Illustration: Hang Dachuan/Global Times

On Tuesday, the People's Daily published an article describing several real life examples of "An Xin," the lead police officer character in the recent Chinese TV drama hit The Knockout. 

The article shows that this hard-working police officer is not purely a fictitious character, but the epitome of many real-life heroes who have fought the hard battle against criminal gangs. 

In the drama, An fights a 21-year battle against a criminal gang led by Gao Qiqiang, who is good at disguising himself by doing "good deeds" for the community. However, though a "good friend" of Gao in the beginning, An insists on doing what is right and persists in fighting against this criminal force.  

As it turns out, the stories from real life are actually a lot more astonishing and terrifying. Pan Dongsheng, one of the prototypes of An, was the director of Fuzhou Public Security Bureau in East China's Fujian Province. 

"If someone tried to bribe me by inviting me to dinner, I would certainly reject it since it would make me sick," Pan once said.

He also emphasized that "corruption starts with just a glass of wine or a meal. Only by staying honest and upright can a law enforcement officer remain invincible." 

Having worked in law enforcement for 37 years, Pan unfortunately died at his post from overwork on September 25, 2021. He was later awarded with the title of "Model of the Times" in November that same year. 

Yang Zishun is another police officer who gave his life in the line of duty while dealing with a major criminal drug case. When Yang was young, he followed in his father's footsteps to become a police officer because "being a police officer is a sacred profession." He ended up leaving behind a young son, who upon seeing a picture of his late father told media "I just want to cry." 

"Whether a police officer works hard can be judged by how many notebooks he has gone through over the years," Qian Haijun, the late head of the criminal investigation team of Shanghai Police Department, once said. Over the years, he had taken detailed notes on all the criminal cases he had handled, leaving behind stacks of notebooks. He died in 2020 during a meeting about tackling special cases with files still clasped in his hands. 

While not all police lose their life in the line of duty, there is always a toll for their hard work. For example, Li Shiquan, a former police officer in the Guangzhou Public Security Bureau in South China's Guangdong Province, noted that by the age of 34, all his hair had turned gray. 

Cui Daozhi used to be an investigator in Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province. Over 70 years, he never made any errors in maintaining chain of custody and was honored as a national-level expert in this regard. 

There are actually many more heroes like them. Their touching stories posted online have drawn thousands of likes and hundreds of comments from netizens. 

A large majority of the comments are variations of "I salute these real life heroes!" or "We all pay respect to these heroes." 

Other netizens expressed their heartfelt thanks by saying: "We are grateful for the numerous policemen like An Xin who have ensured the safety of millions of us." 

"We salute all the heroes who stand guard on the frontlines to ensure the safety of all our families. Thank you for all your hard work. You have sacrificed your own small families for the peace and togetherness of one big family. I hope you take care and be safe at work," commented one netizen. 

"I am sure there will be many young people who will see Director Pan as a role model, and take an oath in front of the police flag to serve the people wholeheartedly," posted another.

The archetype that is An Xin in the drama has helped people get closer to real heroes. This shows the positive energy that dominates Chinese society and that good will finally trump evil.