On a rainy night in the mountains, the physician Shen Zhiyi saves Pei Xingzhou, the General Who Guards the North, who has suffered an arrow wound and is being hunted by the imperial court. Wary of each other from their very first meeting, they trade sharp words, yet gradually fall in love as they spend their days and nights together. When pursuers from the Court of Judicial Review arrive to search the premises, Shen Zhiyi risks her life to help Pei Xingzhou hide. Through several confrontations, their true feelings finally overcome their suspicions. But with the wrongful case still unresolved, Pei Xingzhou cannot stay for long. He can only bear the pain of saying goodbye and travel far away to gather evidence. For the following year, Shen Zhiyi remains at her herbal clinic, thinking of him day and night. When the wrongful case is finally overturned, Pei Xingzhou returns through the snow on a cold New Year's Eve. Having endured life-and-death trials and painful separation, the two finally leave behind the turmoil of their troubled age and spend the rest of their lives together in peace, with the fragrance of medicinal herbs wafting from their hearth.