Snow in Late Autumn

The sky she saw was only four square walls. The road beneath her feet had long been adorned with ten miles of bridal finery, leading to another elegant cage.

Until one day, a man covered in snow and wind burst into her world.

He taught her to look at the stars beyond the walls, read her passages about freedom from banned books, and tell her that a woman need not live as anyone's appendage.

In his eyes, she saw a fire that could consume the plains. When he turned away, she saw a resolute figure walking off into the distance.

She thought love meant walking side by side, meant cutting her hair for him.

But he said, "Miss Cheng, what you call awakening is nothing more than a game played in a woman's quarters. You can't leave behind your fine clothes and comforts, and I have never loved you."

That was the cruelest blow he ever dealt her, and the deepest protection he ever gave her.

Because he knew the road he had to walk was a thorny path paved with blood, with no room for even half a hothouse flower.

Theme: The helplessness of individuals swept along by the tide of their times