14. A Gift for Wu Xin

Han Xin left the letter on the table with a grimace. As things were a bit hectic, he had forgotten about the little devil, Wu Xin's symbolic coronation day. In the North, when a prince reached the age of seven, he wore a silver crown and attended the banquet in the main palace to celebrate his well-being. Now it was Wu Xin's turn and the king sent a letter to remind them of the upcoming celebration day.

With a sigh, Han Xin rose to his feet and went to find Meng Huo, who was sitting at the gazebo, ignoring the cold.

"We need to go to the main palace to celebrate Wu Xin's coronation day," he said after sitting on the bench across from Meng Huo.

The mentioning of the main palace made Meng Huo stiffened, but nodded nonetheless, "as you wish, my prince."

Han Xin rubbed his hands, trying to warm them, "we also have to give the little devil a gift."

"What does he like?"

"Spying on me."

"..." Meng Huo was agape.

Seeing his shocked expression, Han Xin let out a hearty laugh, "I was just joking. Hmm, let me think... he likes archery, horse-riding and playing the Dizi flute."

How ironic it was, a child was more capable than Meng Huo!

Dismissing the thought, Meng Huo suggested "how about carving him a Dizi flute, my prince?"

Han Xin rubbed his chin, considering the idea. Then he said "it is a good suggestion, but I don't think I am that talented to carve a flute."

"You are!" Meng Huo objected fervently, but noticing what he had done, he lowered his head immediately, "I am so sorry, my prince."

Han Xin was anything but angry; Meng Huo's vehement objection flattered his pride. "If you believe that I can do it, then I will try it," he said softly, hinting he wasn't angry at all.

Meng Huo nodded vigorously, so the duo went to Han Xin's study. Like the first time, Meng Huo was watching Han Xin carving the bamboo with full attention.

Even his hands are beautiful, the slave thought as his attention switched from the bamboo to Han Xin's long and bony fingers.

"What are you thinking?" Han Xin asked curiously when he saw the glazed eyes of Meng Huo.

"N-Nothing," the other stuttered, being caught red-handed. What the hell are you thinking?! How dare you?! He reprimanded himself and grabbed the teapot to cover his abashment. Trying not to spill jasmine tea onto the table, he filled two cups with his shaky hands and put one in front of Han Xin.

It made a fond smile appear on Han Xin's lips. It was the second time Meng Huo filled his cup and in the North, it was a caring and intimate gesture.

"Thank you," the prince said and took a sip from the cup, "it tastes extra good today, maybe because it was you who poured it."

Damn it, what the hell it was! Didn't I decide to focus on my mission? Then why am I flirting with him?!

"..." There was no reply Meng Huo could give to such a remark. He blushed until his neck and he almost dropped the cup he was holding.

"I hope Wu Xin will like it," Han Xin lamely tried to cover his previous remark, but the impact was already done.

As the incident showed that Han Xin's mouth was his enemy, he wisely decided to keep his mouth shut. Meng Huo was already a silent type, so the duo finished the session in silence apart from the carving sound.

The next day Han Xin felt he had more control over himself, so he thought it was a good opportunity to debrief Meng Huo.

"Do you have a ceremony like this in the East?" the prince started with a general question.

Meng Huo shook his head, the East royalty was pretty savage, so they only gave a feast if they won a war.

"Why? It is a good celebration; a bunch of annoying relatives and an arrogant little devil, what is there not to like?" Han Xin shrugged with an amused expression and a soft chuckle escaped from Meng Huo's mouth, doing funny things to the prince's heart.

As it was a blithe atmosphere inside the small room, Han Xin decided to take another step. Pretending to be focused on the bamboo piece in his hand, he said "you are the youngest in your family, right?"

Meng Huo nodded, praying Han Xin would stop asking before moving to harder questions.

"So you are only two siblings?"

Another nod.

"Oh, you WERE, actually."

"Ha?" the words slipped from Meng Huo's mouth unwittingly. The king of the East had a son who was very much alive when Meng Huo left the palace; therefore, he didn't understand what the prince meant.

That small exclamation made Han Xin's eyes squinted with suspicion. Gluing his eagle eyes on the confused man, he pressed "I was talking about your dead brother. Didn't you have only one brother?"

Did the prince of the East die?!

Meng Huo was in shock, but he managed to keep a blank face, "ah yes," he murmured and pointed at the unattended bamboo piece, "will it be on time?"

You are changing the topic, Han Xin said inwardly while grabbing the piece again.

The remainder of the day passed in silence like the first day. As the duo had to leave for the main palace the following day, Han Xin put all his effort to finish the flute on time. As a result, he fell asleep, his head resting on the table when Meng Huo went to find a decent box for the gift.

Tiptoeing into the room, Meng Huo placed the flute in the box and left the room for a short while to grab a blanket for the sleeping man.

Covering him gently, he indulged his eyes with the manly face of Han Xin and not being able to resist the temptation, he pushed a stray thread off his face. After stealing one more glance, he left the room pell-mell before he did something more indecent.

When the door closed, Han Xin opened his eyes momentarily before closing them again with a smile carved on his lips.