fang_chao

Core Introduction of "Broken Embers
A desperate fable that begins with "restoration", a life torn apart by fragments of memory.
Liu Xu held tightly the old-fashioned mechanical watch left by her father, which was her last shield against the world. However, her boyfriend Su Qing's accidental fall and her best friend Xiao Ran's unintentional leak of secrets caused her fragile defense to collapse with a thunderous crash. When the mysterious craftsman proposed to exchange her only youthful memory - the negative of her graduation photo - for the restoration of her watch, she thought it was the mercy of fate, but she didn't know that she had fallen into a deeper abyss: Su Qing had resold the negative to the black market for personal gain, and the restored watch was nothing but a disguise of lies. And the ensuing cyber violence was weaving her private fragments into a nosestring.
From the transaction of the "Time Craftsman" to the digital restoration of classmate Cheng Yu, every "hope" has turned into a more ruthless betrayal: the graduation photo was implanted with malicious images and spread all over the Internet, and the camera lens of the father was crushed by Su Qing herself in the warehouse. Those objects that carried love and warmth - the ticking of the watch, the smiling face on the film, the reflections of the father and daughter in the lens - eventually all turned into floating fragments in the river, sinking along with her trust in the world.
On a stormy night, willow catkins stood by the river, watching the last piece of glass shards carrying memories slip through their fingertips. When the "tick-tock" sound was frozen forever, and when all the cherished people and things turned into ruins, she finally understood: Some fragmentation is a judgment already written by fate. All she could do was to fall into the darkness that had devoured all the embers with her body covered in scars.
This is a cruel fable about "loss" - when memory becomes the original sin and repair is just a hoax, we will eventually learn to reconcile with the cracks in life or be completely swallowed up by them in the repeated crushing of hope and despair.

Broken embers

Just as Liu Xu was holding the broken camera lens, lost in a faint hope, the warehouse door creaked open.

Liu Xu suddenly raised her head and saw Su Qing standing at the door. There was not a trace of surprise on his face. His eyes were cold and calm, as if he had known all along that the willow catkins would come here.

Have you found your baby? Su Qing approached slowly, her tone carrying a hint of mockery.

Liu Xu clenched the camera in her hand tightly and looked at him warily, "Why are you here?" Why did you sell the negatives? Was it you who did that anonymous letter and the things on the Internet? "!"

Su Qing stopped, just a few steps away from the willow catkins. He didn't answer directly. He just looked at her coldly.

You have always lived in the past, in the shadow of your so-called "perfect" father. Live in the happiness you imagine. Su Qing's voice wasn't high, but every word pierced Liu Xu's heart like an ice cone. You have no idea. Your father is not as good as you imagine at all.

Liu Xu's eyes widened, unable to understand the meaning in Su Qing's words.

You've been holding onto this broken watch and those photos all along, just refusing to look forward. Su Qing took a step forward and lifted her foot.

What are you going to do? "!" Liu Xu realized something and shouted in terror.

This is the truth you deserve. Su Qing repeated the previous words and then, without hesitation, stomped hard on the broken camera lens in Liu Xu's hand.

The sound of the glass shattering again echoed in the warehouse, more shrill and more desperate than the previous sound of the watch breaking.

Liu Xu let out a cry of alarm. The lens in her hand was trampled to pieces. Those lenses with blurry images completely turned into unrecognizable glass shards.

She stared blankly at the tiny, flickering glass fragments beneath her feet, the remnants of the last photo of her and her father, which had been completely and cruelly destroyed by Su Qing.

She looked up at Su Qing. His face still wore that cold expression, without a trace of pity. It seemed as if she could see those shattered glass pieces reflecting her distorted and hysterical face. Her hope, her last connection with her father, and the only clue she had to seek the truth were completely shattered at this very moment by this person who had once been closest to her.

Finally crushed