Kingston, 1938. Fourteen-year-old Yang Pao steps off the ship form China with his mother and brother. They are to live with Zhang, the 'godfather' of Chinatown, and Pao is destined to take over his protection business and become a powerful man. He sets his sights on marrying well, but when Gloria Campbell, a black prostitute, comes to him for help he is drawn to her beauty and strength. The begin a relationship that continues even after Pao marries Fay Wong, the headstrong daughter of a Chinese merchant. As political violence escalates in the 1960's the lines between Pao's socialist ideals and private ambitions become blurred. Jamaica is transforming, the tides of change are rising, and the one-time boss of Chinatown finds himself cast adrift...
