Um velho leproso que possuía uma distante vinícola de sorgo morre. Jiu'er, a esposa comprada pelo leproso, e seu amante, identificado apenas como "meu avô" pelo narrador, assumem a vinícola e montam uma comunidade idealizada quase matriarcal liderada por Jiu'er. Quando os invasores japoneses submetem a área ao seu domínio e cortam o sorgo para abrir caminho para uma estrada, a comunidade se ergue e resiste à medida que o sorgo cresce novamente.
An old mother of five struggles to get by after her husband is killed during the liberation war. The simple and kind-hearted Ah-Fu stumbles across them, and tries to help them as much as he can.
A wounded soldier of the Northeast Anti-Japanese forces is found and helped by a local girl. They fall in love, but the soldier wants to return to his team.
In 1946, Chiang Kaishek commits 200,000 troops to an attack on the Communist-held central plains of China. After the PLA main force in the area retreats, the Nationalists also capture the area around the Dabie Mountains. County Party Committee Secretary Liu and county organizations department director Mo Wenjie lead a guerrilla troop against the KMT forces. Will the film belief of the revolutionary cadre be able to overcome not only the enemy, but cold, hunger and betrayal?
