On July 27, 1976, the Tangshan region was hit by a 7.8-degree earthquake. A building collapses, and Fang Daqiang and wife, Li Yuanni, try to rescue their trapped twins, Fang Deng and Fang Da. Fang Daqiang dies trying to rescue the
twins. After the earthquake, Li Yuanni finds out that in order to save one of the kids the other will die. She make a tough choice and rescues the younger brother. But the girl, Fang Deng, survives and is adopted by a military man Wang Deqing and his wife. But she can never forget the pain of being given up by her mother. Fang Da loses an arm and later goes to work in Hangzhou. Fang Da marries Xiaohe and becomes successful. Thirty-two years later, the families meet each other because of the May 12 Wenchuan earthquake.
