Huang Zhongcheng, 40, from Hengyang, Hunan province, works as a construction worker in Guangdong. Orphaned at a young age, from a poor background, and focused on supporting his ailing mother, he had no dating experience.

His greatest desire was to find a wife, regardless of appearance, to settle down. Hearing about matchmakers, he immediately took leave, bringing all his savings back home to find a wife.

Zhongcheng faced an unfortunate outcome after being scammed into marrying a woman just four hours after meeting. *go.seoul.co.kr*

On the morning of 21/8, Huang went on a blind date. At the meeting point, besides the local matchmaker, eight other matchmakers were present to introduce him to a divorced woman with two children, working at a beauty salon.

Under pressure from the numerous matchmakers and the woman's initiative, they met in person and decided to register their marriage just four hours later.

"She insisted on completing the procedures that same day. Everything happened so fast that I was bewildered, as if it were a dream", Huang recalled signing the marriage certificate at 17h that day.

However, the "dream" quickly turned into a nightmare. Huang stated that apart from their wedding night at a hotel, there was no intimacy between them. In the following days, whenever he tried to show affection, his wife refused.

Just two days after the wedding, his wife urged Huang to return to Guangdong to earn money. From then on, she constantly made excuses to ask him for money. WeChat messages showed that on Qixi Festival, Huang transferred 1,314 yuan to his wife, a number symbolizing 'for life and eternity'. She received the money and replied briefly: "Thank you, husband". By 6/9, she messaged again, asking for 2,300 yuan to buy a computer for her daughter.

Eventually, Huang discovered that his entire life savings of 240,000 yuan (approximately 840 million dong) had been spent by his wife.

"We met on 21/8, and by 8/9, less than one month later, she had spent all my savings", the 40-year-old man said bitterly.

Currently, Huang has reported the incident to the police and hired a lawyer to sue for the return of his assets. The case caused a stir on Chinese social media, with many believing Huang fell into a well-orchestrated trap by the matchmakers and the bride.

"This is too high a price for naivety and haste. No one would entrust their entire life and assets to a stranger after only a few hours of conversation", a reader commented on 163.

Nhat Minh (According to 163.com/SCMP)