Learn to speak standard Mandarin

Wei Zisu spent half the afternoon at the gym, then started packing when he got home that evening.

He had previously filmed a TV series, playing a fairly important supporting role with plenty of screen time. But one of the Alpha leads had committed an offense and ended up sewing in prison, leaving the series unable to air.

When that actor first went to prison, the Director and Producer drank every day, then clung to each other and sobbed before cursing the Alpha for making all their hard work go to waste.

They weren't the only ones. Wei Zisu hated him too.

After more than six months of hard work filming, he had been told the audience wouldn't see a single shot of it. He would still get his full pay, but if the show didn't air, his name recognition wouldn't improve. If he went too long without appearing on-screen, the audience would gradually forget him.

He felt they had already more or less forgotten him.

If this went on, when would he ever find his younger brother?

He had thought the show was completely finished, with no hope left, but recently the Director had found a new actor named Wu Hao whose appearance suited the role very well. He planned to have him reshoot the lead's scenes, completely replacing the original lead in the show. He had also notified the cast that anyone who had scenes opposite the original lead had to return for reshoots.

Wei Zisu played the lead's younger brother and had quite a few scenes opposite him, so it would take at least a month to finish filming.

It would be hard work, but it was something to be happy about.

Because he finally had a show that could air!

Cui Xiangxiang called, eager to ask how things had gone that day.

"Well? Well? How many did you meet today? Were you happy with any of them?"

"Three. Yes." Wei Zisu turned on speakerphone and answered while putting clothes in his suitcase.

"Whoa! Pretty efficient, Wei Zisu. It's not easy to find someone you're happy with! How does he look? Are you two going on a date tonight?!"

"He's pretty handsome. No date."

"Huh?" Cui Xiangxiang sounded very disappointed. "He didn't even ask you out? Is this guy just rigid or stingy?"

Wei Zisu said, "We registered our marriage."

There was a deathly silence on the other end.

Ten seconds later, Cui Xiangxiang's earth-shattering roar came through. "Wei Zisu!!! Have you lost your fucking mind?!! How long have you even known each other, and you've already registered your marriage? I dated my ex-ex-husband for several days and still didn't see his true colors, and you registered without even going on a date?! If you're that bold, why don't you start a business!"

Wei Zisu said, "From meeting to registering, about an hour."

Possibly not even an hour.

"An hour???" Cui Xiangxiang was so angry he laughed. "An hour! If you two got separated on the street, you wouldn't even recognize each other! I really don't fucking know what to say. Perfect, have a kid too, and all three of you in the family will have met this year."

Wei Zisu wasn't the least bit anxious. He even laughed at what Cui Xiangxiang said.

Cui Xiangxiang suddenly said, "Wait, you two aren't going to consummate the marriage tonight, are you?!"

"No." Wei Zisu said helplessly, "I'm joining the production tomorrow, and he's staying at a hotel tonight. Besides, he's from Shandong. It's pretty far away, and he's going back tomorrow."

Cui Xiangxiang tutted for a good while. If he had been standing in front of Wei Zisu, he would definitely have jabbed his forehead crooked with a finger.

"Are you sure you two registered a marriage today, rather than signing a contract? I've never seen anyone get married like you two. What do you call this? Newlywed strangers going their separate ways? What a contradiction! Oh, right, what does he do for work? What's his family like? Have you looked into that?"

There was a whole string of questions, but Wei Zisu only answered the last two.

"He said he grows vegetables and sells his own produce. His family... I haven't met them yet."

"What?!!!" Cui Xiangxiang was practically going mad.

Wei Zisu knew what he was going to say next, and he also knew every call ended with Cui Xiangxiang cursing his ex-husband. In the past, he would have listened patiently, but he had work tomorrow and shouldn't go to bed too late tonight.

"All right, let's stop here. I have an early flight tomorrow, so I need to get to sleep. Bye."

He swiftly hung up, finished packing his suitcase, and set it aside. After taking a shower, he lay in bed and checked the work schedule Sister Qian had sent him on WeChat, along with her warning.

"Reshoots are extra work, not something arranged by the company. You've already been paid in full, so you could absolutely refuse to go. But since you insist, all I can tell you is that the company will still only give you your basic living allowance this month. You won't get any extra money just because you're working."

When actors had no work, the company only gave them a basic living allowance of three thousand yuan. But the production provided meals and accommodation, so that was enough.

Wei Zisu had no objection to that, but he did object to what Sister Qian had said.

Even a minor actor like him knew how important it was for a show to air. How could Sister Qian, an agent, not know?

It was simply that she looked down on him and didn't want to manage him anymore.

Didn't Wei Zisu feel the same way? Sister Qian rarely treated him pleasantly, and he had wanted a different agent for a long time. But in an entertainment company, status was directly proportional to fame. He wasn't in a position to change agents; he didn't even dare bring it up.

His contract with the company expired at the end of the year, and he needed to consider whether to renew it. Of course, given his current situation, perhaps the company couldn't wait for him to leave.

While he was lost in thought, a text message arrived on his phone.

Apart from messages from 10086 and the major banks, he hadn't received a text in a long time. After all, with WeChat and QQ available now, who still communicated by text?

"Mr. Wei, may I add you on WeChat?"

It was an unfamiliar number.

But Wei Zisu immediately remembered that it was Yin Zhengchuan's number. He hadn't had time to save it yet.

"Of course," he replied by text, then saved the number to his contacts.

A WeChat friend request appeared in his notification bar.

He opened it and saw a profile picture of the five-starred red flag, with the WeChat name "Learn to speak standard Mandarin."

Wei Zisu greeted him first: Hello.

Learn to speak standard Mandarin: Hello.

Both sides fell silent for a moment, and Wei Zisu noticed that he had changed his WeChat display name to "I'm married."

Wei Zisu couldn't help laughing. Was this man using his WeChat display name as his Moments feed?