Matthew grabbed the bag that had all the camera gear he had kept for Erica and slowly started taking out all the equipment inside. "I can do whatever it is that my heart desires," he said. For instance, marrying her.
In truth, even if Carlos hadn't asked him to marry Erica, he would have married her sooner or later.
Although Erica knew deep down in her heart that Matthew wasn't putting on an act, she was still somewhat surprised by his cockiness, the combination of arrogance and provocation. The sheer effrontery was thrilling to witness.
Erica went to help him. She took the folding tripod and found a good angle to unfold it.
After busying himself with the gear for a while, Matthew handed a heavy camera with a wide-angle lens to her and said, "Try this one out."
"Okay!"
Erica lifted the camera to her eye as she adjusted the focus and aperture before she pointed the camera towards the sky.
She glanced at the picture of the starry sky she just took and said, "It's not bad. It does feel better with a wide-angle lens."
The way Erica's eyes lit up when she spoke so passionately about photography brought a satisfied smile on Matthew's face.
The special arrangement he had made for her tonight was well worth it.
After taking a few more photos, Erica turned around suddenly and caught him staring at her. She smiled and said, "Perhaps being married to you isn't so bad, after all."
"What makes you say that all of a sudden?" he asked. 'Not so bad? That doesn't sound good enough.'
Erica adjusted the IOS value on the camera and smiled at him. "Haven't you heard the saying? Photography makes a family poor for three generations, and a single-lens reflex camera will ruin one's life." This was a popular saying in the photography circle.
Raising his eyebrows, Matthew asked, "Why is that?" He had no idea what she was talking about. After all, he knew very little about the photography circle before.
"Do you know how much this camera costs?" Erica pegged the price of the Stone Sea camera to be at least fifty thousand.
Matthew pondered for a while and answered, "Eighty thousand." He had asked one of his men to buy the camera, but he clearly remembered that the price noted on the invoice was eighty thousand.
"That's correct. And the lens? It will obviously be more expensive than the camera, right?"
Matthew nodded. Erica was speaking the truth. The lens cost him one hundred and eighty thousand.
Erica explained, "A professional photographer needs to be equipped with lens that has a permanent F2.8 maximum aperture; lens with a permanent F4 maximum aperture; Canon L lens; Nikon's golden-ringed lens; Sigma 70-200 mm F2.8 HSM lens; Canon EF 70-200 mm F2.8 L USM lens and many other lenses as well as tripods, stands, external flashes and so on. Only then will you find a drastic improvement in your shooting technique. But meanwhile, you will also realize that you want even more sophisticated equipment, such as a screen that gives higher image resolution. Basically, a photographer's demands are endless. One could spend over a million dollars on lenses alone."
The last figure made Matthew laugh. "So, did you mean that one million could make three generations poor?"
"Exactly! If it weren't for you, I would never be able to afford any of these good lenses. Only you can spend a million on camera equipment without batting an eye. Ergo, it's not so bad being married to you. Even if I spend a few more millions of your money, you will still be rich." As a matter of fact, an ordinary family wouldn't even be able to spend a hundred thousand, let alone a million on camera gear.
Matthew put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer. "So, Mrs. Huo, how do you feel about marrying me?"
Erica was already used to the way Matthew expressed his affection. She rubbed her head on his shoulder and smiled as her eyes narrowed like two crescent moons. "Of course, good. At least, we don't have to experience so many hardships like those poor couples!"
Erica had seen many such couples who lived a hard life because of poverty. In some cases, it would affect their relationship. Erica once thought that if her future husband didn't have a lot of money, she wouldn't mind. But she had to make money; a lot of money.
If neither of them could make money, then she would wait to get married until they were rich enough. In any case, they both couldn't be poor at the same time.
The first sentence of Erica's reply pleased Matthew. He lowered his head and kissed her on the cheek. "Well, put the camera on the tripod. Get ready to take some fabulous photos!" The night sky became more and more beautiful at this moment.
"Okay!" Although the photos she had taken were not bad, they were a little blurry. If she put the camera on the rack, the new photos would not be like that.
After carefully taking tens of photos, Erica decided to take some rest and wait for the sky to change.
Matthew was seated on a stone bench and Erica sat down next to him.
The man suddenly pulled her up and sat her on his lap. He slowly tucked some hair behind her ear and explained casually, "You're still on your period. The stone bench is too cold. It's not good for your health."
Erica's heart felt warm in an instant. No man had ever treated her as well as Matthew did.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her cheek against his. "Matthew Huo, will you bring me to take photos of the aurora? If you think the camera gear is too heavy to bring along, forget about the photos. Let's go and just enjoy the view."
Erica had asked Wesley countless times, but he never granted her wish.
Either he was too busy, or the season was just not suitable.
"Aurora? The aurora borealis or the aurora australis?"
"Either is okay as long as it's the aurora! There's a small village in M Country where people can also see the aurora, right? There will be fine." Erica wasn't asking for too much. All she wanted was to take some photos of the aurora.
Matthew wrapped his arms around her waist and asked, "Do you really want to go?"
"Of course!" This had been one of her biggest goals ever since she started studying photography.
"All right!" Matthew would accompany her to the ends of the world.
Erica kissed the man on the cheek and asked, "Will you have time?" After all, he seemed busier than Wesley.
"Yes!" For Erica's sake and happiness, he would make time for her no matter what the cost.
Erica's eyes lit up and she hugged him tightly. "It's a deal. You can't go back on your word now!"
In truth, Erica thought that Matthew would ask her to wait until they had consummated their marriage. Clearly, she didn't expect him to agree so easily.
The man was completely enchanted by the woman. "Okay, it's a deal," he promised.
Erica was astounded at how easy-going he was at that moment. She jested, "Do you want to go to the deserted area in the border area?"
The place she was talking about was not the same one where Lenora was. Erica was talking about a place that had the biggest salt-water lake in H Country, where the water changed colors with the seasons all year round.
"So, you want to go there?" Matthew asked. 'Isn't she adorable?'
Erica cocked her head cutely and stuck out her tongue. "Will you go with me?"
"Of course, I will," he replied.
"But what about your company?"
After thinking for a while, he suddenly held her in his arms and whispered in her ear, "How about you give me a few sons so I can let them take over the company as soon as possible? After that, I'll accompany you to take photos of the sunrise and sunset; the ends of the earth; the South Pole and the North Pole; the starry sky and the land..."
Erica blushed. Giving birth to a few sons was one of her jokes and she was surprised that he still remembered it. "How am I going to give you many babies? I don't think I'll survive that many childbirths."
There was an old saying to the effect that if a woman loved a man, she should give him a few daughters, but if she hated him, she would give birth to a few sons for him.
However, Erica did not hate Matthew and therefore, she would give him several daughters! Moreover, it was too expensive to raise a son. An ordinary family had to spend one million to raise a son. Erica estimated raising Matthew's son could cost them tens of millions! In that case, she would become penniless.
There was a snicker in Matthew's eyes. "I have to work hard to make the babies. I'm not afraid of being exhausted to death. What are you worried about?"
Erica replied immediately, "I'm afraid you won't have that much energy."