Rent a Girlfriend Business Booms Among Youths
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A reporter from Chinese social media outlet Chao News posed as a man interested in renting a woman as his girlfriend registered an account at the 89yn.com website for renting a girlfriend or boyfriend.
The reporter was soon contacted on WeChat by a woman from the site with the pseudonym Mumu, who described herself as a 29-year-old with a bachelor’s degree from a regular university.
Her daily rental fee is 1,000 yuan (US$145), with an additional 500 yuan upfront and another 350 yuan for any travel. She said if he wanted to see her photo first, he had to pay 20 yuan.
The reporter agreed to her rates and one weekend earlier this month, Mumu traveled to Nanjing in eastern China’s Jiangsu province from Zhengzhou in Henan, central China, to meet him for his girlfriend experience.
Mumu said she has a full-time job as a white-collar worker with a monthly salary of 5,000 yuan (US$725). She said she only works as a rented girlfriend in her spare time, and public holidays are her peak rental times.
“The Lunar New Year, May Day holiday, Dragon Boat Festival and National Day holiday are all fully booked. The rent for those days is 2,500 yuan (US$360),” Mumu said.
“I am so busy, especially during the Lunar New Year, that I often receive more than one order for the same day.
"I remember during the two weeks around the Lunar New Year several years ago, I earned a combined 40,000 yuan (US$5,800).”
Young people are normally forced to go on blind dates arranged by their parents or other family members during the Lunar New Year holiday.
The woman said she would introduce her clients to other women if unavailable.
“For instance, if the renting fee is 1,000 yuan a day, I can receive 200 yuan as commission,” said Mumu, adding that she has earned tens of thousands of yuan commissions all these years.
Her clients live across the country, and on average, they are around 30 years old and usually face pressure from their families to get married.
Mumu said most of her clients ask her to accompany them to meet their parents. Some ask her to take wedding photos with them while some even hold wedding banquets with her posing as the bride and obtain fake marriage certificates.
Some of her clients are gay, Mumu said.
She said a man in Beijing who rented her several times required her to take photos that he would pass on to his parents.
Some of her clients are single men in rural areas who rent her to prove to their village neighbors they have a girlfriend.
“There are many such single men in the countryside. They are poor, but they want to save face,” said Mumu.
She said her primary rule is not to fall in love with her clients. “I can hold their hands,” said Mumu. “If they pay enough, it’s also fine for me to do ‘other things’.”
The reporter wrote that Mumu had hinted at kissing or having sex when she discussed “other things”.
“I will quit this industry after I find a boyfriend,” Mumu said.
The report has been viewed eight million times on Douyin and six million times on Weibo and generated heated discussion about the service, and the pressure young people face to marry.
“How audacious she is! Isn’t she concerned that she will be kidnapped in rural areas?” commented one person.
“She can do ‘other things’ if the price is right. So shameful!” another person said.
A third commenter said: “In the past, I also wanted to rent a girlfriend. But now I’ve given up and don’t want to act for my family. I directly told my parents and other relatives that ‘I don’t want to marry’.”
Source: SCMP
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