391 Fall

A few days later, Iris and Jin Liwei finally celebrated their actual anniversary. She told him that she wanted a much simpler celebration this time compared to the extravagant surprise he prepared a few days earlier.

However, this was Jin Liwei. The man had a different definition of "simple" compared to normal people. Even more so now that he was doing it for his beloved baby girl. His already high standards increased even more when it came to Iris.

In just a few days, he had one of the mansion's rotundas transformed into an enchanting man-made indoor forest filled with trees (many of them bore delicious fruits), crawling vines, and a variety of beautiful, colourful flowers. There were even some butterflies, dragonflies, lady bugs and bees flying around. In addition to this, he had a freaking koi pond built in the centre of this man-made forest.

In the middle of the pond was an islet where a romantic dinner table was prepared for the lovers. A scenic stone bridge allowed people to reach the islet.

When Iris arrived home in the evening from work, nobody was around. Even Dom mysteriously made some excuses, saying that he needed to talk to his sister Clover about something important, so he would be sleeping at the penthouse tonight. Dom brought Ice Cream and Popcorn with him.

She knew that today was her anniversary with Jin Liwei. Her darling must have told everyone to make themselves scarce. As soon as she stepped inside the mansion, she received a text from Jin Liwei directing her on where to go.

Excitement pumped within her, as she walked along the empty hallways to the place Jin Liwei told her to go. Actually, the mansion wasn't completely devoid of people. She saw some of the staff scurrying away to hide when they saw her. She chuckled in amusement at their actions.

It seemed that Jin Liwei wanted to give her the impression that there were only the two of them in the mansion. His arrangements were making her wonder what he had prepared for their actual anniversary.

Along the way, she encountered wooden sign posts, made to look old and rustic, leading her to the destination. Her excitement heightened with every sign post.

Finally, she arrived at the transformed rotunda.

She gasped and stared at the wondrous place in amazement. The gentle sound of water from the pond was the first thing she heard. But with her great ears, she could faintly hear an instrumental fairy-like Celtic music in the background. She couldn't see any musicians, so the music must be coming from speakers somewhere.

The music made the atmosphere magical.

Her eyes scanned the place, admiring the forest's natural beauty (although it was man-made). Then her sight zeroed in on the tall figure standing on the islet at the centre of the pond.

Jin Liwei was wearing casual clothing—a simple polo shirt and black jeans. He should look out of place in the forest with his outfit, but his aura was like that of a cold and powerful elven king.

His eyes became gentle when she arrived. He extended his hand and beckoned her to come to him.

Without waiting any longer, Iris ran towards her darling.

The koi fishes swam away, startled by her running over the stone bridge.

Once she reached the islet, she leaped and threw herself to Jin Liwei. He caught her in a tight embrace. Their mouths immediately locked in a passionate kiss.

At that moment, the magical background music gradually became louder. The lovers felt like they were both transported into a fantasyland of fairies and elves. As a result, the passionate kiss became gentle and lingering. They chose to savour each other's tastes, instead of trying to devour each other hungrily.

"Beautiful," Iris breathed into his mouth when the kiss ended. "This place is incredibly beautiful."

He gazed at her with half-lidded eyes, a soft smile on his lips. "You're the most beautiful, love. Happy anniversary."

"Happy anniversary," she replied with a delighted laugh.

Still hugging him, she looked around the place. She couldn't stop smiling. The place was just marvelous!

"You like it?" he asked.

"I love it!"

"We'll keep it, then. I had this built just for you. You can relax here whenever you want," he told her.

Instead of replying, she gave him a loud smacking kiss on the lips to demonstrate her appreciation for his surprise. She had already forgotten her request for a simple anniversary celebration.

Then as if on cue, some of the household staff quietly appeared to deliver food for the two of them.

"We greet the Master and the Mistress a happy anniversary," the butler greeted them first.

Then the chef and the others followed suit.

"Happy anniversary!"

Jin Liwei nodded. Although he wasn't showing much expression, these people already knew him well after working for him for so many years. They could tell that he was very happy.

"Thank you, everyone," Iris replied for both of them instead. The joy was obvious in her voice.

The lovers enjoyed a special dinner prepared by the chef. It was light, nutritious and very delicious.

After dinner, they started walking around the forest and chatted about their day. They also reminisced about the special memories they had of their relationship while gazing at the stars above. The glass dome of the rotunda allowed them to see the night sky directly above them, making them feel as if they were actually in a natural forest instead of inside the mansion.

"Let's go to bed," Jin Liwei said after noticing her eyes getting heavy.

Iris hesitated. She wanted to stay longer. The place was so relaxing that it melted all of her tiredness from working the entire day. It might just become her new favourite place in the mansion.

"Love, it's getting late. I don't want you to be sleep-deprived. We still need to wake up early tomorrow for work. Let's go for now," he urged her. "You can always return here whenever you want."

"Hmm. Okay." Giving a last look at the place, Iris left together with Jin Liwei.

They held hands all the way to their bedroom suite. Once inside, the sleepy Iris suddenly became energetic after seeing something.

"Oh, it's here! Come, darling. I'll show my anniversary gift for you," Iris said, pulling him by the hand to the suite's lounge room.

Jin Liwei followed her. He already saw the large wrapped rectangular object propped against the wall.

"Open it," she told him, her voice filled with anticipation.

"Alright."

He started unwrapping the object. Based on its shape and the wrapping material, he already had an idea of what it was. However, he didn't know what it would look like. He looked forward seeing it.

Iris helped him, so that they could unwrap it more quickly. The object was huge. It was almost as tall as Iris. And very heavy, too.

Finally, the object was completely unwrapped, revealing a vibrant painting enclosed in gold-gilded frame.

Jin Liwei gasped as soon as he saw the image depicted on the painting. It took his breath away and flooded his mind with one of the best memories of his life.

Standing beside him, Iris held his hand. The two of them admired the painting together.

It showed the two of them kissing in front of a cascading waterfall. The scene was from when she finally confessed her love for him at the waterfall in the Swiss Alps at Cross Academy. However, the painting took on a more fantasy-like interpretation of the scene.

In the painting, Iris was a beautiful forest nymph while Jin Liwei was a mighty water spirit king. Nature celebrated around them. The most incredible element of the painting was the clear love depicted between Iris and Jin Liwei as they kissed each other. Anyone who saw the painting would be able to tell that the two were in love.

Iris turned to look at him. "Happy anniversary, darling." He didn't reply, too engrossed at the painting. So she asked, "You like it?"

"Yes. So much." He looked at her. "It perfectly symbolizes how I felt when you finally said that you love me. So magical, like I just became the king of the world because I was finally able to gain the love of my beloved fairy queen."

She bit her lower lip because she was smiling so much. "That moment felt magical for me, too. It still is magical in my memories. That's why I had it commissioned like this, to focus more on our feelings rather than replicating the actual real-life scene."

Jin Liwei nodded in approval. Then he read the small golden plaque at the bottom of the painting. "Fall by Ashandra Knightson. Hmmm. What a perfect title. It was the moment you confessed that you've finally fallen in love with me in a place that has a waterfall. And I've also fallen more deeply in love with you then."

"Yes, Ashandra is a genius at capturing the deeper meaning of things in her art. And she's such a good friend because despite being busy with her other works, she still accepted my commission request for this painting. I requested this from her months ago for our anniversary. That's why I was so confused when you claimed that our anniversary was a few days ago. The painting hadn't arrived yet that time," she explained.

His eyebrows rose before chuckling. "Oh, I see. So that's why." He looked at the painting again. "You've gifted me a treasure, love. Ashandra Knightson's works are popular and they always sell well at auctions. What's more, it's not easy acquiring her works. Others will be so envious of me once they learn that I now have one of her paintings."

Iris looked pleased at his reaction.

"Thank you, love."

"You're welcome, darling."

The two of them kissed, mirroring their images shown on the painting.

"Now it's my turn. Wait here," Jin Liwei told her before walking to one of the drawers, pulling out a thick envelope. He returned and handed it to her. "My present for you."

Iris blinked a few times. Was this déjà vu or what?

"Open it, love," he urged her.

She opened the envelope and read the thick documents inside. Her eyes went blank for a couple seconds before looking at Jin Liwei in disbelief.

"Darling, you bought me a company again?"