She walked to the wall and slowly sank into a crouch, hugging her knees with her head bowed low.
"You don't understand... None of you would understand."
"For generations, we of the Peacock Clan have prided ourselves on beauty. The luster of our feathers, the grace of our posture, the comeliness of our faces—these are the standards by which our status and position are measured."
"If you pair up with someone ugly, not only do you bring shame upon yourself, but your entire family becomes the subject of gossip and ridicule."
"From then on, whenever you walk among the clan, everyone will point and whisper that you have poor taste, that you're unworthy of your own bloodline."
"How could anyone live like that, hold their head high? You'd never be able to look anyone in the eye for the rest of your life."
She actually already knew who had saved her that day.
That day, she had been gravely poisoned and blinded, trapped in a valley thick with toxic mist.
