At the age of 16 Zhou Lian, who lost her parents at the age of two and was raised by a stepmother, marries Jiang Mei, a progressive young man from Changsha No. 1 Normal School. Jiang Meiqing has also lost both of his parents. The couple has two sons, Liqun, Xiaoqing and daughter Xiaolian. The film follows the family through turbulent times from 1924 to 1930.
Yu Lan
as 周莲
Daolin Sun
as 江梅清
Zhang Liang
as 江立群
Guiling Liu
as 江小莲
Shi Xiaoman
as 江小清
罗国良
as 孟涛
Yang Yu
as 老梁
Wande Zhao
as 小钱
Fang Tian
as 老刘
Yu Zhongyi
as 小王
Wen Xiying
as 老李
Yu Shi
as 特务
