Towards the Republic, also known as For the Sake of the Republic and Zou Xiang Gong He, is a Chinese historical television series first broadcast on CCTV in China from April to May 2003. The series is based on events that occurred in China between the late 19th century and early 20th century that led to the collapse of the Qing Dynasty and the founding of the Republic of China. Owing to its portrayal of historical issues deemed politically sensitive by the Chinese government, the series has been subject to censorship in mainland China.

The protagonist, Juxiang, is a very ambitious rural girl. However, her destiny is not to live easy life. After graduating from high school, she was recommended to go to university, but someone replaces her. She is fierce and capable, and is leading her natal family, but she is squeezed out by her unmarried sister-in-law. In order not to affect her brother's marriage, she declared in front of the villagers that she would marry herself within fifteen days. They asked her to meet Li Dazhu, but the man is too honest and almost useless. At a glance, he fell in love with capable Li Erzhu. Later, Dazhu shows more and more generosity, sincerity, and down-to-earth nature, while Erzhu's narrow-mindedness and impetuousness proved that Juxiang still misjudged him. After Juxiang gots married, she is not satisfied with the status quo of family poverty. She works hard to make the family live a better life.

Set in the eponymous White Deer Village in Shaanxi Province where the two most important families – Bai and Lu – and their sons have always lived together in peace. But the turmoil leads to a fierce struggle for land ownership. A young woman new to the village soon finds herself caught between the two camps. Director Liu Jin uses the story of these two families as a metaphor for the fate of the Chinese people as first Chinese war lords are overrun by Japanese invaders, then civil war follows hot on the heels of the Second World War and finally the victorious Maoists begin waving their red flags. The drama is based off the novel by Chen Zhong Shi.