The elderly couple who eloped in a forbidden romance decades ago retreated to the mountains, where the man spent 50 years carving over 6,000 stone steps on the cliffs for his wife’s convenience. Known as the "Love Stairway," the woman, Xu Chaoqing, recently passed away and was buried yesterday next to her husband Liu Guojiang. The local government plans to invest 2.6 billion yuan (RMB, same below) to develop the Love Stairway Scenic Area to boost local tourism.
In 1952, Xu Chaoqing was 26 years old and Liu Guojiang was 16. Xu’s husband had passed away, leaving behind four children. One day, Liu saved one of Xu’s sons from drowning, and their bond gradually grew. Their romance, considered taboo in the conservative village at the time, faced strong opposition.
The lovers are reunited in death.
In February 1956, 19-year-old Liu Guojiang eloped with 29-year-old Xu Chaoqing and their four children, retreating to a mountain over 1,500 meters high. They referred to each other as "the young man" and "the old lady." To ensure his wife’s safety while traveling, Liu spent half a century carving out more than 6,000 stone steps on the cliffs—creating what became known as the "Love Stairway."
This "Love Stairway" was discovered by hikers in 2001. At the time, the elderly couple still thought Mao Zedong was alive and asked the hikers, "How is Chairman Mao doing?" After their love story spread through these hikers, it was listed as one of China’s Top 10 Classic Love Stories in 2006 and was adapted into a film. The couple was also honored as one of the First Ten Most Touching Figures in Chongqing in 2006.
In 2007, "the young man" Liu Guojiang passed away. Five years later, on the evening of October 30 this year, 87-year-old "the old lady" Xu Chaoqing also died. Her children, following her wishes, buried her next to her husband’s grave—near the end point of the "Love Stairway"—reuniting them once again.
According to local media in Chongqing, leveraging the attention brought by the "Love Stairway," the area plans to use "love" as a theme to invest 2.6 billion yuan in developing a scenic area that includes the Love Stairway, aiming to promote tourism growth. A road leading to the Love Stairway, currently the only access, is under construction and is expected to open next year. Safety railings will be added around the Love Stairway site, the old house will be preserved as it is, and a memorial hall will be built to display the couple’s belongings.
Public and Media Give Grand Send-Off
However, the massive investment of 2.6 billion yuan has raised eyebrows. Netizens questioned whether the "Love Stairway" really needs such commercial packaging. "It’s this simple, unadorned love that moved us—it should be preserved in its original form." Excessive commercialization and turning the elderly couple's love story into a marketing tool is seen by many as a desecration of their genuine affection.
Yesterday was the day of Xu Chaoqing’s burial. Dozens of people traveled from across China to pay their respects, along with a large number of media outlets, turning this funeral in the remote mountains of Jiangjin, Chongqing, into the most talked-about event in the area’s history. A couple from Guilin, Guangxi, made a special trip. Together with several university students from Chongqing, they chose to hike into the mountains, trekking over ridges and through valleys for nine kilometers just to honor the elderly couple and bid them farewell.