Nights and Fog in Tianshuiwei
The Nights and Fogs of Tin Shui Wai is adapted from a sensational case of family annihilation that shocked Hong Kong. Li Sen, played by Nick Cheung, married a young and beautiful mainland woman named Xiaoling, portrayed by Joan Chen. The couple, along with their two daughters Mei Yi and Mei Xiang, lived in Tin Shui Wai. Xiaoling worked as a waitress in a restaurant, which sowed the seeds of jealousy in Li Sen's heart. This jealousy eventually turned into abuse, leading the family of four towards an inevitable fate.
Three days after the annihilation case, the deceased's relative, Xiao Xu, went to the hospital to identify the bodies but was surrounded by journalists. Two days after the incident, the neighbor Huang Tai was terrified and disguised herself to avoid reporters, quickly packing some clothes and moving out. Six hours after the case, the deceased's friend Xiao Li and other abused women at a shelter saw the murder report on TV and burst into uncontrollable cries, causing chaos in the center.
In the police station's meeting room, Huang Tai recorded her statement on video. She recalled seeing the deceased Wang Xiaoling for the first time with her two daughters, Mei Yi and Mei Xiang, eating hamburgers while watching others dance. Huang Tai initiated conversation with them and even paid for Xiaoling's first month of dance fees. In reality, Xiaoling and her husband Li Sen were no different from other families in Tin Shui Wai where husbands married mainland wives. The husband stayed home taking care of the children while constantly suspecting his young wife of infidelity. Every day after Li Sen rode his bike to drop off his daughters at kindergarten, he would pretend to be a customer and spy on Xiaoling at the teahouse where she worked. Indeed, Xiaoling stood out among the waitresses—young, beautiful, and well-figured. That day, she wore a dark bra under her white uniform, sparking lewd conversations between two men about her breasts. Li Sen always appeared self-controlled in public, acting nonchalant. Tall and handsome, he could have been a stylish middle-aged man if only he had a career. However, with the real estate market booming in Hong Kong, his construction work dried up due to economic shrinkage, sometimes forcing him to borrow money from his son with his ex-wife to make ends meet. Li Sen spent his days fishing by the river, appearing calm on the surface but inwardly filled with frustration. Once a fish was hooked, he violently tore it out, injuring its mouth.
At night, Li Sen's darker side became more unrestrained. In the morning, he saw other men being disrespectful to his wife and felt jealous and angry. On the bed, he expressed this through sexual abuse, tormenting Xiaoling until midnight. Unable to bear it, Xiaoling fled to a dark corner in the park below, crying quietly as blood flowed from her thigh to her calf. She deeply inhaled, trying to catch the scent of the mainland blowing from afar.
In Huang Tai's video testimony, she mentioned that Li Sen had long announced his murder plan, casually stating he intended to do something sensational enough to shock all of Hong Kong—that no one would escape death. Xiaoling once hid Li Sen's knife with Huang Tai, hoping to avoid disaster. One day, Li Sen drove Xiaoling and their two daughters out of the house. Perhaps it was just a threat, not a genuine desire to expel his wife and daughters. Coincidentally, Huang Tai came out and, seeing the situation, kindly took Xiaoling to seek help from Councilor Hong Yanlong. The young councilor wanted to help Xiaoling but could only place the case within the wife-abuse mechanism, referring her to social workers and a shelter. The matter escalated, turning a family issue into a societal one.
At the shelter, Xiaoling met her fellow townsman Xiao Li, who also made a video testimony at the police station, sharing many details about the shelter. Xiaoling was assigned to the last room down a long corridor, where everything resembled a concentration camp filled with women and their children battered and mentally tormented by their men. Some mischievous children bullied her two little daughters as they walked by. A room-mate, an Indonesian woman, tried to take over her bed, but Xiao Li stood up for her. That evening, Xiao Li read Xiaoling's fortune, saying she would die unless she left Li Sen. Initially, Xiaoling thought of leaving since the matter had become public. Li Sen wasn't foolish; he sought assistance from an opposing district councilor against Hong Yanlong. Xiaoling wanted a divorce, applying independently but lacking the seven-year residency requirement. Recalling Huang Tai's implication that Li Sen had molested her daughter, she planned to use this as a special reason for divorce. However, without substantial proof from her daughters, the social worker treated the case as a typical domestic dispute, merely advising Li Sen to let his wife temporarily stay with her family in Shenzhen.
Eventually, Xiaoling returned to Tin Shui Wai with her two daughters. That night, Li Sen abused her again, cutting her leg and alarming the police, who sent Xiaoling alone to the hospital for treatment before transferring her to the shelter. Thanks to a press conference organized by Xiao Li and others demanding improvements at the shelter, Xiaoling found this visit much better. Preparing for the Easter celebration amidst joyful atmosphere, Xiao Li suggested Xiaoling join a march in Central for judicial interpretation and introduced her to a women's rights activist to assist with her divorce. However, Xiaoling's mobile phone rang—it was Li Sen threatening her to return home immediately or he would kill their daughters. Worried about her daughters, Xiaoling decided to go back first to pick them up before joining the march.
By the river, Xiaoling saw Li Sen fishing with their two daughters nearby. Initially planning to leave with her daughters, suddenly Li Sen grabbed Xiaoling's hand gently promising not to sexually abuse her anymore. He requested one last time for her to come home and make love. At 2 PM, the family of four was captured for the last time by the CCTV in the elevator. They returned to their apartment, closing the iron gate and wooden door. After a long silence, the sound of a knife came from inside.
