THE GREATEST CIVIL WAR ON EARTH

(Synopsis)

Lee Sze-pao (Liu En-chia), a Northerner, opens a swanky tailor shop next to the old-fashioned tailor shop of Chang San-po (Leung Hsing-po) who is assisted by his daughter, Li-chen (Christina Pai Lu-ming). Lee starts his business with a bang by giving a lavish cocktail party, much to the displeasure of his Cantonese neighbour. San-po's dislike for Northerner Lee is aggravated by the fact that the latter has coincidentally rented a room next to his in the same flat.

Lee's daughter, Tsui-hua (Kitty Ting Hao) is an air hostess. Back home from a flight, she is visited by Northerner Wang Wen-an (Lei Chen) who is a passenger and has soiled her uniform carelessly. To apologize, he invites her to a movie in the evening. Wen-an catches sight of Li-chen and admires her very much. Tsui-hua's Cantonese boy friend, Mak Yung-hui (Chang Ching), drops in shortly after Wen-an leaves the house. Yung-hui also wants to take her to the movie the same evening, but has to take Li-chen, who happens to be his cousin, to the same show. By exchanging their seats in the dark, the girls manage to sit according to their original plan. Thus Wen-an is very much embarrassed when he finds out that while he is asking Tsui-hua to help him to get better acquainted with Li-chen, he is actually speaking to Li-chen in person.

Back in the tailor shops, Lee grabs business by offering fat commissions to tourist guides, while San-po loses ground steadily. The contrast irritates San-po so much that he forbids his daughter to befriend Tsui- hua and Wen-an because they are Northerners. Lee, on the other hand, has the same kind of prejudice and is against his daughter's marrying her Cantonese boy friend, Yung-hui.

As the major volume of Lee's business comes from vacationing sailors, the sudden departure of a unit of navy vessels drives Lee to near bankruptcy. To meet various payments, Lee tries to borrow some money and much to his humiliation the money-lender happens to be San-po who, of course, turns him down. To get even with San-po, Lee succeeds in convincing San-po's partner that San-po is not entirely honest and it is better to break up the partnership； Thanks to the timely appearance of Wang Wen-an, who is very wealthy, all debt-collectors promise not to press Lee for money any further. Mak Yung-hui, on the other hand, buys the share from San-po's partner, thus saving him from further embarrassment. Both San-po and Lee are overwhelmed with joy at being told of the heavenly sent support from the two young men.

The two warring families finally become a big family after Wen-an arranges to merge the two shops into one：——“The United Tailors.”