On July 28, 1976, a devastating earthquake struck Tangshan. Overnight, the city was reduced to ruins. Li Yuanni (played by Chen Xiaoyi), a teacher at the Cultural Palace, and her husband Wan Dacheng (played by Zhang Hanyu), who was physically and mentally traumatized, were forced to make a painful choice: only one of the twin brothers Wan Deng and Wanda could be saved. Wan Deng, who was "abandoned" by her mother, survived by chance, but she was separated from her mother from then on. Wang Deqing (played by Zhang Guoli), a member of the People's Liberation Army, adopted Wan Deng as his daughter, and the father and daughter had a deep affection. On the other hand, Yuanni lived a hard life by her own efforts, but her son's useless performance made her sad, and she missed her daughter who was still alive. As time passed, Wan Deng and Wanda grew up and experienced the bitterness and sweetness of life together. What the earthquake left them was the memories that could never be erased and the family ties that could never be separated... This film is adapted from the novella "Aftershock" by Chinese female writer Zhang Ling.