A Family of Four Struggles to Survive During the Late Qing Famine

During the Guangxu era of the late Qing dynasty, floods ravaged Shandong, forcing the farmer Wang Laoshi to flee with his wife and two children. They traveled down the canal by boat, only to have the boatman suddenly raise the fare. After they went ashore, a landlord seized the little food they had left. To protect his family, Wang Laoshi transformed from a timid farmer into a brave man. In the end, he found work as a laborer in Jiangnan and managed to keep his family alive.