Ha Dong, Kyung Nam Province in 1890. Choi Chi-Su's family is a grand land lord of the region from generation to generation. His mother Mrs. Yoon gives birth to another son Hwan after she was raped by Kim Gae-Ju when he is 10 years old. Later Hwan becomes a servant of Choi family but he falls in love with Chi-Su's wife and they flee by night. Meanwhile after a reign of 40 years of King Ko Jong, cholera prevails all over the country and years of famine follows it. While people suffer from natural disasters and diseases, one of Chi-Su's maternal relative Cho Jun-Ku and his wife make a plot to take Choi family's enormous wealth and strengthen the foundation for his status. In this chaos some villagers and Seo-Hee, Chi-Su's daughter leave their village for Buk Kan Do.
