Her frequent clashes with her husband have also infuriated her mother-in-law, who is telling her husband to get a divorce. In fact, after a particularly fierce fight, he did suggest they end their marriage.
"Although he apologized later, saying he was in such a fury and didn't really mean it, what he said hurt me so much," Chao says.
Her situation is not unique. In fact, weekend couples are common in many major cities.
"Quite a lot of people around me are weekend couples or those who only see their spouses once every month," says a young woman working for an embassy in Beijing, who asked to be called Gai Fan.
Among her friends, there are several couples who live apart in different cities. Many more have to travel within China or abroad, and spend little time at home. All for work, Gai says.
Gai was like them, but she ended her "separation lifestyle" earlier this year. Previously, her husband was working in Tianjin and they could only meet in Beijing every weekend. She remembers those days as bittersweet.
"We could not see each other often, so we cherished every minute we were together," Gai recalls.
But there were undercurrents, too.
"Although we stayed in touch through phone calls most of the week, I still felt like a single woman.
Landmark building should respect the public's feeling
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