Jean Barnery is a young Protestant pastor living in Barbazac in the Cognac region of France at the beginning of the 20th century. When he learns of his wife Nathalie's infidelity he separates from her, sending her and their young daughter Aline away. At the same time, 20-year-old Pauline Pommerel returns to the village after the death of her father. Jean and Pauline, the independently minded niece of a Cognac distiller, are almost immediately attracted to each other when they first meet at a ball.
Jean divorces the severe and obsessive Nathalie after falling in love with Pauline. He settles his shares in the family's porcelain business in Limoges on Nathalie and their daughter, installing them in an apartment in Paris. He then resigns the ministry and flees a disapproving conservative community.
Bedridden in a Parisian hotel with tuberculosis, Jean is visited during his illness by Pauline. Following his recovery, they marry and establish a new and tranquil life in Switzerland. There, in idyllic surroundings, their love prospers and they start a family of their own. But they have no idea what they must endure in order to stay together for the rest of their lives.
On the death of his father, Jean's family requests he takes over the floundering porcelain business. He feels compelled to accept, ignoring Pauline's wishes and despite predicting the struggle ahead and the strain it will put on their life together. Jean's new responsibilities, their service in the Great War, family rivalry, and modern industrialism are all obstacles that will impact their lives and will determine whether their love is destined to survive the ultimate test of time.
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