On the New Year's Eve of the year 2000, a farmer named Lin Shenggen from Henan Province brings his wife Huang Xia who is pregnant with their second child all the way to Beijing so as to make a proper living there and avoid the inspection of the local Family Planning Commission. They look forward to the birth of a son so as to carry on their family name. Unfortunately, they are met with a series of blows in this strange land and eventually get sent back to their original registered birthplace. On the train home, Lin Shenggen loses track of Huang Xia completely...