We asked you to make an anti-corruption film, but you made one in the name of the people!

Time flies.

In late December, Yanjing was bitterly cold. When Lin Mo went out in the morning, his breath was white.

He was wearing a black down jacket, the same one from last year, the cuffs were worn a bit white, but it was still wearable. The scarf was the one his mother had insisted on putting in his suitcase when he went back to his hometown last time; it was gray, the stitches weren't very even, and it was obviously hand-knitted.

When he arrived at the entrance of the Ministry of Public Security building, the security guard glanced at him and said with a smile, "Director Lin, why are you dressed so warmly today?"

Lin Mo rubbed his hands together: "Cold."

"That's right, it's minus eight degrees today."

Lin Mo swiped his card and entered the building.

He bumped into Sun Jianguo in the elevator, who looked him up and down and asked, "Xiao Lin, how many years have you been wearing that down jacket?"

Lin Mo thought for a moment: "Two years, I guess."

"Two years?" Sun Jianguo's eyes widened. "Where did you get the money from filming three movies? Can't you even buy yourself a new outfit?"

Lin Mo smiled and said, "You can still wear it."

Sun Jianguo shook his head and sighed, "You're too stingy with yourself."

Upon reaching the fifth floor, Lin Mo had just sat down in his office when the internal phone on his desk rang.

"Xiao Lin, come up here." It was Director Wang's voice.

Lin Mo put down the hand warmer, straightened his collar, and went upstairs.

Director Wang's office door was open. When Lin Mo knocked and went in, Director Wang was standing by the window making a phone call. His voice wasn't loud, but his tone was quite formal.

"Yes, next Friday afternoon, at the Ministry of Public Security auditorium. Old Zhao from the Supreme People's Procuratorate will also be there. Yes, a joint commendation ceremony. Okay, it's settled then."

After hanging up the phone, Director Wang turned around, saw Lin Mo, and pointed to the sofa.

"sit."

Lin Mo sat down, and Director Wang also sat down in a chair, picked up his teacup, took a sip, and put it down.

"Xiaolin, it's almost the end of the year, there's something I need to tell you."

Lin Mo sat up straight.

Director Wang looked at him with a slight smile: "Have you counted how much you've accomplished this year?"

Lin Mo paused for a moment, then actually started counting: "In the Name of the People, All or Nothing, the Police-People Joint Short Drama Series, The Storm..."

"Alright, alright." Director Wang waved his hand. "I wasn't asking you to submit an expense report. I was saying—the higher-ups have noticed."

Lin Mo didn't respond, waiting for Director Wang to continue.

Director Wang picked up a document from the table, opened it, and read two lines: "Comrade Lin Mo, a cadre of the Publicity Department of the Supreme People's Procuratorate and a deputy director on secondment from the Publicity Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security. This year, he presided over the filming of the TV series 'In the Name of the People' and 'The Storm,' the film 'All or Nothing,' and planned and launched the 'Police and People Together' series of legal education short dramas. The above works have received a strong social response and achieved remarkable publicity and education effects, making outstanding contributions to the publicity of the national special campaigns against corruption, fraud, and organized crime."

He closed the file and looked at Lin Mo.

"The Ministry and the Supreme People's Procuratorate have discussed it and decided to hold a joint commendation meeting next Friday afternoon in the auditorium of the Ministry of Public Security."

Lin Mo's mind went blank for a moment.

Joint commendation ceremony?

"Director Wang, isn't this... a bit too much?"

"A grand occasion?" Director Wang laughed. "Do you know how much the number of anti-fraud app downloads nationwide has increased this year? Eight hundred percent. Do you know how many people nationwide have voluntarily canceled their overseas travel plans? More than two thousand. Do you know how much the number of reports about organized crime has increased since the airing of 'The Storm'? Three hundred percent."

He paused, his voice not loud, but every word was clear.

"Behind these numbers is your contribution. We are recognizing you not because of the number of films you've made, but because the films you made have a real impact. Chief Prosecutor Zhang from the Supreme People's Procuratorate said that he will personally attend this commendation meeting, and Minister Meng, the head of the ministry, will also be there."

Lin Mo opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything.

Minister Meng.

The top official of the Ministry of Public Security, holding the rank of Chief Superintendent of Police.

Inspector Zhang.

The head of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the chief prosecutor.

Two ministerial-level leaders attended the same commendation ceremony.

He never dreamed he would receive such a grand display.

Director Wang saw through his thoughts, stood up, walked over to him, and patted him on the shoulder.

"Xiao Lin, don't be nervous. The leaders are here not because of who you are, but because of what you've done that makes them want to come. Just relax and do what you're supposed to do."

Lin Mo took a deep breath and nodded.

"Director Wang, I understand."

"Good, that's good." Director Wang patted him on the shoulder again. "Go back and get ready. Dress smartly for next Friday."

"OK."

......

One week later, on Friday at 1:30 pm.

The auditorium of the Ministry of Public Security was packed to capacity.

On the Ministry of Public Security side, the heads of various bureaus and departments were all present.

Representatives from various departments and offices of the Supreme People's Procuratorate also arrived.

The entire publicity department of both companies was present, sitting in several rows.

A red banner hung above the rostrum: "Joint Commendation Conference of the Supreme People's Procuratorate and the Ministry of Public Security".

Below the banner is the national emblem, and on either side of the emblem are the flags of the two companies.

A row of seats was set up on the stage, with two nameplates in the middle—Minister Meng and Prosecutor Zhang.

Next to him were Director Wang of the Ministry of Public Security and Prosecutor Zhao of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, and then there were other leaders from the two organizations.

Lin Mo sat in the first row of the audience, near the aisle.

Old Han sat to his left, and Sun Jianguo sat to his right. Both of them were dressed formally, one in a dark blue suit and the other in a black jacket, sitting upright.

At 1:50, the leaders took their seats one after another.

First came Director Wang and Prosecutor Zhao, who walked and talked as they went, and then sat down on the stage.

Then came Prosecutor Zhang, wearing a dark gray jacket, with gray hair and a serious but not stern face. As he entered, he glanced around the audience, his gaze lingering on Lin Mo for a second before he nodded slightly.

Lin Mo quickly sat up straight.

The last to enter was Minister Meng, wearing a black overcoat. He was tall and walked with a steady gait. The entire room fell silent for a moment when he entered.

Everyone stand up.

Minister Meng walked to the center of the stage and waved his hand: "Sit down."

Everyone then sat down.

At 1:58, the host—a deputy director of the Publicity Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security—walked to the front of the stage and cleared his throat into the microphone.

"Distinguished leaders and colleagues, good afternoon. Today, the Supreme People's Procuratorate and the Ministry of Public Security are holding a grand joint commendation meeting here to commend comrades who have made outstanding contributions to the political and legal publicity front this year."

He read an opening statement and then raised his voice.

"Next, please have Sun Jianguo, Deputy Director of the Publicity Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security, read out the commendation decision."

Sun Jianguo stood up, walked to the podium, and opened the red folder in his hand.

"Decision on jointly commending Comrade Lin Mo."

He paused, then spoke in a loud voice.

"Comrade Lin Mo is currently a section-level cadre in the Publicity Department of the Supreme People's Procuratorate and is on temporary assignment as the deputy director of the Anti-Fraud Publicity Department of the Publicity Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security. This year, Comrade Lin Mo presided over the filming of the TV series 'In the Name of the People' and 'The Storm,' the film 'All or Nothing,' and planned and launched the 'Police and People Together' series of legal education short dramas. The above works use real cases as material to profoundly expose the harm and nature of corruption, telecommunications and network fraud, and organized crime, which have generated a strong social response and achieved remarkable publicity and education results."

"Among them, 'In the Name of the People' achieved a viewership rating of over 6.8, the highest for a TV series in nearly ten years. 'Going All In' effectively promoted the national anti-fraud campaign, and 'The Storm' achieved a viewership rating of over 4.1, contributing to the special campaign against organized crime and achieving positive social results. The 'Police and People Together' series of short dramas has garnered over 3 billion views across the internet."

He turned the page and continued reading.

"During the broadcast of the aforementioned works, the cumulative downloads of the National Anti-Fraud Center APP increased by 800%, the number of reports received by the anti-organized crime reporting platform increased by 300% year-on-year, and more than 2,000 people voluntarily canceled their overseas travel plans after watching the films."

"In view of Comrade Lin Mo's outstanding performance, the Party Group of the Supreme People's Procuratorate and the Party Committee of the Ministry of Public Security have decided—"

"Comrade Lin Mo is awarded the title of Advanced Individual in Political and Legal Publicity for the Year."

He closed the folder and picked up another one.

"At the same time, the Supreme People's Procuratorate's Douyin account and the Ministry of Public Security's 'Police-Citizen Partnership' Douyin account were awarded the title of Outstanding Government New Media of the Year; the TV dramas 'In the Name of the People' and 'The Storm' were awarded the title of Outstanding Political and Legal Theme TV Drama of the Year; the film 'All or Nothing' was awarded the title of Outstanding Anti-Fraud Publicity Work of the Year; and the 'Police-Citizen Partnership' series of short dramas were awarded the title of Outstanding Legal Publicity Work of the Year."

Sun Jianguo raised his head and said to the audience, "Please invite Comrade Lin Mo to come up on stage to receive the award."

The entire room fell silent for a moment.

Then the applause erupted.

It wasn't just polite applause; it was real, forceful clapping. Old Han's hands were red from clapping so much, and Sun Jianguo, standing on the podium, clapped twice as well, then repeated, "Please welcome Comrade Lin Mo to the stage."

Lin Mo stood up, straightened his collar, and walked onto the stage.

His heart was beating a little fast, but his steps were steady.

When they walked onto the stage, Prosecutor Zhang stood up first, and Minister Meng also stood up.

Zhang Jian took a red certificate from the staff member, turned around, and looked at Lin Mo.

"Kobayashi, you've worked hard."

The four words were spoken softly, but the entire auditorium heard them.

Lin Mo stood at attention and accepted the certificate with both hands.

"Thank you, Prosecutor Zhang."

Zhang Jian patted him on the shoulder and took a step back.

Then came Minister Meng.

Minister Meng received a banner from a staff member. It was red with gold lettering and read, "Pioneers of Political and Legal Publicity, Guardians of the People."

He handed it to Lin Mo with both hands, looked into Lin Mo's eyes, and said, "Do a good job."

It's just three words, but it carries more weight than anything else.

Lin Mo accepted the banner and stood at attention to salute.

"Thank you, Minister Meng!"

The applause of the audience was thunderous.

Lin Mo turned around and bowed to the audience.

The flashes went off incessantly. Several cameras were pointed at him simultaneously: one from the Ministry of Public Security, one from the Supreme People's Procuratorate, and one from CCTV.

Minister Meng spoke again, not into the microphone, and his voice wasn't loud, but everyone in the front row could hear him: "Xiao Lin, the people remember what you've done this year, and we remember it too. This award for outstanding individual is well-deserved."

Lin Mo's throat bobbed, and he nodded vigorously.