The Family in the Little Courtyard

In the 1970s, a little courtyard glows with the warmth of everyday life. Lin Xiuhe, a young woman from a cotton mill, is introduced to Zhou Jianguo, an engineer who lives in the police compound. In a makeshift shelter after the 1976 earthquake, a red hair tie binds them together for life. When the national college entrance exams are reinstated, the whole family helps her study late into the night. As reform sweeps across the country, the two wage earners squeeze onto buses with their child and save up with ration coupons to buy big-ticket items. From a courtyard home in a single-story building to an apartment in a high-rise, they are surrounded by loving in-laws and devoted parents, and their children grow up by their sides. Through forty years of storms and sunshine, they walk hand in hand. In their golden wedding portrait, three generations smile together: "Keeping the warmth of our little courtyard family alive, with a bowl of porridge and a simple meal, is the greatest blessing of all!"