Adapted from the novel of the same name by the renowned Chinese writer Lao She. In early 1930s Beijing, Lao Li, a second-tier clerk in the finance department, is honest, shy, and prone to daydreaming. However, his wife, whom he married after graduating from university, is an uncultured rural girl, which leaves him quite frustrated. The landlord's daughter-in-law, Mrs. Ma, is elegant and quiet but has been abandoned by her husband. Thus, Lao Li's fanciful dreams of love fall on Mrs. Ma. Lao Li's wife befriends Mrs. Wu and Mrs. Qiu, both going through divorces, and the three women frequently exchange experiences on how to discipline their husbands, becoming increasingly vulgar, much to Lao Li's distress. Suddenly, one day, both Mrs. Wu and Mrs. Qiu compromise, giving up their demands for divorce and reconciling with their husbands. Mrs. Ma's husband also returns home, reuniting with his wife. These changes astonish Lao Li. Consequently, upon waking from the dream, Lao Li, along with his wife and child, returns to the countryside.