14 DAY TRIAL // A Chinese woman by the name Xiang Junfeng has been wearing a wedding dress every day for the last ten years to celebrate happiness, after living for 15 years in captivity.
The 47-year-old woman from Jimo, in the Shandong province of China, was kidnapped at the age of 18, sold in a remote village and forced to marry an older man, who used her as a slave to work the fields.
But Xiang eventually managed to escape captivity and find true love. She ran to Liujiazhuang village in Jimo, where she received help from a kind local woman, who later became her sister-in-law.
According to Daily Mail, Xiang was introduced to the woman’s brother, Zhu Zhengliang, and the two fell in love with each other and married in 2004.
After 15 years of being treated more like a prisoner than like a wife, Xiang needed some time to rehabilitate and accommodate to everyday life, but she says her new husband is very supportive and treats her well, so her life has changed significantly since she regained her freedom.
As for her decision to permanently wear a wedding dress, the woman explains that it reminds her of the day she got married and makes her happy.
“My wedding day was the happiest day of my life and I never wanted it to end, and that was when I decided I wanted to keep wearing my wedding dress,” Xiang said.
Mrs. Junfeng now has four wedding dresses – one for each season – and says she bought one of the dresses and made the other three herself. Due to her habit of wearing her wedding gowns all year round, Xiang has been dubbed “sister wedding gowns” by locals.
Given that she doesn't even have other clothes, the woman wears her wedding dresses both when she is at home or outside, doing farm work, ignoring the neighbors who regard her as a freak because of her obsession. But the only thing that matters to her is her husband's opinion, and since he doesn't seem bothered by her bizarre habit, she keeps wearing her gowns.
“I don’t care what people say about me. My wedding dresses are part of my life and I will continue to wear them regardless,” she said.
However, there is one thing that upsets the “permanent bride” – the fact that her marriage cannot be officially registered, as her papers were lost after being kidnapped. But local police said it is willing to help Xiang become registered, so this situation could also be solved soon.