At the end of the Qing Dynasty, Yunxiang, a lady in the Yu王府, fell in love with Wen Liangyu, an actor. On the night they eloped, Empress Longyu announced the abdication and the establishment of a republic. They were separated by riotous civilians. Yunxiang was saved by Fang Tianyu, an enemy of the Yu王府, while Liangyu ended up homeless. After going through life-and-death experiences, they reunited but parted ways again due to Tianyu's love for Yunxiang.
Yunxiang fell into depravity to take care of her insane mother, and Liangyu gave up a hard-earned job to stay by her side, eventually pulling Yunxiang out of her despair. Unexpectedly, on that fateful night, Tianyu orchestrated a conspiracy and threw Liangyu into the river. Upon learning of Liangyu's death, Yunxiang attempted to assassinate Tianyu but was captured and sentenced to death. Shen Shihao, a wealthy tycoon who had always been fond of Yunxiang, bribed the jailers to save her using a dead prisoner as a substitute. Yunxiang then discovered she was carrying Liangyu's child. To repay Shihao for saving her life, she became his second concubine.