Embroidery

In Suzhou, the home of embroidery, Shen Linghui is an embroiderer in Jiangnan in the late Qing dynasty and the heir to an embroidery studio. Beautiful as a flower, she works tirelessly to run Yuchun Studio. For Empress Dowager Cixi’s birthday, the court selects Shen Linghui’s embroidery as a tribute, and Yuchun Studio is awarded a plaque by the court naming it “The Finest Embroidery Studio Under Heaven.” Then chaos erupts. Bandits infiltrate the area and ransack Yuchun Studio. Shen Linghui is killed by the bandits while trying to protect it. She leaves behind her adopted daughter, Shen Xuexin, who is taken in by Cui, a servant. Shen Xuexin grows up in an era when the feudal dynasty is collapsing and the Republic is being born, caught between despair and ambition. As an adult, she draws on her talent to become a highly skilled embroiderer. She resolves to restore Yuchun Studio to its former glory.