Tu Shiyou
Survey: How do you view a 38-year-old single female master's degree holder who built a chastity website?
Chutian Metropolis Daily News by reporter Zhang Jiguo and Zhou Xuru, text and images
"Without a romantic history, with a proper appearance, from the same university in Wuhan for both undergraduate and master’s degrees. For several decades, she has maintained her virginity, her integrity shakes heaven and earth, her character surpasses all others. Fame and fortune are like clouds floating before her eyes. She is sunny and happy, sharing her thoughts on maintaining chastity. Not seeking rapid promotion but demanding that her heart remains without guilt. To promote social trustworthiness, to let kind-hearted people eliminate the worry of being deceived..."
In a website named "Yapin Chastity Network," these few short sentences have become her resume. She is such a highly educated single woman, 38 years old, still remaining a virgin. Online, she goes by the name “Chastity Goddess,” and to prove herself, she even posted her virginity examination report from Tongji Hospital in Wuhan on Weibo.
She is a girl from Ezhou, currently living alone in Wuhan, earning a meager income as a freelance writer, yet obsessed with promoting her own beliefs. When the reporter interviewed her yesterday afternoon, she had just returned from a walk. The reporter asked if her real name could be mentioned in the report, and she replied decisively: Yes, my name is Tu Shiyou.
The female master’s degree holder calls herself the “Chastity Goddess” and posts her virginity examination on Weibo.
Tu Shiyou attended primary and junior high school in the urban area of Ezhou. In junior high, her grades always ranked among the top three in her grade. After graduating from junior high, she was admitted to a secondary normal school. At that time, for students with good academic performance, attending a vocational college was considered a pretty good choice. After graduating from the vocational college, she was assigned to teach at an elementary school in Ezhou.
Two years later, she resigned from the school and worked in publicity at an enterprise in Ezhou. Four years later, she took the entrance exam for Wuhan University and became a transfer student in the journalism department. Tu Shiyou told the reporter that after graduation, many classmates were assigned to various schools, falling in love, getting married, and having children. However, she devoted more of her energy to studying and obtained an associate degree through self-study exams. At the time, the country had a policy that socially young adults with an associate degree could become transfer students at Wuhan University after passing an exam. Two years later, they could obtain the same bachelor's degree as their peers. In 2001, she graduated from the Journalism Department of Wuhan University and subsequently passed the entrance exam for postgraduate studies at Wuhan University.
After obtaining her master’s degree, Tu Shiyou stayed in Wuhan and became a freelance writer, writing emotional articles for magazines or publishing reviews in newspapers.
“38 years have passed in the blink of an eye!” Tu Shiyou sighed. She told the reporter that it wasn’t that no one had pursued her. During her preparation for the graduate exam, there was a male classmate who reviewed with her and showed interest in her. However, at the time, she was too focused on studying and didn't put too much emotion into it. “Regarding feelings, everything should follow its natural course.” Tu Shiyou expressed her view on love.
About her virginity, Tu Shiyou became very concerned. When she told a female friend about her situation, the friend actually didn’t believe her. To prove her “innocence,” last December, she published her medical virginity examination report from Tongji Hospital in Wuhan on Weibo. On her Weibo account, Tu Shiyou’s online name is “Chastity Goddess.”
“In fact, before the examination, I endured immense psychological pressure,” said Tu Shiyou. Because vigorous exercise and other factors can also cause the hymen to rupture, she feared that if the test results came out negative, “I wouldn’t be able to clear my name even if I jumped into the Yellow River.” Therefore, for a year before the examination, she had this concern and consulted doctors about it.
Last December, when she went to Tongji Hospital in Wuhan and requested a gynecological doctor to perform a virginity check, the attending doctor was somewhat surprised. “Most people who undergo virginity checks are young girls. The doctor initially thought I was deliberately fooling her because of my age.” But eventually, the doctor examined her and issued a medical examination report stating that her hymen was intact.
Spent a thousand yuan to create a “Chastity Network” to persuade the world to preserve premarital chastity.
A naive 16-year-old girl becomes pregnant and cannot identify the father of the fetus, so five male classmates involved have to equally share the cost of the abortion; A high school freshman rapes and murders a young girl and is sentenced to life imprisonment; Sexual favoritism has become a norm in the entertainment industry, and female college students becoming mistresses make more and more righteous individuals tired of criticism and less sharp in their condemnation...
Two years ago, Tu Shiyou, who liked reading news, was deeply shocked by these negative social phenomena. She suddenly had an idea: to create a website to promote premarital chastity.
Tu Shiyou did not know much about the internet beforehand. Through inquiries, she learned that creating a website required a large sum of money, at least over 5000 yuan. For her, who relied on royalties to sustain her life, it was clearly difficult to come up with the money. Later, she found one of her online friends. Through the introduction of her online friend, she contacted a male web developer from Hangzhou and told him her idea. After chatting enthusiastically, the man charged her only 1000 yuan to create the website. After transferring 200 yuan, a few days later, the preliminary form of the website appeared. Last November, her website "Yapin Chastity Network" was finally completed. According to her, this is the first "Chastity Network" in the country.
When browsing, the reporter noticed that her website was very simple, but two red heart pictures were particularly eye-catching. Below the "red hearts", it was written with Tu Shiyou's purpose of founding the website: "Dedicated to advocating premarital chastity for teenagers under the age of 23." The content of the website mentioned issues related to chastity in many places.
Tu Shiyou believed that during the transformation period of society, some distorted values have already affected the sexual concepts of teenagers. She felt the necessity to create a website to tell teenagers that preserving chastity allows them to focus on pursuing their dreams and avoid the harm caused by inappropriate premarital sexual behavior.
At the same time, she also indicated that the awakening of teenagers' sexual awareness and the budding of emotions need parents and caring individuals to guide them with healthy values and social skills. The tragedies caused by teenagers' rash and chaotic sexual experiences are increasing. She wanted to use "Yapin Chastity Network" to share her thoughts on maintaining chastity, cultivate teenagers' healthy sexual concepts, curb the rampant spread of immoral sexual relationships, and purify social morals. "Actually, I am quite poor, and I haven't even fully paid the 1000 yuan for building the website!" Tu Shiyou said that the male who built her website supported her very much. He continued to help maintain her website and didn't mention asking for money again. For this, she felt somewhat guilty.
However, her website also raised doubts among many people. Some people don't understand her actions, thinking she should focus more on her work.
Tu Shiyou said that she is a normal woman who also hopes for a beautiful romance and a happy marriage. Previously, she had no time for romance, now everything will happen naturally. In the future, she will find a stable job but continue to run her website.
Bystanders say - Is it a regression in thought? Or a return to tradition?
How should we view Tu Shiyou's establishment of the "Chastity Network"? And how should we look at "premarital chastity"?
Yesterday, the reporter either on the streets of Ezhou and Huangshi or through the internet sought opinions from residents and netizens of Ezhou and Huangshi. Most people expressed confusion and doubt about Tu's actions, however, some people gave her a thumbs-up, agreeing with the idea of premarital chastity and showing respect for Tu's successful creation of the website.
A newly employed single male employee, Xiao Liu, shyly said that he had previously dated twice and failed to "remain unscathed". He stated that initiating "premarital chastity" doesn't make much sense, as "chastity" was an easy-to-follow traditional moral concept in ancient times due to the early age of marriage for both men and women. In today's era of late marriage, it might be harder to achieve, and premarital sex has become a current social reality. Xiao Liu was somewhat puzzled by Tu's creation of this website. "Whether or not to remain chaste is everyone's own decision, based on their subjective judgment, and it's none of anyone else's business," he said. "Safe premarital sex itself isn't outrageous or harmful, nor does it violate current social norms or laws." Married Ms. Chen also made such remarks. She believes that advocating chastity is unnecessary. Instead of instilling anti-sex abstinence ideas into teenagers, better education on preventing premarital pregnancies should be provided, promoting the idea that sexual activity is healthy, joyful, and normal human behavior, which represents progress in thought.
Netizen "Hundred Flavors of Life" logged onto Tu Shiyou's "Yapin Chastity Network" and after briefly browsing, expressed confusion about Tu's actions, saying, "I can't fathom Tu Shiyou's starting point."
However, unmarried Ms. Wang, aged 22, hearing about this, blushed and laughed, saying, "I'll give my first time to my husband." She indicated that maintaining chastity is a traditional virtue that has existed since ancient times. In today's increasingly complex and diversified social reality, it should be advocated even more.
Professor Shang Chaosheng from the School of Political Science and Public Administration at Wuhan University:
"Good intention, but lacks operability"
Dr. Pan Wei, the chief physician of gynecology at the Central Hospital of Huangshi, after learning about "Yapin Chastity Network," expressed that Tu Shiyou's behavior can only represent her personal subjective consciousness. However, from a physiological perspective, regardless of age, the existence of premarital chastity is reasonable and does not cause harm to physical health. Society should not overly judge this behavior.
"Thrilling! Thrilling! Interesting!" Upon hearing that Tu Shiyou specifically founded a website to advocate premarital chastity, Professor Shang Chaosheng from the School of Political Science and Public Administration at Wuhan University, known as a "social analyst" and one of the "four famous speakers" at Wuhan University, said this as his first reaction.
Professor Shang stated that founding such a website to call for chastity is feasible morally and legally, and the starting point and purpose are very good. She is striving to advocate a traditional virtue, promoting contemporary human sexual safety and health.
However, Professor Shang pointed out that sex is subjective, evaluated, and highly personalized. Chastity and sanctity are personal subjective judgments. Those who value "remaining pure" care about premarital chastity, but those who "think it doesn't matter" won't deliberately remain chaste. But the harsh social reality is that, from ancient times to now, sex has always been a form of transaction. In today's diversified society, Tu Shiyou's advocacy conflicts with social reality. Therefore, Tu Shiyou's establishment of a website calling for premarital chastity has a good starting point but lacks operability.
He also believed that "Yapin Chastity Network" can only be seen as a reflection of Tu Shiyou's personal experience and subjective judgment, representing her attitude and concept towards premarital sex. It is the product of elevating personal subjective association to a common human sexual concept or value system.