As the days passed, Tao Hua found he couldn't quite get used to Suo Han's company and even more so the touch of his hands.
Back in the Tao Esate, he often declined the help of servants. This wasn't an issue, as the servants were more than happy not to deal with Tao Hua. It was easier for them to report back to his father and call Tao Hua difficult than outright deny touching what they deemed invalid.
But Suo Han? He went against all Tao Hua understood about servants. He'd remain strictly at Tao Hua's side, readily available and eager for every slight movement Tao Hua made. At first, Tao Hua thought Suo Han was new to the work, but when he'd ask, Suo Han would hesitate and shake his head.
Apparently, he'd been at the palace for a while. So, Tao Hua assumed by the colour of his eyes—ghostly pale, and similar to Shan Si's and Wan Mie's—that he was a relative of the two.
That also wasn't true, but even if Tao Hua tried, he couldn't get much out of Suo Han. What he did learn was Suo Han was restricted from further discussion on palace affairs, all by Shan Si.
So, Tao Hua simply had to give up and simply exist caged up in the eastern palace wing.
Suo Han wasn't the worst company—he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Given Tao Hua's disappointment, he struggled with his servant. It was exhausting having someone so insistent on doing a good job and always being two steps ahead of their mind…he wasn't sure if he'd ever be able to get used to such hospitality.
It didn't help that the two often danced around each other in tiptoe-sized steps, with sorry being a new form of greeting in that chamber. If not that, then Tao Hua often found himself helping Suo Han when he dropped something. Whether it be a liquid, food, glass, something made its way to the floor.
This was a common occurrence, rather. It made Tao Hua slightly appreciative that he had hardly any of his favourite books around. Well, a blessing and a curse.
He tried to get more books! In fact, asking Suo Han for a few granted him even a fraction of personal time, but due to his fast-paced mind, he'd return quickly with whatever he'd get his hands on.
All books, but none that Tao Hua typically enjoyed. Many involved philosophic works, some poetry; mostly the five great classics, and none Tao Hua found himself interested in.
They just piled up in the corner of the room, stationed next to a jade vase filled with barren plum blossom branches.
The poetry remained on his study, as it was the only pieces Tao Hua genuinely enjoyed. Each was new, and written by an author he'd never read before. But the problem with well-written poetry is that, despite it being rich in symbolism and hidden with meaning, that was only a few minutes of reading. He could read it many times over, but it still wouldn't equate to a single chapter of a fairytale.
How many times could he read the same passage over and over before it would drive him insane?
Tao Hua was utterly bored.
Lying in that bed, inundated with the morning glow, Tao Hua deeply inhaled. He slowly closed his eyes amid Suo Han's scrambling, wondering if this was Shan Si's way of punishing him for all the times he muttered the word sorry.
It really was annoying now that he thought about it.
Squeezing his eyes and reaching his hand to wipe away the leftover sleep, Tao Hua began to understand just why Wan Mie drew Shan Si the way he did on that note. This man was devilish in the way he handled most things.
And despite all of this, Tao Hua still wanted to see him.
"Eh—Young Master?" said Suo Han, breaking Tao Hua out of his ruminating thoughts. "Did you not sleep well? You haven't answered me. I...I just want to make sure you're okay."
Tao Hua didn't, but he didn't have the heart to tell Suo Han that. There was a softness developing for Suo Han, regardless of his frustrations. So, he simply nodded and lied, "I did. Thank you, Suo Han."
Clapping his hands together, Suo Han dropped the golden trinket once more without a second thought.
"Oh! I'm so glad! Oh, oh! Yes, that's right!" he happily exclaimed, causing Tao Hua to open his bloodshot eyes. When he looked back over to Suo Han, he saw that the man was now spinning in circles behind the fallen, sheer curtain.
From the looks of it, he was trying to find something, and that something wasn't the ornaments he'd dropped either.
"Food! I brought your food! Where did I put it again…fuc—shoot! Wait," Suo Han stopped spinning and pressed a finger to his lower lip until it finally hit him. "That's right, I completely forgot! How could I forget?!"
He slapped a hand to his forehead and turned toward the chamber's door. Shamelessly, and without even a second thought, he announced, "Just a moment longer, Young Master! This servant completely forgot his duties!"
It took Tao Hua a moment to register what Suo Han said, but when he did, his eyes narrowed sharply and brows knitted neatly together. Tao Hua whipped off his quilt, shuffled himself off the bed, and dangled his feet over the edge.
Desperately, he cried, "NO WAIT! SUO HAN! PLEASE!"
To which Suo Han immediately stopped, his hand hovering over the chamber's door. After a few blinks, he immediately fastened them to his sides, turned to face Tao Hua, and with an absolutely absurd, stiff, and wide-eyed stare, he asked, "Y-Yes, Young Master?!"
With the help of a stepping stool placed against his bed, Tao Hua wiggled his feet, trying to reach the surface. Finally, he could jump off with ease! He ran toward the nearby vanity and grabbed a white outer robe on top of it.
It was thick and smelled of jasmine fragrance, fit for a "respectably" sized woman. This wasn't Tao Hua's choice, nor Shan Si's. Due to Shan Si's outer robe being soaked and dusted by their journey, this one was evidently awaiting someone back in the Palace of Heavenly Purity.
Despite Tao Hua offering the robe back to Shan Si, he just shook his head and let Tao Hua keep it. Book, and all. It really left Tao Hua in a haze, wondering if it was purely accidental or intentional.
And whether or not he should return HIS book.
Maybe it wasn't a bad excuse to have a meeting with Shan Si, after three days of not seeing each other and being caged within the confines of what was labelled "The Palace of Great Benevolence."
He wasn't sure why it was called that, or what purpose it served.
"I-I'll join you!" Tao Hua said through an awkward, slightly huffed smile. Bundling up the outer robe in his hand, he looked more pitiful than Suo Han did half the time. That was a record! "We don't have to eat here all the time! R-Right? Let's eat outside!"
Dazed, Suo Han blinked a few times. He glanced toward the door, and then back to Tao Hua, the distress showing more and more with each wrinkle that creased his face. This was understandable, given their circumstances. For starters! Each night at Chuhen Palace invited a blizzard, exactly as it was when he and Shan Si traversed Buzhi Forest.
Meaning, it was below freezing.
The second problem was Tao Hua was still dressed in a pair of white undergarments, and his hair wasn't yet tied up in his typical bow-tied half-up. Instead, each black strand flung in questionable directions.
Nothing about him looked presentable.
"Erm, Young Master, I was told—"
"That's okay!" Tao Hua flung the outer robe around his shoulders. "It'll just be a short bit! I promise! Please…"
"No…actually, I was—"
"Please!" Tao Hua begged. His eyes glossed over and he donned a smile, both wide and pleading. How could anyone say no to that? Suo Han surely couldn't. "I promise I won't cause any issues for you, Suo Han! Please…I'm bored."
Now, Suo Han, in comparison to the other servants of Chuhen Palace, was easier to persuade. Every bone in his body was dripping with empathy, so when he saw someone like Tao Hua pitifully stand before him, he wasn't sure what to do.
"Um." He looked away, his head dipping to the side, and hands fidgeting against each other. "S-sure. Let's get you dressed and ready, Young Master. Allow this servant a bit more time to prepare a bath."
Now it was Tao Hua's turn to brighten up the room. His entire complexion lit up with a wide and appreciative smile, directed toward Suo Han. However precious it was, Suo Han just couldn't seem to return it tenfold.
As if he knew exactly what he was doing went against everything he was told not to do.
Chapter end.
ILLUSTRATION IN THE COMMENTS.