In 1947, the Chinese Red Army sets a trap for the Nationalist forces in Jiangsu province.

In the spring of 1949, a war is about to happen between the Liberation Army and Kuomintang Army on the Yangtze River. The Liberation Army dispatches a reconnaissance to scout the southern parts of the River, whose work is actually full of hardships and dangers. However, with the help of the local crowd and the guerrillas, finally, the members of the reconnaissance succeed in the commission and offer valuable information to the Liberation Army, making great contributions in the war.

The play concentrated on the exploits of the communist underground activities under Japanese occupation in 1939, though history traces back in the 1920s. When Li Yuhe, a railroad worker who was engaging in underground work, was taken away by special agents and Grandma Li has a premonition of being arrested, Grandma tells the protagonist, Li Tiemei the true story about her family. Grandma Li tells Li Tiemei how her parents have sacrificed their lives in the revolutionary struggle. Li Yuhe has taken up the unfulfilled task of the martyrs. After hearing the heroic story about her family, Li Tiemei is determined to follow the example of her father and carry the revolution through to the end.

The sailors on a Kuomintang warship revolt, arrest their officers and defect to the Chinese People's Liberation Army.