The film revolves around four threads set in vastly different geographical and social milieus across modern-day China, ranging from the bustling southern metropolis of Guangzhou to the more rural townships in Jia's home province of Shanxi. [3] Set in current times and based on allegedly true events from the recent past, the film also draws on the history of wuxia stories.

Tells the story of a German businessman who rescued more than 200,000 Chinese during the Nanking Massacre in China by courageously negotiating a safety zone to protect innocent civilians from the Japanese Army. Drawing from John Rabe's 1937 diaries as source material, Florian Gallenberger has crafted a portrait of a man revered as a saint in China to this day and yet never rewarded for his courage during his lifetime.