Sérgio Cardoso

Delfino, a quiet man who lives in Congonhas do Campo, a small historical town in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, is urged by his friend to steal the image of the Madona de Cedro (the Cedar Madonna), sculpted by Aleijadinho in the 18th century, from the town sanctuary.

Jorge, an ambitious journalist, marries into money and betrays colleagues to become a powerful politician during political turmoil in 1946 Brazil.

The story takes place in a mansion in the Jardim América neighborhood of São Paulo. The lonely Rodrigo, a wealthy man from Rio Grande do Sul, lives with seven ambitious women who plan to swindle him out of his fortune: the flight attendants Regina and Cláudia, the showgirl Ciça, Madalena, Dulce, Dinorah, and the manicurist Suzete.

The soap opera told the story of Fernando Dalba, or Nando, a fruit vendor who works with his mother, the Baroness, and his friends Gino and Guiomar. His life changes after he meets the wealthy widow Cristina Guimarães, owner of a beauty salon, who decides to teach him how to behave like a man of high society. Cristina's intention is to win a bet, but she falls in love with Nando, who is engaged to Candinha.

Professor Luciano Lima arrives in the fictional town of Nova Esperança to take over as principal of a school. A widower, he hires a governess to take care of his four children: Júnior, Babi, Zizi, and Rui. The professor and the governess, Paula, fall in love, but the romance faces strong resistance from the children, especially Babi, the most rebellious of the four. Luciano also encounters difficulties at the school. His former girlfriend, English teacher Maria do Carmo, does everything she can to steal his position as principal. Meanwhile, a group of maladjusted and rebellious students, led by the biker Rafa, disrupts the school environment and bothers the other students. In this scenario, Giovana, a young psychologist hired by Luciano to help him deal with the rebellious students, emerges. She ends up forming a love triangle with Paula and the professor.

The story, inspired by Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel of the same name – which fueled the abolitionist movement in the United States – depicts the conflict between enslaved American cotton planters and wealthy landowners in the South. The fight for freedom is led by Uncle Tom and his wife Chloe.