Chapter 170 - 168: Does Germany Also Require a Bride Price?
"Is the [Spokesperson of Sheep Village] here?"
"You can request to connect to the voice chat now."
Ten seconds later, the first lucky person joined the voice chat. "Good evening, Brother Zhang. I’ve been watching your streams since I was a kid. I’m a huge fan."
"Cut the nonsense, buddy. Your voice sounds like you’re about my age." Zhang Zhe was secretly pleased but put on a serious face. "Tell me, are you 30?"
"I am, actually. Hehe."
"Like you, Brother Zhang, I was born in ’95. But I was born in December, so I’m younger than you."
"It’s just a few months. Nobody cares about that stuff. You’re 30." Zhang Zhe started writing his conditions on the whiteboard. "What about your appearance?"
"Height 5’11", weight around 165 pounds."
"My looks are maybe a 4 out of 10. I have a mature, uncle-type look."
"Uncle-type look? You mean you look old for your age, right? That’s fine, average level. Continue..."
"I just graduated with my master’s degree."
"A master’s at 30? Did you do your grad studies in Germany?" Zhang Zhe had only ever heard that it was difficult to graduate from a master’s program in Germany.
"Yes, I’m in Germany right now."
"Whoa, I actually guessed that right?"
"Awesome, bro. You’re the first German Liu Zi I’ve come across." Zhang Zhe nodded with satisfaction. He approved of this type of international student.
Children from wealthy families generally don’t choose to study in Germany.
For one, Germany only has two universities with high QS rankings. For the rich second generation eager to pad their resumes, it’s far less attractive than the top universities in the United Kingdom and Australia.
Secondly, graduating from a master’s program in Germany is extremely difficult. It’s not uncommon for students to study year after year, dragging it out until they graduate at 30. The key issue is that even if they do graduate, the degree isn’t highly recognized back home. You have to stay in Europe to ’make the most of it’.
But studying in Germany has one huge advantage: it’s cheap.
If you really want to get into a major corporation, an engineering degree from Germany can get you into a top-tier car manufacturer like Volkswagen. But it’s definitely not as efficient as studying computer science in the Beautiful Country.
The real advantage is still the cost. Public universities there don’t charge tuition for international students, and the cost of living is low. There are quite a few international students who can complete their degrees by relying on part-time work.
Zhang Zhe naturally assumed this guy’s family was working-class.
"Bro, now that you’re out there, are you planning to come back?"
"I’m hesitating right now." When the topic came up, the man suddenly dropped the goofy act. "I came to Germany for my undergraduate studies and only just now finished my master’s. If I study for a Ph.D. for another five years, I can get permanent residency."
"Basically, if I want to stay, it won’t be a big problem."
"But I really want to return home. After all, I was already 18 when I left the country, so I’m still more familiar with things back home."
[Come back quick, the village is handing out gold bars!]
[You get back here! I’m begging you, don’t emigrate! Come back and be a wage slave with me, and see if I don’t grind you into the dust!]
[The hell you coming back for after a Ph.D.? In China, you’ll be laid off by 35.]
[The pace of life abroad is slow, huh? At this age in China, you’ve already been ’optimized.’ You can start thinking about whether to become a food delivery driver or a Didi driver.]
"What’s up? Did your parents in China leave you assets to inherit?" Zhang Zhe asked with a smile. "How big is the family fortune that makes it worth you coming back?"
"About fifty or sixty million, I guess."
"How much?" Zhang Zhe was completely shocked. "Your family’s net worth is in the tens of millions, and you went to study in Germany? Bro, are you some kind of masochist looking for hardship?"
"Actually, my family’s money mainly came from demolition compensation," the man explained. "I’m a Shenghai local, and so are my parents. They worked at the domestic R&D center for a German company, so they wanted to send me abroad since I was young."
"The demolition compensation was a complete windfall."
"We do have six apartments in the city center now, though."
"Damn." Zhang Zhe glanced at the bullet comments. Holy crap, they were going wild.
A lot of women wanted to connect to the voice chat.
Someone said she could speak German and was willing to move abroad.
Another said she was also a Shenghai native studying in the United Kingdom and wanted to get to know the guy, even asking if he watched soccer.
These people were probably already fantasizing about getting married and living permanently in Germany.
"The problem now is that my family’s assets are illiquid," the man explained. "My parents are retired, so our family’s income is mainly from rent. I don’t have a job either, so we’re essentially a family living off rental income."
"That is such a humblebrag." Even someone as patient as Zhang Zhe couldn’t listen anymore. "Forced to ’only’ live off rental income... just listen to yourself. Do you hear the words coming out of your mouth?"
"Just sell one of the apartments, and you’ll be set for the rest of your life, won’t you?"
"What are you even stressing about?"
"It’s not that simple," the man denied. "I’m actually in the middle of a breakup. We’ve been giving each other the silent treatment for a month. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have come on the stream."
"You haven’t sent a single message in a month?" Zhang Zhe asked.
"Right. Things are pretty tense."
"You... sigh. What am I supposed to say?" Zhang Zhe was a bit speechless. "Giving someone the silent treatment for a month isn’t something a 30-year-old should be doing."
"Either break up or make up."
"Look at you, coming on the stream now. If you find someone better than your girlfriend in a bit, wouldn’t that make you the cheater?"
𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢
[Is it possible his girlfriend has already cheated on him?]
[This reminds me of that story about the guy who gave his girlfriend the silent treatment for half a year, finally decided to message her, and found out she was already married and pregnant.]
[This is what happens when you study too much. A normal person would just break up after a week of the silent treatment. What’s the point of being together if neither side is willing to back down?]
[It’s fine, breaking up is a good thing! A great guy like this should be back on the market!]
[I’ve been watching this stream for so long, and this is the first time I feel like the host has some high-quality prospects!]
"So, should I break up with her right now?" the man said jokingly, but he immediately corrected himself. "Forget it. Teacher, just assume we’ve broken up. I’ve already blocked her anyway."
"What happened? Care to share?" Zhang Zhe asked curiously.
"Well, it’s like this. I met my girlfriend during my master’s program. She’s the same age as me, but she did her undergrad in China. We met at the start of the semester and have been together for about three years."
"Lived together for three years?"
"No, no, just a normal boyfriend-girlfriend relationship."
"Oh, I thought all Liu Zi basically lived with their partners abroad." Zhang Zhe nodded. ’Looks like I can’t stereotype after all.’
"You two started talking about marriage, right?"
"Yes, we were planning to get married, but we have some disagreements."
"Her side is demanding that I buy an apartment in Germany, which is worth over ten million RMB. Then, she wants a bride price of one million from me, and her side will provide a dowry of one million."
"?" Zhang Zhe scratched the back of his head. "What the hell? How did the bride price go up after moving to Germany?"
"It didn’t go up. If you convert it, it’s exactly 120,000 euros."
"They’re even calculating the exchange rate?" Zhang Zhe looked like he’d seen a ghost. "Is the bride price a thing in Germany, too?"
"I actually looked into this," the man said with great interest. "In the old days in Germany, the man’s side would pay for the house and the wedding, and the woman’s family would help buy some small home appliances."
"But that’s changed now. You can do whatever you want. There are no customs, really. Marriage is completely open."
"Oh, then your girlfriend’s demand is unreasonable," Zhang Zhe said, shaking his head. "You either follow the local customs or the customs from back home. Either way, asking for a one-million bride price is out of line."