Angelababy & Huang Xiaoming tie the knot in wedding of the year

Huang Xiaoming and Angelababy have officially tied the knot after dating for six years.

The highly-anticipated celebration, said to be China entertainment's wedding of the year, took place at the Shanghai Exhibition Centre on Thursday, Oct 8.

According to reports, the grand affair included an entourage of more than 10 sports cars which were parked outside the venue, including two Ferarris and a black Rolls Royce.

Dressed in the traditional Chinese tea ceremony outfit, the pair held their tea ceremony at about 12pm at Shanghai's luxurious Portman Ritz Carlton hotel. Their arrival triggered a flurry of excitement amongst the awaiting group of media and fans.

After the ceremony, the pair adjourned to the exhibition centre to prepare for the dinner. According to reports, the hall resembled a large movie set, transporting guests into a romantic fairytale garden setting.

The venue, awash in pink and purple tones, was decorated with fresh blooms and fairy lights to add to the romantic ambience.

As the ceremony got underway, a line of bridesmaids and groomsmen, including actresses Li Bingbing, Ni Ni and Chinese pianist Li Yundi walked down the aisle, accompanied by music sung by a children's choir.

They were followed by the appearance of the groom in his dapper suit, assuming the role of "Prince Charming" in awaiting his bride.

Angelababy, dressed in a resplendent white gown with laced sleeves and a cut-out back detail, walked down the aisle and was given away by her father. Reports added that it was an emotional moment as Huang lifted her veil and the pair shared a teary embrace and a kiss.

Huang had previously shared that the dinner would have 50 tables of guests. However, sources reported that there were close to 72 tables at the wedding, with a total of 2,000 guests including media and crew.

There were also reportedly more than 200 security personnel employed, including four safe deposit boxes to transport red packets from the guests.

The "Oscar-worthy" celebrity guest list included Ruby Lin, Lin Chi-ling, Sammo Hung, Vicky Zhao Wei, Han Hong and other big names in Chinese entertainment.

Actress Fan Bingbing was a no-show, but delivered her well-wishes on her Weibo account, promising the couple a "large red packet". She also expressed her wish to be the god-mother of their future child.

Also notably absent was Alibaba founder Jack Ma, who was widely-speculated to be a guest and also a witness at the ceremony. According to Ifeng Entertainment, Ma did not turn up but appeared on a pre-recorded video segment to congratulate the couple.

candicec@sph.com.sg

According to Asian E-News Portal, before the wedding, the media got a oppportunity to ask the high-profile couple some questions.

The interview is as follows:

Q: It was rumoured that you spent a lot of money to marry Angelababy and gave 38.38 million yuan (S$8.48 million) to her parents as the bridal price. Please explain this to us.

Huang: Nope. In my heart, Angelababy is priceless and cannot be measured by money. The earlier rumour is fake and groundless.

Q: The wedding theme in the Shanghai Exhibition Centre is decorated to resemble a fairy tale and you must have spent lots of money. Please do a simple introduction to the media and friends.

Huang: It is not that much really. In fact, Angelababy's and my friends "gave us face" with lots of support and help. This included the cars, red wine, wedding gifts for the guests and others. This also includes brands that are endorsed by me. Hence, the support made the wedding a success.

Q: Any plans for the honeymoon?

Huang: I wish to but we don't have enough time unfortunately, as we need to resume working thereafter. In fact, we treat it as a honeymoon whenever we travel together. To us, staying at home and living a simple life is the best honeymoon.

Q: Everybody is concerned about Angelababy and your birth plan. When do both of you plan to proceed?

Huang: We will not fix a time frame and will let nature take its course. We believe it will come when the time is right.

Q: We understand that Angelababy and yourself are big on charities, were there any special preparations during the wedding?

Huang: Yes. Firstly, the wedding biscuits were made by the handicapped and I believe many media friends have received it. I heard that the response is not bad and many found them quite delicious. Hence, we hope to use this opportunity to urge the public to render assistance to the needy. Also, there are many nice wedding decorations in the hall and these flowers along with 10,000 trees will be donated to a charity foundation after the wedding banquet. While nice to look at, we also hope they will improve their environment. Lastly, we have prepared a little surprise during the wedding and hope to share it together with the media and friends.