Pressures of marriage: Viral photo captures heart-wrenching moment of weeping husband with wife outside Hubei hospital

A weeping husband shaking his wife outside a hospital in Hubei province after the pressures of marriage become too much. The photo went viral on Chinese social media. His wife, who was pregnant, fainted as he was seen shaking her and shouting…

“What kind of marriage is this? Isn’t it better to be single? Are you stupid?”

It is unclear if he was scolding his wife or himself, but after uttering the words, he broke down in tears and collapsed on the ground.

An increasing number of young people are choosing to live alone rather than getting married. One of the main reasons behind this trend is the economic pressures faced by modern couples, such as rising housing costs and living expenses. At the same time, young people’s values are evolving, with greater importance placed on self-awareness and personal self-worth, as opposed to traditional ideas of marriage and family-building.

The couple in question had only recently got married, and the husband had taken his unwell wife to the hospital, where they discovered she was pregnant. What should have been happy news was marred by the problem of finances; the wife was unemployed and had no income, relying on her husband’s monthly salary of US$5,000, equivalent to approximately 25,000 baht. When the husband calculated their expenses going forward, he found himself overwhelmed.

The husband was particularly upset by the fact that his wife had recently bought an expensive cosmetic set for 3,800 yuan or around 19,000 baht, and called him for help when she ran out of money to pay for it. Under significant financial strain already, from mortgage payments and car loans, along with the 5,000 yuan monthly allowance he’d given to his wife, his finances were stretched to breaking point.

As his anger and despair grew, he considered divorce, but with a fresh marriage and their honeymoon phase in the eyes of others; he didn’t want to disappoint their parents by separating so soon. With no funds to support himself and fearing the loss of their unborn child, his only outlet seemed to be shaking his wife. However, this action led to yet more guilt, as he didn’t want to be the cause of any harm to the unborn baby. The mounting pressure weighed heavily on his heart, and he could no longer hold back his tears as he cried on the floor outside the hospital.

The couple’s troubling story raises concerns about the challenges faced by many married couples today when dealing with financial pressures, changing values and expectations. For some, these challenges can lead to the distressing decision to stay single, instead of trying to navigate the difficult waters of modern marriage.