Yin Na looked at Huo Jin, who was seated at the porch of the lake house from behind a pillar. "What is he thinking about?" She wondered. She fidgeted with her fingers as she took a step forward. Looking around and getting confirmed that there was no one, she kept walking to him.
However, she halted midway. She stepped backward and turned behind. Huo Jin heard the footsteps and tilted his head to the right. "Yin Na," he murmured. Before he could call out her name, she walked away.
"Did she want something?" Huo Jin mumbled. He looked at the notebook in his hand, in which he had painted the view of the lake's right side. He found this place a calmer one than the rest part of the residence. He was a little off today. He was feeling detached and sad. He flipped the pages of the notebook he was holding after putting the brush down on the case.
He painted Xinyue's portrait for the first time when he turned 16. They both were on a lakeside. He still vividly remembered the day. Xinyue was seated under a tree beside the lake.
"Do you really think you can draw me? I will ask for punishment from my father if you don't draw my face well," Xinyue warned him.
"You are doubting the skills of an artist," Huo Jin reminded her. "Now, don't move. Sit calmly," he urged her and dipped the brush in the black ink.
"But it gets boring. At least, talk to me while painting," Xinyue said. Huo Jin did not answer as he was busy painting. Xinyue huffed and said, "I will soon get married. What will you do then?" Her sudden question made him stop. He lifted his head and gazed into her eyes.
"You are 14. Why would you get married at such a young age?" He queried her and again started to draw.
"Don't you know?" She questioned him back. "I am a woman, who usually gets married early. Also, when I went out yesterday, I saw young teenage girls of the same age as mine talking about their marriages." A smile formed on her lips while talking about this.
"Some will become official wives of the princes while some will stay as concubines. I don't want to be a concubine but an official wife of a Prince," Xinyue expressed her desire. Huo Jin dipped the brush a little in the water.
"Why a Prince? It's common among princes to have multiple wives. Find someone from a noble family," Huo Jin advised her.
"Because a Prince has a greater power than the rest of the people," Xinyue answered. "I wish to marry in the Han Family. They are the strongest among all," she stated with a bright smile.
"Why is Power important to you? Being powerless is better sometimes," Huo Jin answered. His gaze was still fixed at the white sheet of the notebook on which he was painting.
"It is important. Father says that I can control people with power. I can make them do anything I want," Xinyue replied.
Huo Jin lifted his eyes finally and said, "It might ruin you. Power makes you blind and you forget humanity."
"It is better to get blind than to live without any power," Xinyue reasoned.
"Xinyue, what about happiness? Marry a Prince, who will keep you happy," Huo Jin diverted the topic. He, as a slave, knew how much it sucked to see a powerful person rule over him.
"Of course, my Prince will keep me happy," Xinyue replied. "I won't share him with any woman. I will love him wholeheartedly," she asserted and smiled.
"Pray for me. Your prayers are effective. Will you?" She asked him.
Huo Jin nodded his head. "I pray that you get a great Prince as your husband," He said and smiled. He looked back at the sheet in which he had drawn her half. His eyes turned misty. His hand trembled for a while.
"Don't anger father once I will be married off. I cannot save you every time," Xinyue said with concern.
"Are you worried for me?" He asked.
"Hmm. You have been with me for a long time. You are a slave but still a friend to me. I could not get to meet any girl or boy from outside. So, you are the only one," Xinyue affirmed.
"I wish there would not be any slave category, then at least I could be in the list of those men," Huo Jin expressed.
Xinyue glanced at him in bewilderment. "I would not have seen you as a man even then," she immediately said. Huo Jin smiled and looked at her.
"I know. I am joking. Even, I don't like you," Huo Jin replied and huffed.
Huo Jin came out of his thoughts and found teardrops on the sheet. When did he start to cry? "Oh, no! It will ruin at this rate," Huo Jin mumbled and quickly wiped the tears from his eyes. Luckily, the page had turned wet at the bottom edge.
He rubbed his eyes with his fingers. "I should have prayed when she got married. She would have been alive today," he murmured and put his art notebook beside him. He recalled how unhappy he was when Xinyue agreed to marry Jian Guozhi. It was the worst day of his life. He took a deep breath to calm himself down.
"Huo Jin, would you like to have some oranges?" Suddenly a voice fell into his ears. Immediately, he opened his eyes and saw Yin Na in front of him with a bowl of oranges.
"Were you crying? Your eyes are red," Yin Na said as she walked to him.
"No," Huo Jin waved his hands in the air and quickly averted his gaze from her. "Some dust fell into my eyes. I rubbed them as I felt irritation and they ended up being red," he lied to her.
"May I sit?" Yin Na asked him.
"Of Course!" He told her and Yin Na sat beside him, keeping some distance between them. She put the bowl with oranges between them on the wooden floor.
"Huo Jin, you don't need to lie. If you are sad or hurt, you should express it.. Keeping it inside will only hurt you," Yin Na advised him and picked an orange.
