The Coarse Porcelain Cup

A chipped coarse porcelain cup once held the bitterness of life beneath the leaking eaves of a Huaqiangbei shack, and reflected tears of despair behind the bars of a foreign prison.

In the early 1980s, Lu Zhenhua and Yang Yunying held on to that cup as they rose from humble peddlers trading electronic components to the center of the global technology stage. They were partners who fought side by side in the business world, and lovers who stood by each other through every storm. To break the West's technological blockade, they wagered everything they owned and fought their way through a siege of capital, putting their lives on the line to carve out a path for China's chip industry.

When domestic chips finally broke through the darkness and the whole nation celebrated the heroes' return, Lu Zhenhua realized that he had defeated an arrogant empire of capital and helped his country stand tall, but had forever lost the woman who had shared his hardships. Three years of house arrest abroad drained Yang Yunying's life away. She gave her life for the nation's “chip of honor,” but never lived to see the long-delayed moment when they would grow old together.

With a long life still ahead, Lu Zhenhua gave away his fortune to establish a foundation, hoping only to see this prosperous China through her eyes. He kept the mended coarse porcelain cup and, to the sound of the South China Sea's winds, devoted a lifetime of loneliness to mourning the happy ending they never got.

The wind rises over the South China Sea, and her soul returns home. Some victories can only be paid for with a lifetime of regret. This is the epic struggle of a generation, and a heartrending elegy for an era.