Ji Yuan closed the door to the monks' quarters and led Li Feng to the small table inside. A ring of soft cotton pads had been placed beneath the table instead of meditation cushions; they could serve as seats and were wonderfully warm. Ji Yuan had even arranged two old cotton quilts around the table, so they could keep their feet warm while sitting.
"Sit down. I'll get you a hand warmer."
Ji Yuan had Li Feng sit, wiped the tear tracks from his face, then went to the corner to fuss with the charcoal fire and the hand warmer.
The hand warmer was cast from pure copper and had been a gift from the Li family. Ordinary households, let alone owning a pure copper hand warmer, would not casually use charcoal in such a place.
He spread out some charcoal ash, added broken charcoal, and lit it with small twigs. With the slightest movement of Ji Yuan's mind, the charcoal pieces inside the hand warmer ignited one by one. By the time he carried it over to Li Feng, the boy had just finished wiping his face and blowing his nose with the handkerchief he had earlier used to wipe away crumbs from his pastries.
Seeing Ji Yuan bring the fire over, Li Feng hurriedly put away the handkerchief and flashed him a toothy smile.
"Mister, I hadn't blown my nose with that handkerchief before."
"Hold it. It'll warm up soon."
Ji Yuan handed the warmer to Li Feng and sat across from him. Yet after taking it, Li Feng hesitated, then asked in a very soft voice.
"Mister, could you sit beside me?"
Ji Yuan said nothing. He stood up and moved to Li Feng's side, rubbed the back of the boy's small hands, and opened the book.