For many years, Mr. Lee has been keeping a secret from his wife and two daughters that his elder daughter, Chelsia, is having some serious heart disease. Only his good friend, Dr. Fong, who made the diagnosis knows about it. Chelsia meets Ma, an overseas Chinese, at her secondary school graduation ball and gradually they fall in love with each other. Doctor Ma's son Chileung, who grows up with Lee's daughters, is fond of Chelsia while the younger daughter Chelwin loves him. However, neither of their affection is returned.

Ha Dong, Kyung Nam Province in 1890. Choi Chi-Su's family is a grand land lord of the region from generation to generation. His mother Mrs. Yoon gives birth to another son Hwan after she was raped by Kim Gae-Ju when he is 10 years old. Later Hwan becomes a servant of Choi family but he falls in love with Chi-Su's wife and they flee by night. Meanwhile after a reign of 40 years of King Ko Jong, cholera prevails all over the country and years of famine follows it. While people suffer from natural disasters and diseases, one of Chi-Su's maternal relative Cho Jun-Ku and his wife make a plot to take Choi family's enormous wealth and strengthen the foundation for his status. In this chaos some villagers and Seo-Hee, Chi-Su's daughter leave their village for Buk Kan Do.

When a contract with a foreign company goes wrong, Lee Poong loses all his assets and attempts suicide with his family in despair and despair, but only he survives. Suffering from guilt, he lives off of a canteen owner, Gyeong-ja, whom he meets by chance.