In the winter of 1948, the People's Liberation Army's siege forces began a five-month siege on Taiyuan City, which was occupied by Yan Xishan. The protagonist, a bugler, is an orphan who lost his parents. His uncle, who is the battalion commander, took him in and assigned him the role of a bugler. However, the battalion commander always hoped to keep the bugler away from the war and find a suitable family for him to be a son. The bugler is optimistic, humorous, diligent, and clever. During the troop rotation and rest period, the battalion commander’s unit settled in the village of Nanliang on Dongshan Mountain in the suburbs of Taiyuan, and the story unfolds in this village.In a battle with the enemy, the bugler failed to sound the charge at the crucial moment and felt extremely regretful. He later offended San Ni and her daughter Zhuang while they were visiting a grave. When the troops were resting in Nanliang Village, the bugler and five or six soldiers were unexpectedly arranged to stay in San Ni's home. San Ni, a village woman, had just lost her ten-year-old son Cheng Gang, and her family fell into deep sorrow, but in order to support the front lines, they suppressed their grief and took good care of the bugler and the soldiers. The bugler has always felt guilty for not sounding the bugle on the battlefield, and during the rest period, he practiced hard, hoping to become a competent bugler.
War