Chapter 204 - 202: Saving Face

Chapter 204: Chapter 202: Saving Face

"Streamer, you asked two questions. Let me answer them one by one."

"First, about children. My ex-husband and I have a son, but he was awarded custody during the divorce."

[What does she mean? The mom didn’t fight for custody?]

[Is it not her biological son?]

[Woman gets divorced and takes the kid: -20 points. Woman gets divorced and doesn’t take the kid: -200 points.]

[I bet she got the house in the divorce, on the condition that she gave up custody.]

Zhang Zhe thought the same thing as the bullet comments. It was highly likely this woman had traded custody of her son for a house.

The house was most likely their marital home; otherwise, there would be no reason for her to get it.

She probably wasn’t even paying child support now, having completely abandoned her child to live her own comfortable life.

This type of woman seemed like a classic case of one who had married up, secured her assets, and then gotten divorced.

Her ex-husband had dodged a bullet.

Zhang Zhe was curious how the woman would spin the reason for her divorce.

"I got divorced mainly because his mother was rather overbearing. My ex-husband and I are both from Su Zhong, you see, and his mother is a bit more traditional. She interfered a lot in our little family."

"He wasn’t fully independent and couldn’t stand up for himself. It dragged me down, having to live under his mother’s control too. It was a little unbearable, so we split up."

"You don’t need to say so much next time." Zhang Zhe was speechless. "Just say you had issues with your mother-in-law and your ex-husband didn’t support you. That’s enough."

"Everyone gets it."

"Yes, that’s more or less the situation, just like you said, Streamer."

"Now, tell us what kind of person you’re looking for." Zhang Zhe suppressed the urge to roast her and gestured for her to continue.

’People just have this morbid curiosity.’

’When you encounter a weirdo, you can’t help but want to see just how weird they can get.’

"Right now, I’m looking for someone who works in Shenghai. His income needs to cover my daily expenses."

"He has to be able to stay in Shenghai and accept my divorced status. I don’t want to go back to Su Zhong or anywhere else."

"Because I’m already used to the work & life here in Shenghai..."

"Why did your accent suddenly change mid-sentence?"

"What’s this, you drink Starbucks every day and now you think you’re some kind of Shenghai party girl?" Zhang Zhe really couldn’t hold it in this time. "Sister, I know you’re very modern, but don’t mix Chinese and English when you talk. It’s painful to listen to."

"That bourgeois vibe of yours is just overflowing from the screen."

"Let me guess. You used to stroll down pedestrian streets and have afternoon tea with your girlfriends every day, right? Your mother-in-law couldn’t stand it, said a few words to you, and you threw a fit at your ex-husband until you two finally broke up."

[Streamer, are you a master detective?]

[Oh no, Brother Zhang, you’ve insulted a Shanghai aunty. You’re going to get called out on Xiaohongshu.]

[Streamer, if you’re going to be so blunt, then us sisters will have to start playing dirty.]

[A perfect character profile. I can totally understand why a woman like this wouldn’t want her kid.]

"Streamer, what are you trying to say?"

"I’m just used to sprinkling in some English because sometimes English can be more precise than Chinese. Is there a problem with that?"

"No problem, but this is my livestream." Zhang Zhe pointed to himself. "You have no problem respecting the streamer’s wishes, right?"

"Fine, fine, fine. I won’t do it anymore, okay?"

"Anyway, those are my requirements for a partner. I can accept it if the man is divorced like me, but he can’t have kids."

"A divorced man with no kids?"

Zhang Zhe started to analyze the problem seriously.

"Men like that will usually want to have children after remarrying. Otherwise, there’s no point in getting married. At your age, can you still do that?"

"No, no, no," the woman refused. "I’m definitely not having any more children."

"Huh?"

"Then why do you require the man to not have kids?"

"Because I don’t have kids with me either!" the woman said in a surprised tone. "I’m just asking for someone with the same conditions as me."

"That’s perfectly reasonable, isn’t it?"

"I’ve had a failed marriage before, so when I enter a new marriage, I naturally have to consider these practical factors..."

"No, you’re not telling the truth." Zhang Zhe shook his head. "You’re just afraid that if the man has a child, all his money will be spent on the child, and there’ll be none left for you."

[Brother Zhang, what are you doing here? You should be the one presiding over the Kaifeng Prefecture court!]

[The streamer is speaking the truth!]

[She just wants to find a rich guy to support her.]

[Why doesn’t she just go to Longhua Temple and make a wish?]

[Even a Bodhisattva would break a sweat listening to these demands.]

"Streamer, the factor you mentioned is something I’d naturally consider too." The woman didn’t try to hide it this time. "Having a child lowers a couple’s quality of life. My previous marriage has already proven that."

"Okay, so here’s the question."

"A man who’s settled in Shenghai and has enough money to support you—why would he pass up a 20-year-old female college student to be with a 40-year-old divorcée like you?"

"Go on, please answer."

"Because my standards are low! I can accept a man who doesn’t have a house, because I have a house."

"Then what do you think the approximate annual income would have to be for a man to be able to cover all of your daily living expenses?"

"I think at least 300,000 or more," the woman answered after some thought.

"Alright, so a man with an annual salary of 300,000, around your age, divorced with no kids... he works his butt off to earn money for you to spend, just so he can live in your house?"

"Is it because renting is illegal for him?"

"Where would you find a man like that? If you find one, give me a call. I have a doctor from a psychiatric hospital who can give him a free mental evaluation."

[If he makes 300,000 a year, isn’t spending 100,000 a year on rent more than enough?]

[And you have the nerve to bring up that shabby 3-million-yuan house of yours? Anyone who didn’t know better would think it’s Tangchen Yipin.]

[This kind of woman is just an airhead. She can’t think straight at all.]

[A 3-million-yuan house... if you’re just co-renting a secondary bedroom, the monthly rent is only a little over 2,000. Who’s short on that kind of money?]

"Uhh..." The woman’s voice faltered.

The property she had always been so proud of, after Zhang Zhe’s analysis, seemed to be worth only a few thousand yuan a month.

It made her own logic begin to crumble.

Finally, she managed to squeeze out a sentence: "Then why are there some older, rich women who also don’t spend money on men, but still have moochers lining up for them?"

"You’re talking about your girlfriends, right?"

"Yes, I have a friend whose situation is similar to mine, and she has lots of ’little puppies’ who actively give her gifts."

"Maybe she looks gullible, and those ’little puppies’ think that if they marry her, they can get a share of her house and spend her money. So, giving her some gifts is just an investment."

"Or maybe they’re just volunteers caring for lonely, elderly people."

"It’s hard to say with these things. What if your friend accepts the gifts and then, ahem... you should know what I mean, right?"

Zhang Zhe left it at that, only telling the woman, "Their situations probably have nothing to do with marriage."

"Okay, well, I guess I’m not dead set on getting married, actually..."

"Right. You should have realized that a long time ago."

Zhang Zhe nodded and gave her a big thumbs-up in approval.

Almost every older woman who came on the livestream for matchmaking would say something similar to save face after her fantasies were shattered.

They make it sound as if today’s "little puppies" are so desperate they’ll take anything, like they can be reeled in with just a few hundred yuan a month.

However, Zhang Zhe’s attitude towards them was always one of encouragement.

’It doesn’t matter if they’re stubborn. As long as they don’t come to the dating market to disgust normal people, they’ll be doing a good deed.’