Nineteen-year-old Ning Xiuzhu grew up as a maid in the Hu household. She and the young master, Hu Mingyuan, were childhood sweethearts, but their difference in status kept them from making their feelings public, so they could only meet in secret.
After Xiuzhu and Mingyuan secretly consummate their love, she becomes pregnant. The Hu family humiliates her and treats her coldly, while Mingyuan is the only one who protects her in secret and promises to marry her one day.
When Xiuzhu is expecting their second child, Mingyuan suddenly falls gravely ill and dies. The Hu family drives her out, accusing her of having brought about the young master's death.
Six months pregnant and with nowhere else to turn, Xiuzhu is rescued by Cheng Tieshan, a young revolutionary, and finds temporary shelter in his little home.
Tieshan doesn't care about Xiuzhu's past or her pregnancy. His sincerity helps her feel the warmth of human kindness again, and the two begin to fall for each other.
After Xiuzhu gives birth to her second son, she and Tieshan marry, unaware that an even greater ordeal awaits her...
