Platform

In 1979, the film opens with a state-approved troupe performing in Fenyang as China begins to ease Cultural Revolution constraints. Four members are introduced: Cui Mingliang, Yin Ruijuan, Zhang Jun, and Zhong Ping. Their beginnings are marked by discipline, ambition, and the tension between old loyalties and new possibilities.

Cui clashes with his family and elders about life and ambition. Zhang visits his aunt in Guangzhou, using the new openness to obtain consumer goods for the troupe.

Yin's military father disapproves of Cui, creating a barrier between them. Cui continues to pursue Yin, but his advances are met with noncommittal responses.

Zhang pressures Zhong to perm her hair, signaling a shift toward personal expression. Zhong also tries to interest Yin in the latest fashion, but Yin resists.

Zhang accidentally gets Zhong pregnant and forces her to have an abortion, straining their relationship. The emotional toll echoes across the troupe as loyalties are tested.

Cui continues to pursue Yin, but Yin ultimately rejects him, leaving them at an impasse.

The troupe begins to bend to Western influences and is privatized; Cui remains with the group as they tour under new management, while Yin stays behind.

They witness electricity arriving in a rural village and encounter Sanming and his sister Wenying. Sanming takes a low-paid job in an unregulated coal mine to finance Wenying's university, giving Cui five yuan to hand to Wenying and telling her never to return.

On the road, the troupe's truck gets stuck in mud, and they glimpse a train passing by for the first time, a symbol of changing times.

Zhang and Zhong's illegal out-of-wedlock relationship is discovered by the authorities, forcing them to return to Fenyang.

Cui hands ten yuan to Wenying, who is upset about her brother's prospects. Zhong cuts off contact with Zhang and the rest of the troupe.

The troupe rebrands as a rock group from Shenzhen and resumes touring, struggling to obtain permits and performing on highways, sometimes reaching Inner Mongolia.

Cui's parents' marriage collapses; his father remarries and opens a shop, reflecting the shifting family dynamics amid reform.

Cui, Zhang, and Yao Eryong exit the troupe to pursue construction materials business; they meet Yin again, who is now a tax collector but still longs for her performing days.

Cui visits Yin and they reconnect, eventually marrying and having a son. The film ends with a train whistle as credits roll.