Wang Shuangli is Deputy Director of the local Cultural Centre, and hopes to be appointed Director. However Old Ma is brought in from the country and installed as Director. This starts a long train of events with Wang's cronies using the bureaucracy to try to oust the new director.

Public Security officers investigate the robbery of a post office and the injury of a young woman.

A Nationalist spy is operating in Dinglong, China, a Communist-held area, after World War II.

Writer Gao moves into a new apartment neighboring rude Zhang and his wife. The Zhangs have already forced four neighbor families to leave for different disputes. Now they are clashing with cadre Liu because of a dog issue.