Wet Spring

Wen Youshan is a humble cloth dyer in Fushan Village who, alongside his wife Chen Ningya, transforms their modest livelihood through hard work and shrewd business practices. After mastering the art of dyeing silk with Rubia Root, Wen Youshan sells twenty bolts of vibrant crimson cloth to a local fabric store for a substantial profit. The financial windfall allows him to purchase gifts for his wife and five children, including books for his eldest sons, Wen Yuanliang and Wen Yuanhong. Encouraged by this success, Wen Youshan openly supports his sons’ pursuit of the imperial examinations, a significant shift from his previous cautious nature. The family’s prosperity stands in stark contrast to the turmoil at the Sun family residence at the foot of the mountain.

Sun Laifu, a relative of the Wen family, arrives at dawn with distressing news: his ex-wife, Xiao Li Shi, has died. According to reports, she was killed by a wolf after being cast out by her own family. Xiao Li Shi had previously divorced Sun Laifu due to her abusive behavior and subsequent conflict with her sister-in-law in Li Family Village. Upon returning to her parents' home, she was expelled after a violent altercation, leading to her death in the snow. The Li family, ashamed of her disgraceful end, attempts to force Sun Laifu to bury her in the Sun family ancestral grave, a move Sun Laifu vehemently rejects. Wen Youshan and Chen Ningya advise Sun Laifu to avoid the situation but offer to help the children, Sun Qing and Sun He, pay their respects to their mother.

Wen Youshan organizes a group of villagers from Fushan Village to accompany Sun Qing and Sun He to Li Family Village. Upon arrival, they encounter a hostile atmosphere. Mother Li, Xiao Li Shi’s mother, is hysterical, blaming Sun Laifu for her daughter’s death and accusing him of being black-hearted. The Li family elders refuse to allow the children to enter the house to offer incense, intending to pressure Sun Laifu into taking the body. Wu Lao Er, a prominent villager from Fushan Village, confronts the Li family, leading to a tense standoff. Wen Youshan threatens to report the matter to the County Magistrate, leveraging his connections to deter violence. Father Li eventually reveals that Xiao Li Shi’s body is in an abandoned house and that she took all the money Sun Laifu had saved, which he considers divorce compensation. The group leaves after the children pay their respects, avoiding further conflict.

Simultaneously, a parallel narrative unfolds involving Shi Zhi, a university student and Shen Jia, her boyfriend. Shi Zhi attends Shen Jia’s birthday party at a bar, where she encounters Fu Xiling, a man Shen Jia clearly dislikes. Fu Xiling is observant and aloof, noting Shi Zhi’s discomfort. Later, Shi Zhi works at her uncle’s struggling bar, where Fu Xiling appears as a customer. Their interactions are marked by tension and unspoken history. Shi Zhi begins to suspect Shen Jia of infidelity when he becomes evasive about a female childhood friend, Tao Jia, who has returned from abroad. Shen Jia misses dates and fails to communicate, citing busy schedules and emergencies.

Shi Zhi confronts Shen Jia in the university cafeteria, where she breaks up with him after he admits to his closeness with Tao Jia. During the argument, her jade bracelet is lost. Fu Xiling finds the bracelet and returns it to her, revealing he knows details about Shen Jia’s past with Tao Jia. Fu Xiling offers to share information about Tao Jia in exchange for answering two personal questions. Shi Zhi learns that Tao Jia and Shen Jia were once romantically involved, and Shen Jia’s recent behavior suggests he has not fully cut ties with her. The story concludes with Shi Zhi navigating the aftermath of her breakup, while Wen Youshan’s family continues to build their wealth and social standing in the village.