Recently I discovered this chengyu and I love the story behind it: 雪中送炭.
Literally it means “to send charcoal in snowy weather”, but its real meaning is “to send help in somebody’s hour of need”.
The origin of this chengyu dates back to Northern Song dynasty, when a long cold spell hit Emperor Taizong’s reign.
This is why he had his officials distribute charcoal so that would not perish from the cold.
Did you know it?