Hunan singletons reenact "Qixi" legend

According the legend, mortal cowherd Niulang, fell in love with Zhinu a fairy weaving girl. Their love was forbidden and they were banished to different sides of the Milky Way. Magpies took pity on them and built a bridge they could cross once a year - on the seventh night of the seventh lunar month, known as the Qixi Festival. Many regard it as China's Valentine's Day. In Ningxiang, central China's Hunan Province, singletons echo the legend by holding an Ancient Costume Dating event where suitors dress as Niulang, to parade their best cow past prospective partners in the hope of finding their fairy partner. This year, Qixi festival falls on August 28. [Photo: Chinanews.com]

A herder's cow admires a woman dressed in an ancient costume in Ningxiang, Hunan Province, on August 27, 2017. [Photo: Chinanews.com]

A single man in ancient costume leads his cow past a line of women in Ningxiang, Hunan Province, on August 27, 2017. [Photo: Chinanews.com]

Girls dressed in ancient costume wait for the young men to parade over the bridge with their cows in Ningxiang, Hunan Province, on August 27, 2017. [Photo: Chinanews.com]

Two prospective partners meet each one another on the bridge in Ningxiang, Hunan Province, on August 27, 2017. [Photo: Chinanews.com]

Singletons in ancient costume take part in a "Red Thread" activity at the "Ancient Costume Dating" event in Ningxiang, Hunan Province, on August 27, 2017. The red thread is supposed to tie lovers together in a united destiny. [Photo: Chinanews.com]