[ that makes him laugh a little, and he briefly brushes his arm against hers. it's still touch week, here, so a moment of contact. ]

I said I was guilty of being sentimental. [ in a way, anyways. but he sees the surprise, is why he says that, and then chang geng considers what she says. ]

... I traveled as much of Great Liang as I could, rather than staying in the capital where everyone wanted me to be kept with a smile on my face, their lost prince, all so I could learn about others and how to better help them. Cruelty exists - this place is ample example for that, and I have experienced it myself long before now - but I have met people who love with their whole hearts.

But so many others expect love to be easy from those stories. It's just that... life never is, for those that truly live it.