Everyone laughs at Chen Ergou, calling him a useless fool who married the unfortunate Li Xue for a hundred yuan. Li Xue's parents favor sons over daughters, repeatedly showing up to demand money and seize grain. The local thug Zhao Dabiao comes to snatch her away, while lazy villagers arrive to extort money. Little do they know that the fool Ergou has already become someone else inside. He can fight off five strong men, and he excels at fishing and hunting. He shields his long-suffering wife from harm, catches fish in the bitter winter to earn money, hunts beasts deep in the mountains to build his fortune, and gradually turns their shabby hut into a peaceful home where they have meat to eat and money to spare.