Thousand-mile Chinese love search thwarted by dearth of suitors

Thousand-mile Chinese love search thwarted by dearth of suitors

A Chinese woman who cycled more than 1,200 miles to meet eligible bachelors in Shanghai had her hopes dashed when only two men turned up to greet her at the end of the epic journey.

By Malcolm Moore in Shanghai
Last Updated: 5:18PM GMT 29 Dec 2008


Miss Wei said her website had attracted 'over 1,000' interested men, including some from the UK.

Wei Jiaming, 25, set off a month ago from Guangzhou in southern China on a bike ride for charity that she hoped would make her famous and bring her to the attention of her "true love".

"It is hard to find the right person in my daily life and in our society, where people are always so busy, and I was always so busy with my work" she explained. She said she disliked bars and clubs and spent much of her time preparing for professional exams.

Miss Wei quit her job as a tax advisor for PricewaterhouseCoopers in October in order to train for the trip, which raised money for a Chinese charity that houses homeless mothers.

At the same time she signed up with a matchmaking service, which promised to find her an "elite group of men," according to Huang Xintao, the agent who accompanied her on the ride.

Miss Wei expected at least 30 suitors to greet her in Shanghai when she arrived last Saturday, but unfortunately only two men appeared at a reception in a hotel. "I felt lost and confused," she said.

"However, now that I have thought about it, I do not feel unhappy. I can understand that the other men felt a lot of pressure because there were so many people there."

Mr Huang said prospective husbands would have to earn at least £1,500 a month, have their own apartments and be at least 5'7" tall. However, Miss Wei said that her definition of love did not hinge on "money or career", but rather that she was looking for a man who would be stable and "responsible for what he says and does".

She added: "I had two boyfriends at university for a short while, but it didn't work: they were too juvenile and we did not have much in common."

The two men who did arrive were asked to provide their financial details and were then allowed to speak to Miss Wei.

Neither seems to have been a match. "I thought they were sincere and courageous for coming. I'm very grateful to them," she said. "I'm going to stay here for a few days and visit my friends and my relatives. After New Year I will return to Guangzhou and meet some men there."

Miss Wei said her website had attracted "over 1,000" interested men, including some from the UK.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/4014921/Thousand-mile-Chinese-love-search-thwarted-by-dearth-of-suitors.html