In 1920s French colonial Vietnam, a young French girl from a financially struggling family embarks on a voyage to Saigon to return to her boarding school. Along the way, her life takes an unexpected turn when she meets a wealthy Chinese man who is the heir to a vast fortune. Despite their markedly different backgrounds and the prevailing taboos of the time, an unspoken attraction develops between them.

The pair soon begin a passionate, clandestine love affair, conducting their liaison in a rented room far from the eyes of society. Throughout their relationship, they grapple with cultural and racial prejudices, along with the disapproval of their families and peers. Bound by desire yet divided by their contrasting worlds, the lovers are swept up in an intense connection that defies the rigid conventions of the time.