In Jiangyin at the end of the Ming Dynasty, the Xu family has been a scholar for generations. The head of the family, Xu Yuanheng, was an honest official. However, he was framed and dismissed from office and returned home because he refused to form a party with Ma Shiying, a powerful official in the Southern Ming Dynasty. The Xu family kept hundreds of slaves, and the slaves were of low status for generations. They were not allowed to take imperial examinations, were not allowed to marry independently, and even their surnames were determined by the master's family. The housekeeper Wang An is a three-generation old servant of the Xu family and is deeply trusted. The Qing army moved south, and there was a power vacuum in Jiangnan. The slaves sensed the opportunity to stand up. Wang An secretly colluded with Ma Shiying's old subordinates and promised to donate the Xu family's property in exchange for an official position. On the night when the family was exterminated, Wang An personally killed Xu Yuanheng and led the rebels to wipe out the Xu family's blood. Sixteen-year-old Xu Dingjun escaped from a dog hole with his five-year-old brother and saw his entire family being slaughtered. She vowed revenge, but found that there was an invisible hand behind Wang An - the mysterious man standing with his hands behind his back in the firelight.
