When asked if the divorce rate is high in such arrangements, Li said that most of the couples he knew had no problem with their marriages.

A young man surnamed Chen from the Jiangxi Province which neighbors Zhejiang married into a Xiaoshan family in 1998. The 36-year-old has become a senior executive officer for one of the biggest private companies in Xiaoshan.

Chen said he perfectly understands those who are eager to marry into wealth. Some want to start their own business in the future, others simply seek a comfortable life. "However, I am an exception," Chen claimed.

The truth is his wife's family is not rich at all.

"The only reason I married her is because I love her. As an open-minded intellectual, I do not care about whether my child takes after my surname or not," he added.

Chen said that unlike him, most men who marry into rich families do not live happily.

"Their status is quite low in the family. Nobody listens to them. They have to bear the contempt from the elders. If a man has a university education background, he will be fine; if not, especially if he is not capable of doing anything, his life will be miserable," Chen added.

Last year, a local court in Guali County of Xiaoshan dealt with more than 20 divorce cases from such families, most men have had to leave the district where their former wives' families live, the Southern Weekly reported.

(China Daily 03/06/2007 page19)