Ties That Bond, Ties That Break (character1)

Ailin comes from the respectable Tao family. As a slender young girl, she is determined and never gives up. After seeing her sister's bound feet, Ailin knows she doesn't want bound feet. She saw that her sister's toes had been completely folded over through a long and painful period. She could not even walk properly, not to mention running. Unfortunately, Ailin's refusal to bind her feet has the unpleasant consequence of the Liu's canceling the engagement between Ailin and Hanwei. Still, Ailin doesn't back down.
Her father was an open minded person because he works at the customs office, which allowed him to interact with many foreigners. He supported Ailin's desire for the freedom to run. With the support of her father, Ailin goes to a public school. Her uncle, however, does not support this action. He thinks that the school teaches useless subjects. Ailin's father believes in the public school. Although Ailin's grandmother does not support Ailin going to the public school, Ailin still knows that her grandmother is a good and caring person. Ailin visits her grandmother as often as possible. Then, sadly, Ailin's father dies of tuberculosis. Ailin's uncle immediately stops her from going to the public school. Miss Gilbertson, the English teacher at the public school, continues to give Ailin tutoring sessions every week at her home. Miss Gilbertson is the only person that supports Ailin. Nothing could stop Ailin from learning. Still, she knows that she will never be able to graduate from school. She will never grow up to be a teacher. Ailin is sad, but tries to be optimistic and study hard. As the tension between her uncle and Ailin grows, I wonder: what will happen next?