Chapter 155: Respect Is Earned

Even after the call ended, it took Shui Xian a moment to come back to himself. No matter how familiar he was with his wife's sharp eloquence, today seemed different. She actually got into an argument that was so not like her.

He still remembered when he saw Raelle at the jewelry outlet, she didn't bother sparing a second glance to the one who tried to insult her. But now she actually shot back.

He walked over to the bed and laid down right beside her. Raelle extended his phone towards him saying, "Did you hear everything?"

"Almost," he replied without hesitation. He didn't think there was a need to lie about that.

Raelle silently pondered over something before asking, "Do you think I said something wrong?" Shui Xian turned his head to look at her and she elaborated, "I told you I know my words tend to get hurtful. And I also know that since she is my husband's sister, I shouldn't have been harsh on her."

Shui Xian couldn't help playing with her hair as he said, "Didn't you just tell her that I decided to marry you because of your astounding personality?" Raelle wasn't even feeling discomfited to know that her narcissism was seen by her husband. It's not like he wasn't familiar with it and neither was it like she lied. Shui Xian gave her a small smile as he went on, "Since I know about your personality, obviously I didn't expect you to be nice to her just because she is my sister. Whether you want to be nice to her or not, that depends on you. And how you treat my sister depends on how she treats you. One who wants to be respected should learn to be respectful. Respect is earned, it's not charity that can be given."

Raelle already strongly believed that she didn't say anything wrong but she was certain that she must have used the wrong way to say it. After all, she had been told way too many times how she always chose the wrong words to even state the right things.

Seeing her distracted eyes, Shui Xian's hand cupped the side of her face that made Raelle's distinct eyes focus back on his face as he said, "Wife, I'm sorry on my sister's behalf. She shouldn't have talked to you like that."

Raelle shrugged her shoulders, "It doesn't matter."

Shui Xian could see in her eyes that she really didn't care about Shui Sying's words. "I'm curious about something."

"What is it?" asked Raelle as she tried to get up since she still had to take a shower.

Shui Xian also sat up as he looked at her back and questioned, "I thought you never fight back even when people say something against you. Don't you consider it troublesome to argue with people?"

Raelle's steps halted and she turned around to look at Shui Xian's perplexed and inquisitive gaze. She took a step towards him and stood right in from of him as she told him, "I indeed don't have a habit of wasting time over something like that. It's waste of time and energy. I'd rather use the same time and energy to attain something greater."

"Then why?" Shui Xian's brows furrowed deeply as his eyes didn't move away from her face.

Raelle pointed at him saying, "It's because of you." Shui Xian was taken aback by her response while she continued, "Your sister didn't try to insult me as Raelle Xiang. If she did, trust me, I'd just pretend like she is an annoying fly who is not even worth my clap." Shui Xian's lips twitched at her words but Raelle didn't notice as she rubbed her lips with her index finger thoughtfully as she went on, "But the thing is, she questioned me as your wife. And that also means she is questioning my husband's insight and judgment. I can't let that slide away."

Shui Xian stretched out his hand to hold her wrist and pulled her towards him. Now, that she stood between his legs, his arms enwrapped around her waist as he said, "It feels good to see that my wife is actually willing to fight for me." He buries his face in her stomach and even dropped kisses with the thin fabric between his lips and her skin.

Unconsciously, Raelle's fingers slid into Shui Xian's thick hair and played with his soft hair on their own accord.

"Do you hate her?" asked Shui Xian in a small voice.

Raelle looked down into his eyes and shook her head, "Do you really think I can hate her? All she did was put forth her own personal opinion. I like it when people have their own opinions in life but it's not acceptable when people try to dictate others' lives with their own opinions. It's alright for your sister to hate me but she should learn that between my relationship with you, her opinion is not needed." She took a pause to add, "She isn't the one I'm gonna spend my life with. It's you. My husband."

"She isn't a bad person," said Shui Xian and showed a helpless look on his face. "She just has a bad temper. But she has a good heart."

"Whether she is a good person or a bad person," began Raelle. "It really doesn't matter. To me, she will always be just my husband's little sister. That makes her a part of the family and Yanyan says when it comes to family, we don't give up. No matter if the family is good or bad, we shouldn't give up."

Shui Xian shook his head slightly and said, "Dear, sometimes, we all have to give up. Even if it's family, we have to let go." Seeing Raelle's confusion, he offered her a small smile and went on, "Go, take a shower. Don't you have to sleep at your fixed time?"

Raelle nodded her head and went to the bathroom to take a shower. Behind her, Shui Xian was left staring at his phone screen in silence. It's been a long time and he had yet to decide whether to give up on his sister or not. This choice wasn't as simple as he just made it sound.