In the early 1980s, Li Jingwei, a boy from Jichuaili Village in Bozhou, northern Anhui, grows up in a poor but close-knit rural community. He shares a bond of lifelong friendship with his four childhood friends, Li Xiaolong, Li Te, Li Zhonghong, and Li Min. Poverty forges his resilient character, while his longing for the wider world sparks his determination to strive for a better life. After graduating from high school, he sets off alone for Shanghai, carrying his dreams and the travel money his friends pooled together for him. Starting out as a low-level laborer, he endures countless hardships and setbacks but never gives up learning or thinking. Seizing opportunities, he starts with a street stall and small businesses. After many failures and obstacles, he eventually establishes his own company. As he builds his business, he remembers his friends back home, bringing them over one by one and assigning them jobs suited to their strengths, helping them find their footing in the city. After years of hard work, his company goes public in Shanghai, and he becomes a well-known entrepreneur. But he never forgets the land of Jichuaili Village or the brothers who struggled alongside him, and he gives back to his hometown and loved ones through concrete actions.
