Marks

Porcelain is fragile and cracks are hard to heal, just like the regrets and entanglements of life hidden in the folds of time. This collection of novels uses "marks" as a metaphor to connect several stories that took place in different time and space: perhaps the unpatched porcelain patterns on the fingertips of ancient pottery workers hide a half-life-long wait; perhaps the old porcelain bowls broken by modern urbanites when moving house contain the unspoken reconciliation with their relatives; or the patterned blue and white porcelain vase in a foreign inn bears witness to a reunion that ended without a problem. Each story is like a piece of porcelain with fine scratches. It does not pursue gorgeous perfection, but the details of the cracks hide the warmth of the human heart - about missing and perseverance, farewell and remembering, and the affection that is ignored in ordinary life. When readers turn the pages of the book, they feel as if they are holding these "marked" stories, touching the similar folds of life in the delicate words, and understanding the softness and tenacity that belongs to everyone behind the cracks.