Provincial policeman Ma Shan wakes one morning and discovers that his gun is missing. Extremely agitated, he retraces the events of the previous night a cousin's wedding where everyone, himself included, was too drunk to recall anything. One by one he confronts many of the townsfolk, but this only reveals that Ma Shan's perceptions and memories have betrayed him. When his former love, who has unexpectedly returned home, is killed by a bullet from Ma Shan's gun he is arrested. Relying on his wits, Ma Shan turns the tables on his accusers and lays a trap in the hope of catching the person who has stolen his gun.