Chasing the Light at My Fingertips

Du Qiao was born in a place called Jucheng, Wangzhou. Jucheng, Wangzhou, was also known as the City of the Fallen. For most people who came here, life had quietly reached its end. They drank and dreamed their days away, their will to strive gone. Ever since Du Yi, the woman who had found Du Qiao and raised her, first told her stories, she had said, “Qiaoqiao, you need to go out and see the world. My life is already ruined here. You're still young. You shouldn't spend your whole life in this place.” Du Qiao saw what the outside world was like through the television at school and in the noodle shop, and through Du Yi's stories. The words “leave Jucheng” took root quietly in her heart. But coming here was easy. Getting out was much harder! Her identity, money, the skills needed to make a living in the outside world... each was a mountain in her path! But as the books said, a person needs a dream to keep living. Even with mud beneath my feet, I can still look up and see a bright, clear sky. I walk with darkness, but my heart faces the sun.