Piercing I

Factory closures leave Zhang without work or a clear future in the city. After a security guard assaults him, his hopes of fair treatment fade, and he wants to return to the countryside he once left in search of a better life.

An encounter on his way out draws him into a chain of trouble involving businessmen, rivals and corrupt police. As extortion and violence gather around a struggle for money, even the simple wish to leave becomes difficult to fulfil.