Chapter 1: The Slashed Wedding Dress
The air in the Gu Family’s ornate grand hall was so thick you could squeeze water out of it.
Su Jin stood in the center, the shrill echo of the bronze gong still ringing in her ears. Memories flooded back in a tide. She had transmigrated. The original Su Jin had slaved for the Gu Family for ten years, working herself to the bone, only to end up not with a Wedding Dress, but with a cancellation letter and the laughter of the entire city.
"Miss, it’s cold in here. Take off that Wedding Dress."
Liu Ruyan sat in a high-backed velvet chair, swirled a crystal of champagne between her fingers, and smiled. Her red lips were painted a perfect shade, but the warmth in her eyes was gone, replaced by a chill that made the skin crawl. Behind her stood Gu Chengze. His gaze darted everywhere except Su Jin, staring blankly at the patterned carpet as if it held the secrets of the universe.
Su Jin looked down, her eyes fixed on the Wedding Dress she hadn’t even put on yet.
It was the most valuable item in the Gu Family’s betrothal gifts. Twin Lotus blossoms, embroidered with the characters for "Happiness in a Hundred Years," gleamed in gold thread that threw off a blinding light against the flowing satin. Originally, this had been the fruit of her ten years of labor, every stitch placed by her own hand. Now, it was just a symbol of mockery.
Seeing Su Jin remain motionless, Liu Ruyan took a Silver Needle pair of shears from a servant and set them gently on the low table. *Clink.* The sound was sharp and crisp.
"The Gu Family doesn’t keep slackers, and it certainly doesn’t keep lovestruck fools," Liu Ruyan’s voice was quiet, but it cut through the air, silencing every servant in the hall. "Since you won’t marry, keeping that Wedding Dress is bad luck. Cut it yourself. A clean break. Consider it a last favor I’m doing for your dignity."
Gu Chengze finally spoke, his voice hoarse. "Su Jin, we can... we can start over."
"Start over?" Su Jin let out a low laugh. There was no humor in it, only a bone-deep exhaustion and a cold that numbed the air.
She raised her hand.
The moment her fingertips brushed the collar of the Wedding Dress, the world went silent.
There was no searing pain, no dramatic breakdown.
Instead, a thick, unresolvable blackness surged between the gold threads of the fabric, spreading like ink dropped into clear water.
That was Resentment.
Layers of Black Halo rippled across the material, as if countless eyes were peering out from the seams, radiating a damp, cold aura that coiled around Su Jin’s fingers. And deep within that Black Halo, a faint, elusive pink shimmered through.
That was Love.
Faint, stubborn traces of a Love Color Halo that had never fully dissipated.
Su Jin’s pupils constricted.
She saw it.
This was her talent, or rather, the dormant instinct of this body that had slept for years—Emotional Weave.
Fabric speaks. Thread is the carrier; emotion is the dye.
The scissors Liu Ruyan had handed her would have cut not just the hem, but the trust of ten years.
Gu Chengze kept rambling about "parents’ wishes" and "family face," trying to trap her with the rigid rules of the secular world.
Su Jin ignored him.
She slowly withdrew her hand, her fingertips tracing the air, as if stroking invisible threads.
The Black Halo of Resentment was too dense, pressing down until her fingers trembled.
If this had been the old Su Jin, she would have cried. She would have thrown a tantrum. She would have knelt on the ground, begging to save the marriage, like any other jilted woman.
But the Su Jin who stood there now only wanted to take it apart.
"You’re right," Su Jin finally said. Her voice was clear and cold, piercing through the chaos of the hall with startling clarity.
Liu Ruyan raised an eyebrow, a flicker of surprise in her eyes. She had expected a meltdown, accusations against the Gu Family, a lament about injustice.
"I’ll dismantle this Wedding Dress myself."
Su Jin picked up the Silver Needle shears.
She wasn’t going to cut it. She was going to deconstruct it.
The tip of the shears tapped lightly, following the lines of the stitching. Gold threads were pulled out one by one, the satin peeled back layer by layer. The Black Halo of Resentment churned violently with her movements, as if screaming, as if struggling against the unraveling.
Gu Chengze’s face went pale. "What are you doing! That’s the Gu Family’s betrothal gift. You dare deface..."
"Betrothal gift?" Su Jin sneered, her hands moving without stopping, her fingers skillfully picking at a knot. "The Gu Family gave me cloth. I gave you my heart. Now that the heart is dead, the cloth naturally has to be taken back."
Liu Ruyan watched with interest, making no move to stop her.
She wanted to see just how long Su Jin could hold on.
Su Jin dismantled the garment with terrifying speed, yet with eerie precision.
Every stitch was carefully preserved, not a thread wasted.
The Resentment within the Black Halo began to solidify, shifting into a deep, nearly purple-black hue.
And that single strand of pink Love sat like a forgotten pearl against the dark background, radiating a weak but warm light.
Su Jin held her breath, exerting precise pressure with her fingertips.
She extracted that strand of pink, carefully pulling it away from the darkness.
It stood apart from the Black Halo of Resentment. Pure. Bright.
"Hmph," Liu Ruyan let out a light snort, her tone dripping with disdain. "Done? What next? Take this scrap of cloth to sell for change? Miss Su, you truly are a surprise."
Su Jin didn’t answer.
She tucked the strand of pink thread into her sleeve, then gathered the dismantled black fabric into her arms.
The Black Halo of Color swirled in her hold, pulsing softly, as if it had come to life.
The hall fell into a brief silence.
Gu Chengze finally realized something was off. He took a step forward, reaching to snatch the remnants of the Wedding Dress. "Su Jin, stop this nonsense. Go back with me. Explain it to our families. There’s still a way to turn this..."
Su Jin sidestepped, moving with the quick grace of a cat.
She looked up, her gaze calm as she looked at Gu Chengze, swept past Liu Ruyan, and finally rested on the watching servants.
"The Gu Family’s old business is no longer the Gu Family’s business," she said softly. "But this Wedding Dress holds something that shouldn’t exist."
Gu Chengze froze.
"What... thing?" Liu Ruyan’s smile faded, her eyes sharpening.
Su Jin didn’t answer.
She turned, cradling the pile of dark fabric against her chest, and walked toward the exit.
Her footsteps echoed in the empty hall, crisp and decisive.
Gu Chengze stood there, mouth open, unable to make a sound.
Outside, the wind and rain began to howl.
Su Jin stepped through the main gate, and the rain instantly soaked her hair.
She looked down at the black fabric in her arms.
The Black Halo of Resentment seemed even more distinct in the rain.
And at the very deepest layer, she caught a fleeting glimpse of an image.
It was a withered locust tree in the backyard of the old Gu Family residence, many years ago.
Beneath the tree, a cloth bundle was buried.
Inside the bundle was another Wedding Dress.
But this dress wasn’t embroidered with Twin Lotus. It featured a Koi Carp, wings spread wide.
The eyes of the Koi Carp were embroidered with lifelike detail, carrying an air of cunning and unquenchable resentment.
Su Jin’s heart sank.
Who had been the owner of that Wedding Dress?
Why had it been buried in the backyard?
What secrets lay behind the Gu Family’s so-called hundred-year reputation?
She clenched her fists, her knuckles turning white.
The rain fell harder.
Su Jin looked up. Rain streamed down her face; it was impossible to tell if it was rain or tears.
But she wasn’t crying.
She was smiling.
It was a cold smile, sharp with the anticipation of revenge.
Liu Ruyan. Gu Chengze. The Gu Family.
This score, Su Jin would collect. Slowly.
Back in her small, narrow but spotless courtyard, Su Jin didn’t rest immediately.
She drew the curtains and, by the dim yellow light, began to examine the dismantled remnants of the Wedding Dress in her arms.
The Black Halo of Resentment formed eerie patterns on the fabric, winding like slithering snakes.
And that single strand of pink thread she had extracted lay quietly in her palm.
It hadn’t dissipated upon leaving the main body. Instead, it glowed with a soft halo in the darkness.
Su Jin extended her other hand and gently touched the pink strand.
The Color Halo was visible.
This was the first time she had actively used this ability.
Beneath the pink thread, tiny images surfaced.
A girl’s profile as she embroidered under a lamp. A boy’s back as he read by a window. The light dancing in their eyes when they looked at each other.
That had been Su Jin.
That had been the real love she and Gu Chengze once shared.
Now, that love had become the Gu Family’s punchline, a chip in Liu Ruyan’s hand.
Su Jin closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
The rules of Emotional Weave clarified in her mind.
Negative Color Halos, once dismantled, could be crafted into garments that stabilized a person’s condition.
So what could be made from this lingering trace of Love?
She opened her eyes and scanned the sewing box on the table.
Inside lay a set of Silver Needles, a keepsake left by her mother.
The Silver Needles were cold, but at that moment, they seemed vital.
Su Jin picked up the Silver Needles and threaded them.
The needle tips glinted in the lamplight.
She threaded the pink strand and began to sew.
Not to mend an old garment, but to create new possibilities.
In every stitch, she would extract this Love and transform it into a special pattern.
If it worked, this new garment might be the first step in her establishing herself in this world.
Outside, the wind and rain began to die down.
Moonlight broke through the clouds, casting a glow on Su Jin’s face.
Her eyes were firm and bright, like a sword unsheathed from its scabbard—sharp and silent.
Deep within the Gu Family’s mansion, Liu Ruyan stood at the window, staring into the pitch-black night. The glass in her hand was long empty.
She recalled Su Jin’s words as she left.
"The Gu Family’s old business is no longer the Gu Family’s business."
And that cloth bundle buried beneath the withered locust tree.
Liu Ruyan’s fingers tightened involuntarily, spilling the last drop of wine from the cup.
She didn’t know that Su Jin had already crossed the threshold of the Gu Family.
She knew even less about the secret hidden in the depths of the dismantled Wedding Dress—something far more terrifying than Resentment or Love.
That secret was enough to uproot the Gu Family’s century-old foundation.
And Su Jin had only just pushed open that door.
Under the moonlight, Su Jin’s shadow stretched long.
She stood at the alley entrance, looking back at the towering gate of the Gu Family mansion.
There, lights blazed and cups clinked, a paradise on earth.
At her feet was a muddy alley, a corner ignored by the world.
But her steps were unshakeably firm.
"Shen Yan," she whispered the name in her mind.
She couldn’t reach him right now. He was merely a rumor: a cold-eyed, sharp-tongued financial operator. But Su Jin believed that with his nose, he would smell the rot and the blood seeping out of the Gu Family.
She was going to show him what true Haute Couture was.
Not something piled up with money, but woven with emotion and tempered with life.
Stitch by stitch.
She turned and disappeared into the night.
Her back was thin, yet upright as a pine.
In the alley, only a streetlamp remained, its yellow glow exceptionally warm after the storm.
It lit the spot where Su Jin had just stood. No footprints remained in the mud, only a faint, lingering scent in the air.
It was the distinctive scorched aroma of gold thread snapping when an embroidery was dismantled.
It sounded like an old dream breaking.
Or, perhaps, the prelude to a new life.