Man gets engaged to pregnant girlfriend killed in accident

It was an engagement party like no other.

Instead of waiting for his would-be fiancee at the end of the aisle, 30-year-old Tsai walked over to the altar at her funeral in Changhua, Taiwan.

His girlfriend, surnamed Chen, was killed in a traffic accident on Aug 26, CTV News reported. She was five months pregnant.

When the 23-year-old didn't return home after work that day, Tsai traced her route and found her scooter lying by the roadside.

Shortly after his discovery, he received a call saying that she had died of serious head injuries. 

The couple dated for five years and had planned to get engaged after Hungry Ghost Festival, a period the Chinese deem to be inauspicious for engagements or weddings.

Tsai said that his girlfriend looked forward to starting a family with him, so he decided to fulfil his promise to marry her even after her death.

At the funeral parlour hung a large pink banner that read "We got engaged".

The usually sombre space was surrounded by standees displaying their bridal photos and was filled with heart-shaped balloons and pink roses.

As tearful family and friends bore witness to their union, Tsai placed a bouquet of flowers into her casket and slipped a gold ring onto her finger.

The boss of the funeral parlour told Apple Daily that he was touched by the man's deep love for his departed fiancee and did not impose extra charges for the decorations.

Tsai said that he will marry her a year after their engagement.

After her death, Tsai made several posts on his Facebook page in remembrance.

One post had a photo of the couple locked in an embrace with the accompanying caption: "Dear wife, I'm waiting for you to appear in my dreams."

In another post, Tsai described how he was not used to her absence. Chen's mother thanked him and said that her daughter had met a man who loved her.

minlee@sph.com.sg