Men are actually pickier than women when it comes to finding a wife.

Because women tend to be emotional—if she gets married late, it might simply be because she hasn't found the right "feeling" yet—though what creates that feeling differs for each woman. For some it's thoughtful gestures, for others it's generosity, and for some it's even sexual attraction.

Men may be emotional when dating, they appear emotional when looking for a wife, but they're actually extremely rational—even somewhat serious about it. It's encoded at the genetic level: they're seeking the best candidate for passing on their genes.

So excellent men often view women with high intelligence, good health, high energy levels, and emotional stability as ideal spouses. These indicators typically manifest externally as: strong learning and communication skills, high energy, curvier figures, thick and dark hair, and easy smiles.

But if a woman is merely beautiful with excellent emotional value, while her "fundamental qualities" are lacking—for example, being frail and sickly, having a difficult temperament, being academically weak, having thin or dull hair, lacking color in her complexion, or relying on cosmetic surgery and heavy makeup—then she'll basically have little chance of being considered marriage material by excellent men.

So while men appear on the surface to be lustful creatures attracted to beauty, when it comes to choosing a wife, they're actually far more rational.

By contrast, women's standards are genuinely much lower. For instance, as long as a man is somewhat handsome, provides decent emotional value, and isn't in terrible financial shape, women are more likely to be moved—though admittedly just somewhat, because women are definitely far stricter when choosing a husband than when dating a boyfriend.