I Am Already A Queen

Even though the majority of the student body at Hannan First High School hailed from top-tier wealthy backgrounds, the institution also admitted top-performing scholarship students from ordinary households.

These students received full financial aid from the academy and often took on minor paid errands for their wealthy peers to earn extra spending money.

Finally, it was Qiao Meixia and her group’s turn at the counter. They immediately inquired about the newly launched speciality dessert, eager to try it.

Unfortunately, the staff member behind the glass gave them an apologetic bow. "We are so sorry, ladies. Today’s limited batch of the new dessert is completely sold out. We will be increasing our daily production starting tomorrow."

"What?! Already sold out?!" Ruan Jiaojiao gasped in dramatic devastation.

"There is really none left at all?" Han Mengyu whined softly.

"I deeply apologise, Miss." The attendant offered politely. "However, we still have our full standard menu available for selection."

Reluctantly, the girls pivoted to browsing the remaining display cases to pick out alternative treats. When it was Qiao Meixia’s turn to order, she made her selections without hesitation, ordering not just one or two items, but casually requesting about ten different high-end pastries.

Her three classmates turned to stare at Qiao Meixia in sheer shock. None of them had anticipated that their cool, distant transfer student secretly harboured such an enormous sweet tooth.

"Meixia... are you seriously planning to finish all of those by yourself?" Ruan Jiaojiao asked, her eyes wide with amazement.

"Hmm..." Qiao Meixia gave a calm, matter-of-fact nod.

"Ahhh! I am so ridiculously jealous right now!" Ruan Jiaojiao groaned, letting out a dramatic sigh as she held her cheeks.

"Huh?" Qiao Meixia tilted her head slightly, a faint trace of genuine confusion in her dark eyes.

She could not quite fathom why Ruan Jiaojiao was feeling envious over something like this. Anyone here had the financial capability to purchase a table full of pastries, so why was that something to be jealous of?

Standing beside them, Shou Meiling burst into soft laughter at Qiao Meixia’s bewildered expression.

"Mengyu, look at Meixia’s face." Shou Meiling giggled, nudging Han Mengyu. "She genuinely has no idea why Jiaojiao is sulking."

Han Mengyu looked over at the completely perplexed Qiao Meixia and could not help but join in on the laughter.

"Meixia..." Shou Meiling explained warmly once her laughter subsided, "Jiaojiao is insanely jealous because she is terrified of eating too many sweets and gaining weight, while you can clearly eat as much as you want without a single worry!"

Qiao Meixia’s face contorted into another look of utter confusion.

"You can just exercise after you eat." Qiao Meixia stated deadpan.

Hearing her deliver such a simple, matter-of-fact solution, Shou Meiling and Han Mengyu burst into another fit of helpless laughter.

"That... That’s completely right, Jiaojiao!" Shou Meiling wheezed out through her laughter. "You... You can just work it off afterwards! That way, you would not gain a single pound!"

Qiao Meixia gave a satisfied nod upon hearing Shou Meiling’s endorsement, fully agreeing with the logic.

Ruan Jiaojiao puffed her cheeks and glared at the three girls standing in front of her. Out of everyone present, only Qiao Meixia remained genuinely oblivious as to why Ruan Jiaojiao was getting so worked up in the first place.

While the group was still chuckling, another cluster of female students came rushing past and collided heavily into them. The sudden impact sent Han Mengyu reeling backwards, nearly causing her to lose her footing entirely. Fortunately, Qiao Meixia’s sharp reflexes kicked in. She reached out with blinding speed and yanked Han Mengyu back by the arm, saving her face from violently slamming into the hard tile floor.

Ruan Jiaojiao whipped around to confront the culprits, only to see the group of girls casually walking away without even offering a backward glance, let alone a proper apology.

"Hey! Stop right there!" Ruan Jiaojiao barked, her voice cutting through the noisy crowd.

The group of girls came to a halt and turned around, their faces plastered with blatant annoyance.

"What do you want?" One of the girls sneered, crossing her arms.

"Where on earth are your manners?" Ruan Jiaojiao demanded angrily.

"What’s your problem?" The girl shot back defensively.

"Apologise to my friend." Ruan Jiaojiao demanded, her tone hardening.

"Why should we apologise to you?" The girl scoffed loudly, raising her voice to draw attention.

"Do you honestly think raising your voice is going to magically make this go away?" Ruan Jiaojiao stepped forward, her eyes narrowing. "You violently bumped into my friend and nearly sent her crashing to the ground. The absolute bare minimum you could do is offer a sincere apology! Or did your parents completely fail to teach you basic human decency?"

"Oh... I recognise you now," Shou Meiling chimed in, stepping up beside Ruan Jiaojiao. Her voice was remarkably soft and gentle, yet her eyes carried a chilling sharpness. "You are Su Weiwei, right? Director Su’s daughter from the Baiyin Group. I suppose it makes perfect sense that you lack basic upbringing, considering your father is far too busy pampering his mistress, while your mother is constantly occupied with her young gigolo."

The surrounding air instantly froze. Though Shou Meiling had delivered the line with a pleasant smile, the underlying facts were brutally sensitive.

When Su Weiwei heard those words laid out so publicly, her jaw clenched tightly, and her face turned pale. Every single word pierced straight through her pride because it was the absolute truth. Her parents were perpetually engrossed in their respective scandalous affairs, leaving her completely neglected and emotionally starved.

"Fine! I will apologise! Is that what you want?!" Su Weiwei snapped, her eyes burning with resentment. She turned toward Han Mengyu and blurted out, "I am sorry, alright? Satisfied now?"

Her posture remained insufferably arrogant. It was the attitude of someone backing down out of sheer humiliation rather than genuine remorse, devoid of any real sincerity.

"Is that supposed to be an apology?" Ruan Jiaojiao sneered, utterly unimpressed.

"That is more than enough! She already apologised, so you should not drag this matter out any further to embarrass her, Sister Meixia!" A high-pitched voice suddenly interrupted, stepping forward to defend Su Weiwei.

The speaker was none other than Jiang Yanna, who had just stepped onto the scene.

"Sister Meixia, she is just a first-year freshman." Jiang Yanna added softly, putting on her trademark saintly and compassionate persona. "There is really no need for you to be so aggressive and overbearing toward a junior."

A collective silence fell over the surrounding crowd. Everyone looked at Jiang Yanna as if she had lost her mind. What on earth was this girl talking about? Even Qiao Meixia tilted her head, genuinely perplexed as to why Jiang Yanna had suddenly dragged her name into the drama out of nowhere.

"Jiang Yanna, what kind of nonsense are you spewing right now?" Ruan Jiaojiao asked, her face twisted in utter disbelief.

"If you don’t even know the whole story, please shut your mouth and stop trying to play the righteous hero." Shou Meiling added coolly, her gaze icy.

"I just don’t think it is right for Sister Meixia to use her status to bully a freshman like this." Jiang Yanna stated righteously, raising her chin slightly.

The surrounding onlookers began exchanging incredulous glances. Many of them had been watching the entire altercation unfold long before Jiang Yanna made her dramatic entrance, so they knew precisely what had transpired. They found it utterly ridiculous that Jiang Yanna had blindly assumed Qiao Meixia was the one instigating the conflict against the freshman, Su Weiwei.

"Hey, Jiang Yanna, open your eyes!" Ruan Jiaojiao scoffed loudly. "The person who almost got knocked down was Han Mengyu, and the person forcing this freshman to apologise was me! Meixia has not uttered a single word this entire time! So why are you pointing your finger and blaming Meixia for bullying people?"

Jiang Yanna froze, her righteous expression cracking instantly. She looked around at the surrounding crowd, only to find dozens of students staring at her with unhidden contempt and ridicule.

"No... That’s not what I meant!" Jiang Yanna stammered, panic surging through her voice as she tried to salvage her image. "I... I just assumed that this freshman had accidentally bumped into Sister Meixia, that’s all..."

However, the more frantically she tried to explain herself, the guiltier and more foolish she appeared in front of everyone.

Chen Xiaoqing, who happened to be standing nearby watching the spectacle, let out a loud, mocking laugh and decided to chime in. She also came here to buy the dessert. As she thought she had watched enough, Jiang Yanna appeared and reprimanded her fraternal twin sister. Because of that, she decided to stay and watch.

***This novel is a contracted work with w e b n o v e l. c o m. If you do not read this novel on w e b n o v e l. c o m, that means it has been stolen. Thank you, from your shameless author, ZerahNeko***