In Nanjing in 1946, Chen Yanqiu and Shen Yanqiu meet through book seals bearing the same name, and affection takes root amid the lantern-lit shadows of the Qinhuai River and the scent of ink on old books. A turn of events sends him back to his hometown while she receives news of a marriage proposal from the north, and a misunderstanding takes root: he believes she has become the wife of a professor in Beiping, while she believes he has married a woman from the Zhang family of Suzhou.
At opposite ends of the same city, they hold on to the unspoken words "I'll wait for you," watching the plane trees flourish and wither as they wait for a reunion that never comes. Only in their twilight years do faded letters and unsent notes reveal the truth, but all that remains is a lifetime of irreparable regret. Two tears bearing the same name never mingle.
