Zhao Li, a 31-year-old woman from Changchun, northeast China's Jilin Province, has been seeking a companion to travel abroad during the Spring Festival, so as to avoid constant "bombardment" by family members and relatives persuading her to get married.

Within four hours of posting the notice on the Twitter-like app WeChat, on January 18, Zhao received inquires and requests from dozens of users.

Zhao has been single for three years; each year when she returned home for the Spring Festival, her parents dwelt on her marriage issues.

"Not only my father and mother, but also visiting relatives during the festival almost all raised the topic. As my younger cousins have all got married and started a family, more attention has been directed to me."

"They even arranged several blind dates last year and forced me to go," Zhao complained.

Given the uncomfortable experiences over the past years, she felt nervous about the upcoming occasion of family reunion. She had planned to travel with her friends, yet all the women wanted to go back home.

With no other choices, she set out in the hope of finding a "like-minded" friend, male or female on social media.

If the potential partner is a man, Zhao emphasized that he must be virtuous and good-tempered with no bad habits. What's more, he must be straight, she said, as she felt it would be good to find "the one" on her travel.

Zhao's experiences reflect a common dilemma facing many singles in China. Interviews with five older couples find that they all urged their children during the Spring Festival to get married earlier, as the young are still single in their 30s.

Arranged blind dates have become another common action by the anxious parents.

One woman surnamed Song said that her son had better marry before 30, or he would be "left-over" at an older age. "As we parents are still healthy and energetic, we can help raise our grandchildren. We do all these things for his sake."

"Zhao has taken an absurd act to avoid conflict with her parents. Many parents always say it's all for the young's sake, but it will cause them huge pressure."

"Hopefully, they will respect the decisions of their children, especially on the matter of relationships and marriage," said Huang Xiaomei, a psychology councilor.

Editor: Eileen Cheng
Photo: local.chinaso.com