Set in a Shandong village during the crucial Menglianggu Campaign between communists and nationalists in 1947, the film follows six women from various families as the (largely offscreen) civil war impacts their feudal existence.

"The Gathering" tells the story of Xiao Mei who has a crush on one of her schoolmates, Fang Tai. However, her mother disapproves of the puppy love between the two. After her mother`s death, Xiao Mei starts attending the yearly gathering with her old schoolmates in hope of meeting Fang Tai once again.

The civil war in China has ruined many lives including General Pang's. A wounded General Pang is saved by a beautiful young woman along with two other men. Together they vow to eradicate the rebels.

After the death of her father, a woman is forced to take over as empress and fight to save her kingdom.

Su Qi-Er, a wealthy man living during the Qing Dynasty who loses his fortune and reputation as a result of a conspiracy against him. After being forced out onto the streets, Su dedicates his life to martial arts and reemerges as a patriotic hero known as the "King of Beggars."

Yu Hong leaves her home village and starts university in Beijing, where she develops a consuming and compulsive relationship with another student. The student riots from 1989 then ensue and take a toll on their lives.

In Hong Kong, Dr. Gao Jing is introduced to photographer and diver Dave Chen Guo Dong. They fall in love and Guo Dong invites Gao Jing to travel to Taiwan to visit an ancient submarine city, where he intends to propose. During the dive, Guo Dong vanishes, and Gao Jing is unable to recall what happened underwater. Her investigations open her eyes to something far more than she ever expected.

Rookie policeman Tai Lin yearned to be an artist before he failed an examination and followed in his father's footsteps. One day he interrupts an apparent suicide attempt by a woman standing on the edge of a bridge.