12. One Step Closer

Han Xin let out a tired sigh and put the finished hair slide on the table carefully. After he sent Meng Huo away, he worked on the hair slide so that he could surprise him. Calling the maid, he ordered dinner to be prepared and took a bath to soothe his overused muscles.

When he and Meng Huo sat around the table, Han Xin took the wooden hair slide and reached it to Meng Huo above the table, saying "look what I have."

With a hesitant hand Meng Huo took the hair slide, "y-you finished it?!" he exclaimed with joy and ran his fingers on it carefully to appreciate every bit of the beautiful carving. He realised the flowers carved on the top looked rather familiar, so he peered at it and found out what they were.

"Are they snowdrops?" he asked with sparkles in his bottomless black eyes. As he was highly excited to see the carving of his favorite flower (well, he saw only a few kinds of flowers, but still...), he forgot about his place and looked Han Xin in the eye for a good while, making the other flustered.

"Ah-um, yes... they are... snowdrops," Han Xin mumbled almost incoherently as his crazily beating heart was distracting him. There was no use denying; Meng Huo was incredibly beautiful with his sparkling black eyes and blushed cheeks.

Unaware of Han Xin's mesmerised state, Meng Huo continued to appreciate the hair slide, "so beautiful..."

"Indeed," Han Xin nodded whole-heartedly although he wasn't talking about the hair slide, "did you really like it?"

"How can I not?" Meng Huo asked rhetorically as he reached it back to Han Xin reluctantly.

"Then keep it," Han Xin pushed his hand gently, "I made it for you."

"What?" the slave's hand froze midair with shock, "you did it... for me?" he asked again as it was too good to be true.

The prince nodded with a smile, "you said you are not comfortable with golden ornaments, so I wanted to give you a simple yet special one."

That was it. The tears started to flow from Meng Huo's eyes. It was the first time he received a gift from someone and that someone was a prince! As if it wasn't miraculous enough, Han Xin made this gift by his own hands and even carved his favorite flowers.

"Why are you crying?" Han Xin asked with worry.

"Is it really for me?" the crying man asked one more time, too immersed in his own world to hear the prince's question.

"Of course!" Han Xin chuckled softly as he understood they were happy tears. He rose to his feet and walked behind Meng Huo. Gently, he removed his silver hair slide and got the one he did from Meng Huo's still frozen hand. Carefully, he placed the ornament into his half-bun while appreciating the softness of his hair.

"It suits you," Han Xin complimented when he returned back to his seat.

"Really?" Meng Huo ran his hand on the ornament lovingly.

Han Xin nodded sincerely, even if Meng Huo put some dead branches on his hair, he would still look beautiful.

"Thank you so much, my prince, I will never take it off," Meng Huo promised as he filled Han Xin's cup with some liquor.

"I am glad that you liked it," Han Xin said blithely as he raised his cup and gestured at Meng Huo to clink his cup with his, "to us and hmm, to snowdrops!"

Meng Huo clinked his cup to the prince's, thinking if it was possible to die out of happiness... and guilt...

On the other hand, Han Xin was feeling super victorious. He was aware that he made a step towards Meng Huo's heart (even his stuttering was stopped), and he was proud of it. Well, he still wanted to believe that he was just following the queen's suggestion, but his heart knew it better than his stupid mind.

But...

As Han Xin was a step closer to his goal, something bothering had to happen.

The next morning, the prince received a letter from his annoying cousin, asking him to go for a hunt. Han Xin didn't like Ruo Yan at all and he knew the other didn't like him either. They were just pretending to be courteous for the sake of their family. This was the very reason why they were going for a hunt once every few months.

"Tomorrow I have to go for a hunt with my cousin, I will be missing for two days," Han Xin informed Meng Huo when they were having lunch.

"I see," Meng Huo said with a low voice which was quite neutral.

Fearing Meng Huo would think Han Xin didn't want him with him, he clarified "I wish I could take you with me, but my cousin and I aren't on good terms, that bastard even shot me with an arrow once."

Meng Huo's eyes widened with horror. How come Han Xin was willing to go for another hunt with someone who shot him before?!

"Don't worry," the prince shook his hand in front of him, "after that incident, I have never turned my back to him again."

Meng Huo frowned, is it how he protects himself?

Well, as Meng Huo couldn't say it out loud, he kept his silence and as planned, Han Xin left early in the morning with three of his men. Helpless, Meng Huo watched them disappear through the forest with anxiety building in his heart. He was genuinely worried about Han Xin's safety and didn't know how to cope with the terrifying thoughts haunting his mind already.

Two days. Only two days. the prince can protect himself, right? He is a prince for Heaven's sake... right?