Love blossoms again where legend began

Qixi originated from a 2,000-year-old legend of two lovers, Niulang and Zhinyu, one a mortal cowherd and the other a weaver fairy. As their love was forbidden by the gods, the two lovers could only reunite once a year when a flock of magpies formed a bridge across the Milky Way that separated them. The festival falls on the seventh day of the seventh month on the Chinese calendar.

As the legend's place of origin, Yunxi is known as the center of Qixi culture, and the festival has been included in the national intangible cultural heritage list.