Ask China, get it in writing.
China's content and entertainment industry, from a professional. Food, from a lover. First question free, up to 100 words; a full 500-word answer is $9, back within 24 hours.
If I can't answer it, you don't pay. Answers are written, not chat, so you can forward one to your team.
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Free slots left todayOne person writes every answer, so a day has a ceiling. Free slots are counted apart from the paid tiers and never close them. Resets at 00:00 China time.
I cannot promise my answer is 100% correct. But I can promise it comes from one person who lives there, and that you will always be told whether you are getting the professional or the amateur.
No institution behind this. Two subjects only: China's content and entertainment industry, which is my trade, and food in China, which is not. I only taste it and tell you where to eat.
Inside the industry, not beside it
Film, series, streaming, short-form. Industry research, shooting on set and the edit, all three are work I have done myself, not watched from the client's side of the table.
In China, on China time
Answers are written from this time zone, not summarised from abroad. 24 hours means here, not tomorrow your time.
What I will not do
No press releases, no guesswork dressed as fact, and no answer on a subject I have never touched.
Food, as a customer
Not a chef, not a critic on a magazine's payroll. Someone who eats out often, and can tell when a place is living off an old reputation.
How it works
Three steps. No account, no app, no scheduling a call across time zones.
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Write the question
One question per submission, up to 800 characters. Say what you already know and what you actually need to decide, because that is what makes a short answer useful.
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Pay nothing for the first one
The first question is free and answered directly. From the second one: $9 for up to 500 words, and I send a payment link by PayPal, card, or a payment request.
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Read the answer
A written answer arrives by email within 24 hours. Ask for it to be published anonymously and it also goes into the archive on this page, with your question ID.
A note on honesty: 100 words is a paragraph and a name. 500 words is one screen, enough to explain how a process really works, where a common assumption is wrong, or who to talk to next. Neither is a consulting report, and neither is priced like one.
Free to start. Then you pay for length, or for time.
Same person, same standard. The first question costs nothing; after that you pay for how much room the answer needs. Past 500 words I read the question first and quote you.
First question
Ask one thing and see how I answer. A hundred words is a paragraph and a name — enough for you to judge whether the $9 answer is worth it.
Full
A process with its exceptions. The full chain of who issues what, what it costs, and where foreign companies usually get stuck.
Detailed
Several questions in one, or something I have to check with people. Send it, I read it, and quote a price and a delivery date.
- Turnaround
- ≤ 24 hours, Mon–Sat
- Answer length
- first ≤100 · then ≤500 words
- Language
- English or Chinese
- Follow-up
- One clarification, included
- If unanswered
- Full refund
Live, by the ten minutes
Text chat on X (@AskChinaDesk), or plain email — for questions that need a back-and-forth instead of a page. Ten minutes minimum, billed in ten-minute blocks. The rate is fixed before the clock starts: $20 for food and places, up to $50 when I have to check something in the industry first.
Every written tier includes the same things — the only difference is how long the answer runs. The live session is a different animal: text only, billed by the clock.
- Written answer, to the word limit of the tier you picked
- One clarifying follow-up within 7 days, free
- English or Chinese — your choice
- Sources named where they exist (regulations, platforms, studios)
- Full refund if I cannot answer, decided by me not by you
- No subscription, no stored card, no account
The first question is free once. For a single order of 50 or more, write first — one invoice, 48-hour turnaround.
Ask your question
Fill this in and the question is filed at once under its own ID. You can pay on the next screen, or wait for my email — nothing is charged until you decide.
I have it. Check your inbox.
Your question is filed under the ID below. I confirm by email within 2 working hours, China time.
The archive
Three sample answers in full, then the questions I put to myself before anyone asked them. Real published questions appear here with their own IDs as they come in — never a name, never a company.
Questions about the questions
One person who lives there.
Disclaimer
Read this before you pay. It overrides everything else on this page.
If an answer would involve China's state secrets, the privacy of any citizen, or anything that may break the law, I will decline to answer.
State secrets
Not described, not guessed at, not repeated. I will not even confirm whether a given matter counts as one.
Citizens' privacy
No address, contact, travel plan or family detail about any individual, and no judgement on anyone's private life.
Anything unlawful
Including helping anyone sidestep regulation, forge documents, bypass approvals, or obtain material they are not entitled to.
What happens then: I refuse after the order and return the payment in full — no explanation, no negotiation. Paying more, ordering in bulk, or a monthly arrangement does not change this.
Nothing here is legal, medical, financial or official advice. For a permit you intend to rely on, a contract you intend to sign, or a symptom you are worried about, go to a licensed professional in China. An answer here is a starting point, not a sign-off.
