She allowed Uncle Jiang to express his enthusiasm.
Jiang Yuan liked Shuishui's personality. He felt that she was such an obedient and sensible child. "Shuishui, I heard from your father that you like to eat. Girls nowadays only want to lose weight and don't eat properly anymore. That's not good. You must have good eating habits because you're not picky. He asked me to take you to the different restaurants all over the capital. I'm making a list of the good restaurants and their specialty dishes that you would like."
Shuishui was a little embarrassed. "My father said so?"
"Don't worry. It's not a problem. Your dad actually just wants you to have fun here. He knows that you like to eat, so he asked me to take you to different restaurants." Jiang Yuan felt that Qian An was quite considerate of his daughter. He knew what his daughter liked and doted on her. It was clear to him that Qian An favored Shuishui the most among his three children. Jiang Yuan himself was surprised to know that Shuishui was that woman's child. He had heard that Li Xue did not know that Shuishui was not her child. Her own child was probably taken away by that woman. When he asked Qian An how he found out about it, he was told that Shuishui had taken a DNA test. It was only after Shuishui had taken the test that Qian An found out about the result. Just what was this child thinking?
He kept his thoughts to himself because he didn't think it would be right to ask about it.
They soon arrived at a large restaurant. He parked the car and walked in with Shuishui. "Their specialty roast duck dish is the most authentic one I think in this area."
Shuishui was very casual about it. "Hmm."
As they walked in, Uncle Jiang patted Shuishui's shoulder. "Just sit by the side," he told her.
They chose a seat by the window and sat down. Uncle Jiang ordered their special roast duck, and Shuishui ordered the rest. Shuishui glanced at the menu and looked at the house special recipes. They had pot stickers, stir-fried liver, and ginger spareribs. Feeling that she had never eaten such dishes back in the city, she ordered ginger spareribs and stir-fried liver. Looking at the names, she felt that they were special.
After Shuishui ordered the food, Uncle Jiang added an extra serving of stir-fried vegetables.
Jiang Yuan looked at Shuishui with a smile. "You're pretty good at picking food. The ginger spareribs dish here is very special. The ribs are served slightly sweet. I don't know if you'll like it."
Shuishui was quite looking forward to eating. "As long as the flavors aren't too strong, I think I would like the dish."
She glanced at the surroundings. It was a larger city, and she felt different. She was not yet accustomed to the new environment, in spite of the fact that she was still in the same country.
When the dishes were served, they ate quietly. They remained quiet for a while. When they were almost done eating, Uncle Jiang looked at Shuishui. "I will take you home later. You should rest well and take a nap or something. My eldest son should be at home. His name is Jiang Li. You can call him Xiao Li."
"Okay, okay," Shuishui said as she wrote the name down. After all, she had to be courteous.
"My other two sons are twins. They will be twelve years old this year. They are in the first year of middle school. The older one is called Jiang Ming, and the younger one is called Jiang Yue. My wife is from a ethnic minority group. Her name is Wula. You can just call her Auntie Jiang. It will be more convenient. Do you have any questions?" He looked at Shuishui as she ate and found her adorable. He found it very pleasant to watch her eat. She was a little foodie. 'No wonder many people want a daughter. It must be nice to have a thoughtful little baby daughter,' he thought.
Shuishui gulped down the food in her mouth and said, "I'm all right. Uncle, you have to give me your home address so that I can find my way back when I go out. Actually, I really want to go to a bookstore here. There are many books that I want that are not available in bookstores back home."
"Of course. What kind of books do you usually like to read?" Jiang Yuan thought that it would be great if his child also liked to read books.
"I usually read foreign books. I like the ones that are originally printed in English and not the translated ones, because oftentimes the meaning changes when the book is translated. I like detective novels." She had come upon detective novels, and she quickly finished reading them. However, she had also found several detective novels that she didn't like. She liked to read novels with reasonable, undramatic plots and strong male lead characters, such as Luo Ji.
"You can easily understand books originally written in English? That's good! I have underestimated you. Wait for me here. I will settle the bill first." Uncle Jiang then took his wallet and walked towards the cashier to settle their bill.
When he returned, Shuishui had finished eating. She was wiping her mouth and drinking a cup of tea to freshen her breath.
They soon drove towards Jiang Yuan's home. When the car approached the village area, Shuishui saw that the architecture and design of the houses were European-style. It was clearly a subdivision for the wealthy. Each villa had its own parking lot and a small garden. Some villas even had swimming pools.
Although she had not been to other similar areas in Beijing, she knew that real estate appraisal in Beijing was several times higher than in the city, especially for the houses close to the city center.
When they reached the gate of the house, Shuishui immediately knew that Uncle Jiang's family was very rich.
There was no one in the house, and even the helper had gone out. Uncle Jiang brought Shuishui into the villa. What greeted her eyes were the marble floor, the mahogany chairs, and the mahogany table. There was a large painting hanging on the wall. The atmosphere was simple. The floor was fully carpeted. As they entered, a white-coated German shepherd ran over to them and jumped around Jiang Yuan.
The dog ran over to Shuishui's side, sniffed around her, and jumped up as well.
Shuishui reached out to pat the dog's head, which the dog liked.
"This is a mixed shepherd dog named Qiqi. It's very obedient. Don't be afraid. My wife usually takes it out for a walk. It's very excited to see you because the house has been quiet recently." He carried Shuishui's luggage upstairs. "Come. Your room is on the second floor."
"Okay," she said as she and the white dog followed Jiang Yuan upstairs.
When they got to the second floor, Uncle Jiang escorted her towards the innermost room. It was quite spacious, and it also had a bathroom and a small balcony. She walked in and looked around her. "Uncle, this room is very comfortable."
Uncle Jiang laughed. "Yes. It's on the east side. It'll be a little hot in the morning, but you'll be fine if you turn on the air conditioning. You should rest first. There's shower gel in the bathroom. There's also a clean toothbrush you can use. There are clean towels in the drawer. I'll be in the study next door, dealing with work matters. When the rest of the family arrives later, I'll introduce you to them." Uncle Jiang thought Shuishui might want to rest because she woke up early that morning and must be very tired.
"Thank you, Uncle. Then I won't bother you anymore." Shuishui nodded. She moved her luggage to the side. She wanted to organize her things.
Jiang Yuan left the room and closed the door.
Jiang Yuan called his old friend as soon as he reached the study. "Qian An, Shuishui is already here and resting in her room. Don't worry. I like Shuishui. She's very sensible and obedient. You can let her visit me and my family anytime in the future. Anyway, she belongs to my household registration, so she can be considered half my child."
Qian An was happy, but he was worried about Shuishui's quiet temperament."My daughter is very sensible. However, she's been very quiet recently. It's good she's there so she can be a bit more lively."
"Isn't being quiet a good thing? Do I need to do something about it?" Jiang Yuan felt that it was good if a child had a quiet temperament. Qian An, however, still had so many requests.
Qian An scratched his head. "Shuishui has changed a lot. Although she has been a good child, I hope she can also act like an ordinary child. I don't want her to keep pressuring herself."
Qian An felt that Shuishui had pressured herself to remain as a top student and to participate in all kinds of competitions. She always wanted to do well and do better.
Jiang Yuan didn't ask much. "It's okay. She'll be happy here. Don't worry about leaving your daughter with me during this winter break. Tomorrow, I will accompany her to the universities' open days."
"I believe you. I'll leave my Shuishui to you during this winter break. We're old friends, so I won't say any more polite words. Just do as you see fit. I'm busy now. Let's chat again when you have time." Qian An said goodbye to Jiang Yuan as he was also busy at work.
Jiang Yuan himself was also busy, so he hung up the phone.
It was past four in the afternoon. Jiang Yuan stretched lazily and heard the sound of the door opening. "Someone's back," he said.
He didn't disturb Shuishui. Instead, he directly walked downstairs. He saw his eldest son, who had brought a few classmates with him. "Xiao Li, your sister Qian is here too. Let her play with you."
"Ah, we're playing. She might not like it." Jiang Li had never met Shuishui before, so he did not have any idea who Shuishui really was. He had brought two of his classmates back home so they could play together. He felt that it would be awkward if Qian Shuishui joined them.
"Xiao Li, don't forget what you promised me. I'm going to see if she's awake now," Jiang Yuan said as he looked at his eldest son sternly.
Jiang Li was a little dissatisfied. He pursed his lips and didn't say anything.
Jiang Yuan went upstairs and gently knocked on Shuishui's door. He thought that if Shuishui didn't respond, he would just go back down. After a while, however, Shuishui replied, "Wait."
She opened the door. "Uncle Jiang."
"I didn't disturb your lunch break, did I?" Uncle Jiang asked. He was a little embarrassed.
"No. I just read for a while when I got up." Actually, she wasn't very tired because she was able to sleep on the plane.
"Come down. Xiao Li is back. I'll introduce you to each other. He brought his friends over. You can play with them." Shuishui and Jiang Yuan's eldest son were only two years apart. Jiang Yuan felt that they would get along. His eldest son had promised him before that he would get to know Qian Shuishui and hang out with her.
Shuishui did not think that Jiang Li would be willing to play with her. "If it's troublesome, there's no need. I'm fine with it." After all, she knew it was too much of a stretch for a boy to hang out with a girl. Moreover, boys and girls liked different things.
"It's fine. You have to meet him first." Jiang Yuan still wanted to accompany Shuishui downstairs so he can introduce her.
Shuishui did not mind and went downstairs with Uncle Jiang. Downstairs, they saw three boys. When the boys saw Shuishui, their eyes lit up. They thought she was a beauty.
Jiang Li originally didn't want to let Shuishui join, but his eyes widened in surprise when he saw her. He found Shuishui beautiful, and he felt that she projected an aura of confidence.
"Let me introduce you. Xiao Li, this is your sister, Qian Shuishui. She's now in her first year of high school. Let her join you. She isn't familiar with this place. As the host, you have to take care of her. Don't let me down, understand?" Jiang Yuan said, looking at his son. Jiang Li nodded. Jiang Yuan smiled and said to Shuishui, "It's past four now. Wait until five. We will go out to eat. I still have a few things to do. You guys can chat for a while."
"En, I know." Shuishui nodded. She didn't mind.
"Take good care of big sister," Jiang Yuan said to Jiang Li. He then turned around and went upstairs.
Jiang Li looked at Qian Shuishui and said, "Big Sister Qian, do you know how to play online games?"
Shuishui shook her head. "I don't really play online games."
"Then we'll teach you. But we have only three computers." Jiang Li felt that it would be difficult.
"I brought a computer," Shuishui said.
"That's great. You can play it after you download and install The Legend of Feng Yun." He smiled. With Shuishui's computer, they could all play together. It didn't matter if she didn't know how to play it. She could go with them and learn along the way.
Shuishui was slightly stunned. 'It couldn't be,' she thought. She then asked, "Legend of Feng Yun?"
"En, you know this game?" Jiang Li looked at Shuishui. She seemed to know a little about it.
Shuishui went up to her room to get her computer and returned downstairs. "I have that game installed on my computer."
"Do you have an account?" Jiang Li continued to ask.
That account of hers had always been played by Mu Zilin. "Yes."
Jiang Li was afraid that Shuishui's account was only on Level 10 or slightly above it. "That's fine. Let's play together. We're already on Level 109. How many Jacks do you have? You have to reach at least Level 80 before you can enter those high-level dungeons."
Shuishui laughed dryly. "My account is also on Level 109."
"I see." They immediately turned on their computers and started to log in.
Jiang Li sat beside Shuishui and watched as Shuishui also entered her login details. He saw Shuishui's account name and said, "I seem to have come upon your account name somewhere before."
"My account was previously managed by my friend." Shuishui successfully logged in. Mu Zilin frantically sent her a message: "Is it you, Shuishui? You logged in for the first time. Do you know that I'm here?"
Mu Zilin felt that Shuishui logged in because she knew he would be playing too. After all, she knew his character in the game. Mu Qing rarely played the game, and Mu Zilin rarely saw her in the game. He had heard that she had been busy with cram school.
Shuishui paused as she read Zilin's message. She sent him a reply: "No. Uncle's Jiang's eldest son is also playing this. He said that he would bring me along."
"Is that so? How many of you are there?" Mu Zilin asked.
Shuishui typed on the keyboard. "There are four people here including me."
Jiang Li glanced at their conversation. "Is he your friend?"
"Yes."
Mu Zilin sent a sarcastically drafted message: "Then let's go together. I'm alone now. And if you play with them, you idiot, won't you piss them off?" He didn't have any malicious intent. He was just mocking how Shuishui played.
Shuishui kept quiet.
Jiang Li peeked behind Shuishui again and glanced at Zilin's message. "Let him join us. We just happen to have five people. We can explore the land," he said.
Shuishui immediately sent Zilin a message: "Come over. They said they want to explore the land."
"Then let's use voice chat. Since we want to explore the land together, we have to use voice chat. Otherwise, our team will easily be wiped out." Mu Zilin sent a string of numbers over to Shuishui. Shuishui showed it to Jiang Li and the rest, and they all entered the voice channel.
Mu Zilin saw Shuishui's account. "Do you think it's fun over there? I'm going there in two days. I'll come and visit you."
"Okay. The roast duck that we ate today was really good. When you get here, will you bring me to that same restaurant?" Shuishui said then laughed.
"That's for sure. Hey, younger brother across the street, don't bully her," Mu Zilin said to Jiang Li.
Jiang Li's face turned red. "How can that be?" he asked.
Mu Zilin warned the team that Shuishui was new in the game. He didn't want them to dislike how Shuishui played. "You let Shuishui play with you and even want to explore. She can't control the character very well yet. She doesn't know how to play anything."
"En, we won't dislike it," Jiang Li said.
When they started to explore, however, Jiang Li was speechless. Shuishui was really reckless in the game. She simply did whatever she wanted. She recklessly released her skills and special powers.
Mu Zilin kept smiling. He said, "Shuishui, you're too funny. All right. I think your teammates over there are furious."
Shuishui did not respond.
She definitely didn't do it on purpose. She really didn't know how to play, and she wasn't interested in it at all.
They continued to explore and barely passed the levels. Although Shuishui was not really able to navigate her character well, her character's hardware was the best among everyone, so she had a bit of an advantage.
After a while, Jiang Li remembered why Shuishui's name was so familiar. "Your account is in the top ten of the arena. It's the only female account."
Shuishui shrugged. She didn't even know.
Mu Zilin heard what Jiang Li said from the other end. "Aiyo, not bad. You even know that this account is top ten in the arena. It's true. Shuishui's equipment isn't the best, but her attributes are much higher than that of the average account. Of course, even her equipment isn't inferior to what the others have."
He was very proud. It was all thanks to him.
"I don't know anything. He used my account to play," Shuishui said.
Jiang Li and his friends had seen the list of the top ten players. They found it hard to believe that they would meet the owner of one of the accounts on that list.
Although Shuishui didn't really know how to play, her account was definitely well-known.
Shuishui rubbed her neck and said, "I don't really want to continue playing."
She found the game too boring. She didn't feel anything at all. The boys, however, enjoyed the game. It was their passion.
"Then I won't play anymore. Having you follow us around is also boring. Let me use your account. I'll bring them to the dungeon." Mu Zilin knew that Shuishui wouldn't like playing the game because even her character seemed bored. He also couldn't force Shuishui to play games that she didn't like. He would only wait until he got to Beijing so he could take Shuishui on a tour.
Jiang Li and the others didn't force Shuishui to play anymore. They just continued playing the game. Shuishui put on her headphones and watched a few videos.
Mu Zilin was also considered a small celebrity in online games. He quickly got along with the others, and they talked very excitedly. Mu Zilin kept telling the others about how he would take good care of Shuishui because they would see each other in a few days. He told them that they would meet up and hang out once he got to the capital.
Jiang Li was naturally happy. He soon asked, "Are you two in a relationship?"
"Uh, no. To me, he is a good brother. To him, I am perhaps a good sister," Shuishui said. She told Jiang Li that their friendship was very platonic and simple.