang. I was walking too fast,” Sun Sijia said, her eyes slightly red, clearly feeling embarrassed by the mishap.

“It’s alright,” Tang Jing softened her voice. “I was just worried you’d fall. If I sounded too harsh, I apologize.”

Sun Sijia smiled sweetly. “Not at all. You’re always the nicest to me, Sister Tang.”

With a gentle expression, Tang Jing helped her back toward the car. On the surface, she looked patient and kind, but in her heart, she was already complaining to System 66.

“I can’t believe this. I was just about to complete this mission and leave. How did it suddenly count as a failure? Why do I have to start all over again?”

Just thinking about it made her feel miserable. In every world, she had been the main character in the top role, and every ending was tragic. None of her stories ever ended well.

And every time, the one responsible for her downfall was the so-called main character in the bottom role. She had started calling them scummy bottoms or emotional manipulators.

The woman she was holding onto right now was the bottom of this world. In her eyes, Sun Sijia was a typical fake innocent — manipulative and two-faced.

In this world, the main character’s name was also Tang Jing. She had liked Sun Sijia for five years and had been quietly giving everything to her. She invested money, helped her get endorsements, and treated her like a princess.

Anyone with eyes could see how deeply she felt. Sun Sijia knew too.

But she always acted clueless. Still, she accepted every opportunity, every benefit Tang Jing offered. To any observer, it was obvious she was playing with Tang Jing’s feelings just to keep the resources flowing.

Five years ago, Sun Sijia had just entered the entertainment industry. She had no acting skills and no roles. It was Tang Jing who used her influence to build her up step by step until she became a rising star.

People in the industry already assumed they were in a relationship. Whenever asked, Tang Jing said she was still chasing her. Sun Sijia, when faced with those rumors, would only smile and never confirm or deny them, leaving others to believe they were secretly together.

Then one day, Sun Sijia brought a friend to dinner with Tang Jing. During the meal, she asked Tang Jing for a favor. She wanted her to pull some strings and get her friend into a popular variety show called Colorful Life.

Sun Sijia herself was a regular guest on the show, but she had only gotten the spot because of Tang Jing’s connections. She had no actual influence, and the director did not respect her opinion.

When Tang Jing learned that the friend, Meng Xue, was Sun Sijia’s senior from school and had looked after her, she agreed to help.

To give Meng Xue more exposure, Tang Jing decided to appear on the show herself as a surprise guest. She had never been on a variety show before. Other than the production team, no one knew she was coming. She wanted to create a special moment that would excite the viewers.

And it did cause a stir, but for Sun Sijia, it was a shock instead of a pleasant surprise.

She had planned to use the show as a chance to reconnect with her senior and maybe even confess her feelings. Now, all of that was ruined.

What she did not know was that Meng Xue actually liked Tang Jing. But Tang Jing was hard to approach. On the show, Meng Xue tried several times to interact with her but was ignored every time. To the audience, it looked like Meng Xue was being overly eager, trying to cling to a film queen for clout. Her reputation suffered because of it.

Seeing her beloved senior being treated this way, Sun Sijia spoke to Tang Jing in private. She asked her to be kinder to Meng Xue and said the online comments were already criticizing her.

Because of that, Tang Jing adjusted her attitude. Meng Xue was happy for a while. But one day, she overheard Tang Jing and Sun Sijia talking and realized that Tang Jing was only being nice because of Sun Sijia’s request.

She finally saw the truth. The person she liked was being used by someone else. Meng Xue could not bear it anymore and went to tell Tang Jing that Sun Sijia never really liked her. She said everything was fake and that Tang Jing was being manipulated.

But Tang Jing thought she was lying. She believed Meng Xue was jealous and trying to ruin their relationship. She became angry and even asked the director to remove Meng Xue from the show.

Meng Xue had just returned to the country and was just starting her career. She had no chance to recover. Depressed and isolated, she locked herself at home. Sun Sijia kept visiting her, but each time she saw her smiling face, Meng Xue felt overwhelmed with jealousy. She came from a proper and traditional family, so she never did anything drastic, but her mental state continued to decline. Eventually, she developed depression and took her own life in the bathtub.

When Sun Sijia found out, she broke down completely. Especially after learning that Meng Xue’s depression was because of Tang Jing. At that moment, her hatred for Tang Jing reached its peak. She swore she would destroy her and avenge her senior.

Tang Jing, still deeply in love, was manipulated completely. In the end, she lost everything. She was publicly shamed and forced out of the industry. A crazed fan found her home, splashed gasoline all over it, and threatened her. Someone accidentally dropped a cigarette, and the house caught fire.

Tang Jing was trapped inside. She scratched at the door, trying to escape. She clawed so hard that her nails tore off. In the end, she was burned alive.

News of her death shocked everyone. A once brilliant star had fallen, and her end was both tragic and unforgettable.

Tang Jing had already completed this mission once. The pain of being burned alive was something she never forgot. But she had died in so many ways across so many worlds that by now, she was numb to pain.

System 66: “Host, the main system has sent feedback from your previous mission. Please receive it now.”

Tang Jing used the moment she was fastening her seatbelt to quickly scan the feedback report.

Feedback for Mission Code 3572: Tragedy Scenario

Scumbag-bottom regret level: 75 percent (passing)
World completion: 100 percent
Main-character-top resentment level: negative 100 percent (failing)

There were three feedback entries in total. Two of them had attached notes.

She already knew about the 75 percent regret level. Every time the mission reached full completion, that percentage would no longer increase. No matter how tragic her ending was, the scumbag-bottom never seemed to feel any more regret.

Since this was her first mission and she lacked experience, she eventually gave up on raising that score further. As long as she passed, that was good enough.

But now, when she saw the line about the resentment level of the main-character-top, she immediately understood why she had failed to improve the result.

She sighed internally and complained to System 66.
“Why wasn’t I warned about this when the mission was first issued?”

During her first mission, she had only seen the first two criteria. Now it was clear that the third was hidden.

System 66: “That was covered in training by the gold-tier instructor.”

Tang Jing went silent for a second.
“Right. I guess I was too busy staring at the seniors and forgot to actually pay attention to the lesson.”

In the passenger seat, Sun Sijia was holding her phone and smiling. She had been grinning since getting in the car, chatting happily with someone.

“Who are you texting? You look so cheerful,” Tang Jing asked casually, glancing at her.

Sun Sijia’s smile froze for a second, then she quickly put away her phone and replied with forced ease,
“Just my senior from high school. She’s coming back from overseas tomorrow, and I want to take her out for a meal.”

Tang Jing acted like she was just making small talk.
“Which senior? I don’t think I’ve ever heard you mention her before.”

The car left the side road and entered the main highway. The speed picked up, and the passing streetlights flickered inside the car, casting alternating shadows on their faces.

Sun Sijia seemed nervous. If it were just an ordinary senior, she would have no reason to react this way. But this senior was different. She was someone Sun Sijia had secretly liked for years. She had been waiting and hoping for her return all this time.

She stayed silent for a little too long. Tang Jing gave her a brief look.
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

Worried she had made Tang Jing upset, Sun Sijia quickly softened her voice and said,
“Please don’t get the wrong idea, Sister Tang. Don’t be mad. My senior used to take really good care of me in high school. I remember once when I got sick, she carried me all the way to the nurse’s office and looked after me the entire time.”

Tang Jing thought to herself how disgustingly fake this girl was being, as usual. She had already told her she didn’t have to explain, but here she was, twisting it to imply that Tang Jing was overreacting and jealous.

So now she pretends not to know the original host liked her, but at the same time acts like she’s worried about making her love interest jealous? How convenient.

And saying her senior took care of her back in high school — so what, does that mean I didn’t take care of you?

Your filming just wrapped up in the middle of the night, and I drove all the way to this remote countryside just to pick you up. How come you never once said thank you?

When it comes to your senior, you remember one act of kindness for years. But I’ve supported you for so long, and in the end, I’m just some sad joke?

Tang Jing kept her inner rant to herself. Outwardly, she looked calm.

“Why don’t you take me with you next time? I’ll treat her to dinner myself. I’d like to thank her for taking care of you back then.”

Sun Sijia glanced at her. Something about that sentence felt off, but Tang Jing’s expression was as normal as ever. Maybe she was just imagining things.

She smiled politely.
“I’ll thank her on your behalf, Sister Tang. I can invite her myself.”

So she’s trying to keep me away. Probably worried I’ll notice something between her and that senior.

Tang Jing smiled faintly. As they hit a red light, she reached over and gently patted her head.
“That’s fine too. After all, if I were there, it might make things awkward for you both. You two can enjoy dinner alone.”

“Thank you, Sister Tang.” Sun Sijia smiled sweetly.
“You’re the best.”

As if something had just come to mind, Sun Sijia looked over and asked,
“Sister Tang, was it hard for you to get me into the variety show Colorful Life back then?”

Tang Jing replied,
“It wasn’t too bad.”

“Are you hinting that I should treat you to a meal?” Tang Jing asked, glancing at her through the rearview mirror with a smile on her lips.

Sun Sijia’s smile stiffened for a moment, then she quickly recovered and nodded with a grin.
“Of course. You went through all that trouble to help me. I should absolutely treat you.”

It had been a whole year since she joined the show, and now she suddenly brought up treating her to dinner. If it were the original host, she might really believe Sun Sijia had finally grown a conscience. But Tang Jing knew better. This girl clearly had something else in mind.