清朝末年，地处南方，本为鱼米之乡的苍河一带连年涝灾，饥荒不断，饿死了不少人，苍河边封闭而古老的两个镇子——桑镇和榆镇也开始动荡不安。

桑镇大户郑家和榆镇大户曹家因祖上恩怨，几代人水火不容，老死不相往来。曹家太太曹金氏（朱茵饰），要为从欧洲学成回国的儿子曹光汉操办亲事，挑来选去，无一中意，想起在除夕庙会上碰见的郑家大小姐郑玉楠（宋佳饰），吃斋念佛的曹金氏当即一锤定音。老爷曹如器（张国立饰）令长子曹光满前去郑家提亲，几经周折竟大功告成，使素来不睦的两大家族结为秦晋之好。

曹老爷曹如器是个人精，但他心头有一个无法愈合的暗伤——耳朵，那是夫人曹金氏与一个佃户日久生情，生下的孽子。原本应该溺杀的耳朵，却奇迹般地逃脱了曹老爷一次又一次的毒手。曹金氏出身官宦之家，下嫁曹如器，并鼎力相助，为曹家创下了辉煌的基业。因此，曹如器不得不作出让步，曹金氏的私生子成了曹如器的小仆人。

随着光绪皇帝和慈禧太后的死去，大清王朝摇摇欲坠，曹家也开始渐渐衰败。在郑玉松的影响下，曹光汉加入了蓝巾会，为蓝巾会研制炸药，炸毁官船。在曹光汉身陷囹圄的日子里，年轻的郑玉楠和受着思乡折磨的瑞典机师路卡斯（卡尔·马丁沃尔斯特鲁姆饰）发生了恋情，郑玉楠怀了孕。曹光汉出狱后，发觉妻子和路卡斯之间关系微妙。孩子出生那天，曹光汉因为参与蓝巾会的爆炸行动再次被捕，并被砍头示众。

玉楠的孩子降生了，曹老爷赐名曹子春。曹子春湛蓝的眼睛揭开了众人心中的迷团。路卡斯在“火柴公社”的机房里被谋杀，曹家为掩家丑，派耳朵送二少奶奶郑玉楠回桑镇自己的家。郑玉楠得知了丈夫已死，路卡斯被杀，孩子遭溺，精神崩溃，在开往省城的船上趁耳朵不备，跳进了苍河……

During the last years of Qing Dynasty, a place in southern part of China called Cang River is having famines for consecutive years. Many people died from the catastrophe; even the ancient and secluded towns near Cang River , Sang Township and Yu Township have started to feel unsettled.

Zheng family of Sang Township and Cao family of Yu Township have been enemies for several generations, even their ancestors had never deal with each other in their lifetime. Madam Cao (Zhu Yin) wants to arrange a marriage for her son, Cao Guang Han, who just came back from Europe . No girls had meet Madam Cao’s requirement, except the daughter of Zheng family, Zheng Yu Nan (Song Jia). Master Cao (Zhang Guo Li) ordered his elder son to go to Zheng family for proposal. After a series of happenings, the marriage had been agreed, making both families transformed from enemies to in-laws.

Master Cao has an incurable wound in his heart: Ear, who is the illegal son from Madam Cao and a farmer’s affair. He shouldn’t be alive, but he escaped from Master Cao’s numeral attempts to kill him. Due to Madam Cao’s important role in Cao family business, Master Cao was coerced to let the illegal child to become his own servant.

Qing Dynasty was tottering followed by the death of Emperor Guangxu and Empress Cixi, and this has also affected Cao family. Under the influence of Zheng Yu Song, Cao Guang Han joined Blue Scarf Organization and making bombs to destroy officer ships. While Cao Guang Han is locked in the prison, Zheng Yu Nan fell in love with a Swedish pilot, Lucas (Carlmartin Wolstrum) and pregnant. Their relationship was then discovered by Cao Guang Han. On the day the baby was born, Cao Guang Han once again got caught and killed for taking part in bombing activities of Blue Scarf Organization.

The baby is named Cao Zi Chun, but his blue eyes have answered the riddles in everyone’s mind. In order to cover the disgrace, Lucas was killed and Zheng Yu Nan was being sent back to her home. Her husband has died, Lucas was killed and her son was drowned, Zheng Yu Nan collapsed and jumped into Cang River …