WITH THE APPROACH of the Chinese Lunar New Year the business of renting a girlfriend or boyfriend has emerged again. In either written or oral contracts, the price of such a deal can be up to 1,000 yuan ($160) per day. Changsha Evening News commented on Tuesday:

It is undeniable that during the Chinese Lunar New Year, single women and men face the pressure of marriage expectations from their family.

As a result, the business of hiring a partner has been thriving for some years despite there being many problems, such as parents who give the hired girlfriends money as Spring Festival gifts, that the women usually refuse to part with; and young men who force their hired partners to be more intimate than they want, despite contracts stipulating there is to be no kissing or touching, except for holding hands.

And sometimes, the young women who are hired as girlfriends are not real college students as described online, but instead professional escorts who charge 3,000 yuan a night to be a companion.

When it comes to hire contracts, only things, not people, are protected by the law. So any violation of the rights of either party cannot be settled by the courts.

Instead of trying to deceive their families in such a way, the young men and women should be more open and talk with their families.