The novel begins in the late 1970s and tells the stories of several educated youths who went to the countryside, Xia Xia and Fangfang, Zhou Hai and Liu Hui, as well as the story of the educated youth father and his children from the Zhuzhu family, which spanned thirty years. This part of the content is integrated into the main line of the novel in the form of memories. The main line of the novel is the love story of three girls, Xiao Yun, Zhou Shishi and Wu Hong, who live in the same room at the university. Due to different birth backgrounds and personal experiences, the three girls have different views on love and life pursuits. Xiao Yun has a crush on Teacher Xia, a famous poet who had experience as an educated youth in college. Zhou Shishi is the daughter of Xinjiang educated youths Liu Hui and Zhou Hai. She pursues the free and beautiful life and love of the vast grasslands where she grew up as a child. After experiencing emotional ups and downs, she elopes with her schoolmate from the northern grasslands despite her parents' objections. Wu Hong fell into financial difficulties due to complicated family relationships. He worked part-time in college to support himself, and chose Lao Lang, a businessman with poor character who could support him in college.
Xiao Yun (the heroine), a literary girl who likes poetry, has been in love with her poetry writing teacher since college, the male god Xia Xia (the hero) in college. She worked hard secretly and became an urban female writer ten years later, and unexpectedly reunited with her teacher Xia Tian. This tragic love story has gone through twists and turns due to the existence of two women Fangfang and the appearance of Junru. From her narrow personal pursuit of pure love, she gradually perfected the light of human nature. The male protagonist Xia Tian went from being a famous poet to being a recluse due to the factors of the times, and finally rose to prominence in the poetry world again with the encouragement of Xiao Yun. This is a history of personal struggle, the emotional history of several men and women, and also a history of social development.
Purpose: This is a history of personal struggle, the emotional history of several young men and women in college, and a history of the development of rural society over thirty years.