This is a life epic that spans half a century. It is based on the dramatic changes in modern Chinese society and tells the story of the ups and downs and suffering life of a young landlord named Fugui.
During the Republic of China, Fugui was extravagant and addicted to gambling. He lost all the property accumulated by his ancestors. He was so angry with his father that he forced his wife Jiazhen away and fell from the clouds into the quagmire. Just when his prodigal son turned back and tried to support his dilapidated home, the war broke out. He was caught in the smoke and struggled to survive on the edge of life and death. After returning, his daughter Fengxia became deaf and mute due to a high fever. His mother had already passed away, and the burden of the family made him breathless.
Land reform, the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution... The torrent of the times envelops the fate of individuals, and misfortunes come one after another: his son Youqing died of excessive blood drawing to save the county magistrate's wife, his wife Jiazhen died of rickets and died of poverty, his daughter Fengxia died of dystocia and hemorrhage, his son-in-law Erxi died accidentally at a construction site, and his only grandchild Kugen died of starvation and choked on too many beans. His close relatives left one by one, and Fugui changed from a well-clothed young master to a helpless old man.
But he never gave up on living. In his later years, Fugui bought an old cow that was also old and named it "Fugui", and they lived together in the fields. He no longer lives for someone, but for life itself - all the regrets, sorrows, and despairs that he had felt in the past have finally settled into awe and acceptance of life. He held the old cow and muttered "It's good to be alive" under the setting sun, blending all the suffering and care in his life into the plain smoke.
