I Am Already A Queen

Most importantly, their compact size allowed them to fit snugly inside a hard container without taking up too much room.

Qiao Meixia looked thoroughly satisfied with her strategic decision.

Ruan Jiaojiao leaned over her shoulder to inspect her plate, surprised by the modest pile of mini macarons.

“Just those?” Ruan Jiaojiao asked, raising an eyebrow at the small selection.

“They need to survive the speed.” Qiao Meixia stated in a matter-of-fact tone.

“Oh! You are riding your superbike.” Han Mengyu chimed in, realizing the logic behind the choice. “Buying something delicate like a frosted cake would be a disaster. It probably would not survive the journey in one piece.”

Qiao Meixia gave a serious nod. She had carefully weighed that exact tragic scenario before making her selection. After all, she had zero interest in buying mouthwatering sweets only to pull out a squished, ruined mess by the time she got home.

“You know, we actually offer a door-to-door delivery service.” The shop clerk behind the counter offered politely, having overheard their intense debate.

“Oh…” Qiao Meixia blinked, the realisation dawning on her that she had completely overlooked that option.

She could have easily ordered whatever delicate slice of cake she craved and had it safely delivered straight to the Jiang residence, rather than stressing over whether her pastries could handle the wind resistance on her superbike. Well, she resolved internally, ‘next time, I am definitely using the delivery service.’

Ruan Jiaojiao subtly leaned in and whispered to Han Mengyu.

“I bet you anything that next time, Meixia is going to order the entire menu through delivery.” Ruan Jiaojiao predicted with absolute confidence.

Han Mengyu glanced over at Qiao Meixia, observing her stoic expression for a second before bursting into quiet giggles.

“Oh, absolutely.” Han Mengyu agreed, nodding emphatically. “Even with that totally expressionless face of hers, it’s so easy to guess what’s running through her mind whenever sweets are involved.”

“Right?!” Ruan Jiaojiao nodded along, grinning from ear to ear.

The two girls exchanged highly amused glances.

They had known Qiao Meixia long enough to understand that while she usually appeared completely indifferent toward the rest of the world, she was remarkably dead-serious about her desserts.

As long as sweet treats were on the line, she would always find a way to secure them.

And today, they had unlocked yet another hilarious quirk about their unique friend. Qiao Meixia was fully willing to calculate the aerodynamic speed of her superbike just to protect her macarons, yet she had somehow completely forgotten that home delivery existed.

That realisation alone was more than enough to set them off into another fit of laughter.

When Qiao Meixia was about to pay, a woman stepped out from the back room.

“Oh… Student Qiao, you are here!” The woman greeted her warmly.

Qiao Meixia looked up and recognised Shen Huiling, the owner of the dessert shop.

“Hmm.” Qiao Meixia nodded.

“What did you pick out today?” Shen Huiling asked curiously.

Qiao Meixia held up the tiny box of mini macarons in her hand.

Shen Huiling looked genuinely surprised.

“Just that?” Shen Huiling asked, glancing from the small container back to Qiao Meixia.

“For now.” Qiao Meixia nodded with total seriousness.

Ruan Jiaojiao and Han Mengyu, who had been listening to the exchange, couldn’t hold back their laughter any longer.

“She rode her superbike here today and was terrified that any real slices of cake would get totally crushed on the way home, so she only bought those for now! She literally just found out two seconds ago that your shop offers door-to-door delivery, so she is using that next time instead.” Han Mengyu explained through giggles.

Hearing that, Shen Huiling burst out laughing as well. No wonder! That certainly explained why a girl with such a massive sweet tooth had chosen only a single tiny box of mini macarons despite standing inside a fully stocked dessert boutique.

Qiao Meixia subtly looked away, attempting to hide her slight embarrassment, even though her face remained completely stoic and expressionless. Unfortunately, her futile attempt to pretend that nothing awkward had happened only made the situation ten times funnier to the three women.

The transaction was completed shortly afterwards.

“I am leaving first.” Qiao Meixia announced, tucking her treat away.

“Mhm! See you tomorrow at school!” The three girls waved goodbye to her.

Qiao Meixia passed back through the school gates and headed toward the student parking lot where her superbike was stationed. As she approached, she noticed a small group of male students huddled tightly around her ride. At first glance, she assumed they had simply gathered out of curiosity or admiration for the high-end vehicle.

However, the second she caught sight of one of them reaching suspiciously underneath the body frame, she instantly realised something was dead wrong.

“Hey!” Qiao Meixia barked out.

The group flinched at the sudden, sharp shout, whirling around to face the voice. The second they saw Qiao Meixia standing a short distance away, their faces paled in sheer panic. Shouting in alarm to one another, they scattered instantly, sprinting out of the parking lot as fast as their legs could carry them.

Qiao Meixia did not bother wasting her energy chasing after them. Instead, she stepped up to her superbike and began a meticulous, highly detailed inspection. She thoroughly checked every visible component, wire, and mechanical fitting she could reach, ensuring that nothing vital had been tampered with or sabotaged. Had she discovered anything compromised, she would not have dared to turn the key. She would have simply called a transport service to haul the bike away.

After running through a complete check, Qiao Meixia found no damage to her superbike. She finally let out a quiet sigh of relief.

However, she did not leave immediately. Instead, she tilted her head upward, scanning the surrounding perimeter of the parking lot.

There were multiple high-definition CCTV cameras prominently mounted around the area. Yet, that group of students had still possessed the audacity to tamper with her superbike in broad daylight. There were only two logical explanations for such reckless behaviour. Either they were completely unbothered by the idea of being caught on camera, or the security cameras were currently non-functional because someone had deliberately disabled them.

Judging by their terrified reactions when she called them out, the first scenario could be ruled out entirely. They had clearly panicked the moment she appeared and fled like startled rats. If they did not care about getting caught on video, they wouldn’t have reacted so dramatically.

That meant the second possibility was far more likely.

Someone had either disabled the CCTV feed remotely or physically dismantled the hardware to prevent the incident from being recorded on the school’s servers.

They had fully intended to sabotage her superbike. If they had succeeded, she might have suffered a horrific crash while riding at high speeds on the open road. Depending on what specific component they managed to tamper with, the consequences easily could have been fatal.

What a vicious, calculated plan.

Well, what those idiots did not realise was that her custom superbike was equipped with miniature, military-grade hidden dashcams installed across several concealed points on its chassis. Even if someone tried to sabotage it in a blind spot, there was an exceptionally high chance that her independent system would capture every single angle.

Qiao Meixia needed to review those recordings immediately. For now, however, she had to head home first.

After double-checking that the mechanics were completely safe, she hopped onto her superbike, hit the ignition, and rode back toward the estate.

The very first person Qiao Meixia encountered upon walking through the front door of the Jiang mansion was Jiang Chinan. He looked utterly shocked to see her returning unharmed at that hour, staring at her as though he had seen a ghost and certainly had not expected her to walk through the foyer on her own two feet.

Qiao Meixia completely ignored his shocked, guilty expression and went straight upstairs to her room. She had far more pressing matters to attend to than wasting her time engaging in another petty verbal spat with him.

Stepping into her room, Qiao Meixia locked the door securely behind her to ensure no one could barge in without warning. She immediately pulled out her laptop, booted up her personal system, and accessed the encrypted storage drive linked to her superbike’s hidden cameras.

She pulled up the file captured by the lens concealed near the side mirror and hit play. The high-definition footage showed the group of students gradually congregating around her bike, murmuring among themselves.

“Hey, are you actually sure you want to go through with this?” One of the students asked nervously on the audio track.