In Lingwu, Ningxia, in the 1980s, scorching winds and sand carry the boys’ passion and longing. Wang Shun, Tang Pengyu, Wang Zehui, and Jian Rong, four ordinary boys from humble backgrounds, become friends after standing up for someone in a street fight. Beneath an old pagoda tree, they swear to live and die together. Starting with helping Wang Zehui repay his father’s debts, they struggle to make their way across the rugged land of the Northwest. They open an auto repair shop, haul freight over long distances, and venture into the building materials trade, trying to shoulder life’s burdens with their young shoulders.
But the tides of the times surge, and underworld forces stir in the shadows. As their simple struggle to make a living gradually takes on the trappings of organized crime, their once-pure brotherhood faces trial after trial of power, profit, and desire. Tang Pengyu grows more ruthless as he expands his influence, Wang Zehui is blinded by money, and Jian Rong agonizes over the conflict between loyalty and reality. Meanwhile, after Wang Shun, who still holds on to his original ideals, meets the gentle yet resilient Yuan, he becomes even more aware that they are straying from the path they first set out on.
Division and estrangement sweep through them like a sandstorm beneath the Helan Mountains. Their once-united brotherhood falls apart amid repeated clashes, betrayals, and acts of redemption. Can they stay true to themselves as loyalty and the underworld collide? And along their path to adulthood, woven with blood and tears, how can they reclaim the pure promise they made at the entrance to Qingshi Lane? A blood-soaked coming-of-age legend about the Northwest underworld begins here.
