Grace Under Fire

MOK KWAI-LAN has been looking for her sworn brother YAU SUM-SHUI, who is a waiter of Fook Yue Kui restaurant, everywhere. She finds him gambling in an illegal boxing gymnasium at last. SHUI has bet on dark horse LUI CHING-LUNG, nicknamed the IRON MONEY. He is on his way to collect his prize money, but somebody else picks up his stub. He has a fight with that person.

HUNG stops his students from teaching WAI a good lesson. WAI leaves Po Chi Lam after HUNG has refused to fight with him. LUNG has left his medicine. LAN takes it to his home. A man with leprosy attacks her as she enters the house. The man is LUI KONG, LUNG’s father.

YIP tells HUNG his colleagues have been released. He blames HUNG for dealing with bigwigs, saying that they can settle the matter without them. HUNG does not say a word about the truth. LAN sees HUNG talking to WAI when she is having late supper with SHUI. LAN and SHUI follow HUNG and WAI to the countryside, where the two kung fu masters have a fight.

LING WAN-KAI bails YIP out. When they are home, HUNG requests YIP to quit his job. YIP accuses HUNG of dealing with bigwigs. The father and son end up in discord. HANG reports to the mayor that he has closed all the illegal casinos in Guangzhou. The mayor commends on his good work done, saying that he will make a very good potential mayor candidate. LAN is taking medicine to LUNG’s when she hears someone calling other people to deal with a leprosy man.

The deadline for repaying FA’s debt is approaching but SHUI is still $250 short. A customer is not satisfied with the Sweet and Sour Sparerib of Fook Yue Kui. FA bets FOOK $250 to see who will cook the best Sweet and Sour Sparerib. It turns out she is a superb cook. FOOK employs her as second chef. HANG has been invited to make a speech at a Buddhist Festival event.

FA invites FOOK to have congee in Li Wan by writing him a note. YUET-FUNG, his wife, follows him to Li Wan preparing to catch him red-handed. When she breaks into the room, she is surprised to see SHUI is also there. SHUI lies that he is having a date with FA in order to help FOOK out. LUNG is being bullied by some hooligans.

PING refuses to let SHUI learn kung fu from HUNG. SHUI leaves home in anger. LUNG works as a coolie at the pier. LAN visits him and then watches him practice kung fu. Although YIP manages to sneak into the accountant’s house, he fails to take away his ledgers. The accountant and his wife are attacked at train station when they are fleeing Guangzhou. PING finally agrees to let SHUI learn kung fu with HUNG. He also decides to teach LAN the Mok’s Fist.

HUNG pays a visit to the Chun Wah Daily, which has just resumed business. CHENG-CHI, the Chief of the Daily, tells him the paper is able to re-open with the support of Guangzhou East Governor TUNG MING. Meanwhile, HANG and the media have arrived. HANG congratulates YIP, though he has never hated HUNG so much. A woman is selling her daughter on the street. FA stops her, for the girl reminds her of her own miserable childhood.

HUNG is having tea with YIP. FOOK shows up with PING. PING wishes that HUNG would take SHUI as his student. HUNG will not change his mind though. HUNG and YIP leave the restaurant for the train station, where they are picking up HON-BONG, HUNG’s eldest son. They brush past KONG, who under the arrangement of HANG has returned to Guangzhou. SHUI is on his knees when HUNG and his sons get back to Po Chi Lam, pleading for HUNG’s forgiveness.

FA hears people blaming SHUI for YIP’s death when she is having dinner with LUNG. She goes up to SHUI’s help at once. HUNG is utterly devastated. LUNG is impressed by his love for YIP. LEE FAN, younger brother of PIU-HUNG, second wife of HANG, has been involved in YIP’s death. He asks PI-HUNG to help him flee. PIU-HUNG threatens TSUI HING-TO to give her a hand.

The inquest is held today and SHUI is convicted of murder. His execution will be carried out three days later. KWONG, FAN’s follower, prays for blessings for his unborn son at a temple with his wife. LAN and FA see them. Believing KWONG is in the know of SHUI’s frame-up, LAN calls on KWONG’s house with FA. They tell KWONG’s wife god will not bless her son if KWONG does not tell the truth.

Paying no attention to his doctor’s advice, KONG visits Po Chi Lam. SUET-KIU is cycling in the countryside. She takes KONG to Po Chi Lam, believing he is a friend of HUNG. By the time HANG learns that KONG is visiting HUNG, KONG has already returned to the villa. KONG has decided to let go of his grudge against HUNG. He tells HANG to look for LUNG. HANG is disappointed. His life spared, SHUI is sentenced to prison for three months for creating trouble in public area.

BONG has gone missing. KAI has failed to find him. As he is reporting this to HUNG, LAN appears with BONG. FA runs into LUNG when she is taking DI to an orphanage and so he goes with them. KONG looks for LUNG in their old house but LUNG is not there. He goes into a church afterwards. KONG does not agree with what the pastor says about everyone can let go of his hatred, but KIU’s explanation changed his mind.

HUNG and KONG go looking for LUNG. The pier is on fire. KONG is very worried. LUNG and his colleagues are being buried under goods. HUNG goes to their rescue. HUNG apologizes to KONG for humiliating him twenty years go. Surprisingly, KONG accepts his apology readily. The mayor is visiting Japan soon. Before he goes, he calls for a meeting, during which he announces that MING will act for him while he is away.

Fook Yue Kui has very few customers today. A customer tells FOOK the newspaper report of the outbreak of rat plague. LUNG has contracted plague and fainted. His colleague informs KONG. FA takes herbal medicine to LUNG. Blood serum can treat plague disease but it costs a hundred dollars. After much effort, FA has finally managed to collect a hundred dollars. Unfortunately, the money is stolen at the hospital. LUNG has been treated with blood serum.

SHUI, who smells stink, goes to the movie with FA. He proposes to her suddenly, catching her totally unprepared. KONG works as a docker. Someone appears from nowhere and takes away his goods. He does not know until later then that they are blood serum. PING says over breakfast that he regards FA as SHUI’s future wife.

SHUI takes FA away on the quiet so that she will not be isolated. HUNG confirms that FA has been infected with plague. He insists on sending her to the hospital. He also takes care of the patients in the hospital. LAN, impressed, follows suit. KIU faints as she is looking after patients. She is diagnosed with plague.

The mayor calls for a meeting as soon as he has returned to Guangzhou. Having failed to keep the plague situation under control, MING claims that he will stand down. The situation of plague is finally under control. The City Hall is throwing a celebration party. Officials from the City Hall call on Po Chi Lam to invite HUNG and his apprentices to the party.

HANG gives KONG his old house as present and encourages him to open a martial art club to counter HUNG. SHUI works as a bodyguard at a brothel. PING is very upset about this. LUNG has been waiting for KONG at Shaoguan train station for a whole day but KONG is nowhere to be seen. Dinner is ready when he returns to the inn. To FA’s huge disappointment, instead of starting to eat, he sits down to write a letter to LAN.

As soon as LAN has returned to Guangzhou she heads straight to Po Chi Lam to express her feelings for HUNG. PING thinks it is unwise for her to have agreed to marry HUNG, who is old enough to be her father. HANG has invited the mayor to the opening of the Lui’s Martial Arts School. KONG is very excited. Members of the Guangzhou Martial Arts Association have come to create trouble.

A boxing ring has been set up when the kung fu masters arrive at the Five Storey Restaurant. Standing in the middle of the ring, KONG challenges them to a kung fu contest. He also announces that the winner will become the president of the Guangzhou Martial Arts Association. LUNG blames KONG for stirring up troubles at Po Chi Lam.

HUNG throws a wedding banquet at Po Chi Lam. PING shows up unexpectedly. It turns out he has already forgiven LAN. KONG and his disciples have come, too. SHUI presents HUNG with a tortoise with its head withdrawn, satirizing him for being a coward. A fight between the two sides is about to begin when PING suddenly requests the bride and groom to serve him a cup of “tea for thankfulness”.

Now that LAN has become a family, HUNG decides to teach her the Tiger and Crane Fist. FUNG has a stomachache. LUNG takes her to hospital. When FOOK arrives at the hospital, FUNG tells him to tell KONG the truth. FOOK, KONG and LUNG have a conversation in the room. SHUI eavesdrops on them outside.

MING breaks into HANG’s office, accusing him of assassinating the mayor. Ironically, he ends up being forced to support HANG to be the next mayor. LUNG sees LAN leave Po Chi Lam in anger. The Police Department has forbidden Po Chi Lam from practicing medicine. So she goes to the City Hall to complain to HANG. SHUI tells LAN and LUNG to leave.

TOKUGAWA KAZUO is interested in buying UNCLE CHUNG’s shipyard. He asks HANG to mediate for him. SHUI volunteers to do the job. UNCLE CHUNG calls on HANG. He gets severely beaten up by TO and his men. KIU supports UNCLE CHUNG with her hand when they leave. SHUI goes up to help UNCLE CHUNG, his intention of course is to win his trust.

LAN teaches kung fu in Shun Fung Lane. MONKEY is her first student. TOKUGAWA KAZUO has arranged a position for SHUI in the City Hall. TO makes things difficult for him the day he reports duty. KIU is handing out rice to victims of the rat plague. She invites SHUI to join her.

LAN has been arrested. MONKEY gathers together his neighbors to demand the release of LAN and her students at the police station. FA turns up unexpectedly. Only LAN is set free in the end. SHUI and KIU’s wedding ceremony is held in a church, followed by a banquet at the TONG’s. TO and MUI leave the house in the middle of the banquet. HANG’s people discover them.

HANG assigns TO’s duties to SHUI. KIU is pleased that her husband has won the trust of her father. LAN takes BONG and MONKEY back to Foshan, where she finds HUNG’s kung fu notes. A Japanese man named MATSUMOTO has opened up a karate school called Dansuiryu School in Guangzhou. KONG and other kung fu masters visit him.

LAN studies HUNG’s notes. With the hint of FOK KOON-WA, a kung fu master from the north, she manages to grasp more about martial arts. KIU has been taking good care of HANG since he fell ill. He apologizes to her. He also regrets how bad he had been to her in the past. Out of SHUI’s expectation, HANG puts forward a series of measures to deal with the Japanese so as to ease the public’s worry.

SHUI tries to prevent LAN from taking part in the contest. In his capacity of president of the Guangzhou Martial Arts Association, KONG declares the ban on Po Chi Lam be lifted. LAN is therefore eligible to participate. LUNG practices kung fu with LAN. KONG shows up out of the blue. In addition to sharing with them his experience of fighting with MATSUMOTO, he practices with LUNG.

MATSUMOTO has made a mistake. KONG points it out to LAN. Although she has been at a disadvantage position, she is not a bit discouraged. She pulls herself together, wages a vigorous attack on MATSUMOTO and defeats him. She has become the Chief Kung Fu Trainer. FA and KONG run into the absent-minded KIU.

Po Chi Lam is on fire. FA, MONKEY and BONG have failed to run away. Unable to find HANG’s diary, the firemen decide to withdraw. LAN and LUNG risk their lives to go back inside, where they find MONKEY and BONG. LAN reunites with FOOK and FUNG at last. FOOK analyzes the present circumstance.