On a border mountain slope, defectors from North Korea try to eek out a measly living family selling cheap knickknacks. Geo Buk faces pressure from his father, Kim Duk Sam, to go work for the U.S. military base, while Bok Soon is being taught traditional Korean folksongs by her mother to prepare her to become a gisaeng. But Geo Buk and Bok Soon are determined to better their lives by finding employment in a textile factory and finally be free to love each other.