He describes how a stranger, a man in his mid forties, approached him in the market asking if he knew of any marriageable girls.
他描述了在市场里一个40多岁的陌生男人如何走上前来问他是否有适婚的女儿。Research by economists Kerwin Charles and Ming Luoh finds a similar effect when many otherwise-marriageable men end up in prison.
经济学家克尔温？查尔斯（KerwinCharles）和MingLuoh的研究发现，当许多本来到适婚年龄的男性最终入狱时，会出现类似的效应。At 20, Luyuan was getting too old still to be single in the countryside. In Shenzhen, she was considered too young for marriage.
放在乡下，20岁的李芦媛算是老姑娘了，但在深圳，她还太小，未到适婚年龄。As one nubile contestant on a dating show put it, "I'd rather be miserable sitting in a BMW than be happy riding a bicycle. "
就像某相亲节目中一个适婚女选手说的那样：“我宁愿坐在宝马车里哭，也不愿意坐在自行车上笑。”The poll showed that America's opinion about the best time to get married has shifted dramatically over the last 60 years.
这项调查显示，美国人对适婚年龄的看法，在过去60年有明显的改变。But you've forgotten that many years have passed since you've first achieved employment and you're getting to that marrying age.
但是你忘了你已经工作这么多年，快到适婚年龄了。She is one of several marriage consultants who help match ambitious young men and the marriageable daughters of business families.
千惠子伊达是为雄心勃勃的年轻男性与家族企业的适婚千金牵线搭桥的几个婚姻顾问中的一员。By 2020, 30 million or more Chinese men of marrying age might be unable to find a mate.
到2020年，有3000万适婚中国男性也许找不到配偶。Three quarters of all divorces today are initiated by women, and one third of all women of marriageable age are single.
如今，四分之三的离婚是由女性发起的，有三分之一达到适婚年龄的女性仍在保持单身。