Like a Feather Tickling My Heart

16 Memories Close to Your Heart

Figuring out what Zhen Zhu would like wasn't that easy. After all, Zhu Hong didn't even know where to start. After thinking for a bit, he got up to get a couple of things around the house and brought them back to the table. There wasn't much. Just a few things left behind from his parents that he figured they might as well try out.

Zhen Zhu tilted his head and curiously looked on. "What's that?"

Zhu Hong sat down next to him and put an arm on the backrest of the chair, motioning at the first thing he had brought. "I know that when he wasn't outside hunting, my father really liked to immerse himself in doing some calligraphy or painting. I'm afraid I haven't inherited any of that talent but I think I still know enough to show you how it is done so that you can give it a try and see if you like it. If you do, you can spend some time with that in the future. If not, then we can try something else."

Zhen Zhu nodded and then watched as Zhu Hong picked out a couple of different brushes before he ground the ink. His husband hesitated for a moment before he picked up a brush and handed it to Zhen Zhu.

"Dip that in the ink and just try it out for a bit. I don't know that much so I can't really tell which one would be better suited for you to try this with."

Zhen Zhu nodded and gave it a try but it really didn't look very good. He smudged the ink and the result was squiggly and uneven. It definitely wasn't worth showing anyone.

His cheeks flushed red but in front of his husband, this also wasn't something that he needed to be too worried about so he just put down the brush and shook his head. "I don't think that is something I'd like. It seems too difficult."

Zhu Hong laughed and rubbed the back of his head, smiling brightly. "Giving up this easily, are we? Well, if you don't like it, you don't like it. You don't have to do it." He got up to wash out the brush and then put it aside. "Other than that, I know that my mother did a little bit of embroidery. I don't have anything left over from her work so I can't tell you how good she was though." To be honest, the things he still remembered of his parents or had left of them didn't number many. Still, there were some traces of them left behind in the house. "This set of embroidery needles should have been hers. You can also give it a try."

Zhen Zhu picked them up, looking them over curiously. He also didn't know how embroidery worked, so he could only try blindly. Especially since his husband also didn't seem to know how to do this.

Zhu Hong watched and felt his face heat up a little. As a husband, he really wasn't doing a good job at showing Zhen Zhu anything. He waited for him to fiddle around with the needles for a bit before he cleared his throat. "Well, if it seems interesting to you, you should probably ask the other phoenixes for instructions. I'm sure that there will be at least one or two among them who know some more. They can teach you."

Zhen Zhu nodded and then put the needles down, folding his hands in his lap and looking at Zhu Hong expectantly. Clearly, he wanted his husband to show him even more things.

Zhu Hong suddenly felt like he had done himself a disservice by suggesting this. At the very least, he should have prepared a bit longer so he would be able to actually show him something. He pondered and then pulled out an instrument. "This is a Xun. Originally, the dragons used it when they went hunting but with time, it has also been used to make music. I've heard that the phoenixes usually like it."

Zhen Zhu was quite interested in that and curiously looked the instrument over when Zhu Hong handed it to him. It was roundish, similar to an egg, with a couple of holes in it and one at the top. "Then how do you play it?"

Zhu Hong couldn't help but smile. He reached out his hand, taking the Xun back from Zhen Zhu, and then put it to his lips. He probably couldn't be called a master at playing it but he felt that he was proficient enough to at least give his spouse a good impression. He thought for a moment and then played a simple tune, the low notes reverberating in the air.