Chapter 172 - 170: What’s the Use of Family Assets?
"Sis, in a situation like yours, maybe you shouldn’t be trying to get in on this, huh? They’re looking for a genuine A8, not a bargain-bin version here to cause trouble."
Zhang Zhe honestly hadn’t expected this line of argument.
She’d really managed to stump him.
"Why not!" The girl clearly wasn’t ready to give up. "I think family assets are just an entry requirement, right? My family has the money, so I should be able to join an A8 matchmaking event."
"Besides, after we get married, it’ll be the two of us living our own lives. Our parents’ money won’t be given to us directly anyway."
"Even if the guy’s parents are rich, they aren’t going to just give him everything right away. Inheriting the estate is something that will happen decades from now; it’s meaningless to us at the moment."
"Are you playing dumb, or are you actually dumb?" Zhang Zhe was taken aback for a second. "Sis, do you know why some matchmaking events have a requirement for family assets?"
"To ensure both parties’ spending habits and social perspectives are on the same level." The woman gave the answer she believed in, explaining, "Even though my parents are divorced, I was raised with plenty of money, so there’s no issue on that front."
"If I were poor, I wouldn’t have studied art. The fees for my extra classes alone were over a hundred thousand."
"Then you’ve got it all wrong." Zhang Zhe wagged his finger.
"Filtering by assets in matchmaking isn’t just about you. It’s to get a clear picture of both families—to see how much they’ll support your future new family, or how much of a burden they’ll be."
"Your parents’ money might not seem to have much to do with you two adults in the short term, but you’ll get it once you have kids. That money is for the children."
"A granddaughter in a wealthy family receives far more financial support than you can possibly imagine."
In truth, anyone with kids knows this. Grandparents might be stingy with their own children, but they’re usually incredibly generous with their grandchildren. It’s not uncommon for them to spend their entire pensions on the youngest generation.
You have to understand, the bond between grandparents and grandchildren is a widespread phenomenon in this country. Grandchildren are often cherished more than one’s own children. It’s been this way since ancient times, even for emperors—historical examples of "favorite grandsons" abound.
"Honestly, when two young people get married, life can be great if you don’t have kids. But the moment you have children, the financial pressure skyrockets."
"That’s when you see the difference between having parents who can provide a safety net and not having them."
"Sis, even if your family can cobble together an A8.2, how much money—and energy—can your divorced parents really give you?"
"..." The woman admitted with great difficulty, "Basically nothing. The most I can say is that they won’t hold me back."
"Have both of your parents remarried?"
"Yes, and my mother even had a son, my little brother. But my stepfather is pretty wealthy, so I don’t need to help out with him or anything."
[Sis, your family situation is a little too fractured.]
[No wonder she’s already thinking about marriage as a college senior. She really does need to get married young.]
[At least she’s honest. I guess that counts as a good quality.]
[An art major with a family background this bad... All I can say is, if you know, you know.]
[Am I the only one who thinks this girl is amazing? She’s good enough for this guy.]
Economically speaking, there was a clear gap between the young woman and the male guest, but Zhang Zhe didn’t rush to dismiss her.
Because for a highly attractive woman, having a family that won’t hold her back and who can guarantee they won’t bleed the man’s family dry after marriage—that already meets the bare minimum for acceptance.
An "orphan" wasn’t necessarily worse than a "Voldemort."
Plus, she was young—just twenty-three—which added a few more points in her favor.
The man on the call was a whale, willing to fork over a one-million-yuan betrothal gift and a ten-million-yuan house. His standards for the woman’s family background couldn’t be that high; he probably didn’t even expect her side to contribute much money to the marriage.
What the man valued was the woman’s willingness to contribute to the family after marriage.
Zhang Zhe decided to help probe a little further:
"Are you looking for a job right now? Do you plan to stay in Shenghai after graduation? What industry are you planning to work in?"
"I’m still trying to decide," the woman said, a little sheepishly. "I’m considering two paths right now. One is to become a professional model. I have the looks and the figure for it, and I could feel that I had an edge in that area from my part-time jobs."
"The other path is to become a flight attendant, which is a bit more stable."
"..."
"Sis, if you choose either of those paths, you’ve basically eliminated any chance of properly marrying up."
Zhang Zhe smiled and shook his head.
"I originally thought you had a shot. As long as you don’t have an extensive relationship history and have conducted yourself well, there’s a chance to marry up."
"But from the sound of it, you’re still looking to be a sugar baby, aren’t you?"
"In that case, go be a model. If you get lucky and some director takes a liking to you, you might just hit the big time."
"But forget being a flight attendant. That job might have had some cachet twenty years ago, but the halo is long gone."
’Actually, what I’m saying is a bit too absolute,’ Zhang Zhe thought. ’From a casual dating or hookup perspective, being a flight attendant is still a huge advantage.’
’But on the marriage market, they’re not even as desirable as a girl studying for the civil service exam.’
"Then what about being a social media influencer?" the woman asked, pressing him.
"What kind? The risqué kind?"
"No, no, no! A beauty influencer. Female influencers don’t have to be risqué, right? You can get popular just based on looks."
"You could, but being an influencer or a model is basically a hyper-competitive career path. It’s all about getting exposure, about becoming a career woman."
"Of course, you could try to use that as a roundabout way to marry a rich man. I’d say there’s a chance, but it’s far more likely you’ll just get cheated and used."
"Just look at female celebrities. They’re the pinnacle of the career path you’re considering, but very few of them actually end up in good marriages."
[Brother Zhang is so right. Even female celebrities can’t land a good marriage; it’s even harder for a normal girl.]
[Anyway, I can’t imagine why a truly rich man would marry a model, unless we’re talking about the son of some rich guy’s fourth wife.]
[With her looks, she can’t make it as a celebrity. She can only be a minor influencer at best.]
[Her ceiling is becoming one of those influencers who marries into a ’new money’ family that’s all smoke and mirrors, the kind where you have to check your credit limit before going to an auction.]
"Sir, what should I do then?"
Listening to all this, the young woman felt as if her entire future had been shot down. "I feel like there’s no way out for me," she said, dejected.
"Sis, the first thing you need to do is ditch that gold-digger mentality you picked up from your social circle."
’This girl is clueless,’ Zhang Zhe realized. ’I can tell just from the fact that she even considered being a flight attendant.’
’An art school graduate aiming for underemployment... that’s as ridiculous as a rookie investor going all-in on a dying industry.’
"If you’ve kept your reputation clean—and aren’t about to become the star of some leaked video or gossip file—then you should try to get a government job as soon as you can."
"Once you’re in the system, your looks become a truly rare and valuable asset."
"Of course, if you can’t pass the exam, then there’s nothing more to be said." Zhang Zhe shrugged.
"But it’s really hard to get one of those positions in Shenghai," the woman said, sounding intimidated. "I don’t think I have what it takes."
Just then, the man who had been silent the whole time finally couldn’t take it anymore. He pleaded with Zhang Zhe, "Brother Zhang, can I say something? I’m going to go crazy if I don’t."
"Alright, don’t go crazy just yet." Zhang Zhe couldn’t help but laugh. "Go ahead. What’s on your mind?"
"I think the female guest is pretty great, but I want to ask her... what’s her relationship history like?"
𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢
The man was incredibly direct:
"My classmates told me that girls who major in art are prime hookup material. Some of them start sleeping around back in high school."
"Dude, you can’t just..." Zhang Zhe listened, then rubbed his forehead in exasperation. "You two aren’t even a good match, so don’t go asking questions that personal."