Chinese Woman Calls Off Engagement: "I'll Return the 40 Million Won Dowry, But Deduct 6 Million Won as a 'Hugging Fee'"

Custom of Groom's Family Paying Wedding Expenses to Bride's Family
Bride Price Ranges from 20 Million to 100 Million Won on Average

AI image for article understanding purposes only, unrelated to the content.

A woman from Henan Province, China, has sparked controversy by demanding to break off her engagement and return the bride price of approximately 40 million won (about 200,000 yuan) she received from her fianc?, while insisting on deducting about 6 million won (about 30,000 yuan) as a so-called "hugging fee."

On October 12, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported that a couple, who first met last year through a matchmaker and got engaged in January this year, had planned to hold their wedding in November but ended up breaking off the engagement. The story has gone viral online because the woman refused to return part of the bride price she received from the groom's family, claiming it as a "hugging fee." The incident was first reported by Henan TV and has attracted significant attention, recording 23 million views on Chinese social networking services.

In China, there is a traditional custom where the groom's family gives a bride price (caili, dowry) to the bride's family before the wedding. This is regarded as a token of gratitude for raising the bride. The bride price typically ranges from 100,000 yuan (about 20 million won) to as much as 500,000 yuan (about 100 million won). In rural areas, where there are fewer women than men, the financial burden on the groom's side is known to be even greater than in urban areas.

According to the SCMP report, the couple had already taken their wedding photos, and the groom's family had booked the wedding venue and sent out invitations to family, relatives, and friends. However, the bride recently called off the wedding, citing the groom's low income as the reason. The controversy arose when the woman agreed to return the bride price but insisted on deducting about 6 million won as a "hugging fee," claiming that there was a hugging scene during the wedding photo shoot. She stated, "There was no serious conflict, but I simply do not want to marry him," and argued that the 6 million won 'hugging fee' also covered personal expenses such as dating costs.

In China, there is a traditional custom where the groom's family gives a bride price (cai) to the bride's family before the wedding. This is regarded as a token of gratitude for raising the bride. The photo is not related to the specific content of the article. Pixabay

The matchmaker told local media, "In ten years, I have arranged 1,000 couples, but I have never encountered a family as demanding as this woman's. The hug during the photo shoot was at the photographer's request. Demanding a 'hugging fee' is morally unacceptable." Ultimately, both sides reportedly agreed that the woman would return about 34 million won (170,500 yuan) to the groom's family.

Meanwhile, cases where a marriage promise is broken and the bride price is not returned or only partially refunded often become problematic in China. Last year in Hunan Province, a man filed a lawsuit against a woman and her father after failing to recover a bride price of 230,000 yuan (about 46.3 million won). The court ordered the woman's family to return the money within 15 days, but when they failed to comply, the man sought help from the media. That same year, another case made headlines when a shameless father was reported for forcing his 16-year-old daughter into marriage to obtain the bride price.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.