With Qixi approaching, Chifeng is preparing a collective wedding that pairs the city's millennia-old Hongshan jade-dragon culture with orthodox Chinese wedding rites. The Chifeng Municipal Civil Affairs Bureau released its "Jade Dragon as Witness, Qixi Rendezvous" recruitment notice on August 3, inviting 50 newlywed couples from across the city to a free, fully subsidized Chinese-style group wedding on August 16, 2026, at Jade Dragon South Square in the city's new district.
The event is jointly hosted by the Chifeng Municipal Civil Affairs Bureau, the Municipal Women's Federation and the Municipal Federation of Trade Unions, and undertaken by the Chifeng Wedding Customs Service Industry Association. Its purpose is to carry forward fine traditional Chinese wedding customs while championing a simple and moderate approach to marriage. Chifeng is the hometown of the "First Dragon of China" — the Hongshan jade dragon — and the ceremony will be staged at the city's landmark Jade Dragon Square beneath the "Flying Dragon in the Sky" jade-dragon sculpture, weaving the auspicious symbolism of Hongshan dragon culture, orthodox Chinese wedding customs and the current campaign to reform outdated marriage conventions into a single public ceremony that shuns extravagance and comparison.
According to the Chifeng Converged Media Center, the event marks the third Chifeng Wedding Culture Carnival, held for 2026. The day's ritual sequence runs through seven stages. Ancient music opens the warm-up: ceremonial music and ritual attendants take their places while couples change into Chinese-style wedding robes and guests enter in an orderly flow. At the auspicious hour, music swells and the host declares the collective wedding officially open. In the grand entry, the 50 couples walk in one by one holding red silk ribbons as all guests bear witness. Then comes the three-bow rite in Chinese style: first bow to the sacred jade-dragon land in homage to the Hongshan lineage, second bow to the new age in praise of harmonious wedding customs, followed by the bride and groom bowing to each other and pledging a bond till white-haired years. Next is the shared-cup rite (合卺), in which couples drink from the joined wedding goblets in turn, reviving the Zhou-dynasty ritual that symbolizes sharing fortune and hardship. The lock-of-hearts stage follows, as couples fasten a heart-shaped padlock together and sign their names on custom wedding certificates, sealing a lifelong promise. The ceremony closes with a group photo that freezes the moment.
The entire event is a public welfare offering: for every couple, the organizers provide a full set of Chinese-style wedding attire, professional makeup and styling, all-day photography and video coverage, a custom wedding certificate, and ritual props including the heart-shaped padlock and the shared goblets, plus newlywed gift packs and jade-dragon cultural creative souvenirs. City and district officials will attend to witness the marriages and offer blessings, with the whole city invited to watch. The event also partners with local premium wedding brands, giving engaged couples on site discounts on bridal photography, extra retouching, wedding package price cuts and hotel banquet specials.
Registration is open to couples already legally married in the city who have not yet held a wedding, limited to 50 pairs — newlyweds from banner and county areas receive free accommodation and meals — and closes once slots fill. Employees of government bodies and state-owned enterprises can submit applications through their work-unit trade unions; other couples can consult and register at the Hongshan District Marriage Registration Center.
