Synopsis
Ten years ago, Li Xuelian and her husband Qin Yuhe staged a fake divorce to secure a second apartment reserved by the government for single people. Six months later, Qin remarried - as agreed - but to a different woman. Furious, Li filed a lawsuit with the County Court. But she lost the case because Judge Wang Gongdao was convinced that the divorce papers were in order.
Refusing to accept the court's findings, Li appeals to the Chief Justice, the County Chief, and even the Mayor, but fails at every turn. She decides that only Qin can give her peace of mind, if he will just acknowledge that the divorce was fake. Instead, he publicly accuses her of being a "promiscuous woman" because she was not a virgin on their wedding night, an accusation that drives Li back to the courts to redeem her reputation.
From county to city, she goes through one trial after another, until deciding to make her appeal in far-off Beijing. In the capital, she is looked after by Zhao Datou, a chef who had a crush on her when they were students. Braving resistance, Li makes her way to the leaders in Beijing who take action - by firing the Chief Justice, County Chief and Mayor who mishandled her case.
Ten years go by and the cases of Li's divorce and her ruined reputation have not been resolved. Li has continued to travel to Beijing every year, but this time Zhao - now a widower - urges her to stay away. Li is furious when she discovers that he has been instructed by county leaders to stop her from pursuing her lawsuit.
Meanwhile, Judge Wang - from the original court case ten years ago - has since been promoted to Chief Justice. He is tasked with ensuring that Li's case does not disrupt the annual National People's Congress. While Li is on her journey to Beijing, Wang has been monitoring her every step.
Years later, by chance Li meets the County Chief who was fired because of her. He asks her why she fought so hard for her case. She reveals that when her husband remarried, she was pregnant. She was fighting not only for herself, but for her unborn child.