Shang and Shen

I especially love the phrase "woven silk, tangled sorrow."

If words themselves could be painted in colors, these four characters would probably be the deepest crimson or darkest purple. In the midst of worry and distress, those experiencing it likely see everything dimly, so such deep colors would seem almost black. But to an onlooker, the colors might instead seem rather vivid, thanks to the lightness and delicacy of silk. Who can say?

I want to write about a pair of onlooker's eyes, beginning as an observer and ending up caught in the story. The farther you go, the less anyone can keep themselves apart from it. If the players in a drama could become their own audience, what would they see when they looked at themselves? Thinking about it, I hope all the more that when these eyes watch other people's stories, they can show a little more compassion and fairness.

Chu Lingran has a pair of eyes like that. I want to see the world through his eyes, from the high terrace of Canshang Tower, looking past the rows of rooftops beneath the moonlight at those dreaming their own dreams amid the mortal world.