A 19-year old Chinese student caught the public's attention when she advertised herself on a Hangzhou subway selling her virginity for $29,000 USD (200,000 RMB) in a desperate measure to save her brother suffering from leukemia.

She turns out to be Xu Yanhua, a high school student from Quibei County in the province of Yunnan. She wrote her petition on a signboard which she held and wore on her neck as she stood along the subway station. The petition reads, "The treatment will cost more than 200,000 yuan. My family can't afford it. Which kind-hearted person can save my brother?"

It also says on the petition that her older brother, 23 years old, has been suffering from leukemia for the past three years and this is her last, desperate attempt as her family is extremely poor.

She also claimed that she has a hospital-issued and verified certificate that proves she is a virgin.

The petition adds that her family has spent all their money on her brother's bone marrow transplant which eventually proved to be unsuccessful. She ends her plea with providing her contact details, including her phone number and social media username.

To check the authenticity of the girl's claim, a Chinese reporter went to visit her brother at Zhejiang People's Hospital where he is currently admitted in the facility's ward.

The reporter confirms that Xu Yanhua's brother is very ill, and has been beset with other ailments due to his weak condition. All his fingernails were also falling off.

Apparently, no one in the family knew of the girl's desperate attempt to sell her virginity, and when the brother was informed of this by the reporter, he said that there is no need for her to do this. He already has put so much burden on his family, and all he wants is for his sister to go back to Yunnan to continue with her high school studies. The brother also saw his sister's attempt as "foolish."

Police authorities immediately invited Xu Yanhua to their station when they saw her with the disturbing signboard. The girl was given the chance to explain as to why she was selling her virginity, but the police told her it was illegal to do so.

Many netizens are shocked, and their opinions are divided when they learned of Xu's petition. Some have expressed sympathy, "The real cause is the flawed medical and social allowance system," while others find it appalling, "Attention-seeking behaviors like selling virginity are very indecent. Many people are also in a difficult situation. Why can't she think of other means?"