Ms. Liu, I just saw a news story. A man went to replace his marriage certificate, and the system actually showed that he had two wives. Is this really bigamy?

No, it isn't bigamy. He has only been married once. The other 'wife' is actually his second elder brother's wife. It was a registration mistake from years ago.

How could his second sister-in-law have been registered as his wife? That sounds so strange.

He got married in 2004. When his older brother got married in 2008, the staff may have accidentally registered the information under his name. Back then, many records were still handwritten, and the systems weren't connected online.

I see. Then can't they just correct the mistake now?

It's not that simple. Since it's an error in the official records, they first have to check the old paper documents and then correct the erroneous record according to the proper procedure.

No wonder he's so anxious. Without a correct marriage certificate, his child's schooling and other administrative procedures could be affected, right?

Yes. The local civil affairs department has said it will investigate the matter and provide a response within 7 to 15 working days. Hopefully they can get to the bottom of it soon so it doesn't continue to disrupt the family's life.