Chapter 191 - 189: It’s Impossible Between Us
"No, that’s not it. My parents divorced when I was very young, and they both started new families, but neither of them had any more children."
"So, both families treat me very well."
"It’s like I’m the only daughter in both families."
"If I get married, both sides will give me a dowry."
[That really is different from a typical single-parent family.]
[I feel like this girl is pretty lucky, living in such a loving environment.]
[This is just a case where the parents weren’t a good match and had to divorce, but they still care about their child.]
The men present, much like the bullet comments, all agreed with the woman. Her situation was indeed better than that of a typical single-parent family.
But Zhang Zhe didn’t think so.
’Neither family has other kids? Good grief. Doesn’t that mean the elders from both families will rely on just her in the future?’
’A typical only daughter just has to support one set of parents. If you marry her, you’d have to support two sets of parents-in-law?’
’This girl has been doted on her whole life, receiving maybe 1.5 times the affection of a normal only child. Now that it’s almost time to care for her parents, she’s looking for a partner to share the burden.’
’Enjoy the good times without me, but suffer the hard times together?’
’The only way this would be reasonable is if both sets of her parents could handle their own retirement.’
"What are the financial conditions of your parents’ respective families?"
"They used to be well-off; both of them were in business. But four years ago, they went bankrupt for some reason."
"..." Zhang Zhe’s expression soured. "Bankrupt as in assets wiped to zero, or are there debts?"
"There are debts, but just a little."
"A ’little’ billion?"
"Yes. But my parents said they won’t hold up my marriage. And when I get married, they can provide a dowry of at least 200,000."
"That bit of dowry is meaningless," Zhang Zhe said, shaking his head. "You have four elders. A few gifts of liquor and health supplements during the holidays, and more than half that money is already gone."
"And I’m sure no man here would marry someone for that small amount of money."
It’s not uncommon for a woman to marry for a 200,000 betrothal gift to pay off debts, but it’s almost unheard of for a man to marry for a 200,000 dowry.
200,000 is just the price of a car. It’s not a huge sum, more like a little bonus. But if they really got married, who knows how much the man would end up sinking into the relationship just to get that dowry.
After hearing about the woman’s family situation, half the men present backed out.
A single-parent family isn’t scary, but a normal person would definitely think twice about one with such heavy burdens as this woman’s.
"Why are they leaving?" The woman was baffled. She enjoyed being the center of attention.
"Because coming from a single-parent family is considered a pretty big drawback in the matchmaking market."
"A drawback? Impossible. I’m not like a typical single-parent family."
"Your specific circumstances are different, but the label is the same..." Zhang Zhe thought for a moment before asking, "Would you accept a man from a single-parent family?"
"No," the woman said, shaking her head decisively. "Even though my parents are divorced, I’ve had a very happy life. Because of that, I know that to be happy, you must find a partner who is emotionally stable."
"There are emotionally stable people from single-parent families, too," Zhang Zhe retorted.
The woman immediately replied, "But they’re rare."
"See? That’s the label I was talking about," Zhang Zhe explained calmly. "’Single-parent’ is a label, just like ’divorced.’ Only people who are okay with the label in the first place will be willing to look into your specific circumstances."
[This girl’s double standards are off the charts, aren’t they?]
[This girl’s logic is that she’s not *really* from a single-parent family. It’s the same mindset as someone who gets a flash marriage and quickie divorce thinking it’s the same as never being married.]
[You’d marry a woman like this? She gives me the feeling she’s living in her own little world.]
Zhang Zhe just gave an example to explain; he didn’t comment further.
In-person matchmaking isn’t like online dating profiles. It’s mainly about whether the other person accepts you. If a man could accept her viewpoint, he would naturally believe that "she’s different."
And if they couldn’t accept it? Six of the men clearly couldn’t, and they had already left.
Now only about ten male guests were still in line.
Zhang Zhe could already see the light at the end of the tunnel.
He pushed onward. "Let’s talk about your requirements for the man’s income and family assets. Your family has already gone bankrupt, so your future quality of life will basically depend on your in-laws."
"I took a look, and your monthly salary is only 4,000. Your spending habits probably aren’t too high, right?"
"They’re not high. I’m a very simple girl, and my income requirements for a man aren’t high either. A monthly salary of seven or eight thousand is fine."
Hearing this requirement, the remaining men all straightened their backs, clearly able to meet this condition.
"Your requirements really aren’t high," Zhang Zhe noted, giving a rare nod. "No problem. The men here should all be able to meet that."
"Anything else? Perhaps related to money?"
"I hope the man can give a betrothal gift of around 400,000." The woman probably knew her demand was a bit outrageous, as there was no precedent for such a high betrothal gift in Qing City, so she quickly explained, "I’m asking for 400,000 because, well, isn’t the local custom a maximum of 200,000?"
"But my family is providing a 200,000 dowry, so it shouldn’t be a problem for me to ask for a 400,000 betrothal gift, right?"
If this were online, Zhang Zhe would have definitely refuted the girl’s logic. But at a live matchmaking event, he didn’t rush to speak. Instead, he turned his head to glance at the remaining men.
’Can’t speak too definitively. What if there’s a sucker in the crowd?’
[There’s this kind of math? I’ve learned something new today.]
[If she’s really a 7/10 beauty, I don’t think 400,000 is that expensive.]
[An old man would definitely think it’s a bargain, but I doubt her peers would think the same.]
Of the 10-odd men remaining, most were unwilling to pay the 400,000 betrothal gift. One even spoke his mind as he was leaving, spitting out a curse:
"Are you made of fucking gold? 400,000?"
The comment was a bit too blunt. The woman shot to her feet in anger, grabbed a plastic water bottle, and hurled it at the man.
That guy was built like a tank. With a back of steel, he took the hit without flinching and walked off without another word.
Zhang Zhe saw this but didn’t intervene. ’If a grown man can’t control his own mouth, he can’t complain about getting hit.’
Every male guest present knew that a beautiful, 28-year-old kindergarten teacher who was still single couldn’t have a simple background. She was either a reformed delinquent or had a fiery temper that no one dared to provoke.
This girl seemed to be the latter.
Only after she had calmed down, sat back, and resumed her pretense of being a prim and proper lady did Zhang Zhe continue.
Now, only three "premium" gentlemen remained.
They were the contestants who had made it to the final round.
"Congratulations to the three of you. You all believe you meet the lady’s conditions, while the others who were unsuitable have consciously taken their leave."
"Now, for a reversal. You can state your own requirements and see if the lady can meet them."
"You, sir, the eldest of the group. Why don’t you go first?"
Zhang Zhe invited the balding gentleman who had been at the end of the line to the table. Though he was "brilliantly bald," he was likely born in the 80s and still in his prime.
"Thank you, Matchmaker." The balding gentleman smiled and said, "I have no other requirements. I just hope the lady can fulfill my dream of becoming a father."
"And you, madam?" Zhang Zhe asked, turning his head to her.
The beauty frowned, looked at the balding gentleman, and said, "Daddy?"
"Are you satisfied now?"
"That’s not what I meant!" The balding man waved his hands frantically. "I’m not a pervert."
"I know what you meant." The woman made a dismissive gesture. "Impossible. I’m not obsessed with looks, but the difference in our appearances is just too great. If I could accept you, I would have already said yes to that coal boss from Shanxi who was chasing me."