The stories of a fox princess have permeated Chinese culture, and other cultures, as well, since the beginning of time. The fox is an object that represents fertility, but this story of Ah Bao is a little different. He comes from a family of fishermen, and though he too is a fisherman, with a boat to fish with, yet he has been unable to catch fish.
He lives during a precarious time in China at the beginning of the 20th Century, and has lost both of his parents, as millions of families have, to the flu pandemic. His best friend, Xin Jun, who he has depended on all his life for counsel, is away in the North fighting for the Southern War Lords alongside the Boxers. Added to these uncertainties Ah Bao finds something unusual has begun happening to his boat.