Seventeen-year-old Xu Yun (Xu Yun) leaves the Chinese countryside to search for his father, and finds instead a nightmare vision of survival in the modern city. Traveling with no money and only two ducks as collateral, Xu Yun walks into an urban jungle of gangsters and thieves, throwing his life into danger. He earns the sympathy and support of streetwise hustler Scar (Wang Jie) and a cynical policeman (Liu Xiaopei). Both help Xu Yun find clues to the whereabouts of his father, but their efforts are dashed by a 24-hour flood warning forcing the sudden evacuation of the entire city. Will Xu Yun find his father in time, and if so, will he bring his father back home?