Chapter 80 Fortunately, Her Dad Died
A good breakfast can only do so much against the mental drain of two long lectures.
The moment the bell rang and the professor walked out, Rebecca quickly packed her bag along with her classmates and rushed out.
Once outside the academic building, the crowd scattered in different directions, each heading to their preferred dining spot.
Empire University's dining halls were famously excellent nationwide—low prices, tons of variety, and the cafeteria staff treated students like their own kids, piling food onto their trays like mountains.
Rebecca only ate there twice before keeping her distance.
The food was genuinely good, but it was also genuinely too much. Every time she cleared her tray, she felt guilty, feeling ashamed not only for wasting food but also for wasting the cafeteria ladies' kindness.
No matter how much she said she couldn't eat that much, the ladies enthusiastically piled up a mountain for her anyway.
After that, Rebecca started eating at the nearby café instead.
The café food cost more but came in much smaller portions—all about quality over quantity.
Occasionally running into someone she knew and sharing food felt like having a feast.
These days, Rebecca didn't expect to run into anyone she knew anymore. She'd be happy just to finish her meal in peace.
But while Rebecca thought this way, others had different ideas.
"Didn't the Getty family go bankrupt? And she's still eating here? Unbelievable..."
"What can you do? Your lifestyle might drop overnight, but your spending habits don't change that fast. If you'd been eating fancy gourmet food every day and suddenly had to switch to vegetable salad, could you handle it?"
"I admire people like her who can stay so calm and composed. If my family owed a hundred million, I'd probably be working several part-time jobs. But she can still come here and spend big money without batting an eye. I'm impressed!"
The people talking were ones she'd shared tables with before or at least exchanged greetings with.
A group of guys and girls looked at her with contempt, as if her coming here to eat while owing massive debts was some unforgivable crime.
Choosing to keep eating rather than leave, Rebecca ordered her food without changing expression and carried it to a table some distance away.
The gossip continued, but Rebecca pretended not to hear.
After who knows how long, someone cried out, "Oh my god, look at this!"
A girl held up her phone and waved it around. The others immediately stopped eating and pulled out their phones to look.
"No wonder! Turns out she's got herself a sugar daddy!"
"That's why they say this is a society that judges by looks. For families like ours, owing a few hundred thousand or a million would be the end of the world. She owes a hundred million and can still spend big."
"I haven't seen her around the dorms lately. I thought she moved out because she was too embarrassed to show her face, but turns out she moved to Star Apartments. Having someone backing you really makes a difference..."
"Good thing her dad's dead. If he knew his own daughter was doing something like this, he'd be so disappointed."
Rebecca slammed her utensils down on the table.
She could tolerate them saying she had a sugar daddy.
But bringing up her dad? No one could tolerate that!
The group was absorbed in their phones, but when they looked up, they saw Rebecca walking over with a dark expression.
Remembering that Rebecca had someone backing her, they exchanged glances, not daring to say more.
They didn't even finish eating before preparing to leave.
"Rebecca, if you're brave enough to do it, don't be afraid of people talking about it!"
"Exactly! You're not feeling guilty, are you?"
"Being classmates with someone like you is really bad luck!"
They couldn't resist taking a few more jabs at Rebecca before hurrying away.
With sharp eyes, she caught a glimpse of one person's phone screen. Seeing that familiar page, Rebecca froze for a moment, then opened her own phone.