The marriage customs in Yanchuan are basically the same as the traditional Chinese ones, that is, the man takes the initiative to propose marriage, then offers a gift and the marriage is completed. When a man and a woman reach the age of marriage, the man's family often selects a target in advance and asks someone to go to the woman's family to propose marriage. If the woman agrees initially, the man will ask for the woman's birth year and eight characters for "marriage matching", and some women also want to see the man's eight characters. "Marriage matching" is to ask a yin and yang master or a fortune teller to calculate the fate of the man and woman to see if there is any conflict or harm. If they are compatible, it is fine, because "when a man's family chooses a wife, it is important to look at the two stars of husband and son; when a woman's family chooses a husband, it is important to get a neutral atmosphere." At this time, the woman's family will go to the man's house to see the construction of the house, etc. After the marriage matching, it is "talking about etiquette", that is, engagement. When the engagement is made, the man's family is attended by the man's father and two matchmakers, and the things they bring include two chickens, two bottles of wine, four-color gifts, as well as gifts for the woman's family and gifts for the relatives. There are specific regulations for what to bring, such as two chickens, one male and one female, both of which must be tied with red ropes for their claws; the neck of the wine bottle must also be tied with a red rope to show joy. On the day of "Yanli", the woman's family must welcome the ancestors, set out meals, and invite the elders of the closest relatives to participate. Drinking is generally done during Yanli, so it is also called "drinking". After the man's parents and the matchmaker arrive at the woman's house, they must first offer four-color gifts and dried fruits to the tablets of the woman's ancestors, light candles, burn incense, and kowtow. Then sit down to drink tea, eat, and drink. There are particular rules for drinking at this time. The man must first offer the wine he brought to the woman's ancestors, and then kowtow and toast to the woman's elders in turn, indicating that they have become relatives. At this time, the younger generation of the woman's family will take out their own wine to toast the guests, which means getting to know relatives. After several rounds of drinking, the man asks the woman's parents and relatives to ask for a gift for his daughter. A few months before the wedding, the man's parents and the woman's parents will also "discuss" and discuss matters related to the marriage. Generally, the man asks the matchmaker to arrange a time with the woman's family in advance, and the man's parents and the matchmaker go together. The woman's family will be represented by her own relatives, brothers and sisters, etc. The man should first explain the dowry and clothes prepared for the newlyweds, and the woman's family can also add more dowry. After both parties reach an agreement on the dowry, they can officially decide on the time of marriage. Before marriage, the matchmaker should communicate many matters, such as the time of welcoming the bride, the number of "take and send" (the man's female relatives who welcome the bride and the woman's female relatives who send the bride) and their clothes, etc. The man's family going to welcome the bride is called "take the bride", and there is an elder, a matchmaker, a "take and send", and someone who carries furniture, but it must be an odd number. There is also a sedan chair and an animal carrying "big steamed buns". The big steamed buns are prepared by the man's family for the woman's family. There are a total of twelve, two of which must be decorated with flowers, and the woman must return them to the man at that time. There is no regulation on the number of people from the bride's family who will escort the bride, as long as it is an even number, but there must be a female family member to "take and send" and a little boy to "carry the sedan chair". The day before the wedding, the man must send all the furniture to the bride's house, and also send a set of "Zhangshu" and "Shuyi". Zhangshu means engagement or marriage certificate, and Shuyi is the props and clothes for the village to perform community fire, which the bride wears to ward off evil spirits. The bride's family must choose two women to accompany the bride, "break the face" for her, close them with a thread, cut off the fluff on the bride's face, comb her hair before dawn and wait for the bride to come. When the man welcomes the bride, he must offer four-color gifts and big steamed buns to the bride's ancestors, light candles, burn incense, and kowtow. The bride's family entertains the people who welcome the bride, the bride starts to get up, and the person carrying the box starts to carry the luggage. At this time, the child of the bride's family will hold the box tightly, which is called "pressing the box". The person in charge of the man's family must give the child money before letting go. The bride cannot walk out of the house directly. She must be carried out by her brother and put into the sedan chair. The bride's family must pay the sedan bearer money before the sedan chair is lifted, which is called "lifting money". When arriving at the door of the groom's house, the sedan bearer stops the sedan and the groom gives "resting money". There is a boy in the bride's family guarding the sedan door and not letting the bride get off the sedan. The groom must give money to the "seated bearer" before he can help the bride get off the sedan. After the bride gets off the sedan, she holds the "treasure bottle" in her hand and is supported by two bridesmaids. She must worship heaven and earth first. There is a guest host, an incense table, incense and candles are placed on the table, and there is a wooden bucket. The bucket is filled with grain, and a scale, a mirror, and a pair of women's shoes are inserted. These things are very useful in the bridal chamber. It is said that the scale in the bucket means fairness, the mirror is a "magic mirror", and the women's shoes restrict the bride from walking around. When worshiping heaven and earth, the bride wears a veil, and the groom wears a long gown and a small melon-shaped hat. Those who have achieved fame wear a "top". Under the guidance of the guest, the newlyweds kowtowed three times to heaven and earth, and the guest scattered the food on the incense table around, and that was the end. The groom walked forward with a bucket in his arms, and the bridesmaid helped the bride walk to the kang in the bridal chamber. During the banquet, the groom's family had to pay money to "redeem the key" because the key to the bride's box was held by the child from the bride's family who was accompanying the bride. After the bride's escort left, the groom used a rolling pin to "lift the veil" for the bride. After the veil was lifted, the bridesmaid combed the bride's hair, changing the girl's headdress to that of a young woman. At dusk, the young people began to make trouble in the bridal chamber and tease the bride. After the fun, a middle-aged or elderly man who was still alive and had children from both the couple should be selected to "sweep the kang" for the newlyweds. When sweeping the kang, put a few walnuts and dates on the kang, sweep back and forth with a new broom, and chant: "Two walnuts and two dates, babies will run all over the kang." When the newlyweds fell asleep, there was a long-burning lamp to illuminate. Legend has it that on the wedding night, ghosts often disguised as poisonous insects hide in the bridal chamber to cause trouble, so a magic mirror and a long-burning lamp must be prepared, and the lamp must be lit for three days and three nights and cannot be extinguished. After the bride and groom fall asleep, the young people of the family must eavesdrop on their whispers, which is called "listening to the wall". If no one listens, a broom is placed under the window or at the door to prevent someone from eavesdropping. On the third day of the wedding, the bride gets off the kang and greets the man's parents, formally calling them "Dad" and "Mom". On this day, the bride's family will come to "visit for three days" and bring the clothes that the bride usually wears. Similarly, the man's relatives and neighbors also come to celebrate, and the bride will symbolically roll some noodles for everyone, which is called "trying noodles". Relatives and friends judge the bride's cooking skills based on this. The "Bride's Mother's Lyrics" by Wang Jian, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, "Three days in the kitchen, washing hands and making soup" reflects this custom. The bride has to go back to her parents' home once after staying in her husband's home for ten days or one month. If she returns after ten days, it is called "turning ten days" and she must stay in her parents' home for ten days. If one returns to her parents' home once a month, it is called "breaking the rules" and she must stay there for one month.