The eighteen-year-old heroine is purehearted, kind, carefree, and innocent. Though her fate has been full of hardship, she was said to have brought misfortune to her parents from the moment she was born. Her mother died in childbirth, and her father, convinced his wife had died giving birth to her, decided she was an ill-fated child. He was also a foolish, backward man who favored sons over daughters. The very next day, he sent her to live with a distant cousin of his, a cousin who had been unable to conceive for years, hoping that having a child to raise would help her give birth to a son or daughter the following year. But that hope lasted eighteen years. Now the heroine, Little Spider, is eighteen, and the couple are both over forty. They have not even managed to have a child, and have given up hope. They are grateful that their adopted daughter, Little Spider, has grown into a beautiful young woman, graceful and poised. She is also filial and sensible, and they have cared for her tenderly since she was little, loving her as their own. This year, she has graduated from high school and taken the college entrance exams. They await the results. Her fate will begin to unfold on the day she celebrates her eighteenth birthday and comes of age...
