Man Drives 932km With Proposal Banner, Strangers Help Him

When Tan decided to propose to his girlfriend during China's busiest travel season, he knew he needed help from thousands of strangers to make it happen.

The 26-year-old businessman faced a 932-kilometer journey from Fujian province to Guizhou in southwestern China, right in the middle of chunyun, the Spring Festival travel rush. An estimated 9 billion trips happen during this period each year, making it the largest human migration on Earth.

Tan placed a bright red banner in his rear car window with a simple message: "Brothers, let me go first. I am heading to Guizhou to propose to the love of my life." He hoped fellow travelers might understand his mission and give him a little space on the jam-packed highways.

The response surprised him. Drivers honked and waved as they passed. During one particularly long traffic jam, a woman even got out of her car to congratulate him and wish him luck.

"At first, the journey felt endless," Tan told Jiangxi TV. "But the closer I got, the more excited I became. The kindness I received made my happiness even greater."

Videos of his banner spread across Chinese social media while he was still driving. Motorists shared clips of spotting the lovesick traveler on the highway, cheering him on from hundreds of miles away.

His girlfriend of four years, whom he met in university, had no idea what was coming. When Tan finally arrived in Guizhou and got down on one knee, she was completely shocked. She said yes.

Sunny's Take

In a country where 9 billion trips create seemingly endless gridlock, thousands of people chose to slow down for one man's love story. They honked their support, moved aside when they could, and turned a stressful journey into a celebration on wheels.

The couple returned to Jiangxi province together on February 26 as an engaged pair, their story already viewed more than 2 million times online.

One commenter joked that after so many drivers helped Tan reach his destination, he better treat his new fiancée right. Something tells us he will.