The busy docks of the Shanghai Bund

In the 1840's, the crumbling Manchu (Qing) Dynasty signed treaties with several European countries, including England, France, and America, opening up the walled city of Shanghai to foreign trade. On the heels of these agreements came "territoriality" privileges, which meant that citizens of the treaty countries, while in Shanghai, did not live under the jurisdiction of China. They were governed by the laws of their own countries, and the regulations set down by the Shanghai Municipal Council. "One missionary said, "If God lets Shanghai survive, then He owes an apology to Sodom and Gomorrah."

Du Yue-Sheng, the real-life model for Leo's nemesis, Liu Tue-Sheng

Within a few years Shanghai became an unofficial country within a country. From the 1840's, until just before World War II, it was the only place in the civilized world where you could enter without a passport or a visa, and just set up shop. Whether your business was legitimate or completely criminal did not matter. Opium smugglers mingled easily with bankers and industrialists. Chinese peasants froze to death on streets where Europeans threw sable covers on their cars to keep the interior from getting too cold.

The paradoxical nature of Shanghai was expressed by its nicknames. Because it was easily the grandest city in Asia during its heyday, Shanghai was called the "Paris of the East," (a title it shared with Budapest, which was a good deal further west). It was also called the "Paradise for Adventurers" and "The Whore of Asia." When men were kidnapped or coerced into involuntary servitude, especially to work on ships, it was said that they'd been "Shanghai-ed." Because of the minimal entry requirements, over 20,000 Jews survived the Holocaust by escaping to Shanghai.

For further information about Old Shanghai, try these websites:
www.chinajewish.org/JewishHistory.htm
www.talesofoldchina.com