Grace Under Fire (女拳)

English Name: Grace Under Fire

Chinese Name: 女拳

Genre: Period Drama and Martial Arts

Network: TVB

Episodes: 32


Cast:


Bosco Wong as Lui Ching-Lung

Kenneth Ma as Yau Sam-Shui

Dominic Lam as Lui Kong

Liu Xuan as Mok Kwai-Lan

Law Lok-Lam as Mok Ping

Fala Chen as Kwai Fa

John Chiang as Wong Fei-Hung

Kenny Wong as Fok Koon-Wai

Elliot Ngok as Tong Yat-Hung

Raymond Wong as Wong Hon-Yip

Ka Ki Leung as Shuet-Kiu


Plot:

Mok Kwai-Lan (Liu Xuan) is an ordinary girl working as a water labourer in one of Guangzhou's most famous restaurants. She lives in a simple and steady lifestyle with her uncle, Mok Ping (Law Lok-lam), and Mok Ping's adopted son, Yau Sam-Shui (Kenneth Ma). She is best friends with the beautiful Kwai Fa (Fala Chen), an assistant chef working in the same restaurant as her. Longing for Kwai Fa's affections, Yau Sam-shui hopes to become a student of Wong Fei-Hung (John Chiang), the greatest martial artist of Guangzhou, in order to impress her. Mok Kwai-Lan, originally disinterested in martial arts, becomes spellbound by the sport after watching an intense fight between Wong Fei-Hung and Fok Koon-Wai (Kenny Wong).

Wong Fei-Hung is touched by Yau Sam-Shui's enthusiasm and agrees to teach him and Kwai-Lan, but Mok Ping is strongly against it. He believes they would become aggressive and domineering if they learned kung fu. Kwai-Lan disagrees and argues that kung fu is for self protection. Her unyielding determination overwhelmsMok Ping, and Kwai-Lan learns from him that she is the only descendant of the Mok Gar family fighting style. As Kwai-Lan's father died from a kung fu match, Mok Ping does not want Kwai-Lan to meet the same fate. Wong Fei-Hung sees a lot of potential in Kwai-Lan and convinces Mok Ping to teach her the styles of Mok Gar. Mok Ping finally agrees, simultaneously allowing Yau Sam-Shui to become Wong Fei-hung's student. Yau Sam-Shui, now proud and egotistical, begins abusing his newfound martial arts skill.

Meanwhile, Kwai-Lan meets the unsociable and eccentric young boxer Lui Ching-Lung (Bosco Wong) in an underground martial arts arena. As soon as she finds out that his father Lui Kong (Dominic Lam) is sick with leprosy, she immediately asks for Wong Fei-hung's help. However, Lui Kong does not appreciate Wong Fei-hung's hospitality and blames him for destroying his family. Twenty years ago, Lui Kong was once Guangzhou's champion in the Lui Gar fighting style. Wong Fei-hung, already famous for his martial arts in Foshan, challenged Lui Kong to a duel. The two swore an oath: whoever lost the duel would have to leave Guangzhou. Wong Fei-hung defeated Lui Kong, but Lui Kong's wife fell ill, postponing his leave. Wong Fei-hung, drunk from a celebratory dinner, disgraced Lui Kong in public and claimed him to be dishonourable for not keeping his promises. In a rage, Lui Kong quickly leaves the city by night with his sick wife and their infant son Ching-Lung. As a result, Lui Kong's wife died and Lui Kong contracted leprosy. From then on, Kong and Ching-Lung struggle through a life of discrimination and instability.

Lui Ching-lung, inexperienced in martial arts, seeks revenge for his father and attempts to kill Wong Fei-hung in public, but is quickly defeated by Wong Fei-hung. Wong Fei-hung, however, apologises to Lui Ching-Lung for his mistakes and advises Lui Ching-Lung to pick up more martial arts before coming back for revenge. Lui Ching-Lung is touched by Wong Fei-hung's generosity and decides to become his student. He develops a crush on Kwai-Lan, also winning the affections of Kwai-Fa, much to Yau Sam-Shui's jealousy. Lui Kong, sick and shamed by losing to Wong Fei-hung once again, attempts to commit suicide but is saved by Tong Yuet-Hang (Elliot Ngok), Guangzhou's chief commissioner. Tong Yuet-Hang talks Lui Kong in starting his life over, and suggests him to rebuild the Lui Gar martial arts school in order to compete with Wong Fei-hung's Po Chi Lam. Amidst facing the threats and attacks against Po Chi Lam, Kwai-Lan and Wong Fei-hung grow closer. Kwai-Lan not only helps Wong Fei-hung in facing Lui Kong's duel challenge, she also saves Po Chi Lam from collapsing. The two begin to fall in love, and Kwai-lan, being forty years younger than Wong Fei-hung, marries him despite Mok Ping's objections.

Jealous of Kwai Fa's love for Lui Ching-Lung and exhausted from being constantly looked down upon, Yau Sam-Shui abandons Wong Fei-hung and becomes Lui Kong's disciple, assisting Tong Yuet-Hang and Lui Kong in tarnishing Po Chi Lam's image. Wong Fei-hung, weak from an injury, is defeated from a duel against Lui Kong and loses his title as Guangzhou's number one martial artist. As he watches Tong Yuet-Hang and Lui Kong's corrupted governance over Guangzhou, Wong Fei-hung falls fatally ill. Before he dies, Wong Fei-hung teaches all his knowledge of medicine and martial arts to Kwai-lan. For more power, Yau Sam-Shui marries Tong Yuet-Hang's daughter Shuet-Kiu (Ka ki Leung). He becomes a spy for the Japanese merchant Tokugawa Kazuo and gains control of all of Tong Yuet-Hang's business and political jobs, later becoming the co-mayor of Guangzhou. The Japanese merchants and fighters gain control of Guangzhou's economy and martial arts schools, forcing Po Chi Lam out of business. In an attempt to protect himself and his daughter, Tong Yuet-Hang tries to release information of Yau Sam-Shui's secret collaborations with the Japanese to the public, but is murdered by Yau Sam-Shui before he could do so. Kwai-lan, hiding in Foshan with Lui Ching-Lung, returns to Guangzhou and wins in a fight with the Japanese martial artists, reviving the pride of Chinese martial arts. She finds evidence of Yau Sam-shui's crimes and tries to convince him back on the right path. Yau Sam-Shui, already maniacal and in a point of no return, starts a fire to burn Po Chi Lam down to the ground...

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