A survey run by Sootoo.com, a website monitoring the Chinese Internet industry, showed that about one fourth of 7,854 respondents said before the Spring Festival that they would use Weixin to send greetings this year.

However, paying a visit in person and SMS still ranked as the most popular options for New Year greetings, with both choices selected by 73 percent of respondents.

Although people have more ways to express their feelings thanks to development of technology, face-to-face communication is irreplaceable, said Zhong Xin, a professor of communications at Renmin University.

While some Chinese netizens are drafting "strategy guides" to cope with questions from difficult relatives, others are starting an online campaign pledging to leave cell phones behind during family reunion dinners.

"It is perhaps necessary for young people to cherish family ties, for they will have fewer and fewer relatives as time passes. Loneliness is harder to deal with than the bustle," Zhong said.

More young Chinese are nowadays working and settling down in cities far from home. Beijing had 7.7 million migrant residents as of the end of 2017, and many of them are the only children in their families.

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