My cousin born in '96 went on a blind date this Chinese New Year and met a guy driving a BMW 7 Series who's pretty handsome, just a bit short (158cm). I've seen him myself and his facial features are genuinely attractive. My cousin took a bunch of selfies in his car and posted them on WeChat Moments. The car was newly purchased and gets tons of heads turning on the street.

Later, my cousin felt the guy was too short and wasn't proactive, so it didn't work out. I thought it was kind of a shame since my cousin isn't getting any younger. But when I tried to introduce her to other guys afterward, my cousin insisted that whoever I introduce must also drive a BMW 7 Series, must be handsome, and most importantly, can't be too short.

Then my cousin has several close girlfriends who probably thought, "If my friend can land a handsome guy with a BMW 7 Series, why can't I?" So they all raised their standards too. Now they won't even go on blind dates unless the guy drives at least an Audi A6 and is reasonably good-looking. They won't even bother with guys driving regular cars or with average looks.

I really can't help but sigh about this. These girls—once one of them dates or has been with a guy with good conditions, it influences a whole group of them. They don't even look at their own qualifications before blindly raising their standards. So is it any wonder why there are more and more unmarried older women these days?!