Director : Ding Yangguo

Starring Li Xiaoran / Huang Shaoqi / Yu Rongguang / Chen Yirong / Shen Xiaohai / Xing Minshan / Yue Yueli / Tao Huimin / Lei Kesheng / Zhao Liang

First broadcast : 2004

Plot Summary :

　　In the waning years of the Qing dynasty, Jinling was one of China’s most bustling commercial hubs. The Jinmaoxiang Trading House had already passed through nine generations in Jinling. Its patriarch, Old Master Che, having outlived both his wives, seemed to bear a curse, left only with two daughters. At his behest, his eldest daughter, Che Yugui, reluctantly accepted Qu Yunting as her husband by way of marriage‑in—thus binding their fates together. Yet this union would ignite a century‑long feud, a tale of grudges and loves that unfolded amid the sweeping tides of a great era, shaped by fate itself. The rise and fall of the Jinmaoxiang Trading House stands as a microcosm of the Chinese merchant’s spirit of enterprise: the relentless pursuit of founding, building, and safeguarding a business. It embodies the essence of commerce: only with integrity can one sustain a lasting enterprise. More profoundly, these merchants also possessed a deep sense of patriotism; they were capable of adapting and transforming themselves. Coupled with a broad, principled approach to trade, a fervent national consciousness, and an unwavering commitment to honor and trust, they came to embrace a supreme ideal: to lay down their lives for country and people, to shed blood and sacrifice all personal ties and familial ambitions, placing the greater good of the nation above all else. From this arose a profound patriotic calling—a mission born of being Chinese merchants.