The story unfolds from the personified perspective of a tangerine tree rooted in the Three Gorges. Middle-aged Xiao Yun returns with her daughter to Taipingxi Town, Yiling. The old tree recognizes her, and memories roll back to 1980. Childhood Xiao Yun protecting flowers, reading under the tree, and encountering danger while flying a kite are all silently guarded by the tree; when family members want to cut down the tree, she hugs the tree and cries, and the tree repays her by bearing golden fruits. During the Three Gorges migration and relocation, Xiao Yun ties a self-embroidered tangerine handkerchief and makes a pledge to return home. Years later, when she returns to her hometown, seeing the faded handkerchief still tied to the branch, she finally understands a half-life of guardianship and tearfully whispers, "So you've always been here!" As she leaves, the tangerine tree turns into a boy and waves from afar. The tree stays in its place, and her coming is a reunion.