The big screen in the screening hall.
The funeral scene blurred, and Zhang Haisheng reappeared amidst the heroine's opening and closing inquiries.
At this moment, the audience in the hall held their breath, watching the screen nervously.
Fans of the original novel didn't want Zhang Haisheng to have a tragic ending in the movie as depicted in the book.
Other viewers worried about the consequences if Zhang Haisheng's true identity was revealed, hoping it wouldn't end tragically.
In the movie, the funeral served as a backdrop, and Zhang Haisheng's fate unfolded with the theme song.
In the dim light, Zhang Haisheng, portrayed by Gao Fei, appeared in a small dark room.
Tied to a chair and struggling, a criminal with his back to the camera injected him with a syringe.
As the drug took effect, his gaze became unfocused, and his expression turned vacant.
As the drug eroded Zhang Haisheng's nerves, a sharp, cold blade appeared before the camera.
The next second, a streak of blood covered the lens.
When the camera refocused, Zhang Haisheng lay in a pool of blood, his limbs severed, and his eyes, tongue, and nose brutally cut off.
Although the movie faithfully recreated the novel's content, the atmosphere in the screening hall became suffocating upon seeing this scene.
The audience's moods also grew heavy.
The film was not yet over. After Zhang Haisheng was murdered by the criminal, new scenes appeared.
Blinding flames illuminated the screening hall, and desperate screams could be heard from a house engulfed in fire.
In the frame, Zhang Haisheng's family, who had only appeared once at the beginning – his parents and sister – perished in the inferno.
Similarly, the dance hall Zhang Haisheng had illegally opened for Yang Xiaoxiao was reduced to ashes in an explosion.
In the final shot, Yang Xiaoxiao was repeatedly stabbed in the abdomen and back by masked assailants.
She collapsed in a pool of blood, her eyes slowly closing, her breath ceasing.
Thus, the main content of the film "Black and White Edge" concluded.
Those with weaker emotional resilience quietly wiped away their tears.
Others clenched their fists, their eyes red as they stared at the darkening screen.
Just as everyone thought the film had ended, the darkened screen suddenly lit up again, and the theme song gradually swelled.
"All, are brave, the wound on your forehead, your difference, the mistakes you made...
All, need not be hidden, your worn-out doll, your mask, your true self..."
As the low humming of the theme song began, a night scene appeared on screen. All individuals featured were pixelated, accompanied by text descriptions.
[The following footage is a real record, authorized for public release by the General Police Department.]
[In XXXX, March 24th, on our country's southwestern border, the M City Anti-Drug Brigade received intelligence that a small truck was carrying contraband across the border. Following pursuit and investigation, the truck contained five criminals, each armed with firearms... On the evening of the 24th, our city's brigade launched a raid to apprehend them...]
After the subtitles appeared, the theme music faded, and the original audio from the arrest footage emerged, though all voices were distorted.
"The truck is trying to break through the checkpoint, Old Li, Ah Cai, go after it and stop it..."
As the command was given, a black SUV and a black sedan sped onto the road, blocking the center.
However, the truck did not stop but instead violently rammed into them.
Forced to a halt, the criminals inside immediately retaliated.
Gunfire and shouts erupted, muzzle flashes illuminating the screen...
"There's a bomb, be careful..."
With a boom, flames surged, but the gunfire did not cease.
The footage captured by the recording device shook continuously before turning black.
Watching the thrilling arrest scene, the audience's hearts were in their throats, filled with tension.
A moment later, the scene reappeared, revealing utter chaos on the ground, accompanied by the commander's urgent shouts.
"Quick, call an ambulance, call an ambulance..."
[In this operation, two criminals were killed, three were apprehended, and contraband was seized.]
[During the operation, three police officers were injured, and one officer died in the line of duty from a gunshot wound to the abdomen. His badge number is retired!]
The first segment concluded, and the second segment was also filmed by a recording device.
The video showed an anti-drug unit surrounding a house in a village.
[In XXXX, November 5th, the K City Anti-Drug Brigade received intelligence that a house in the XX village was being used as an illegal factory. Following reconnaissance, the brigade confirmed the presence of a contraband production facility within the house. On November 8th, at two in the morning, the brigade initiated a raid.]
In the arrest video, all voices were also distorted.
Amidst heavy breathing and footsteps, hushed commands could be heard.
"Cut off power to the village..."
"Power cut!"
"Team Two, secure the rear path. Teams One and Three, chamber your pistols, surround it..."
As the command was given for everyone to surround the house, the arrest officially began.
From the recording device's perspective, everything from breaking down the door to apprehending the suspects proceeded normally.
However, as Teams One and Three left with the detainees and Team Four prepared to enter for scene clearance, an accident occurred.
The desperate criminals had placed a timed bomb in the house's basement. As Team Four entered, a deafening explosion followed, illuminating the night sky with fire.
After a second of pause, the video shook violently, and the panicked shouts of the brigade captain were heard.
"Call an ambulance, put out the fire, save them, quickly!"
[In this operation, six criminals were arrested (and subsequently executed). A massive amount of contraband and production equipment was seized, along with five firearms and one hundred rounds of ammunition...]
[During the raid, three police officers sustained serious injuries, one officer sustained minor injuries, and two officers were killed in the explosion. Their badge numbers are retired!]
After the video clips concluded, subtitles appeared at the end.
[According to statistics from the General Department, no fewer than twenty anti-drug officers sacrifice their lives on the front lines each year, with an average age of thirty-two.]
As the subtitles faded, an image appeared on screen of police officers, their backs to the camera, taking an oath under the national flag.
Beneath the photo were rows of tombstones.
Each tombstone bore no name, no photograph, and no police badge number...
The appearance of these segments perfectly coincided with the final line of the theme song.
"Who says only those standing in the light are heroes!"
As the lyrics and the film's ending coincided, the audience in the hall was deeply moved.
Those unsung heroes fighting on the front lines.
Those heroes whose true names could not even be inscribed on their tombstones after their sacrifice.
Were they not the heroes who could not stand in the light!
Though they dwelled in darkness, their hearts yearned for light, carrying the burden for the nation's peace and stability!
The music ended, and the film finally concluded.
Clang!
The lights in the screening hall turned on.
Normally, after a movie ends, the audience would begin to disperse.
But the viewers of "Black and White Edge" remained seated, unwilling to leave.
Gao Fei, amidst the crowd, looked up. Two-thirds of the audience had red eyes, and some young women were crying and embracing their companions.
The young men beside him, who had regretted buying tickets earlier, were no longer complaining.
Instead, each of them gritted their teeth silently, glaring fiercely at the screen, their fists clenched white.
They were deeply affected by the deaths of Zhang Haisheng, Yang Xiaoxiao, and Zhang Haisheng's family.
But equally, they were enraged by the real-life footage at the end of the film.
They hated the criminals and mourned the fallen officers.
As the entire audience was gripped by sorrow and anger, the end credits music slowly played through the speakers.
"I've never seen a village where the aurora appears, nor have I seen anyone set off fireworks late at night...
The evening stars are like your eyes, killing and setting fires, you don't need to say a word, the wild wind disturbs me...
But you, you angered the gods, and sent you away, so young...
It's all your fault, the distant mountains are cold, in a solitary riverside dance hall...
If you have time, you'll come to see me, won't you...
See how the snow ages, how my eyes melt away....
If you see me, please turn around in surprise....
I fear my tears, my white hair, will be like a shameful joke..."
The end credits song was produced and sung by Gao Fei, titled "Haihe Dance Hall," known in his previous life as "Mohe Dance Hall."
As his song played, a deleted scene was interspersed within the film's end credits.
It was a video of Zhang Haisheng and Yang Xiaoxiao's romance in the drama, now inserted into the end.
The audience, who had just begun to recover, were preparing to leave when they noticed the sudden appearance of the Easter egg, causing them to pause.
Watching Zhang Haisheng and Yang Xiaoxiao's journey from acquaintance to lovers, then Yang Xiaoxiao helping Zhang Haisheng overcome his addiction, followed by the opening of the Haihe Dance Hall and the couple dancing intimately, and finally Zhang Haisheng's identity being exposed, leading to the tragic deaths of the two lovers who were meant to marry...
Accompanied by the melancholic end credits song, some female audience members could no longer control their tears.
"I hate the editor, and I hate the author Gao Fei for giving it such a tragic ending! Why couldn't the male and female leads have a happy reunion! Wuwuwu!"
"Why hate them? Hate those vicious drug traffickers! It's because of them that the male and female leads couldn't have a happy ending. And because of those drug traffickers, our front-line officers sacrificed their lives!"
"All drug traffickers should be executed!"
Regardless of gender, everyone present was filled with indignation when mentioning drug traffickers.
The entire screening hall echoed with the audience's reluctance to accept the film's tragic conclusion and their regret for the fallen heroes on the front lines.
Outside Halls Six and Nine.
Viewers who had finished watching other films passing by the two screening halls could hear shouts and crying from within.
Hearing the sounds, they were perplexed.
Was the movie "Black and White Edge" so bad that it made people cry and curse inside?
In cinemas nationwide designated by the General Administration of Press and Publication.
The same scene unfolded in every screening hall where "Black and White Edge" was playing, at the same time.
Consequently, shortly after the film concluded, news about Feihe Pictures making audiences cry topped the trending lists on three major platforms.
Rival film companies, upon seeing the news, immediately hired internet trolls to attack Feihe Pictures.
They disparaged Feihe Pictures' films online while heavily promoting their own.
However, their attempts to capitalize on the trend and disparage Feihe Pictures quickly backfired.
(I suddenly caught a cold and got sick these past two days. I felt terribly unwell all day yesterday. I'm a little better today, but still a bit groggy.)