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| China's 'love hunters' seek brides for picky billionaires | China's 'love hunters' seek brides for picky billionaires |
| (3 days later) | |
| China is moving forwards at an astonishing rate, but there is a shortage of something vital - young women. Men of marriageable age are confronted by a shrinking pool of potential female partners - and the competition to find a bride is fierce. | |
| Clutching his iced coffee, Peng Tai strolls down the street and disappears into a shopping mall. | Clutching his iced coffee, Peng Tai strolls down the street and disappears into a shopping mall. |
| Half way up the escalator, he surveys the scene below. | Half way up the escalator, he surveys the scene below. |
| "What about that girl in a yellow dress?" I venture. "Uh uh, too short," he says. | "What about that girl in a yellow dress?" I venture. "Uh uh, too short," he says. |
| And the girl in micro shorts coming out of a shoe shop? "No way. Too skinny." | And the girl in micro shorts coming out of a shoe shop? "No way. Too skinny." |
| "I am looking for girls with nice skin, nice white skin," he adds. "They should be not too thin and not too chunky with a normal way of walking." | "I am looking for girls with nice skin, nice white skin," he adds. "They should be not too thin and not too chunky with a normal way of walking." |
| A minute later he sidles up to a fashionable twentysomething girl trying on perfumes. | A minute later he sidles up to a fashionable twentysomething girl trying on perfumes. |
| "Are you single?" he coos. "Looking for love?" She quickly shakes her head and walks away. | "Are you single?" he coos. "Looking for love?" She quickly shakes her head and walks away. |
| He gets the same brush-off from a few more young women - some look embarrassed, others impatient. | He gets the same brush-off from a few more young women - some look embarrassed, others impatient. |
| Peng Tai rejoins me by the entrance and sucks dejectedly on his drink. "The girls should not look angry. We do not want one with a sour face." | Peng Tai rejoins me by the entrance and sucks dejectedly on his drink. "The girls should not look angry. We do not want one with a sour face." |
| Suddenly he spots his prey - a very young girl in a sleeveless top with platform heels. | Suddenly he spots his prey - a very young girl in a sleeveless top with platform heels. |
| Cautiously he approaches her, all smiles. She listens wide-eyed to his opening gambit and looks intrigued as he takes down her details. | Cautiously he approaches her, all smiles. She listens wide-eyed to his opening gambit and looks intrigued as he takes down her details. |
| Then, iPhone in hand, he moves in for the kill and snaps her picture in the doorway of the mall. | Then, iPhone in hand, he moves in for the kill and snaps her picture in the doorway of the mall. |
| Peng Tai has a quota of three suitable girls a day. He is what is known as a "love hunter". | Peng Tai has a quota of three suitable girls a day. He is what is known as a "love hunter". |
| He works for the Diamond Bachelors' Agency, a Shanghai outfit which has hundreds of wealthy single men looking for wives on its books. The joining fees range from £15,000 to more than £1m ($1.6m) a year depending on the level of service required. | He works for the Diamond Bachelors' Agency, a Shanghai outfit which has hundreds of wealthy single men looking for wives on its books. The joining fees range from £15,000 to more than £1m ($1.6m) a year depending on the level of service required. |
| Peng Tai and dozens like him remind me of small fishing trawlers, scooping up what they can in their nets. | Peng Tai and dozens like him remind me of small fishing trawlers, scooping up what they can in their nets. |
| But their catch then needs to be specially prepared for the customer and China's billionaires are a notoriously fussy bunch. | But their catch then needs to be specially prepared for the customer and China's billionaires are a notoriously fussy bunch. |
| One client insisted on a girl who looked identical to Zhang Ziyi, the star of the hit film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. | One client insisted on a girl who looked identical to Zhang Ziyi, the star of the hit film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. |
| Another, a real estate tycoon, paid the agency to search nine cities and interview 10,000 girls to find Miss Right. | Another, a real estate tycoon, paid the agency to search nine cities and interview 10,000 girls to find Miss Right. |
| Of course she had to be stunning. But she also had to be between 22 and 24 years of age and have a master's degree from one of the top universities in Beijing or Shanghai. | Of course she had to be stunning. But she also had to be between 22 and 24 years of age and have a master's degree from one of the top universities in Beijing or Shanghai. |
| Peng Tai's work is performance-related but the rewards can be huge. The top love hunters can earn bonuses worth tens of thousands of pounds. | Peng Tai's work is performance-related but the rewards can be huge. The top love hunters can earn bonuses worth tens of thousands of pounds. |
| But I wonder if he ever worries about treating women as commodities? | But I wonder if he ever worries about treating women as commodities? |
| "I do not care what the girls think," he says. "This is my job and we are providing a much-needed service." | "I do not care what the girls think," he says. "This is my job and we are providing a much-needed service." |
| While China's wealthiest men contract out the search for a spouse and have plenty of choice, at the opposite end of the scale some have no choice at all. | While China's wealthiest men contract out the search for a spouse and have plenty of choice, at the opposite end of the scale some have no choice at all. |
| The country's inexorable economic rise has put marriage out of reach for many men. | The country's inexorable economic rise has put marriage out of reach for many men. |
| These days grooms are expected to provide a car, a good salary and real estate. | These days grooms are expected to provide a car, a good salary and real estate. |
| One young engineer I met in a Beijing park, Zhang Junfei, told me that he would have to save up for 200 years to afford a one-bedroom apartment - and that is without eating or drinking. | |
| Men in the poorest, least-developed areas suffer the most from the skewed sex ratio because of another inescapable trend in modern China - mass migration. | Men in the poorest, least-developed areas suffer the most from the skewed sex ratio because of another inescapable trend in modern China - mass migration. |
| In the past decade, 300 million people have left the countryside for the cities and for many young women it is a one-way ticket. They marry up and never return home. | In the past decade, 300 million people have left the countryside for the cities and for many young women it is a one-way ticket. They marry up and never return home. |
| There are 700 people in the village of Tanzhen in the mountainous Guangxi province. As many as 60 of them are single men - most expect to die bachelors. | There are 700 people in the village of Tanzhen in the mountainous Guangxi province. As many as 60 of them are single men - most expect to die bachelors. |
| Sitting in his courtyard, 30-year-old Wei Tianguang says virtually all the eligible young women are working in factories on the coast. | Sitting in his courtyard, 30-year-old Wei Tianguang says virtually all the eligible young women are working in factories on the coast. |
| I ask if he has an ideal woman in mind. Any requirements? | I ask if he has an ideal woman in mind. Any requirements? |
| "No requirements," he says. "I would marry any woman prepared to live here with me. Anyone at all." | "No requirements," he says. "I would marry any woman prepared to live here with me. Anyone at all." |
| From Our Own Correspondent: Listen online or download the podcast. | From Our Own Correspondent: Listen online or download the podcast. |
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