Luying is a 17-year-old orphan, caught adrift in a
sprawling Chinese city. By day, she works as a mortician’s
apprentice, tending to the dead with care as she learns
to bathe, beautify and reconstruct the faces of disfigured
corpses. By night, she wanders the city’s gleaming malls
with her friend, dancing and live-streaming demure
online alter-egos for anonymous fans, raising money
for a new phone. One winter, a strange storm sweeps
through the city. Soon after, the funeral home receives
a faceless corpse – an out-of-towner killed in a car
accident. Luying is unnerved to find that the victim bears
an uncanny resemblance to her mother, who disappeared
after migrating for work many years prior. Assigned to
the case, Luying becomes a primary source of support
to the woman’s well-to-do husband, Zimo (51), and
child, Guoguo (4), who survived the accident unscathed.
Despite her initial misgivings, Luying grows close to the
family. As the woman’s true identity begins to unfold,
Luying is forced to confront the painful reality it suggests.
After the funeral, Zimo offers Luying money as thanks for
her services. She enters spring: bathing corpses by day,
and dancing by night.