Beautiful, Rich, and Still Single: 35-Year-Old Women Rejected in China

Older single women nowadays are facing extreme competition. Some are so desperate to get married that they are willing to forego housing and car requirements, and even pay the man 50,000 yuan as a dowry. Some are even offering 100,000 yuan, along with three gold and five gold jewelry sets. These women already have houses, cars, and savings. And me? I only have a rental apartment. How can I even compete? I just want to cry. I'm almost 35 years old and considered an older leftover woman. At this point, I don't even ask for a dowry. But even if I offer a house and a car, it's still hard to get married. The men at blind dates think I'm too old. There's nothing I can do. Finding a partner is just too difficult. I might as well live alone. Currently, China has over 200 million single men and women. Most of the leftover men are in rural areas, often struggling financially and unable to afford marriage costs. In contrast, most leftover women are in big cities and belong to the high-education, high-income, and high-appearance group. Due to differences in wealth and social class, these leftover men and women rarely end up together. Today, let's talk about the issue of older single women. In April last year, a large-scale matchmaking event was held in Hangzhou, attracting thousands of participants. However, while hundreds of women showed up, the number of men was shockingly low, creating an awkward atmosphere. Some men, seeing how few males were present, simply left early. In early December last year, a five-star hotel in Wuhan hosted another matchmaking event. This time, 800 elegantly dressed women attended, but not a single man showed up. The entry fee for the Wuhan matchmaking event was free for men, but each woman had to pay 3,800 yuan. In total, the 800 women spent 304,000 yuan, only to end up with no men at all. It was truly a matchmaking event for nothing. As for why men are unwilling to attend matchmaking events, some netizens analyzed that high-quality men don't need blind dates. They can easily find a partner on their own. Meanwhile, men with poor conditions won't go either because they understand their own limitations. Women typically expect a man to have a house, a car, and a dowry. If a man doesn't meet these criteria, why bother attending just to humiliate himself? In major cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, there are many older single women. These women are high-quality individuals. They have high levels of education, stable jobs, and decent looks. However, due to their older age, they find it difficult to find a partner, even when they continually lower their standards. I was born in 1988, single and never married. I have a master's degree and run my own company. I have always believed that being financially independent is a mark of excellence, but at my age, I am struggling in the marriage market. I can tell young women without reservation, whether it's men your age or younger, they will discriminate against you because of your age. And this discrimination seems to be widely accepted by society as if you deserve it. The harsh reality is that very few people your age are still single. Your best outcome might be to prepare yourself for a lifetime of solitude. Matchmaker, I just saw that girl wanted to add you on WeChat. Why did you refuse? Man, she's already 35. Why would I add her? Matchmaker, but she has good qualities. She has a stable job and even owns a house. Man, that's useless. Even if she has good conditions, she won't spend money on me. Instead, she'll still expect me to spend money, live in my house, and use my money. Older women, they expect men to spend money on them and also provide emotional support. I feel like I'd be bringing home an ancestor, not a wife. But with younger women, as long as they're not gold diggers, you don't have to spend much money, and they can even provide emotional support for you. In China, men are typically expected to pay a dowry when getting married. In Jiangxi province, dowries are generally around 300,000 yuan, with even higher amounts in rural areas. In Guangzhou, Fujian, and other Minnan regions, dowries range from 200,000 to 500,000 yuan, with some areas requiring additional conditions like the three golds, gold jewelry, and property. Because Chinese women tend to have high financial expectations for marriage, many Chinese men have started looking abroad, where foreign women do not demand dowries, cars, or houses. In recent years, the number of foreign women marrying into China has been increasing. According to statistics on cross-border marriages, in 2019, over 29,000 Chinese men married foreign women. In 2020, more than 10,000 foreign brides moved to China. By 2021, this number had risen to over 27,000. A young Chinese man married a Ukrainian wife. Man, my father-in-law supported our marriage by sending us a total of $50,000, and their family didn't ask for a dowry. Tell me, why do you think this foreign girl was so determined to marry a poor guy like me? Woman. Honey. What are you looking at so intently? Man. I'm looking at the photos from when you first came to China as a student. Woman. Why are you looking at those? Man. When we were in university, there were so many handsome guys. Why did you choose me? Woman. When I first arrived in China, I didn't speak Chinese, so I didn't have many friends. Everyone spoke Chinese, and I couldn't understand. But when I met you for the first time, I realized you could speak fluent English. At that moment, I thought, wow, why is this guy so amazing? And I also thought you were very handsome, so I wanted to talk to you. Man. Now that last part sounds like the real truth. Vietnamese brides are popular among Chinese men due to their gentle, hardworking, and family-oriented nature. In Guangxi, it is especially common for men to marry Vietnamese wives. There's even a saying in the region, if you can't find a local wife, a Vietnamese bride is your solution. No dowry, no house required. She can handle both social events and household chores. However, a Vietnamese blogger warns Chinese men against using matchmaking agencies to find Vietnamese brides. Not only do these agencies charge a lot of money, but the brides they arrange often run away after marriage. Are you too naive or just too brave? Why would you hand over thousands, even tens of thousands of yuan, to matchmakers and agencies to find a Vietnamese wife for you? Do you realize that China's divorce rate is already shockingly high? Even when you marry a Chinese woman, someone from the same country, with an emotional foundation, you can still end up divorcing. So how much riskier is it to find a wife from another country? You don't know her, and she doesn't know you. You don't understand Vietnam, and she doesn't understand China. You too are introduced by a matchmaker, rush into marriage, and think that this kind of relationship will lead to happiness? Vietnamese women are not desperate to get married. Even if a woman has poor conditions, she can still find an average local man in Vietnam. So why would she leave her home country and travel so far to marry you? It's because she expects something from you. She hopes you'll treat her well and provide her with a better life. But once she realizes that you can't give her what she expected, and there was no emotional foundation to begin with, she'll leave after just a few months. Do you know how hard older single women are trying to get married these days? I've seen so many cases around me. Women lowering their dowry expectations, reducing their housing requirements, and even willing to contribute more from their own side just to get married. Have you ever seen this happen? Some women have messaged me privately, saying that if I don't ask for a dowry, I'm devaluing myself, and if I offer a dowry instead, I'm basically paying for a husband. But sister, we are not the same. You are young, beautiful, and have a great figure. Men lining up for you could stretch all the way to France, but I'm almost 35 years old. If I don't offer tens of thousands in dowry to attract a husband, I might be alone for the rest of my life. I beg you have some empathy. Do you really want me to be single forever? Matchmaker Jingjai at the matchmaking corner of Wansong Academy in Hangzhou came across the marriage requirements of an older single woman and felt that the current dating market is truly brutal. Some older women are really desperate. Just now, I saw a woman at Wansong Academy standing by the roadside holding up a sign. Her information stated that she was 38 years old, unmarried, running her own business with an annual income of 1 million yuan, and owning both a house and a car. Her requirements for a man, no more than 10 years younger than her, stable job, stable emotional support, and at least average looks. Honestly, considering her own conditions, her expectations don't seem too high. But many parents commented, who would want to marry someone so much older? Do you think her requirements are reasonable? Many netizens feel that a 10-year age gap is too much. Five years at most would still be acceptable. A factory can ignite the prosperity of a city, or it can silence it overnight. Foxconn's parent company, Honhai, recently quietly launched a major move. Planning to set up its first wholly owned factory in northern India, in Uttar Pradesh, UP. It is rumored that the scale may even exceed the existing Bangalore facility, which is known as the second largest factory in the world. At the same time, Foxconn factories in China are laying off employees, relocating, and going silent. Netizens shouted, don't let Foxconn run away. But the truth is, it has left a long time ago, but we are only seeing the results now. Foxconn, one of the largest electronic component manufacturers in the world, is shifting a significant portion of its production lines out of China to mitigate risks from escalating trade tensions and political issues. The company has been ramping up investments in countries like India and Vietnam, where labor costs are lower and the manufacturing environment is less impacted by the stringent policies in China. This shift is causing Foxconn's factories in China to experience a devastating situation, with many production lines being scaled down or shut down, leaving thousands of workers unemployed. In China, Foxconn's factories, which were once central to the production of major brands like Apple and Sony, are now struggling with a severe lack of orders and a drastic decline in production. Some factories have been forced to lay off workers or reduce operations, leading to a dire economic situation in these industrial zones. This not only affects Foxconn but also impacts its subcontractors, who are unable to maintain contracts and production. If Foxconn's move is just a business choice of a company, then what is happening behind it is the structural rupture of the entire made-in-China. Will this be the beginning of a long-term recession in the Chinese economy? Meanwhile, in countries like India and Vietnam, Foxconn is making substantial investments to restructure its supply chain. New factories producing iPhones in Devanahalli, India and other facilities in Vietnam are being built with local government support. This clearly signals Foxconn's exit from China, where geopolitical risks and an increasingly difficult manufacturing environment are making it harder to compete. The factories in China appear to no longer be competitive in the face of the growing global trend of production relocation. The Chinese government has tried a wide range of tactics to prevent Foxconn from relocating its production lines to countries like Vietnam and India. Initially, they attempted to entice the company with financial incentives, including tax breaks and land subsidies, to keep its factories within China. They also offered Foxconn favorable terms for land use and expanded factory space. Hoping to maintain their stronghold as the primary manufacturing hub for global tech companies. However, these efforts were ultimately unsuccessful, as Foxconn recognized the long-term risks of remaining in an increasingly unstable environment. As Foxconn continued to press forward with its plans to diversify its production base, the Chinese authorities resorted to more aggressive measures. They implemented bureaucratic obstacles, delayed permits, and even launched heavy inspections at Foxconn's existing facilities, creating an environment of constant uncertainty and tension. Despite these efforts to tighten control, Foxconn's leadership was undeterred. The company made it clear that the pressures of operating in China, coupled with rising labor costs and political volatility, had forced their hand. In the end, Foxconn's decision to move its operations to other countries was not swayed by the Chinese government's tactics, signaling a clear shift in the global manufacturing landscape.