In 1960, famine grips the whole country. Food is scarce, and families everywhere go hungry. Kaoshantun lies beside the Qingmang Mountains, which stretch for hundreds of miles. The mountains hold game, wild plants, and medicinal herbs. They are a forbidding wasteland to outsiders, but a treasure trove to hunters.
The villagers are simple-hearted, yet also selfish and mean. They cling fiercely to clan ties, and exploitative relatives band together to bleed others dry while honest people suffer relentless bullying. Most men in Kaoshantun go into the mountains to make a living, but the mountains are treacherous. Wolves, black bears, and wild boars roam there, along with labyrinthine woods, swamps, and frigid pools. Every year, people die in the mountains.
Ordinary villagers hunt with simple traps or their bare hands, making little catch and often putting themselves in danger. Only the most seasoned hunters know how to read the skies, track animals, set deadly traps, and avoid the mountains' dangers, allowing them to return with a full haul.
Love is always the same across thousands of rivers and mountains. Can you vote for me? Thank you for being the judge!