★ A latest healing fable by You Xianghe, a renowned healing writer from Taiwan, China. Breaking away from the dry preaching of traditional psychology books, the author makes a first-time attempt at the "fable-novel" form, distilling his twenty-plus years of experience helping nearly a hundred thousand people heal emotionally into the life journey of a stray cat.
★ The protagonist is "Hui Mi," a stray cat abandoned three times. Afraid of getting hurt, she has learned not to expect, not to express, and not to feel — protecting herself with numbness and indifference. Until one day she is taken back to a mountain cabin by a silent old man, where she meets a black bear departing in despair, a rabbit that keeps saying "sorry"…
★ The book skillfully personifies emotional states in psychology and introduces the concept of the "Emotional Level Ladder" (divided into 10 levels). The author believes that emotions are not the enemy, but a ladder that guides us back to ourselves — telling you not to force yourself to "get better," but to see the emotional signals behind them, and then make changes so small they cost you no effort.
★ This work has struck a chord with countless readers since its release. It is like a faint glimmer on the emotional ladder — it does not rush to light up the entire path, but just happens to gently illuminate the very next step beneath your feet. It tells everyone exhausted in the city: "Not every sorrow needs an instant recovery. You don't need to rush to get better — you just need to slowly grow brighter."

She thought that if she didn't expect anything, she wouldn't get hurt. It was only later that she understood: the light had always been inside her heart. Not every sorrow needs an instant recovery. Sometimes, we have simply gone too long without being understood.

"Hui Mi," a stray cat abandoned three times, is brought back to a mountain cabin by a silent old man, covered in scars and numbness. She believes that as long as she doesn't expect, doesn't depend, and doesn't feel, she won't get hurt again. Until she meets a black bear departing in despair and a rabbit that keeps saying "sorry" — and step by step, she comes to see the loneliness and pain in her own heart that she never dared to put into words.

Emotions are not the enemy; they are a ladder. This is not just a healing fable — it is a deep companionship on emotions, relationships, and self-understanding. Through gentle yet piercingly honest stories, it helps you recognize the emotional signals hidden behind indifference, self-blame, people-pleasing, and suppression, and teaches you to stop rushing to flee from your own feelings.

When you are tired, when you can't hold on any longer, when you've lost your strength for the world, Hui Mi will stop with you — not to force you to get better, but to stay with you and feel again.

【Notes Are Not Answers, but Reminders】

When your emotions are dragging you along, flip to any level — first find one sentence and keep it in your heart. Then do one small thing: take three breaths. Drink a sip of water. Say thank you. Something so small it barely counts as effort will still bring you back. Emotions are not the enemy. They are the ladder. Emotions are divided into ten levels — not for comparison, nor to prove anything. They simply let you, when you are lost, gently locate yourself: "I am here."

〈Reading Tips〉
• The levels are neither good nor bad; they are used only to locate yourself: where am I right now.
• "Energy state" is a symbolic emotional scale, helping you identify your psychological state and your position within the chapters.
• This is not a medical diagnosis. The value ranges are for self-awareness and reading reference only.

May this book become a lamp on your emotional ladder — not to light up the entire path, but to light up the step right beneath your feet. Step by step, we will all arrive. Now, let us begin our journey. Hui Mi is already waiting for you inside.

You Xianghe
Founder of "Hehe Business School" and "Oriental Psychology." He has long focused on the workings of emotions and relationships, experiencing understanding and correction amid imbalance and repetition. Starting from the tug of emotions and the disorder of relationships, he returns to stability, awareness, and inner settlement. Life is not about rushing to explain, but about returning to something slower — understanding yourself. Understanding yourself is possible; changing yourself is too. His mission — to let every family have someone who understands psychology.

Related works: Hui Mi Is No Longer Grey (Limited Author-Signed Edition); Seven Questions to Reveal Your Talents; You Xianghe: Practice Every Day to Become a Better Self; Break the Emotional Frame and the World Gives Way; Detaching from Control: You Xianghe's 14 Life Lessons; You Xianghe on Relational Dialogue; Practice Every Day to Become a Better Self; Practice Every Day to Become a Better Self (Limited Author-Signed Edition); You Xianghe 2018 Fortune Handbook; Stop Complaining About Life.

Preface
Prelude: The Embers Not Yet Extinguished
Chapter 1: Numbness and Indifference — The Bloodless Departure and the Long Sigh
Chapter 2: Suppression and Self-Blame — The Good Person in the Cage
Chapter 3: Irritation and Anger — The Truth Beneath the Thorns
Chapter 4: Exhaustion and Confusion — The Backpack in the Fog
Chapter 5: Acceptance and Permission — Open Your Arms
Chapter 6: Serenity and Assurance — The Weight of Time
Chapter 7: Exhilaration and Anticipation — The Light at the Next Stop
Chapter 8: Immersion and Trust — Crossing the Threshold
Chapter 9: Resonance and Being Moved — The Road the Echo Came From
Chapter 10: Happiness and Gratitude — Lighting Up the Days
Final Chapter: The Eternal Rhythm
Ten-Level Emotional Micro-Practice
Emotional Level Assessment Chart