When someone reached out to help him, the emptiness in his heart seemed to yearn for more.
And so he had come running!
Liu Wan stood beside the stove, the warm glow of the blazing charcoal falling over her. For a moment, her gentle face made it impossible to look away.
He wanted to draw closer, to see whether Liu Wan truly was as warm as she appeared to him.
But propriety held him back. He lifted his foot, daring to take only one small step!
"Pan Chun! Bring a cloak!" Liu Wan turned and instructed her.
After a moment's thought, Pan Chun fetched one of her own cloaks and draped it over Xie Jinqian.
Then she moved the stove closer to him, poured him a cup of hot tea, and settled him into a seat.
Liu Wan pondered for a moment, then said softly, "You said you were suffering. Have you ever considered where your suffering comes from?"
"Is it because you exhaust yourself working for others, yet never get a good outcome for yourself?" Liu Wan asked.
Xie Jinqian fell silent, his hands gripping the hot teacup tightly, his young eyes full of hope.
"Isn't it?" he asked.
"Of course not!" Liu Wan rejected his answer, then continued gently, "A person's suffering does not come from giving to others and leaving themselves in hardship."
"It comes from not understanding the meaning of giving. In all things, put yourself first, then others!"
"You fulfill everyone else's wishes in everything you do, but who in this world will fulfill yours?"
"You work hard for others every day, yet they never appreciate it. But if you devoted even half of everything you did to yourself, would you appreciate your own efforts?"
Xie Jinqian's eyes suddenly brightened. "Of course!"
"Since nothing goes