In the bitter winter snow, Chen Shan is treated unfairly by his second uncle and elder brother during the family division. All he receives is a dilapidated earthen house and a small amount of coarse grain. He is also forced to shoulder his late father's coffin debt, and his family of three is driven out of their ancestral home. The creditors give him just seven days to repay the debt. With nowhere else to turn, he revives the hunting skills passed down by his ancestors and ventures into the mountains to survive. He hunts mountain birds and wild beasts, earning a fortune from a white fox pelt. But Er Gou, a malicious neighbor, repeatedly plots against him and eventually lures him into a wild boar ravine. Fighting for his life, Chen Shan kills the king of the wild boars and clears his debt. He then battles packs of wolves, competes against an experienced old hunter and wins valuable boar bezoars, secures orders for mountain goods, and teaches himself how to tan hides. After discovering wild ginseng and reishi mushrooms, he stands his ground against merchants trying to force down his prices. When his opportunistic relatives come crawling back, Chen Shan firmly rejects them. He hires villagers to build a beautiful brick-and-tile house and relies on his own skills to protect his wife and daughter, turning his family's desperate circumstances into a remarkable success.