An ambitious farmer Henry Whipple discusses with his 20-year-old son Dean about the art of sales. Dean is reluctant to be as ruthless as his father as they offer condolences and also unscrupulously attempt to purchase land during a family funeral. After returning home, Henry rolls out the red carpet for his eldest son Grant, who has left the farm and mentions returning via a postcard, but it appears that he's unlikely to return. As the story progresses, we see that Henry is having an affair with Meredith Crown, his ex-girlfriend from high school, and his ongoing selfish decisions will continue to derail his future. He has created enemies within the genetically modified (GMO) seed-selling business including Jim Johnson—his main competitor—and fails to help those that have helped him by buying cheaper illegal "cleaned" seeds in his search for more money and land.
