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New Chinese dating service comes with hefty membership fee for the guys

Posted: 03/7/2014 1:38 pm

Popular matchmaking service, Meimeng, is on a nationwide search for the top 100 single women in China. Last weekend, they held a recruitment session in Shenzhen. The finalists will receive a private matchmaking session and will be invited to attend a blind date party in Sanya this June in the hopes of meeting that special someone, Shenzhen News reports.

In an interview, Meimeng CEO, Zhang Rui, explained that both men and women can join the service for free, however if the men wish to contact any of the interested women they are expected to pay a membership fee of between RMB40,000 and RMB100,000. If that wasn’t a steep enough price tag, in order to qualify, they must also possess assets in excess of RMB5 million, equal to the cost of a house. “We are a company established by married women. Helping people get married is a good deed.” she says.

Close to one hundred singles aged 24-50 attended the Shenzhen event. Speaking to the event’s success rate, Mrs Zhang explains, “if both parties like each other and decide to be boyfriend and girlfriend, it’s deemed a successful match. Our current rate of success is between 70% and 80%.”

In order to qualify, every woman is subject to three tests: a face and palmistry test, a lie detector test and an overall quality evaluation. Mrs Zhang stresses that “the lie detector test is to encourage every woman in attendance to be honest and open.” Women are also tested for health, character, unique talents, and voice. If they meet the requisite standards, they are allowed to join the club for free.

Meimeng claims its members are the best singles in the world, and their popular app is available only to pre-screened and approved members. Miss  Zhou, one of the participants, told the reporter, “I’m not sure if the process is reliable but I am hopeful. I am most concerned about men’s overall quality. Money is not critically important. The key point is that we have common interests and like each other at first sight.”

Miss Xu, also a post 80s from Sichuan, is working in finance. She likes handsome men, and is hoping to find an educated and outgoing partner. “I am looking for someone who shares the same values and interests.” Miss Long, a freelancer from Hunan agrees, “It’s important for both parties to feel right about each other.”

Good luck to all singles.

Haohao
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Spring Festival “rent-a-girlfriend” tradition turns sour

Posted: 02/20/2014 6:11 pm

There have been many stories of late of men or women offering themselves for rent during the Spring Festival holiday, in which many migrant workers return to their hometowns under enormous pressure to marry.

Rentals have become more and more popular in recent years, but one case hasn’t worked out quite as well as planned. A man surnamed Li had spent years living in Fuzhou, in Fujian Province, earning a living. But under pressure from his family to get married, he hired a girl named Miss Zhang, who returned to his hometown of Changle with him during the Chinese New Year Holiday, according to reports.

Upon arriving, his parents were ecstatic that their son had finally met a girl — so ecstatic that they handed her an envelope containing RMB20 thousand as a gift.

After leaving Changle, Mr Li asked for the RMB20 thousand back, and Miss Zhang insisted it was hers to keep. The two bickered over it to the point the police were called to settle the dispute. The good news for Mr Li? Miss Zhang was finally ordered to return the sum.

Miss Zhang did manage to keep the agreed upon fee for her service, however. That was RMB5 thousand.

Haohao
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Foshan, the most romantic city in China?

Posted: 02/19/2014 9:09 am

Forget about Paris. Start packing for Foshan, the newly minted, most romantic city in China, at least according to Amazon.

The industrial city in central Guangdong province was rated as the most romantic city in China by the online shopping website based on the total number of love-themed books, e-books and CDs sold in China last year, Yangcheng Evening News reported.

Shanghai and Beijing, two traditional fixtures on China’s top 10 most romantic lists, didn’t make the cut.

The result did not prompt much celebration. Instead, netizens greeted the news with sneers and skepticism. Among 26 people interviewed by the newspaper following the release of the results, 21 respondents said it was bukaopu, meaning “unreliable” in English.

Here are some reactions online:

Zhang Zai Huangge (张在欢哥) wrote:

I don’t think buying love related books defines whether a city is romantic or not. Rather it shows a person’s loneliness. Why else would you buy so many love related books online?

Dongguan, the epicenter of the recent crackdown on the sex trade, was ranked third on the list. Some fervent Dongguan supporters protested over several grumpy online posts.

“Foshan is the most romantic city? Dongguan should be the first,” wrote 耿炎Glaube.

Liuan Xiaofeng (柳岸熏风) seconded and wrote “Dongguan indeed is quite romantic.”

A local in Foshan, Mr Zhou, said he can’t understand how Foshan placed first. “Every time I want to go on a date with my girlfriend we don’t know where to go. Instead, we have to travel to Guangzhou for a date. Where exactly is romantic in Foshan?” Zhou asked.

The full list is Foshan, Ningbo, Dongguan, Changsha, Wuxi, Kunming, Chongqing, Chengdu, Shenyang and Dalian.

Home page credit: Dayoo.com

Haohao
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Fewer Chinese marrying foreigners

Posted: 02/13/2014 2:46 pm

It’s a tired cliché: the poor laowai who arrives in China and ends up marrying a Chinese woman, who likely wrongly concluded the laowai had money just because he’s, well, a laowai. Perhaps Chinese girls are catching on though, because there has been a rather steep decline in the number of Chinese-foreign marriages in China in recent years.

There were 79,000 Chinese-foreign marriages at their peak in 2001, which declined to only 49,000 marriages in 2010. It should be noted this is a mere drop in the bucket compared to the eight million marriages registered in China each year. Nonetheless it does show a trend.

The China Policy Institute says the most common type of Chinese-foreign marriage is between a woman from Mainland China and a man from Hong Kong:

Marriages between PRC citizens and foreign nationals comprise the second largest category of Chinese-foreign marriages registered in mainland China between 1979 and 2010. Around 300 foreign nationals registered such a marriage in 1979. That figure rose to a peak of over 26,000 people in 2001 and declined to nearly 23,000 in 2010. There is no reliable information available regarding the countries of origin of these foreign nationals. However, media reports suggest that foreign spouses come from around the globe.

The reasons for the decline are subject to speculation, but the slowing economy, crackdown on foreigners without proper work permits, and general trend of foreigners leaving China may hold some of the clues. Or, more likely, the tastes of Chinese women may be changing.

 

Haohao
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Master’s candidate dates 4 girls in 2 years, has a ‘wedding photo’ with all 4 on graduation day

Posted: 07/5/2013 7:00 am

Four weddings and a graduation

In his book “Behind the Red Door: Sex in China,” Richard Burger talks about how in China, casual dating as we know it in the West is still in its infancy.

But there are signs that it has come of age.

One such sign is that of a student at an unnamed university (thought to be in Guangdong) who dated four girls during the two years of his Master’s program. There appear to be no hard feelings about him not marrying them as they all gladly posed for a photo with him in wedding dresses to celebrate his graduation.

The above picture (and story) of the graduate and his “brides” was forwarded by a number of established Guangdong microblogs including the regional Sina blog.

Along with the photo the man wrote: “Today is the day I take my Master’s graduation photograph. Many thanks to my four ex-girlfriends for coming out in their wedding dresses for me. Sorry I can’t enjoy marital bliss with any of you. But at this moment you’re all my brides.”

Haohao
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Man shows up at girlfriend’s graduation ceremony in Shenzhen to propose to her

Posted: 07/2/2013 7:00 am

Overwhelmed with emotion

It’s official, romance is not dead. This year’s graduates may be entering the toughest job market in the country’s history but it’s not all doom and gloom out there.

A student at Shenzhen University got the surprise of her life during her graduation ceremony at the weekend when her boyfriend showed up and proposed to her. The photos were put on Sina Weibo by a user named SB71 and were forwarded by several of the city’s major microblogs.

Photos show the man arriving at the ceremony all suited and booted before ceremoniously proposing to her in one of the most public ways possible. Bystanders can be seen applauding and taking photographs.

He’s given himself a lot to live up to

After posting some harrowing stories over the weekend, The Nanfang is glad to bring you some good news for a change.
And as Heath Ledger showed us in “10 Things I Hate About You,” you’ve gotta be prepared to make an ass of yourself for the special person in your life:

Haohao
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Married man uses nude photo to blackmail 14 year-old Guangdong girl into bed

Posted: 04/30/2013 7:00 am

A 14 year-old girl who sent a topless picture of herself to a stranger on QQ was blackmailed into having sex with the man she sent it to twice. After he attempted to blackmail her a third time, she contacted the police and he is now on trial, Southern Metropolis Daily reports.

A Po (alias) is a 26 year-old driver who has a wife and son. He met the 14 year-old Xiao Fang on QQ in early November last year. Both live in Zengcheng. Without meeting in person, A Po gained Xiao Fang’s trust.

After a while, A Po asked to see Xiao Fang’s nude body and she sent a topless photo of herself.

They met at Xiao Fang’s house on December 20 (presumably her parents were away. The paper doesn’t say) and hugged in the living room. A Po then dragged a reluctant Xiao Fang into the bedroom. When Xiao Fang resisted, he reminded her that he had her nude photo and would put it on Sina Weibo.

After they had sex, A Po took out his phone and deleted the photo in front of her. On January 3, he contacted her again and told her he still had the photo on his computer and would put it on Sina Weibo if she didn’t have sex with him again. She reluctantly obliged.

He contacted her again in mid-January and told Xiao Fang that if she didn’t have sex with him again, he would print the photo and stick it on the front entrance of her school. Scared, she consulted a QQ group to ask for help and one of the adults in the group called the police. The adult then accompanied her to the police station to tell her story.

A Po is now facing trial for blackmail but will not be tried for pedophilia as the age of consent in China is just 14.

Haohao
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Hey girls… sound familiar? “Creepy White Guys” shows the worst of the Asian fetish

Posted: 02/5/2013 9:46 am

Beijing Cream has drawn our attention to a website that will, no doubt, be packed to the brim with material soon.

An Asian woman, probably in the west (although it’s not specified), has rejoined the dating scene and launched a profile on a popular dating site.  Then, the messages began coming in from curious dudes… among them:

The woman has decided to collect these tidbits on her Tumblr titled “Creepy White Guys“.

There’s only one other post on the site so far, which is also a must read. But stay tuned… this is an area very rich with material.

Haohao
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Nanfang TV: Guangzhou holds private party for billionaires seeking wives

Posted: 05/24/2012 7:00 am

For many people in China, the naked pursuit of money and power is nothing to be ashamed of.  After all, practicality and money trumps outdated concepts like love and courtship, right?

That is definitely the case for 28,000 women who painstakingly filled out application forms in an attempt to bag one of 11 billionaires who are seeking wives.  A private party was held at the Garden Hotel in Guangzhou last Sunday (May 20) featuring 320 of the finalists - those whose applications were deemed sufficient for closer inspection.  The billionaires themselves weren’t apparently in attendance; rather, their minions had the task of sorting the wheat from the chaff, so to speak.

Free More News reports the average age of the women applying was 28, with the youngest being only 19:

Among all the applicants, a lot of them have received higher educations. Some have studies abroad and hold master’s degrees. One of the billionaire claimed to have over ten billions yuan of assets. He said he was under 50, divorced, and looking for a beautiful woman who must be a virgin around 20 to 26 years old.

We present the long-song filled footage from the private party in today’s Nanfang TV.

Haohao
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Shenzhen man murders GF, hides with corpse for five days

Posted: 02/20/2012 1:11 pm

A court in Shenzhen recently heard the story of how one man in the city, Shao, strangled his girlfriend, Cao, to stop her complaining of his addiction to online games and refusal to get out and find work.

Shao and Cao became lovers in April last year and, in spite of Shao’s unemployment and growing gaming addiction, moved in together shortly after. On the afternoon of May 13, 2011, the couple had another fight in what had become a series of quarrels. Out of control, Shao choked Cao until she passed out. Finding her still breathing and afraid she might call the police, Shao then killed his girlfriend by wrapping a towel around her neck to suffocate her.

Shao put his girlfriend’s corpse in a bag and went back to playing his online games sitting right next to it. Five days later, he put the SIM card from Cao’s mobile phone into his phone and pretended to be Cao as he replied to text messages from Cao’s colleagues the following afternoon.

“My mother is ill,” he wrote, “I have to go home and have already set out.”

Cao’s colleagues came knocked at the door to her flat. No one answered, but they were able to see light in Cao’s room emanating from the computer monitor.

The superintendent was called and, noticing the stench, tried to open the door but was prevented from entering by someone pushing back from the inside, saying he was trying to sleep. Suspecting something out of the ordinary, he called the police.

Shao was given a reduced sentence of 15 years in prison for manslaughter late last week following a trial at the Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court.

Haohao
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