The story takes place during the reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty. On the way to escape, Li Wei (Xu Zheng), who was born in a humble family, met Yue Siying (Chen Hao) and her brother, and they came to Jiangnan together. Li Wei stole the sword of the thirteenth prince Yinxiang (Wang Hui) who was on a secret visit in the inn, and rushed to the court set up by the county magistrate Feng Yueqing (Sun Baoguang) to save a group of victims who were executed for looting food. All this was seen by Yinxiang and Yinzhen (Tang Guoqiang) who followed behind, who appreciated him and sent him to serve as the magistrate of Suyang County. Li Wei, who was illiterate, made a lot of jokes when he first became an official, but he punished the bullies who were rampant with his wit and talent, and the people of Suyang praised him. Li Wei's achievements were heard by Yinzhen. At this time, the treasury was empty due to the war in the northwest, and Li Wei was appointed as the prefect of Yangzhou, responsible for investigating and punishing local salt merchants for tax evasion and punishing corrupt officials. When Li Wei arrived at Yangzhou, his first encounter with the salt merchants taught him that there are always people who are better than you.