With his parents busied by the toils of daily life during the subsidy days, little Minh's grandmother is closest to him in the family. Until one day...

In early-80s' Hanoi, a director of a state-owned factory welcomes his wife, a journalist, into a changed home after she spent some time away. As she struggles to make sense of their new wealth, he struggles to avoid embezzlement charges by a poor inspector—who turns out to be an old friend of hers.

Discharged from the Army after losing an arm in the battlefield, Lê Vân returns home. He seeks to help rebuild it, but realises that a life spent fighting has made him disconnected from the villagers and their ideas.

In the final days of the war, Duyên faces a daily struggle to take care of her young son and ailing father-in-law, all the while hiding from them the fact that her husband has recently been killed in battle.

Hai duong trang was produced in 1994 as a dramatic crime romance film. The film comes from a real character - the infamous robber general Bach Hai Duong.