Tales of Mohua

Chapter 6: When We Met

A week passed by when the day came. She would see him today.

Shen Mohua stared at her reflection in the mirror. Compared to girls her age, she was not the most feminine. She didn't pay attention to the newest dresses or the most popular fragrance pouch. In the mountains, she enjoyed spending all day with the birds and butterflies.

She was not one to care much about her appearance, but today was not an ordinary day. She paid extra attention to what she wore. The beads on her white top danced as she twirled, and the mint green pleated skirt flared out in swirls.

"Ah Mo, hurry!" Her mother called out. "You're going to be late!"

"En, coming!" Shen Mohua grabbed her embroidered pouch and ran out the door.

In the courtyard, her family nodded their heads as she came. Clearly, they approved the dress she chose. Also, with such a lovely face and adorable dimples, who could dislike her?

Shen Fai was the first to speak up. He tenderly patted his younger sister's head and teased, "Ah Mo, don't have too much fun today."

She childishly stuck her tongue at him. "I'm going to have all the fun in the world."

"Alright, alright. Mohua has to go, she is already late." Meng Jia timely stopped the pair of siblings.

"I spent a little too much time on the dress..." Shen Mohua grinned sheepishly, "Mother, tell father and grandma I'll be back before dark. I really have to leave now."

"Ah Mo, you really don't want me to accompany you?" Shen Fai asked again as he walked her to the carriage.

From the inside, she stuck her head through the window. Shen Mohua smiled in assurance, "Don't worry, I won't be alone."

Once the carriage arrived at Lotus House, Shen Mohua jumped down lightly from the carriage. She thanked the driver and headed into the restaurant.

Lotus House was a popular restaurant in Ping Jing. It was most known for the mesmerizing lotus pond in the back. From every window in the restaurant, customers could their enjoy delicious meals with a breath taking view to boost.

"Miss, would you like a table or are you meeting someone?" A waiter asked as she came through the door.

"I'm meeting my fiancé..." She answered automatically, her ears slightly turned red from speaking the word 'fiancé' aloud. In a split second, she cleared her answer, "Ouyang Jun."

Thinking and saying were two very different things. When she thought of him, she could be shameless without anyone knowing. Here, they hadn't met yet, and she already claimed him in front of others.

The waiter led her through the restaurant into a private room.

Shen Mohua's hands shook from nervousness. She almost couldn't focus on where her feet were placed with each step. For their first meeting, they'd enjoy a meal. She stayed up last night to write. In her waist belt was a piece of paper with questions to ask, just in case her mind went blank.

The waiter opened the door and bowed. "Miss, please enjoy your meal."

"T-thank you," her voice trembled when she spoke. With all the courage of her petite body, she pushed aside the beaded curtain and entered.

It was a small, welcoming room. The windows were opened into the lotus pond, there was a table set up in the center, and the large back of a man.

Her eyebrows scrunched up. Her fiancé was not moving...

She clasped her hand over her mouth. Did she take so long that he had fallen asleep?!

Shen Mohua quietly tiptoed to the other side of the table and sat down on the cushion. She fixed her skirt and glanced up, only to find herself almost jumping back in surprise.

Two black obsidian eyes stared back at her, unblinking and still as ever.

The owner of those eyes was a man dressed in black. Half of his wavy hair was let down while the other half was wrapped in a neat high bun. Although he was seated and not moving, there was a heavy intimidating aura around him.

His expression wasn't aggressively fearful, but he wasn't exactly smiling either.

Shen Mohua's mouth was left slightly agape. What struck her speechless was the twisted red scar running down his right eye, from his eyelid to the high of his cheekbone.

"Scared?" He calmly asked.

She furiously shook her head. "No, you're so..."

"Unsightly?"

"No, you're so handsome," she candidly blurted the thought running through her mind.

When she first saw him, she was indeed frightened by his daunting eyes. If he was a stranger she encountered on the streets, of course, she'd wanted to squeeze herself into a ball and hide away. Knowing who he was, she wasn't afraid of the man himself.

On a closer look, his slightly upturned eyes with sparks of gold got her frozen in his gaze. His features were sharp and unique, stirring her desire to lean in for a closer view.

Ouyang Junsan turned away and remained silent.

Only then, did she realized he was quiet because he didn't believe her. "It's true, I haven't seen anyone as good looking as you..."

He turned back to her. "Don't you find me disgusting?"

"You are very much to my liking," she tried to respond as casually as possible in spite of her face turning crimson red.

"You don't understand." Ouyang Junsan stood up in frustration.

"Tell me if I don't understand--" A soft gasp escaped her mouth as he pulled her up against the wall.

Instinctively, her hands clutched onto his waist to balance herself. His strong arms locked her in place.

"Don't you know?" He demanded.

His warm breath brushed her cheeks due to the position they were in. She almost couldn't focus. "Know what?"

"What are you doing here if you don't even know it?"

"What are you talking about? I know that you're my fiancé, I know we're to wed at the end of the month, I know--"

Ouyang Jun moved threateningly closer to her, their faces almost touching. With his low voice, he asked, "Don't you know that I'm blind?"

She didn't answer, and he was about to explode. How stupid could this person be?

His voice slightly raised in anger. "How foolish are you? You're about to marry a damaged, blind man and you don't even know it?!"

The silence in the room was deafening. Without another word, he let go of her and turned away.

Shen Mohua pulled onto his sleeve to stop him.

"I know."