Who inspired your potential?

     The movie *High Risk* is an older film, and many people have probably seen it. Perhaps many only remember Jet Li's brilliant performance as the bodyguard and stunt double, forgetting Jacky Cheung's portrayal of the martial arts star, Long Wei! Even if they remember Long Wei, it might be due to his comical performance in this film. Long Wei

    is a martial arts star, and Jet Li's character, Li Dadan, is both his bodyguard and his stunt double for dangerous stunts. Long Wei is a martial arts star, but not a truly skilled one; at best, he's an idol figure with flashy moves. It's the highly skilled Li Dadan who silently supports his stage presence. Long Wei is also a lecherous man, and some even call him a coward, because we see him kneeling and begging for mercy, and we see his inappropriate desires for the television host, Yue Huizhen (played by Chingmy Yau). This host came to interview Long Wei because she suspected he used a stunt double.
    When they were at the scene of the robbery controlled by "The Doctor," Long Wei was no longer the dazzling figure he was on screen; instead, he was seen running away and begging for mercy on his knees—this was precisely his true self. From this, we can easily see that the "tough guy" image on screen, once removed from that specific stage, may not necessarily be the real tough guy in real life—of course, this is not a generalization. When he was forced to wear theatrical costumes by "The Doctor's" assassins, he knelt and begged for mercy; he couldn't even wield the nunchucks he was most skilled at in his acting. This revealed him to be a cowardly character; those costumes and nunchucks reminiscent of Bruce Lee's era became his past glory and present fear. When he was beaten black and blue, he begged not to be hit in the face. Although Li Dadan encouraged him before leaving, he remained unchanged.
    Later, when the assassins beat his father, he repeatedly said things like "Don't hit my dad," as if the other party was trying to provoke him in this way, thus defeating this on-screen hero in a fight. The assassin achieved his goal, and he was utterly enraged. Thus, a familiar hero from the screen stepped off the stage. You wouldn't find fear in his eyes, but rather a fearless spirit born of sorrow. The final result, naturally, was Longwei defeating Longwei. He finally found that normalcy after shedding his ego, a renewed appearance born from his potential. Because life doesn't allow everyone to freely unleash their potential; some people need external stimuli to find their normalcy and release their potential.
    Perhaps we can give others a false sense of confidence, but that false confidence will always be exposed one day. As for our long-stored potential, lacking the impetus of "confidence," it will never have a chance to shine. In fact, not only "Longwei" is such a hypocrite; there are many like him in the audience and in life—it could be you, it could be me. What creates such flawed characters? Past experiences, predetermined lessons, and the complexities of human nature.
    As social beings, we can navigate relationships with family and friends with ease. However, in interactions with strangers, due to various motives, we often develop an inherent fear. This fear forms an obstacle, turning what might have been possible into the impossible, keeping us outside the door for too long. Thus, people are differentiated by this insurmountable barrier: the rich and the poor, the successful and the unsuccessful. Perhaps their thoughts are the same, but the former overcome the obstacle, while the latter falls before it, unable to recover.
    Longwei, by overcoming his psychological barriers, found confidence on the stage of life. What ignited his potential? His opponent, because his opponent left him with no way to retreat, no way to endure. Perhaps his opponent trampled on his spirit, and he tolerated it—a flaw stemming from his own shortcomings. But when his opponent crossed his bottom line, he had to fight back. This counterattack was terrifying and extremely lethal, because the fighter poured his life into it. Thus, a potential flowing within was unleashed, but not spontaneously; it was stimulated by external forces. Longwei has found the secret to transcendence, and hopefully friends like him can also find the secret to transcendence. We will also meet in success in different circumstances.