Recently, a friend complained to me about the difficulty of finding a partner in a small county.

She’s 31, a postgraduate, working in a state-owned enterprise, 160 cm tall, weighs less than 100 pounds, of average looks, and her parents are farmers. However, they’ve been doing business in the city for many years, but their financial situation is just average.

She has two older brothers who have already bought homes and started families in big cities after graduating from college. Her parents wanted her to stay close, so she returned to her hometown.

After finishing college and pursuing a master’s degree, and spending a few years in a big city, by the time she settled down, she was already in her thirties. However, getting married became her biggest headache.

In order to meet a suitable partner for marriage as soon as possible, she doesn’t mind arranged meetings to get to know the opposite sex, as she has met very few people since returning home.

After six months, she found that finding a partner in the small county was 100 times harder than finding a job…

She wants someone of similar age, unmarried, and at least a college graduate. This isn’t discrimination against those who haven’t been to college, but rather a preference for people with similar life experiences.

At the very least, they should have a decent job, be taller than her, have a decent appearance, and their family shouldn’t have too many burdens, such as long-term major illnesses or heavy debts. A normal family is enough; they don’t have to be wealthy.

Recently, a colleague from her workplace introduced her to a young man.

According to her colleague, the young man is really nice, honest, economically practical, especially caring towards his wife, and has a strong will.

Their ages are similar, and he has a good job with a high salary, and he has a small apartment from a relocation due to urban renovation.

He’s been single for so long because he’s been too picky.

So, this friend of mine thought, even though she might not be his type, at the insistence of her colleague, she decided to meet him. After all, maybe they were meant to be.

After meeting him, she realized that he was probably around 172–175 cm tall, which was 1–2 cm taller than she had thought from his photo. His once thick hair was nowhere to be seen, and he was 36 or 37 years old, 5–6 years older than her, and had a diploma from a third-rate college in the province.

At their first meeting, he immediately introduced her as his girlfriend. She was shocked by this and felt uncomfortable, but out of courtesy, she held back from confronting him directly.

He has two brothers, one of whom is back in their hometown and already has two children. The story about the apartment from urban renovation turned out to be a relocation from a poverty alleviation village.

He currently doesn’t own a house, but he says he can afford one, he just hasn’t bought one yet. As for his car, she almost broke down laughing when they went for dinner nearby.

After the meeting, she felt a big disparity and didn’t want to pursue a relationship.

So, she expressed her feelings to him, but he was very confident and went into a mode of relentless pursuit. He sent messages every day. At first, she replied politely, but soon she became very irritated and couldn’t take it anymore. She again emphasized that they weren’t suitable, and then stopped replying. Out of respect for the colleague who introduced them, she didn’t delete him from WeChat.

Since she didn’t reply, he went through the introducer to say that his family was wealthy. His parents said that as long as she agreed, they could offer a $20,000 dowry, and after marriage, he wouldn’t have to do any household chores, as he would handle all the cooking and cleaning. She could just enjoy a life of leisure.

Hearing about the $20,000 made her feel insulted and disgusted. Had she never seen $20,000 before? Would she sell herself for $20,000? She wouldn’t accept someone she didn’t like, no matter how much money was offered.

Seeing that she wasn’t moved, he said through the introducer that he had rejected the blind date, all because he was interested in her…

My friend was puzzled, as they hadn’t talked or dated, and after meeting, she had clearly told him they weren’t suitable. He had relentlessly pursued her and blamed her.

She asked me, “Do I only deserve someone of this standard? Is it really because my standards are too high? I don’t want to settle for someone I don’t like!”

At first glance, he didn’t seem particularly extreme in any way, and nothing crossed the line in partner selection. However, when it came to appearance, height, age, family, job, and finances, when combined, she couldn’t understand why she should marry him against her will.

It’s really difficult…

By the way, the young man’s salary is about $7,000, and according to the introducer, “Where else in our small city can you find someone with such a high salary?”