128 New Experience

"Don't you want to know where we are going?" he finally asked her.

"I'll eventually know once I'm there," she replied.

"Didn't you say you don't like surprises? You like to be in control," Shui Xian remembered every single thing related to her. He couldn't possibly forget it.

Raelle hummed in reply, "And someone said, I should let life surprise me sometimes."

Shui Xian didn't continue talking. By the time they arrived at their destination, the sun was setting leaving behind the hues of orange like a burning flame being engulfed by the sea of darkness. Shui Xian found a place to park the car.

They both alighted the car and Raelle looked around curiously. It was quite a crowded place with street vendors littered around the sides. Raelle didn't want to walk through the sea of people. It'd involve having to bump into random people. The idea wasn't pleasing to her.

Shui Xian looked at her face and came to stand behind her, he wrapped his arms around her like a shield as he said, "I won't let anyone touch you." Raelle tilted her head to look into his eyes as he went on, "I know it's crowded but I really want to show you something."

Raelle looked at the throngs of people and then looked at him before nodding her head. Shui Xian stayed true to his words as he weaved the way through the crowd just for Raelle. In fact, her bodyguards would have done it easily for her but it'd create a huge scene, and usually, Raelle would never let them hover close to her unless it was indispensable.

After passing through the street filled with people, Raelle finally got to breathe in fresh air when they arrived at the river bank where people were dining al fresco. As soon as the darkness engulfed the sky, the river bank lit up with paper lanterns. The beautiful lanterns were of different shapes and sizes. Some were even floating in the river. It was a beautiful sight.

The unique designs and vibrant colors caught Raelle's attention and she continued to look at the sight before her. Her eyes didn't even notice anything else. Shui Xian had already figured out that once his wife liked something, she would look at it for a long time intently as if trying to carve that beautiful scenery into her memory with each and every intricate detail of it.

"If you had come out during the Yuan Xiao (Lantern) Festival, you would see this sight everywhere at night," Shui Xian told her. "But this is the only place that would let the lanterns stay for longer than others. So, I had to bring you here."

Shui Xian gave her a smile, "Bà told me that you never even celebrated the Lunar New Year, so I figured you'd not know anything about the Yuan Xiao Festival as well. That's why I wanted to bring you here. To see something beautiful and to experience something new as well."

He took her hand and led her to a dining place that was set in the open air with the perfect view of the river and the lanterns. As they sat at the table, he placed the order for both of them.

"So, I assume you like it?" he asked even if he could tell she did, he didn't know why he wanted to hear it from her.

"I like it," she replied honestly. Her words were simple, straightforward, honest. She neither exaggerated anything nor did she try to hide anything. And that's what had been tugging at Shui Xian's heart. He smiled in satisfaction.

After a moment of silence, he spoke again, "About Hyson's mother..." Raelle gave him all of her attention while he tried to look for the right words. Finally, he sighed out, "Just as you said, after seeing her, I can really tell how Hyson's personality took form."

"I already told you," said Raelle. "Yue isn't like the other women. You can tell her apart even in the crowd of people. Not just because of her beauty, but because of her demeanor as well."

"I really don't believe that she came from a humble background. Even in simple clothes, she has a different air about her." Raelle nodded her head and he continued, "That made me really curious to know who she is."

From his interaction with Mother Yue, he was certain that she definitely wasn't a simple person. She might live in a shabby house but she didn't come from a shabby background. Everything about her screamed nobility. Standing beside Mu Chenyan, she didn't let the other outshine her in any way.

Finally, their order was served. A bowl of freshly cooked Tangyuan(glutinous rice balls) was placed before Raelle. Tang Yuan looked like round dumplings. And these round dumplings made of glutinous rice flour were served in syrup.

Raelle looked up at Shui Xian who told her, "It's a tradition to eat Tang Yuan during the festival. It symbolized harmony and reunion. Since I'm trying to bring you the authentic taste of this festival, trying this dessert is a must."

Raelle didn't question it and tried a small bite. Then slowly, continued to eat. She seriously won't say whether it was good or bad, would she? Of course, he knew she wouldn't!

Right when Shui Xian was enjoying his dessert, his phone rang. He took a look at the caller id and let it ring. Even though Raelle didn't question, he still told her, "It's my sister. I guess she is losing her patience since I have been ignoring her."

"If you have to go meet her, you can," said Raelle.

"But I don't want to meet her," he replied honestly. "My purpose is ignoring her. I definitely won't be the first one to cave in this time around." He took a pause as he noticed the look on her face before saying, "You really aren't interested in the people around me as I am interested in the people in your life."