An elderly bell maker reminisces about his life filled with tragedy.
Wolmae is a gisaeng living in Namwon. Her daughter, Chun-hyang, is secretly engaged to marry Lee Mong-ryong. Lee leaves for Seoul with his father and the new governor, Byeon Hak-do, begins coveting Chun-hyang.
Heo Seung, who states that he was “born from soil, will live in soil, and die in soil”, becomes a lawyer in Seoul. However when villagers in his hometown are imprisoned for protesting against Japanese oppression, he decides to return to his village and rediscovers the true way to help his country.
