"Punishment" is a suspense crime drama set against the background of real events and telling the story of two generations of criminal police who are not afraid of sacrifice to uphold justice. The play takes a vicious case as the entrance, and through the perspective of young criminal police Chang Zheng (played by Huang Jingyu), it tells the heroic story of two generations of public security officers and police officers who are not afraid of hardships and dangers to maintain the peace of one party and sweep away criminal gangs.
In the small city of Changwu (fictionally), on the front line of the battle, Chang Zheng, deputy captain of the criminal investigation brigade, is caught in a whirlpool due to the long-term pursuit of the powerful Zhao Xiaosheng family. Procurator Zhao Pengcheng (played by Wang Yang) was brutally killed, and all clues pointed to Chang Zheng, so that he must find the real murderer within three days and prove his innocence. The Binjiang Provincial Criminal Investigation Corps sent a secret investigation team to thoroughly investigate Zhao's family.
Yan Guohua (played by Li Youbin), known as the "godfather of the police", laid out a "one light and one dark" route to solve the case, secretly helped Chang Zheng, and locked the fourth elder of the Zhao family, Zhao Pengchao (played by Yang Youning), who was the behind-the-scenes operator of a series of new conspiracies. As the facts of the case surfaced, it was not only the unsolved case twenty-eight years ago, but also the mystery of Chang Zheng's life. Chang Zheng faces a huge tear between family love and fairness and justice, and always endures the sudden turn of personal fate, the test of life and death.
The play attracts the audience with a tense and exciting rhythm and a complex and twisting plot. The most exciting part of the play is the duel between Chang Zheng and Zhao Pengchao. The two are both rivals and brothers, and they compete with each other legally and morally, showing the light and darkness of human nature. Huang Jingyu and Yang Youning both interpreted the inner world and emotional changes of their respective characters with superb acting skills. Their sparks on the screen are dazzling. Other actors also have excellent performances, especially Jin Yan played by Gai Yuexi, she is Chang Zheng's strongest and gentlest supporter, and the emotional line between her and Chang Zheng is also very moving.
"Punishment" is an excellent work worth watching. It not only demonstrates the spirit of the criminal police who fight tirelessly for justice, but also explores the boundaries and conflicts between law and morality. It allows us to see the complexity and multifaceted nature of human nature, and it also makes us think about what is punishment and what is atonement.