Su Xiu coughs up her last mouthful of blood in the woodshed, hearing music and Su Man's laughter from the front courtyard. As her consciousness fades, her fingertips touch a rusty embroidery needle in the cold straw mat beneath her, a keepsake from her mother. When she opens her eyes again, she's in her bedroom, three months before her wedding. Outside the window, Chuntao is clumsily watering a pot of white camellias.
· Key action: She jolts upright and grabs the bronze mirror beside her pillow. The reflection's eyes are as still as a dead pond. Facing the mirror, she slowly, slowly curls her lips into a stiff yet dazzling smile. Chuntao turns around and jumps in fright. "Miss, did you have a nightmare?" Su Xiu puts down the mirror, her voice as soft as ever. "Yes, I dreamed of... someone from the past." Beneath the brocade quilt, her hand clenches the imagined embroidery needle until it pricks her palm.
