Another love lockdown: Couple stuck in quarantine after first date get engaged
Taking love lockdown to a whole new level.
Remember that Chinese couple who caught themselves stuck in lockdown while on a blind date? Well, a new story has emerged with a similar theme, but with a much happier ending.
28-year-old Zhao Xiaoqing from northern China's Shaanxi province thought her first date with a man named Zhao Fei would be a simple affair, but the surge of COVID-19 cases in the area made the two closer than expected.
During her first visit to meet Zhao Fei and his parents, the area was put into sudden lockdown and Zhao Xiaoqing had no choice but to stay put.
"I never thought about staying the night, because it's pretty awkward," Zhao Xiaoqing told Chinese media Jimu News. She also initially thought that Zhao Fei was not her type when she saw his photo through her parents.
After being in lockdown together for a week, the man's parents urged the pair to get engaged, but she felt it was "too rushed."
Like Xiaoqing, many young Chinese in smaller cities and rural communities rely on loved ones to introduce potential matches, so they can also meet their date's family at the same time.
After the awkward start and unexpected isolation together, the pair began to develop feelings for each other and eventually decided to get engaged.
"We get along very well," Xiaoqing. "I have to sell apples on livestream at his house, but no matter how late it is he's always by my side. I'm very touched by this."
"Our souls are compatible, we get along very well, and both our parents are happy."
During an apple-selling livestream, Xiaoqing also shared: "I found love during the quarantine. This is the biggest gift I had in 2021."
Xiaoqing's story went viral on social media just a few days after another pair made headlines for being trapped on a week-long blind date in the central province of Henan.
A Chinese woman with the surname Wang relayed on the Chinese social media site WeChat in early January that she got stuck in her date's house, but sparks did not fly for this particular couple.
"Besides the fact that he's as mute as a wooden mannequin, everything else (about him) is pretty good. Despite his food being mediocre, he's still willing to cook, which I think is great," Wang had shared with Shanghai-based newspaper, The Paper. (With reports from AFP)