Not everyone is bound by it even now: in the countryside, parents are allowed to try for a second child if their first is a girl. Even so, it still causes severe bitterness, with many refusing to pay their fines and fighting bitterly against compulsory abortions. In the cities, a generation of lonely children has been burdened by the pressure of having to live up to their parents' expectations, and by the worry of eventually having to bear the financial burden of caring for them.