In Beijing’s Chaoyang district, 32-year-old ‘Peter’ Liu has created his vision of what an ideal millennial life in modern China should look like. He shares his 680-square-foot apartment with his girlfriend, who goes by Cecilia, and their energetic, bread-colored French bulldog named Sweet Potato. According to Liu, he earns “pretty decent” money selling insurance. With their dual income, they earn enough for their day-to-day life, a monthly stipend for his parents who live in northern China, vacations, and trips to their favorite luxury shop, Louis Vuitton.
“We feel it’s not necessary to have kids, so I guess we’re not traditional in that sense. Every time my parents call, we end up arguing. They keep asking when we’re going to give them grandchildren. But Cecilia and I are having a good life now without kids,” Liu told Fortune.
Yet Liu’s lifestyle is becoming commonplace in a country that has…
