The daughter of a right-winger, schoolgirl Jing Qiu is sent to the countryside for reeducation, and tasked to help write a textbook. There she meets Lao San, a young soldier with a bright future ahead. Despite the class divide and parental disapproval, romance blooms against turbulent times.

A girl finds that the old man living in the opposite side never opens the window. His son left hometown for work just as the girl's parents. The girl and the old man take care of each other occasionally and he opens the window eventually.