Once Upon a Time in China

Liu Yongfu invites Wong Fei-hung aboard his ship to watch a lion dance. The celebration is interrupted when French sailors misinterpret the firecrackers as gunfire and return fire, injuring the dancers. Wong seizes the lion head and completes the performance, earning the crew's respect.

Liu presents Wong with a hand fan inscribed with all the unequal treaties China signed with foreign powers. The gift underscores China’s precarious position in a world dominated by foreign powers. Wong regards it as a stark reminder of the challenges ahead.

Wong Fei-hung is the martial arts instructor of the local militia and runs the Po-chi-lam clinic. He mentors three apprentices: Porky Wing, Bucktooth So, and Kai, while meeting Siu-kwan, the daughter of a sworn brother of his grandfather, known as 13th Aunt. A quiet romance brews but is tempered by social norms.

Leung Foon arrives in Foshan with an opera troupe to stage performances. He encounters 13th Aunt by chance and, after a few clumsy moments, develops a crush on her. This budding romance threads through Foshan’s social circles.

The Shaho Gang terrorizes Foshan, extorting money from local businesses and spreading fear. A fight breaks out between the gang and Wong's militia in a restaurant while Wong is meeting the Governor, and the gang flees when they realize they’re no match for Wong.

Wong tracks down the Shaho Gang's leader, defeats him, and captures him. However, the authorities release the leader due to a lack of witnesses willing to testify against him.

Yim, a northern martial artist nicknamed Iron Vest, arrives in Foshan and decides to follow Wong's example. He hopes to prove himself and eventually start a martial arts school in Foshan.

The Shaho Gang burns Po-chi-lam in revenge. A Jesuit priest identifies the gang as responsible, prompting them to flee and seek shelter under Jackson, an American businessman who runs an underground trafficking operation. In exchange for protection from foreigners, the Shaho Gang helps Jackson run his illicit enterprise.

While Wong and the Governor attend an opera, Jackson's men and the Shaho Gang ambush them, wounding many civilians. The priest who blocks a fatal shot from Jackson's right-hand man Tiger is killed, and the Governor blames Wong but allows him to tend the injured.

In the clinic, a labourer who escaped from America recounts his mistreatment there, deepening Wong's sympathy and resolve. Meanwhile Yim issues a challenge to Wong for a rematch, intensifying the rivalry between them.

The Governor orders a sweep of Po-chi-lam for fugitives. Wong and his apprentices resist and are imprisoned, while 13th Aunt and the labourer escape; Bucktooth So slips away to warn Wong. The situation escalates as the authorities tighten their grip.

Wong and his apprentices disguise themselves to infiltrate Jackson's base to rescue 13th Aunt. Yim challenges Wong again during the raid, and Wong defeats him, revealing that Yim had been cheating with a hidden spearhead. The team overcomes Shaho Gang and Jackson's men, freeing 13th Aunt and the kidnapped women.

Yim arrives to resume his rematch but is fatally shot by Jackson's men. As he dies, he tells Wong that martial arts stand no chance against guns, a bitter epitaph to the duel between tradition and modern firepower.

During the climactic fight on Jackson's ship, the Shaho Gang's leader is killed after being pushed into a furnace. Jackson holds the Governor hostage, but Wong flicks an unused bullet into Jackson's forehead, killing him and saving the Governor.

With the danger ended, Wong accepts Leung as his fourth apprentice. The film ends with a group photo in Po-chi-lam, signaling new beginnings and the strengthening of Wong's circle.