The story of a woman in China who called the police after discovering her new husband had only married her for her two cows has gone viral on mainland social media.
The woman, identified as Hongjuan, from Heilongjiang province in northeastern China, where she owns farmland, contacted police upon becoming aware that her husband, surnamed Dacheng, was penniless and had conned her into marrying him, Star Video reported.
Hongjuan met Dacheng online and soon fell in love with him, believing his claim that he was independently wealthy with his own company, three properties and savings of 1.1mil yuan (US$160,000).
Around 20 days after meeting online and going on a single date, the pair married. On their wedding day, Dacheng convinced Hongjuan to sell her two cows to pay for a better life in the city. Hongjuan agreed and sold her cows for 17,000 yuan (US$2,500). The report did not mention where the city was.
However, Hongjuan quickly realised the new life she was looking forward to in the city was a fantasy after she learned that the property Dacheng had “bought” her was a daily rental flat.
She also realised something was wrong when Dacheng never went to work and was clearly addicted to buying lottery tickets, which he had already spent the cow money on.
After the cash had run out Dacheng told her to return to her rural home alone for Lunar New Year in January, saying he had to go on a business trip and left her in the city alone.
Despite all that had happened, Hongjuan still trusted her new husband. But with no money left, she asked Dacheng to help pay for the trip. She then discovered he had changed his phone number, deleted his social media accounts and vanished.
Even after this deception, she still could not believe she had been taken for a ride by her husband until the bank confirmed that their joint account did not have 1.1mil yuan in deposits and was empty.
Finally, she called the police, who soon caught up with Dacheng.
“I married her for her cows. When I noticed that she did not have more money, I left her,” he confessed during questioning.
Dacheng was arrested and the case is now under investigation.
The sensational details of the story have trended on mainland social media after coming to light earlier this month.
One person commented: “It proves that truth is stranger than fiction.”
Another person said: “Is their marriage certificate fake too? If so, it would be good for them.”
Sensational and shocking marriage stories are common viral content on mainland social media. Earlier this month, a woman in southeastern China who was divorcing her husband after he refused to sell their home to pay for life-saving treatment for their critically ill 22-year-old son trended online.
In January, a 20-year-old woman in southeastern China went viral on mainland social media after a dramatic breakdown at her wedding, admitting she was not in love and only married to satisfy her parents. – South China Morning Post
