READY TO GO: An employee with Shanghai YTO Express (Logistics) Co. Ltd. deals with piles of packages containing shoppers' online purchases on November 11, 2013 (LIANG XU)

In fact, in terms of strangeness, the aforementioned service pales in comparison with the following one: boyfriends for rent.

This service popped up in recent years, during the Spring Festival period when young people go back to their hometowns for family reunions. There is a common phenomenon of their parents, especially those in small towns and rural areas, frequently trying to talk them into getting married as soon as possible.

In the face of mounting pressure, some singletons go as far as to rent a boyfriend or a girlfriend to accompany them home in order to make their parents happy. Such "rent-a-date" services have been popular on Taobao.com during holiday seasons. A rental boyfriend can do the following: accompanying the girl to visit friends and families as well as go shopping, sharing meals with her and even giving her a kiss out of courtesy. The service is usually charged by the hour.

"I offer such a service only because I'm bored and know fewer female friends at work," said Xue Shuai from Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, who rented himself out as a boyfriend. At the time of the interview, Xue had offered himself for rent for two years, but had only had about six customers, with their ages ranging from 19 to 26. He accompanied them to meals, movies, or the seaside, charging 20 yuan ($3.22) per hour.

Gao Jianbing from Chengdu in southwest China's Sichuan Province opened a store on Taobao.com, offering similar services. He said that it was just a part-time job. "Customers just want to relax. It's a bit like psychological consultation and they like to pour out their hearts to strangers," Gao said.

Besides the above-mentioned services, there are many other strange items on shopping websites.

To give but one example, rebels in Syria announced they had shot down a drone operated by government forces in November last year. As soon as pictures of the drone appeared on the Internet, it was recognized as a product sold on Taobao.com by a Shenzhen-based Chinese company.

Another product that has become quite popular on Taobao.com is soap said to be made with breast milk by new mothers. One vendor explains on her page that she makes her soap with her own breast milk because her son cannot drink it all. "I used to pour it all down the drain, but it seemed such a waste," she writes. The soaps are gentle, so can be used by both adults and babies, the vendor says. She also claims that the soaps are not only good for deep-cleansing adult skin, but also effective against nappy rash on infants.

Mao with Analysys International said Chinese online sellers are always creative. "With innovative ideas and products, they can grab shoppers by the eyeballs and attract more people to the online shopping realm," she said.

Email us at: yinpuming@bjreview.com