A balladeer sang.

"The rising sun glows with bright red, and the climbing moon makes the world a land of silvery white/ Red peaches and white plums emulate each other in spring time/ Holding the hand of the bride, the groom's face flushes red with excitement."

At noon, accompanied by those words of the old ballad, sung by the person who would preside over the wedding ceremony, the American bride, Jin Ling, became the daughter-in-law of a Chinese family. Jin Ling, a student of Harvard University studying for her doctorate, had finally performed all the proper traditional Chinese marriage customs.

Wang Zhengdong, the 35-year-old groom, was admitted by Harvard University in the early 1990s, and in 1997, he received a master's degree in Biology. After graduation, he stayed in the United States and worked for an American company. In 2001, at a campus ball, he met a beautiful American girl, Jean Pesola, who was then studying for a doctorate at Harvard. Falling for her at first sight, Wang asked Pesola for a dance that marked the beginning of their romance. Soon, Pesola had an impressive Chinese name: Jin Ling.

At 11:30 am, the road leading into the village was already crowded with people, men and women, young and old. And everyone gazed in the direction of Jiuchi Town until their eyes were strained. Meanwhile, 200 meters away from the road, already more than 100 people had poured into the Wang family courtyard, which was decorated with lanterns and colored streamers. Wang Zhengdong, the groom, wearing traditional Chinese garments, a Tang suit, and a hat that went with the dress, was busy expressing his gratitude to his friends. And an old man who ranked the highest in Wang family seniority was doing preparatory work for the wedding ceremony.

At exactly noon, with one bridal car leading and two motorbikes clearing the way, the magnificent bridal sedan arrived at the small courtyard. With the deafening sound of gongs, drums and firecrackers, people did the yangge dance, a popular rural folk dance, to welcome the bride. After the sedan was put down at the front door, the bride, who was also in Tang dress, came out with a bridesmaid supporting her by the arm.

Before entering the courtyard, an elder member of the family had killed a rooster to congratulate the young couple and to wish them a happy marriage. Hand in hand and among the cheers of the village folks, the groom led the bride into the ancestral hall to pay their respects.

Following that, the couple made ceremonial obeisance: first they bowed to the groom's parents, then to each other. After that, they drank from the nuptial cup, an indispensable part of an old-fashioned marriage ceremony. Not familiar with the procedure, the foreign bride was a little bit awkward and made small mistakes from time to time. Every time this occurred, though, the considerate groom would lean closer to her, whispering something in English to put her at ease. Parents-in-law, relatives and friends all wore smiles, and showed consideration and tolerance.

As the complicated procedure came to an end, Wang was finally allowed to lift the bride's veil. Though her face was damp with sweat, Jin Ling wore a heartfelt smile of her own.

When Jin said, "I love you " to her husband, the people who had clustered around them burst into thunderous applause.

(China Pictorial November 5, 2004)