Brother Dao Took the Entertainment Industry by Storm, Fans Beg Me Not to Kill Anymore

”Okay, I’ll contact Director Hou later to catch up and ask about his intentions.”

Xiao He closed the script. ”I think he would be very interested in this script.”

Although Linghui Entertainment has cultivated its own directing team, most of them are currently focused on television dramas.

For works with the subject matter of ”Echoes,” it’s definitely necessary to find a director who is more skilled in this area to provide support.

”However, the name ’Echoes’—”

Xiao He paused.

”What? You’re not satisfied?” Liu Rulan raised an eyebrow. ”We had considered other names before, but this one was the one Tong Junhui finally decided on, so I respected his decision.”

”No, not at all. On the contrary, I think the name fits the script perfectly.”

Xiao He quickly shook his head.

The true meaning of the title ”Echoes” can perhaps only be fully appreciated after reading Tong Junhui’s script.

The protagonist, Dong Min, was named by his parents perhaps hoping that he would have less of a compassionate heart, live in the moment, and mind his own business. Little did they know that ”Min” also carries the meaning of mourning, as if even the heavens were hinting that Dong Min would one day bury himself because of this compassionate heart that he was protecting.

Dong Min’s profession is that of an investigative journalist, just like what Zhou Junhao and his colleagues are currently doing: to infiltrate the shadows of society, silently investigate and record the truth, and give voice to others.

Furthermore, the story in the film is set more than a decade earlier, during the era when those journalists were at their most courageous and fearless.

To uncover the truth, Dong Min paid a heavy price and gained many honors, but in the end he was betrayed, tried, disgraced, and imprisoned... and all of this was just the background given to Dong Min at the beginning of the story.

The narrative of ”Echoes” also begins in reverse, that is, after the event has occurred, the cause and effect of the story are pushed back, and finally the plot is reversed to reveal the truth.

This type of narrative style was used in ”No Bait” and is not uncommon in other plot-driven works. A more accurate term in the industry is reverse chronological reasoning, or reverse suspense narrative.

The film presents the story’s outcome at the outset, and as the investigation gradually unfolds, the hidden truth behind the protagonist’s actions is revealed layer by layer, ultimately leading to a plot twist.

The story of ”Echoes” begins with a series of investigations launched by the police against Dong Min, which then uncovers the truth behind some past news stories.

Unlike ”No Bait,” Dong Min here has already committed murder and is on the run, preparing to murder another important figure.

The police investigated the past in order to deduce who would have been willing to help him at all costs based on what he did back then, and why Dong Min, such an upright and kind reporter, ended up becoming a serial killer.

The key to everything might lie among those people Dong Min once helped!

The story unfolds through a dual narrative, with the police and Dong Min engaging in a back-and-forth pursuit and escape, ultimately revealing a bloody truth behind the entire incident that they want to expose.

Meanwhile, what makes ”Echoes” so special is that the case doesn’t just happen between individual characters or is limited to a contest between the police and criminals. Instead, it spreads through online public opinion and becomes a topic of discussion throughout society!

The police attempted to apprehend Dong Min through their investigation to stop him from committing further murders. However, Dong Min, a reporter, was adept at using public opinion to delay the police’s progress and even mislead their investigation, thus successfully escaping at crucial moments time and again.

Thus, Dong Min failed to kill his target due to police intervention, but each time the police missed their chance to arrest him, Dong Min successfully escaped from the police encirclement...

Only when the truth was finally revealed and Dong Min’s true purpose was achieved did everyone realize that they had long since fallen into Dong Min’s trap.

Unfortunately, it was too late.

Because the beginning is also the end.

...

One of the good things about the work ”Echoes” is that although it explores some sensitive topics, such as medical issues, cyberbullying, and protective umbrellas, which are social phenomena that still exist in that era and in this era, and various details are full of satire, the protagonist knew from the beginning that he would pay the price for it, so he accepted his death with equanimity.

This will reduce the pressure on the review process.

However, Xiao He’s feelings were quite complicated after reading the script.

Compared to ”No Bait,” ”Echoes” undoubtedly deals with a much heavier topic, and the two works can be described as having completely different styles.

Shu Yuxiu in ”No Bait” is undoubtedly a standout, with his character full of charm. Many of the plot points are quite enjoyable to watch. After being tested by the market, it achieved extremely high box office results, proving that the story is more in line with the public’s taste on a certain point.

However, the story of ”Echoes” is completely the opposite. Both the plot and the characters deviate greatly from the template of a ”feel-good” novel.

Life is full of ups and downs, and suffering is the norm.

Suffering can also better shape the soul of a character and touch people’s hearts.

—How should I put it?

To talk about someone’s tragedy, you can’t just talk about their limp. You have to talk about how they exposed the truth, only to be betrayed and have their story changed by the victims. On their way to escape, they had their leg broken, and finally, gritting their teeth, they dragged their broken leg for dozens of kilometers along the train tracks before they finally saved their lives.

During this period, there may have been times when he lay directly on the railway tracks, closed his eyes and stopped thinking about anything, but when he thought about those things, he was filled with anger and resentment, and in the end he forced himself to endure it and continued to crawl forward.

To talk about someone’s hardships, you can’t talk about how they were a criminal who went to prison. You have to talk about how they were framed as criminals while investigating the truth, how they were left speechless and disheveled, and how they had to go to jail for two years, leaving a devastating stain on their promising [N O V E L I G H T] life.

How should we evaluate Dong Min?

Even Xiao He himself was speechless when he made his assessment.

It wasn’t that I didn’t understand Dong Min; it was precisely because I empathized with him so much that I was able to understand Dong Min’s resolute determination to persevere to the end, yet how easily he gave up his own life.

If it were him, he would definitely think, ”Even if it costs me my life, I’ll blow up this world.”

No matter who it was, they might not be able to find a glimmer of hope in this deadlock.

Or perhaps, like the other ordinary people Dong Min had met, they lived a life of unbearable pain on the path to uncovering the truth, enduring the torment of being judged by ignorance, and finally, helplessly withdrew, giving up the struggle, embracing mediocrity, and accepting deception.

The story of ”Echoes” is too bitter.

So bitter was that long after finishing the script, when I tried to savor it again, I realized that the back of my tongue still carried a sour and astringent taste that lingered in my mouth for a long time and was hard to get rid of.

Like Dong Min, his presence was constantly being announced—

Death is not the end.

Rather, it is the lingering echo of those who are unwilling to accept the truth uncovered.