Master Ma

The series is set in the Warlord Era of early 20th-century China. Ma Yongzhen and his mother, Ma Daniang, live in Shandong Province, where they raise horses for Marshal Duan's army. One night, the stables mysteriously catch fire and the horses are lost. The marshal's men arrest Ma Yongzhen and his mother and are about to execute them for their negligence. However, Ma Yongzhen and his mother fight their way out of the prison and escape to a safe location. Ma Yongzhen later makes his way alone to Shanghai to earn a new living.

In Shanghai, Ma Yongzhen becomes famous after winning a horse race and a martial arts tournament. However, he also gets into trouble with the two most powerful gangs in Shanghai: the White Gang (led by Bai Laili) and the Wuhu Gang (led by Xue Changchun). At the same time, he starts a romance with Xue Changchun's mistress, the opera singer Liu Juchi, but has no chance to be with her. With the help of Duan Lengcui and others, Ma Yongzhen forms the Zhendong Gang to help the poor and fight injustice, unlike the other gangs. At the end of Season 1, Ma Yongzhen and his Zhendong Gang destroy the Wuhu Gang and make an uneasy peace with the White Gang.

Season 2 revolves around a rivalry between Ma Yongzhen and Bai Laili. Bai Laili resorts to various cunning means in his attempt to destroy Ma Yongzhen and the Zhendong Gang. First, he sends his goons to infiltrate the Zhendong Gang and steal a shipment of foreign goods stored in their warehouses. Next, he orders his henchman Tang Biao to assassinate the French consul and frame Ma Yongzhen for the murder. Eventually, with the help of Duan Lengcui's father, who turns out to be Marshal Duan, Ma Yongzhen succeeds in clearing his name and solving the problems. With Marshal Duan to back him up, Ma Yongzhen manages to keep Bai Laili and the White Gang at bay for some time.

At the same time, Ma Yongzhen's feelings for Liu Juchi gradually diminish as he becomes more romantically attracted to Duan Lengcui and they are eventually engaged to be married. Marshal Duan and the Japanese consul convince Ma Yongzhen to support them in opening a hospital to provide medical services for the poor in Shanghai and improve Sino-Japanese ties. However, Ma Yongzhen and his friends later discover that the hospital is actually being used for sinister purposes. Marshal Duan is secretly collaborating with the Japanese to develop biological weapons in the hospital. In return, the Japanese will aid him in defeating the Kuomintang government. At the same time, Ma Yongzhen encounters Kimura, a hostile Japanese karateka who supports Bai Laili and constantly seeks to make trouble for him.