Grind beans into curds, boil them until the pot brims with snow-white foam.
Times are hard. By day, Pan Yun disguises herself as a young man and makes a living selling tofu in Qingshui County. Because of her handsome looks, the women of the town tease her by calling her "Tofu Pan An."
Yet no matter how diligently she works, she still struggles to make ends meet. Her fiance is studying at the county academy, and tuition is already expensive, to say nothing of the travel costs for taking the imperial examinations in the capital next year.
Just as Pan Yun is worrying about money, she is dragged into trouble by her cousin and offends a powerful man in town: Shen Hao, the Governor of Qimin.
She hopes she can make amends, but through a twist of fate, she ends up as Shen Hao's maid.
Fortunately, Lord Shen will soon be heading north to take up a new post. Since she is not a hereditary servant, she will naturally be dismissed.
Pan Yun plans to wait until Shen Hao has calmed down, then ask him to let her return home.
But after waiting and waiting, she receives the dreadful news that Shen Hao intends to take her back to the capital...
Theme: Persevere and keep striving
