Rival media draw a blank probing report of lavish Maanshan wedding
Rich mother-in-law's gift was reported to have caused dramatic scenes at banquet. But was the Maanshan wedding just a myth?
The Jinling Evening News reported on October 3 about a lavish wedding banquet held at a large hotel in the city of Maanshan in Anhui the day before.
The bride, 25, came from a family that had struck it rich in the mining business, it said. The bridegroom, also 25, hailed from a family with modest means.
The mother-in-law took out a key and handed it to the bridegroom. Guests assumed it unlocked a new home in Maanshan, where apartments can cost as much as one million yuan (HK$1.26 million).
"I heard from my daughter that you like cars," she reportedly said. Her gift was a Bentley Continental, which sells for more than four million yuan.
The bridegroom was on the verge of tears as he took the key, and when other guests told him how much the car was worth, he dropped to his knees in front of the woman's mother, swearing he would not betray her daughter as long as he lived.
The report was picked up by the mainland's major internet portals. The bridegroom was criticised for bowing to the rich, while the in-laws were blamed for showing off their wealth. A second report said that after witnessing the event, a friend of the bridegroom stood up and praised the in-laws' generosity. Perhaps drunk, he then lambasted his own parents, who were sitting beside him.
He berated them for being poor, saying he never had any pocket money when he was growing up. He said he had gone on many dates but they had never blossomed into romance.