I Am Already A Queen

Chapter 9: Chapter 9: Going For Morning Exercise

After terminating the conversation, Qiao Meixia shifted her focus toward another complex project, her slender fingers dancing across the keyboard with the smooth precision of a concert pianist. Time slipped away quietly as she immersed herself in her work without further interruption. Eventually, she glanced at the digital clock resting in the corner of her screen. Seeing how late the hour had become, she meticulously scrubbed her digital footprint, closing every program and encrypted page before shutting the laptop down completely.

Exhausted, she climbed into bed and attempted to force her mind to go quiet. She lay there in the stillness, staring up at the dark, unfamiliar ceiling for nearly ten minutes while lost in a sea of her own thoughts, until bone-deep weariness finally overtook her and dragged her into a heavy, dreamless slumber.

...

The piercing, rhythmic ringing of her phone suddenly shattered the silence of the room early the next morning. Qiao Meixia reached out a hand lazily, fumbling for the device beside her bed, and squinted at the aggressive brightness of the screen through bleary, sleepy eyes. The display showed exactly 6:00 a.m.

She silenced the alarm before slowly rising from the mattress, stretching her limbs to wake up her stiff muscles and dispel the lingering fog of sleep. After washing up and refreshing herself with cold water, she stepped out of her room looking far more alert and composed than the night before.

At that early hour, the masters of the Jiang household were still ensconced in their rooms, deep in sleep, but the servants had already begun their morning rotations throughout the sprawling mansion.

Butler Jun looked visibly taken aback when he spotted Qiao Meixia standing near the front entrance so early in the day. He genuinely had not expected a girl of her background to be the type of person who woke up at the crack of dawn voluntarily.

”Miss Qiao, where are you going so early in the morning?” Butler Jun asked, his curiosity getting the better of his professional reserve as he noticed she had already laced up her shoes and appeared ready to depart.

”Just some morning exercise. I will be back in exactly one hour.” Qiao Meixia replied simply, her voice calm and even.

Without waiting for a response or granting him the opportunity to probe further, Qiao Meixia turned on her heel and exited the house directly into the crisp morning air.

Butler Jun remained standing there in a stunned, contemplative silence for a brief moment.

Morning exercise?

Was she truly the sort of disciplined individual who maintained a fitness regimen this early every single morning?

At the moment, he had no concrete answers. Ultimately, he figured he could simply observe her behaviour tomorrow to determine if this was a genuine part of her regular routine or merely a singular, anomalous occurrence. For now, however, he had his own extensive list of responsibilities and chores to manage.

Later that same morning, the members of the Jiang family finally began to stir, gathering one after another in the formal dining room for breakfast. Jiang Lukang’s brow furrowed into a deep, displeased frown the moment he realised Qiao Meixia’s chair remained conspicuously empty.

”Butler Jun, go upstairs and wake Qiao Meixia up immediately.” Jiang Lukang ordered sternly, his voice tight with irritation.

”Sister probably could not sleep well last night because of the unfamiliar environment. Father, you really should not be so hard on her just because she happened to oversleep.” Jiang Yanna said softly, tilting her head with that familiar air of a gentle, compassionate peacemaker.

”Humph! I do not care for her excuses or her reasons.” Jiang Lukang replied coldly, his impatience steadily mounting. ”We are scheduled to leave for the Old Residence later today. We simply do not have any time to waste on her account.”

”Hmm... Master...” Butler Jun hesitated, his posture appearing awkward and uneasy as he searched for the appropriate opening to speak.

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