The Yunnan Province theatrical troupe just happened to check in with the production corps to recruit performers, and Zhang was selected. This "fluke of history" enabled him to acquire a grounding in the fundamentals of the performing arts. He acted, wrote scripts, and on two occasions even went to the front lines as a military journalist to report on the war between China and Vietnam.
偶然機會，雲南省話劇團到兵團來招考演員，他被選上，這個「歷史誤會」為他打下藝術文化基礎，從演戲、寫劇本，甚至兩度以軍事記者身份深入越戰前線，完成大型話劇《軍魂》，改拍成電視劇後又得到大獎。