Honoring courage in the line of duty

Interestingly, in the first several episodes, the story takes place in snowy northeastern China, depicting scenes from the daily lives and work of police officers. One scene shows a police captain cooking pork bone soup in his office.

"During scriptwriter Xu's research, she discovered that many police officers often have to stake out suspects for long periods during investigations, resulting in irregular meal times. Struggling with digestive issues, they need to eat warm food," explains the director. "These scenes are inspired by real-life situations. However, with the implementation of standardized management in recent years, cooking in offices is no longer a common practice."

Due to the cases occurring in various cities across the country, Hui led the crew in overcoming a variety of natural challenges, including placing heaters under cameras to ensure they functioned in — 40 C in Hegang, as well as enduring hot and humid conditions exceeding 40 C in Chongqing.

The drama concluded its initial run on China Central Television's CCTV-8 in late December and was subsequently broadcast on Beijing Satellite TV and Shanghai's Dragon TV, setting a record by reaching over 1.1 billion program subscribers.

With a rating of 7.7 out of 10 on the popular review aggregator Douban, the show has garnered acclaim from both critics and industry insiders. Wang Yichuan, vice-chairman of the China Literature and Art Critics Association, remarks that the drama offers viewers a vivid experience, immersing them in the process of solving mysteries alongside the officers, thus setting a good reference for the future creation of Chinese crime investigation dramas.