Chapter 31: The Ice Queen’s Fierce Love
The boys in blue uniforms, their expressions a mixture of bewilderment and resentment, left the bubble tea shop, their boba in hand.
Xu Qiuyi placed a freshly made drink on the table. “What are you doing here?” she asked Tao Ning.
Tao Ning, using her straw to break through the thick layer of boba in her drink – it resembled a tapioca pudding more than a beverage – took a large sip, then, after chewing and swallowing the mouthful of boba, replied, “Bored at home. Came to see you. This place is easy to find, right next to the school.”
Meng Qian, who had been watching them, finally spoke. “Qiuyi, is this your… friend?”
Xu Qiuyi introduced them, and Tao Ning, not wanting to interrupt Xu Qiuyi’s work, ordered a few snacks and found a corner to do her homework.
Meng Qian, however, was still staring. This was the first time she had seen one of Xu Qiuyi’s friends. Her impression of Xu Qiuyi had been of a solitary figure, always alone.
She couldn’t help but steal glances as she walked past. The girl was beautiful, her clothes expensive, though unfamiliar brands, and the backpack she was using as a lumbar support looked… familiar.
Then, she saw the neatly written homework and understood.
So, even her friends are geniuses, she thought, admiring the girl’s elegant handwriting.
Not wanting to stare too much, Meng Qian retreated to the kitchen.
Surrounded by the aroma of baking cakes, she leaned against the door, trying to remember where she had seen that backpack before.
Suddenly, she gasped, snapping her fingers. “I remember! I know where I saw it!”
Her outburst startled the pastry chef, who looked up to see her scrolling through her phone, staring at the screen, muttering about how expensive it was, how she had always wanted one but couldn’t justify the price, how it was a limited edition.
Meng Qian was easily distracted, and the pastry chef, shaking his head, returned to his work.
A short while later, Tao Ning heard the bell ring from the nearby school, the sound of students’ voices growing louder.
Xu Qiuyi, who had been upstairs, emerged, carrying a large teddy bear, which she placed on the table opposite Tao Ning, carefully adjusting its position.
Tao Ning stared at the bear, its large, black button eyes staring back at her, both of them looking slightly bewildered.
“What’s this for?” she asked.
Xu Qiuyi, her expression calm, explained, “A companion bear. One of Meng Qian’s… ideas. To keep solo diners company. She saw it online. It didn’t last long. It’s been… exiled to the office.”
Tao Ning: Seriously? Wouldn’t a giant teddy bear just make a socially awkward person even more uncomfortable?
She looked at the bear, then politely declined. “I don’t think I’ll be lonely.”
Her eyes, however, pleaded with Xu Qiuyi to take it away. Being stared at by a teddy bear while doing homework is creepy.
Xu Qiuyi, changing her tactics, said softly, “It’s going to get crowded soon. I don’t want you to be disturbed.”
Tao Ning, considering this, agreed, and the bear remained.
A group of students walked past the window, about to enter, and Xu Qiuyi, not wanting to be seen talking to Tao Ning, quickly went back to work, Meng Qian emerging from the kitchen to help.
The quiet shop was suddenly bustling, and Tao Ning, setting aside her homework, looked around.
The décor was simple and clean, not the usual trendy style. A message wall covered in colorful sticky notes from students adorned one side.
The shop occupied two floors, both open to customers, serving bubble tea, coffee, and various desserts and snacks, the prices affordable for students, hence its popularity.
Many students, after ordering, chose to stay, finding seats and chatting.
Some, seeking a quieter spot, ventured further inside, only to find Tao Ning in the corner. They paused, surprised.
Her dyed hair and stylish clothes suggested she wasn’t a student, but the high school textbooks and workbooks spread out on the table revealed her true status, although the unfamiliar covers suggested a different school, perhaps with its own curriculum.
Tao Ning, sensing their presence, looked up.
The two girls, momentarily stunned by her beauty, her almost idol-like appearance, instinctively gravitated towards the seats next to her.
Who wouldn’t want to sit next to a cool, pretty girl? they thought.
The cashier is cute, but this girl is… something else, they agreed.
They sat down, not speaking, their fingers flying across their phones, typing furiously.
“Who is she? I’ve never seen her around.”
“She looks so cool! Maybe she’s an art student?”
“Yeah, maybe music or something.”
This scene repeated itself throughout the afternoon, every customer heading upstairs passing by Tao Ning’s table, their gazes lingering.
Some, realizing their staring too late, would continue upstairs, then, a few minutes later, casually walk back down, feigning disappointment at the lack of available seats on the first floor.
Their attempts at subtlety were so obvious, Tao Ning couldn’t help but notice, feeling like a new exhibit at the zoo, everyone wanting a closer look.
She began to appreciate the presence of the teddy bear. At least it prevented unwanted company.
Then, she realized she had underestimated the boldness of teenagers, their impulsive nature unburdened by social anxieties.
When a girl tapped her on the shoulder, asking if she could share the table, Tao Ning was caught off guard. She politely declined, claiming she preferred to be alone.
Xu Qiuyi, walking past with a plate of cakes, gave her a knowing look. See? I told you.
Tao Ning’s eyes replied, You were right.
Their silent exchange, a language only they understood, was so swift, so subtle, that no one else noticed.
The girl, undeterred by the rejection, tried a different approach. “Can I at least get your… contact information? I promise I won’t bother you. I’ll just be a silent admirer on social media.”
Xu Qiuyi, setting down the plate of cakes, paused, glancing towards Tao Ning.
Most people, having been rejected once, would accept a smaller request, unwilling to be seen as rude.
But Tao Ning wasn’t most people.
She smiled politely. “I’m sorry, I don’t use social media.”
It wasn’t a lie. Her account was completely empty, no posts, no activity.
The girl, disappointed, said, “Okay…” and returned to her friends, her hands raised in a gesture of defeat.
Her friends groaned sympathetically.
When Xu Qiuyi looked back, Tao Ning had put on her noise-canceling headphones, returning to her homework, seemingly oblivious to the surrounding chatter.
Amidst the noise and activity, her profile was serene, her slender fingers moving swiftly across the page, pausing occasionally to take a sip of water or a bite of a snack before resuming her work.
The girl, back at her table, whispered to her friends, “I didn’t get her WeChat, but I saw her school’s name.”
“What is it?” her friends, their earlier disappointment replaced by renewed interest, asked eagerly.
“Mingrui. Sounds familiar.”
“Mingrui? Where’s that?”
“I found it. It’s a private school. Whoa, look at that campus! It’s like… another world compared to ours.”
“I’ve heard of Mingrui. Super expensive. All the students have chauffeurs.”
“It’s pretty far from here. Why would she come all the way here to study? There aren’t any… upscale neighborhoods around here.”
“Maybe she’s here for… someone?”
The suggestion, perfectly plausible, was met with nods of agreement.
“I’m looking at their website. Doesn’t this girl look familiar?”
The girls huddled together, looking at the enlarged photo on the phone. The girl in the center, her face slightly blurred, was clearly beautiful, standing beside a teacher.
It looked like an awards ceremony, a large check displayed prominently.
One of the girls suddenly pointed at the girl’s forehead. “The beauty mark! The cashier has one too!”
They all turned to look at Xu Qiuyi, who indeed had a similar mark between her eyebrows. Someone who had seen her without her mask commented that she looked like a… little goddess.
They exchanged glances, suddenly realizing this wasn’t just an ordinary bubble tea shop. It employed a student from Mingrui.
And another Mingrui student was sitting in the corner, doing her homework. So those were Mingrui textbooks, explaining the unfamiliar covers.
A short while later, Tao Ning finished her homework, regretting not having brought more.
It was afternoon now, and the middle school students who had filled the shop earlier had returned to school, leaving it quiet again.
Tao Ning, feeling slightly bored, watched as Xu Qiuyi and Meng Qian cleared the tables.
She rested her chin on her hand, her gaze following Xu Qiuyi’s movements as she wiped down tables, rearranged signs, then walked over to Tao Ning’s table.
“Bored?” Xu Qiuyi asked.
Tao Ning considered this. “Not really.”
Xu Qiuyi smiled, pulling down her mask now that the shop was empty. “If you’re not bored, why are you watching me clean tables?”
Tao Ning: I don’t know. I just… find it… interesting.
The door chime rang, signaling the arrival of new customers, and Xu Qiuyi turned to greet them.
The afternoon warmth and the shop’s cozy atmosphere made Tao Ning drowsy, and she soon drifted off to sleep, her head resting on her textbook.
Xu Qiuyi, returning after serving the customers, found her asleep, a smile playing on her lips.
She knew Tao Ning’s driver was probably waiting nearby, ready to take her home whenever she wanted.
Yet, she had stayed, even falling asleep, a testament to her… attachment to this place, to Xu Qiuyi.
One of the three great delusions in life: she likes me.
But Xu Qiuyi couldn’t risk it. She couldn’t bear to lose even their friendship.
The afternoon sun, streaming through the window, warmed Tao Ning’s face, giving her a rosy glow.
In the quiet shop, Xu Qiuyi stood beside her, her gaze soft, her eyes lingering on Tao Ning’s sleeping face. Slowly, she leaned closer.
Too close. She instinctively held her breath, feeling the warmth of Tao Ning’s skin, so close she could almost…
“Qiuyi, didn’t I tell you we’re out of boba?” Meng Qian’s voice startled her.
Xu Qiuyi immediately straightened up, turning to face Meng Qian, her voice slightly higher than usual. “What?”
Meng Qian, looking at her, repeated her question, and Xu Qiuyi answered, her voice now steady. Meng Qian, turning to go back upstairs, paused, sensing something amiss. “Were you…?”
Xu Qiuyi held up her hand. “Her hair. It was in her face.”
Her fingers were wrapped around a strand of burgundy hair, which had fallen across Tao Ning’s face as she slept.
“…Oh, I see,” Meng Qian said, not mentioning that she had been about to ask a different question. “Did you water the ficus?” She didn’t want to overwater it.
Xu Qiuyi, relieved that her near-transgression had gone unnoticed, nodded. “Yes, I watered it.”
Thank goodness she didn’t see…
I wouldn’t know what to do.
“Alright, call me if you need anything,” Meng Qian said, heading back upstairs to finish her inventory.
“Okay,” Xu Qiuyi replied.
Tao Ning was still asleep, and Xu Qiuyi, after tossing the strand of hair in the trash, walked away, her heart still pounding.
Thank goodness she didn’t wake up.
Tao Ning opened her eyes, touching her nose, where Xu Qiuyi’s fingers had brushed against her skin, the lingering warmth still present. She stared at her fingertips, a puzzled expression on her face.
This was a dangerous path, a path she couldn’t afford to explore.
She went to the restroom, and as she was washing her hands, she saw a group of people at the counter, their hair dyed in various shades of vibrant colors, their demeanor… less than respectable.
Tao Ning, who sported burgundy highlights herself, had nothing against dyed hair. It was their attitude, their expressions, that she found objectionable.
A girl with chestnut brown hair, leaning against the counter, her voice filled with mock surprise, said, “Well, well, well. Isn’t this Xu Qiuyi, the top student of No. 12 High? What are you doing working here? Did Mingrui finally expel you?”
Her friends, a mix of boys and girls, also stared at Xu Qiuyi, some of them recognizing her, their expressions a mixture of amusement and schadenfreude.
Those who didn’t know her looked surprised. “Top student? Really?”
The girl with chestnut brown hair rolled her eyes. “Please. Middle school is easy. She probably just cheated. Look at her now, working in a bubble tea shop. Expelled, no doubt.”
Xu Qiuyi, calmly waiting for her to finish, asked, “Just one drink?”
The girl’s tone was challenging. “So what if it is? Are you going to kick us out? The customer is always right. Didn’t your boss teach you that?”
A voice from behind them said, “Ordering one drink for a group of six doesn’t get you kicked out. It just makes you look… cheap.”
The girl turned around, her face contorted with anger. “What did you say?”
Tao Ning replied, “If you’re deaf, take the number eleven bus to the Central Hospital and get your hearing checked.”
Someone in the group asked, “Is there a number eleven bus here?”
Tao Ning, her tone helpful, explained, “I’m just trying to save you money. If you’re pooling your money for one drink, you can’t afford the bus fare, can you? Walking is free.”
The group, realizing they had been insulted, glared at her.
Tao Ning, leaning against the counter, her gaze lowered, her usual smile gone, looked surprisingly intimidating.
The girl with chestnut brown hair, her earlier bravado fading, struggled to find a response.
They hadn’t come here for bubble tea. They had heard Xu Qiuyi was working here and had come to mock her, planning to stroll through the streets with their drinks, feeling like they owned the place.
That was, however, before they encountered Tao Ning. Standing before her, they felt like imposters, their fake bravado crumbling in the presence of genuine power.
The others in the group, about to say something, were silenced by Tao Ning’s gaze, instinctively sensing danger. They didn’t know she was the one who had brought down the Crown Club, but they knew she wasn’t someone to be trifled with.
Xu Qiuyi, having finished preparing the drink, handed it to Tao Ning, who, taking the bag, presented it to the girl with chestnut brown hair. “Here’s your drink… your highness. Made under strict supervision, with the finest ingredients. Feel free to inspect it.”
The girl, taking the drink, felt like she had been insulted, despite the polite words.
Tao Ning continued, “Hold it carefully. Come again.”
The girl, her intention to throw the drink thwarted, glared at Tao Ning, then, seeing her reaching for her phone, the familiar three digits of the emergency number displayed on the screen, decided discretion was the better part of valor, and left with her friends, defeated.
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