Happiness Lane No. 9

This film (drama)Also known as幸福里九号，is aMainland ChinaProducerbeauty live，At2008Released in year 。The dialogue language isMandarin Chinese，Current Douban rating7.2(For reference only)。

In the early 1980s, Beijing, Happiness Lane No. 9. A sudden dispute arises between the Yang family mother and son. The mother, Min Shuxian, unintentionally loses her savings while trying to recover the household registration of her youngest son, Yang Weimin, who is still working in the Northeast. Consequently, she faces accusations from her eldest son, Yang Weiguo, who is approaching graduation from university. Meanwhile, Weimin encounters danger in the northeastern mountains, but he is saved by his landlord, Xifeng, transforming crisis into safety. Weimin finally obtains a permit to return to the city due to his injuries. Xifeng tracks him down in Beijing, wanting to marry her beloved Weimin. However, Weimin is deeply in love with his first crush, the neighbor Yu Fangfang, leading to a complex emotional entanglement. Heartbroken, Xifeng leaves Weimin but vows to establish herself in Beijing, struggling to survive and enduring hardships. Weimin is determined to implement the policy for his father, Yang Tiexin, who was a war hero but later imprisoned due to a 200-jin food coupon scandal. Weiguo, however, resists the idea of his father, a released convict, returning home, resulting in ongoing conflicts between the brothers. When Yang Tiexin finally returns, he learns that his wrongful conviction was related to the neighbors, Yu Deshui and Yao Guiying. He is resentful and violently opposes Weiguo's love for their daughter, Yu Yuanyuan. With Weimin's persuasion, Yang Tiexin forgives the couple for their unintentional mistake, and the two families reconcile. After Weimin returns to the city, the government arranges a job for him. However, he is restless and loses his stable position, keenly seizing business opportunities and trying to trade small goods from other regions, but he is arrested on suspicion of "speculation," encountering fierce opposition from his family, which leads to rising family tensions. Weimin tries hard to reunite his estranged parents. Yang Tiexin sets conditions, forbidding him from pursuing individual business ventures. Unable to resist, Weimin complies, and with Yuanyuan's enthusiastic help, he works as a temporary employee at the hospital where she is a nurse, only to find himself assigned to guard the morgue. Nonetheless, Weimin dedicates himself to the job. Despite numerous setbacks, Weimin remains filled with love, sincerity, and pursuit for life, work, family ties, friendship, and love, steadfastly. Fangfang hopes her father, who is expected to be promoted to a high-ranking position in the district government, can transfer her household registration back to the city from rural Pudong due to her previous work assignment. Yu Deshui, wanting to maintain his clean image of integrity, refuses her request, leading to frequent conflicts between father and daughter. Fangfang rejects Weimin's courtship and marries Captain He in hopes of resolving her household registration issue as a military spouse. Weimin and she frequently clash emotionally. During Fangfang's wedding preparations, her husband dies in the line of duty. The marriage setback causes Fangfang to become cynical. She hastily marries an international sailor who meets her material desires and vanity. The emotional conflict between Weimin and Fangfang deepens. Weiguo, secretly pursuing a relationship with his university classmate Wu Zhaodi, hopes to curry favor with him to secure a job in the court. Weimin exposes Weiguo's deceitful double-dealing; another dispute erupts between the brothers. Their parents interfere with differing attitudes, leading to a family war. Yuanyuan discovers Weiguo's infidelity, and in despair, she suffers a car accident. Just out of the hospital, Yuanyuan requests to join the medical team to escape her heartache. Weimin accompanies her. In the Dabie Mountains, Weimin and Yuanyuan endure hardships together, relying on each other for survival through thick and thin. Yuanyuan undergoes trials, her spirit purified, healing the wounds of her heartbreak. Weimin, recognized for his outstanding performance in a mundane role, is transitioned to a permanent employee at the hospital. Inspired by the government's policies allowing for individual economic engagement, Weimin challenges himself, opting to abandon his stable job to contract a fish stall at the market where Yao Guiying works. This leads to family opposition again, escalating family tensions. Just as Weimin's stall begins to see results, an outbreak of hepatitis A strikes, severely impacting his aquatic business. Encouraged by his keen instincts, Weimin rebounds, swiftly adapting to market demands by selling fruits and flowers. Despite facing resistance from Yao Guiying and the local gangsters, he persists, unyielding and unwilling to compromise, determined to succeed. After enduring hardships, Xifeng manages to contract a job hauling dirt for Happiness Lane. She reunites with Weimin and Fangfang, reigniting emotional complications between them. Yang Tiexin is smitten with Xifeng and insists on matchmaking her with Weimin. However, Min Shuxian firmly opposes this, unable to accept that her daughter-in-law could be a rural outsider. The existing disputes between husband and wife intensify. Fangfang suffers abuse from her sailor husband, Hu Wei. Weimin protects Fangfang, injuring Hu Wei in the process and gets detained and charged. Min Shuxian pleads with the law school faculty member and her eldest son, Weiguo, to defend her son. Weiguo, harboring deep-seated grievances against Weimin, is unwilling to help him. Under Hu Wei's threats and temptations, Weiguo feigns illness to avoid involvement. At Yuanyuan's urging, Fangfang steps forward, bravely revealing her humiliations in court, prompting Weimin's exoneration. Weiguo receives rewards from Hu Wei for colluding and secretly becomes a legal advisor for him, so he expects to be transferred to the court. However, she unexpectedly becomes interested in another suitor. Weiguo's cleverness backfires, causing him pain and stirring animosity towards Weimin. Though Weimin sympathizes with his loss, it does little to ease their rift. Under Fangfang's mediation, Weimin finds love with Yuanyuan, leaving Xifeng despondent. Weiguo's resentment towards Weimin intensifies. Yao Guiying deems Weimin a mere fish vendor unworthy of Yuanyuan and obstructs their relationship. Xifeng's father falls gravely ill; she begs Weimin to return home as a couple to see her father one last time. Weimin discovers that Xifeng has been lying to her father and is, in fact, already married to him, living happily together. To repay Xifeng and her father for saving his life, Weimin decides to maintain this beautiful lie. Due to Yao Guiying's meddling, Yuanyuan mistakenly believes Weimin is genuinely in love with Xifeng, leading to a crisis in their relationship. The reform and opening-up policies bring immense changes to Xifeng's hometown; for her father's sake, Xifeng resolutely marries her fellow townsman, Da Kui. On the day of her marriage, her father passes away. Weimin, as a family member, takes charge of the wedding and helps her find a shortcut to entrepreneurship by trading potatoes using local resources. Weimin tests the waters, bringing back a batch of potatoes. Taking advantage of his stall's established customer base, he promotes the potatoes but faces opposition once again from Yao Guiying and market leaders. Despite the pressure, he marches forward, achieving some initial results. With sincerity and determination, Weimin wins Yuanyuan's heart back, resolving misunderstandings and reopening their bond. From contracting a stall, Weimin expands to contract the entire aquatic and then vegetable sections, turning losses into profits, earning customer praise, and establishing the personal brand "Yang's Contract" in the struggling state-owned market. Grounded and diligent, he explores and learns, igniting ambitions to contract the entire market, which sparks debates on whether to prioritize collective or individual ownership. Yu Deshui, cautious as the Director of the District Government Office, shelves the proposal for Weimin's market contract. Yu Deshui assigns Weimin another tricky task: to help Hong Kong businessman Lin Siyuan find his first love, Min Shuxian. When Weimin learns about Lin Siyuan's emotional barriers, he seeks to arrange a meeting between his mother and Lin Siyuan. Upon reuniting after many years, emotions run high, and Lin Siyuan decides to remain and invest in a business. However, Min Shuxian fears that Lin Siyuan's presence may shatter her already fragile marriage to Yang Tiexin. Following the central leadership's speeches, which embolden economic development, Weimin is invigorated. He pitches his market contracting plan to Lin Siyuan to attract investments. Weiguo secretly takes on an advisory role for Lin Siyuan, and under his instigation, Lin Siyuan abandons the planned cooperation with Weimin in favor of collaborating with the government to demolish the market and build business offices and supermarkets. Still oblivious, Weimin plans his wedding on the date of his market contract signing, only for circumstances to shift and his dreams to be dashed. By this point, he has already sent tens of thousands in goods payments for Xifeng to procure potatoes locally. To placate Weimin, Lin Siyuan hires him as his assistant, but Weimin refuses, perceiving it as charity. Fangfang seizes the opportunity and leaves her relatively secure job as a military spouse to join Lin Siyuan's booming company. Xifeng and Da Kui attempt to retrieve Weimin's remittance, only to be robbed by a gang. Unable to endure the humiliation, Xifeng fights back to the point of self-harm, resulting in severe injuries. In a moment of bravery, Da Kui kills the robber during the struggle and rushes Xifeng to the county hospital for emergency treatment but flees in a panic due to lack of funds and the fear of arrest. Weimin learns of Xifeng's ordeal and, disregarding family objections, rushes back to the Northeast, firmly bringing back Xifeng, who has little hope of survival, to Beijing for treatment. He signs the surgery consent form as a family member, ready to shoulder the risks and financial burdens. This decision sparks strong opposition from Weiguo, Min Shuxian, and Yao Guiying, leading to significant conflicts. Yuanyuan is initially unable to accept this and has an emotional fallout with Weimin. Wishing not to burden Yuanyuan, Weimin reluctantly proposes a breakup. Xifeng's surgery is successful, and she is out of danger, but she remains in a coma and may become a vegetative state. Weimin vows to stay by her side, clinging to the last glimmer of hope and doing everything possible to awaken her. This noble gesture adds significant pressure to both Yang and Yu families. When Weimin's batch of potatoes arrives, the market has been demolished, his stall is gone, and with his focus on Xifeng, he neglects to sell them. A few rainstorms spoil the potatoes stacked outdoors. Yao Guiying brings in a starch factory buyer, willing to purchase the spoiled potatoes at a low price. Weimin refuses to allow customers to be cheated and resolutely destroys the batch. Weimin suffers severe setbacks and faces total loss, returning to square one. Yet, he remains undaunted, refusing to give up or surrender. He borrows money at high interest rates and starts a daily goods trading company, determined to make a comeback. Weimin's tenacity, ambition, and resilient spirit deeply touch Yuanyuan. Struggling to let go of her love for Weimin, she reflects on her choices and ultimately decides to share in his hardships. Yuanyuan coerces Weimin into marrying her. To support her husband and earn a college diploma, and to better care for Xifeng, Yuanyuan painfully resigns and even considers an abortion. Weimin pleads with her to keep the child. Conflicts arise, but their feelings deepen through the challenges. While working as a judge, Weiguo secretly works for Lin Siyuan, profiting handsomely. He also engages in real estate and stock speculation, hiding his profits, while publicly condemning Weimin for the misfortunes brought upon the family. Faced with judicial restructuring, Weiguo is forced to resign and work at a law firm. Da Kui is arrested. Weimin firmly believes Da Kui did not kill intentionally but struggles to find solid evidence. Weimin urges Weiguo to defend Da Kui. Xifeng miraculously awakens, thanks to Yuanyuan's meticulous care and Weimin's persistent calls, but initially cannot remember recent events. Weiguo, at the risk of Xifeng's safety, forces her to recall her memories to gather evidence, nearly causing her to fall into a coma again. Xifeng regains her memory and learns of the sacrifices made by Weimin and Yuanyuan. She kneels in gratitude and demands to testify for Da Kui immediately. To prevent a recurrence of Xifeng's brain injury, Yuanyuan, despite feeling severe pregnancy symptoms, insists on accompanying her. With Xifeng's testimony and Weiguo's eloquence, coupled with the inclusion of other robbers, Da Kui is acquitted on retrial. Seizing this opportunity, Weimin resumes his potato business. Xifeng becomes a great help in Weimin's career, assisting him in preparing to expand his business further. Beijing's successful Olympic bid once again unsettles Weimin, leaving him restless as he spots a new business opportunity to take over a bankrupt starch factory and pivot to producing potato chips. Fangfang advises Weimin to abandon this venture due to impending competition from a Taiwanese potato chip enterprise associated with Lin Siyuan. With regards to funds, technology, and quality, Weimin is incapable of competing against established brands. Nevertheless, overwhelmed with confidence, he insists on taking on this challenge. As Weimin’s chip factory starts production, Yuanyuan experiences complications during childbirth but fortunately, both mother and child are safe. Yuanyuan also welcomes the arrival of two additional "children": her college diploma and freshly produced potato chips. However, Weimin’s business plunges into crisis again. The potato chip factory's products are found to exceed permissible benzene levels, leading to returns, shutdowns, and fines. He faces annihilation. Undeterred and resolute, Weimin insists on getting to the bottom of the quality issues. Ultimately, he discovers the root cause lies in the subpar chip packaging. Weimin decides to file a lawsuit to restore his product's reputation and seek compensation for economic losses. Weiguo, compromised by Hu Wei's blackmail, is forced to relinquish a considerable hidden wealth to avoid disaster. Yet, Hu Wei escalates his threats, pressing him into a conspiracy against Weimin and Fangfang. Weiguo spirals into deep internal conflict and despair. Upon learning the truth behind Weiguo's past false testimony, Weimin persuades him to confess. However, Weiguo holds onto a slim hope and refuses. Weimin urges his father not to report, wishing to grant Weiguo a chance to confess. Weiguo takes the initiative to defend Weimin, vowing to win the case to mend their brotherly bond, compensating for past harms done to Weimin and Yuanyuan. He argues vigorously, securing a compensation of 500,000 yuan for the plaintiff. Yet upon realizing the defendant's imminent bankruptcy would spell hardship for disabled workers and their job prospects, Weimin cannot bear the idea of success at the expense of others and declares in court to reduce the compensation to one yuan. Weiguo is bewildered, despondent, and their conflict reignites. Weiguo misses his chance to confess and is subsequently arrested. Weimin embraces him tightly, tears streaming down his face. Weimin and Yuanyuan visit him in prison. Weiguo is deeply emotional, having gained profound insights into life's invaluable treasures. Weimin informs him of an upcoming joint venture with Lin Siyuan to expedite the modernization of his private enterprise. Weimin outlines grand plans to establish a new potato cultivation base in Xifeng's hometown with the aim to penetrate international markets and become a long-term supplier for fast food chains. As the countdown to the Olympics begins, the city is rapidly developing. Yang Tiexin hosts a dumpling banquet. The Yang and Yu families gather one last time in Happiness Lane No. 9, a place they have shared for decades. This area is set to undergo redevelopment, rejuvenating its identity. They will move into new homes, reminiscing about the past, but people's spirits change, cities evolve, society progresses, and the 17th National Congress of the Party heralds a new era of more civilized and prosperous lives for the people. They raise their glasses together and cheer: For happiness—Cheers!