Cheng Qiqi, a woman who transmigrated into the body of a country girl and the wife of Jin Mozhi, the Shizi of the prestigious Zhongyong Hou Mansion, finds herself in immediate peril upon her husband's sudden death. The mansion is in chaos as Lin Huilan, a concubine with ambitions for her own son to inherit the title, mocks Cheng Qiqi and her three-year-old daughter, Jin Suian. Liu Suyi, the Marquis's wife and Cheng Qiqi's mother-in-law, asserts her authority but ultimately orders them expelled, believing it safer for them to leave before the impending disaster strikes. However, Nanny Wu reveals the true gravity of the situation: the Hou Mansion is about to be raided and the family exiled due to false charges of embezzling military funds orchestrated by their rival, Cui Lie of the Cui family.
Realizing that exile to Lingnan is a death sentence, Cheng Qiqi utilizes a spatial dimension, or Kongjian, inherited from her parents to stockpile essential supplies. She systematically empties the mansion's granaries, kitchens, and storehouses of food, clothing, and medicine, preparing for the harsh journey ahead. She also frees her loyal maid, Chuntao, providing her with funds to purchase carriages and additional provisions for the exile party. As soldiers surround the mansion, Cheng Qiqi refuses Cui Lie's offer to spare her and her daughter from exile if she submits to him, choosing instead to stand with her fallen husband's family. Her defiance earns her a place on the official exile roster, a decision that places her in direct conflict with the cruel Cui Lie and the scheming Lin Huilan.
In the imperial dungeon, the Jin family faces starvation and abuse. Cheng Qiqi secretly provides food and medicine to her daughter when she falls ill with a fever, and later distributes supplies brought by Chuntao to the entire family, including the collateral branches who had previously looked down on her. Her actions shift the family dynamics, earning her a measure of respect from Liu Suyi and the collateral relatives. Meanwhile, a secret plot unfolds outside the mansion. Jin Mozhi is not actually dead; he had been critically wounded in battle and was given a death-simulating drug by the military physician to escape assassination. His loyal retainers, Zhongshan and Zhishui, rescue his body and hide him in a remote farmhouse, where he begins to recover, unaware of the suffering his family is enduring.
The exile journey begins under brutal conditions. The Jin family members are forced to wear cangues and shackles, walking fifty li per day under the whip of the scar-faced escort officer. Jin Yanzhi, the concubine's son and biological heir, proves to be a cowardly and useless wastrel who refuses to help carry the injured Marquis and old madam, instead complaining and attempting to flee, only to be brutally beaten. Cheng Qiqi maintains her composure, shielding her daughter and managing resources wisely. She cooks porridge with stored vegetables and shares it with the collateral branches who gather firewood, further solidifying alliances. As the group leaves the capital, they face the hostility of the common people who hurl rotten eggs and vegetables at them, believing the Jin family to be corrupt. The journey to Lingnan promises to be a grueling test of survival, with the hidden truth of Jin Mozhi's survival looming as a potential turning point for the family's fate.
