Chapter 25: Adversity

Of course, not all of this was her personal experience. Instead, it was the experiences of female colleagues and friends around her. These individuals are required to follow the principle of "matching status and background." Essentially, for Beijing natives, partners had to either be locals or possess a residence in the city. This was an unwavering standard.

当然有些并不是她自己个人的经历，而是通过身边的女性同事朋友这些所了解到的。但是这些人的要求是“门当户对”。也就是男生自己是北京人，他也要求自己找的姑娘也是北京土著或者外地在京有住房的姑娘，这是基本条件，是门槛。

If you are under the standard, everything else is not up for discussion.

若门槛都没有达到，那么一切都休谈。

Gu Xiang had more free time to think about her marriage and profession because of failures in her work.

事业上的挫折让顾湘分出了很多精力思考人生的两大话题：职场与婚姻。

For an out-of-towner, establishing herself in Beijing is a formidable challenge, let alone owning property.

对于一个外地姑娘，要靠自己在北京立足很不容易，她若想靠自己在北京买房那更是难于登天。

Society showcases marriages as business alliances, where personal gains seem to drive everyone.社会中的现象给她看到的都是些联姻似的婚姻，大家似乎都在向着利益靠近。

Profit before love. However, does a foundation built on material interests truly her pursuit of love and marriage?

先有利益再有感情，可是以利益为基石所要建出来的高楼大厦真的是她所追求的爱情与婚姻吗？

Life can be ironic—could her striving from eighteen be nothing more than a joke?

人生真是可笑，难道她从十八岁就开始的奋斗只是一个笑话吗？

Was her struggle against her original family merely a jest?

她和自己原生家庭的抗争仅仅是一个笑话吗？

Is it really impossible to find pure love in this world? Must marriage only be a union of interests, a binding of assets?

难道这世上就真的找不到纯粹的爱情了吗？难道婚姻的存在就只能是联姻形式，利益捆绑形式吗？

At first glance, she might appear as a contradictory person.

表面上看，她其实是一个矛盾的人。

She valued personal endeavor and diligence strongly, prizing the hard-earned results of dedicated labor. However, she felt disheartened by those around her who measured love and marriage solely by value and self-interest, viewing them as overly practical and driven by money