Jin Mei sat in her office, the soft hum of city life seeping through the cracked window. The walls were lined with shelves of old books, trinkets from her travels, and a few fading red silk ribbons. She was known in the city as the “Red Thread Merchant,” a modern matchmaker who could see the threads of fate that bound people together. Red threads—ancient, unbreakable, invisible to all but her—wove through the fabric of life, tying souls to one another. She could follow these threads, find their knots, and untangle the mess of love and destiny that kept people apart.

Her clients came to her with their hopes, desires, and broken hearts, seeking guidance. Jin Mei never failed to find the right person for them. No matter how complicated or tangled the threads seemed, she always knew how to untie them. But Jin Mei herself, despite being a master of connections, had never followed her own red thread.

Her fingers brushed against the red silk ribbon tied around her wrist, the one she had worn for years. It was a reminder of the one thread she had never dared to trace—her own. The red thread was a gift from her grandmother, passed down through generations. “Your thread is special,” her grandmother had said, “but beware, for it is tied to a fate far greater than any love you have seen.”

The warning had stayed with Jin Mei all her life. She had made a career out of connecting others, but had never dared to unravel her own thread.

But tonight was different.

It started with the latest client, a young man named Li Wei. His eyes were heavy with despair as he sat across from her, his hands trembling as he spoke. “I’ve come to you for help, Jin Mei. I know you can see the red threads. I need to know—will I ever find the one meant for me?”

Jin Mei felt a pull deep within her chest, an almost imperceptible tug that was both familiar and strange. She reached out and gently touched Li Wei’s hand, closing her eyes. The red thread shimmered before her, glowing softly in the dim light of the room. She followed it, tracing its path through his life, through the people he had met, the love he had lost, and the love he had yet to find.

But then, something strange happened. As her vision followed the thread, it abruptly twisted and turned, leading her to an unexpected place—her own thread. Her heart skipped a beat. For the first time, she saw it clearly.

Her red thread.

It led to Li Wei.

But that wasn’t the only thing that chilled her. As she followed the thread farther, she saw the end of it, where fate had drawn its final stroke. The thread extended to a point in time, far in the future, where a moment of violent, tragic sacrifice would sever the connection. Li Wei would die. Saving her.

The realization hit her like a cold wave, her breath catching in her throat. She had always known the threads of fate were powerful, but this? This was beyond anything she had imagined.

Her eyes snapped open, her fingers curling into a fist. She looked at Li Wei, who was waiting patiently, unaware of the turmoil she was experiencing.

“Jin Mei?” he asked, his voice soft, uncertain. “Have you found it?”

She took a deep breath, steadying herself. “Yes,” she said, her voice hoarse. “But there is something you need to understand. Your thread, Li Wei, leads to me. And mine leads to you.”

His brow furrowed. “What does that mean?”

“It means you and I are connected, bound by fate. But... your thread is tied to a sacrifice. One that will cost you your life. You will die, saving me.”

Li Wei sat back in his chair, a look of disbelief on his face. “No. That can’t be true.”

“I’ve seen it,” Jin Mei whispered. “I’ve followed the thread, and it is clear. But there’s something else—something I can’t yet understand. There’s a way to change it, a way to untangle it. But I don’t know what it is. I just know that I can't bear to let you walk that path.”

For the first time in years, Jin Mei felt powerless. The threads she had unraveled for others had never been so fraught with danger, so full of heartbreak.

Li Wei reached across the table, his hand finding hers. His touch was warm, steady. “You’re not alone in this,” he said softly. “I don’t know how, but I will change this fate. We can find a way.”

Jin Mei closed her eyes, feeling the pull of the thread between them, stronger than ever before. She knew that this was the moment—the moment when the thread of fate had caught them both.

She could not let him die.

And yet, the red thread would not let go.