No longer a pushover (Noelle and Cedric)

Noelle's expression turned annoyed when she saw Xenia.

She thought that sometimes fate could be a bitch. No matter how much you wanted to avoid someone, they always seemed to appear.

Xenia sauntered over with a pretentious air. "Noelle, you've been away from home for so long. Lucas only froze your credit cards because he's worried about you. Don't take it the wrong way."

Noelle remained calm. In her past life, she had suffered a lot after her credit cards were frozen. It was then that she finally understood the importance of financial independence. Only with it could she have personal independence.

Rachel didn't hold back. "Oh, stop showing off, Xenia. If Noelle wanted to go back, she'd be the young miss again in no time. But you? You'll never be anything more than a wannabe."

Xenia gritted her teeth in anger. Nothing stung her more than reminders of her background.

Noelle ignored Xenia entirely and merely talked to the store attendant. "I'd like to try on these two dresses."

The store attendant recognized Noelle and assisted her immediately.

Xenia was unhappy with the scene and took out her premium membership card. "Excuse me, but I want those two dresses as well."

Rachel felt slightly angry. "Do you have no shame, Xenia? Haven't you heard of first come, first served?"

Betty chimed in, "Well, our Xenia is a premium member, so she gets priority. Does Noelle have a premium membership card?"

Noelle hadn't taken anything with her when she left the Liddells. Naturally, she wouldn't have a premium membership card with her.

The store attendant looked at Noelle awkwardly. "Ms. Liddell?"

Noelle released the dresses. "I don't have a premium membership card. Let her have them."

Rachel looked ready to cry from frustration, but Xenia was delighted. She felt as if she had finally forced Noelle out of the Liddell family, and she was the only daughter left. Noelle continued browsing for dresses, only for Betty to snatch items from her repeatedly.

Noelle didn't react. Instead, she continued to select more clothes and shoes.

When even Xenia noticed the growing pile, only then did Noelle stop. She looked at Xenia and asked, "Are you planning to buy all of these?"

Xenia raised her chin and replied smugly, "Of course. There's a social event tomorrow night for online influencers. Lucas said he'd take me and asked me to buy some nice clothes." Noelle wasn't surprised. In her past life, Lucas had also taken Xenia to the event.

Rachel was annoyed. "What's the big deal about attending an event? Noelle's also—"

Noelle stopped her friend from continuing and turned to the store attendant. "Since Ms. Quigley is so generous today, please ring up her purchases immediately."

Xenia's expression changed. "W-Wait! I haven't even tried them on yet."

"They have the sizes. You can exchange them if they don't fit. Surely you're not planning to try everything on without buying, are you?"

Noelle's tone was calm, but it put Xenia on the spot, forcing her to commit.

Rachel added fuel to the fire. "Yeah, if you can't afford it. Don't pretend that you can. What kind of premium member can't even pay for these?" Xenia couldn't back down. "Who says I can't afford it? Pack them all up!"

Betty smirked. "See? Our Xenia is the Liddell family's favorite. These few clothes are nothing! She could buy the whole store if she wanted to!" Xenia slapped Betty flusteredly and scolded her, "Don't talk nonsense!"

Still, with no way out, she reluctantly handed over her credit card.

The store attendant swiped it and then said, in surprise, "I'm sorry, but this card isn't working."

Xenia's expression shifted. "Impossible! Do you not know how to work the machine? Lucas gave me this card. There's no way it doesn't work."

The store manager came over and tried again. "Ms. Quigley, it seems that this card has reached its spending limit."

Humiliation burned like fire on Xenia's face.

She had always maintained the image of the obedient younger sister, so she rarely spent extravagantly. But she hadn't expected the card to have a spending limit, which was clearly not enough to even purchase those clothes. Noelle smiled faintly. "So, are you still buying them?"

Rachel grabbed the two dresses Noelle first saw. "Stop pretending you can afford these when you clearly can't."