Henan Tea Leaf Picking Job Requires Virgins with C-cup and Up

A job ad has become the talk of Xinyang town in Henan province, China. The ad said "West Jiuhua Mountain scenic spot is hiring full-time tea-leaf pickers. A prospective employee has to be a female with no sexual experience, has a bra cup size of C or up, and has no scar or wound visible on her body with a uniform."
Successful candidates will be given training and be paid 500 yuan (US$77) daily.

According to the job ad, tea-leaf pickers will be required to collect "mouth lip tea (kou chun cha)" during the harvest season. They must clean their mouths and bodies on time every day and work out often.

The post came under fire for its absurdity and vulgarity. 
In response to the buzz on the internet, the employer, the Xi Jiuhua Shan Scenic Area Development company's spokesman Li Yong confirmed, "It's true. It is to pass on traditions." The company said that on April 16, a tea culture festival was kicked off featuring 10 C-cup virgins chosen from all job candidates performing picking tea leaves.

He said the new workers would be in charge of, among the tasks, the "Virgin Lips Tea" performance at a tea festival to be held until to May 18.

The so-called "mouth lip tea" comes from a legend that tea leaves used to be picked by fairy maidens with their mouths. When boiling water is poured onto these tea leaves, fairy maidens will ascend amidst steam into the sky. Tea made from these leaves has refreshing aroma and taste and can even cure diseases.

It is also said that at the beginning of the last century, some Chinese tea sellers experimented with the idea of "tea in front of breasts." Virgins at the age of 16 were asked to start picking leaves in the middle of the night and put leaves into their clothes between their breasts. When they finished their work before sunrise, the leaves should have absorbed enough of the virgins' body scent, and could make great tea. This practice phased out even before it ever had the chance to become widespread.

Therefore, there has been no proof that the tea was actually picked that way by virgins in the past.

Many netizens think it is a cheeky publicity stunt that objectifies and disrespects females. Some even think the company has self-serving interests.