Yamashita Takako (Miki Nakatani) works in the food section of a department store. She pays frequent visits to a reputable local Chinese restaurant about opening an in-store branch. The owner of the restaurant, Wang Qingkuo (Tatsuya Fuji) from Shanghai, who does all the cooking by himself, gives Takako the brush-off. One day, however, Wang collapses due to overwork, and is left with partial paralysis. Hearing the rumor of the restaurant's closure, Takako resigns from the department store and becomes an apprentice to Wang.