China: expensive love...

"Zhai Mingxin, 29, from Yingkou in Liaoning Province, had an even more bitter experience.

Zhai was going to marry a local girl in November last year but had to call off the wedding after a dispute with her parents.

'Her parents charged me 100,000 yuan along with some gold jewelry, threatening that I could not marry their daughter if I failed to satisfy their requirements,' said Zhai. He told the Global Times that the usual amount in his area is 50,000 yuan.

'I don't care about the money, I just feel sick at the way they handled this matter. It made it seem as if they were selling their daughter,' said Zhai.

He added that he thought her family was trying to save money to pay for a future bride price for their son's wedding, as many families do."

Source:
"Growing bride prices land rural families with crippling debt"
http://www.globaltimes.cn/NEWS/tabid/99/ID/706327/Growing-bride-prices-land-rural-families-with-crippling-debt.aspx