The Robbers and the Black Swan

A Lijing City elementary school student takes credit for an insect collection that was not his.

The Deputy Director of the Qinshan County Bureau of Commerce makes poor business decisions and opposes his daughter's relationship with a man who points out the Deputy Director's errors.

The construction of Langwan port in 1974 is hampered by followers of the Gang of Four.

Xue Mu is the talented and charismatic deputy director of a provincial newspaper's arts section. Having earned widespread recognition for a series of influential reports, he enjoys both professional success and a reputation as one of the industry's rising stars. His wife, Su Ning, is an editor at the provincial publishing house. Deeply devoted to her career, she spends most of her time at work, gradually neglecting her family life. As emotional distance grows between the couple, cracks begin to appear in their once-happy marriage. While covering a human-interest story, Xue Mu meets Zhang Cuichun, a model employee at a food company. During the interview, he learns of the painful hardships and failed relationships that have shaped her life. Moved by sympathy, he becomes increasingly drawn to her, and over time compassion turns into love.

Yang, the director of a farm machinery factory, is a manager who cares only about production targets and pays little attention to the everyday lives of his workers. His wife, Auntie Yang, heads the factory's family services group, while their beloved daughter, Yang Ping, has grown up in such comfort that she looks down on household chores. Yang Ping's boyfriend, Chen Fang, is an intelligent and capable young worker. Yet the heavy burden of domestic work leaves him exhausted, affecting both his job and his creative pursuits. The strain also leads to frequent quarrels with Yang Ping, putting their relationship in jeopardy.

Mozhuor, a wandering drifter who earns a living waiting tables in a small restaurant, unexpectedly reunites with Chunliu, a fellow villager he has not seen for years. Chunliu has prospered since leaving home, building a successful fish-farming business with his wife and younger sister, Xinghua. Through years of hard work, the family has become one of the region's most prosperous rural households. Seeing Mozhuor's miserable circumstances, Chunliu urges him to return to his hometown at Swan Lake and resume the traditional trades he once knew so well—raising fish and training cormorants for fishing. Homesick after years of wandering, Mozhuor decides to take his advice and return. With neither a house nor any land to call his own, Mozhuor has no choice but to live temporarily aboard Xinghua's small boat. Because he once saved Xinghua's life, Chunliu's family welcomes him warmly and does everything they can to help him rebuild his life.