Woman's Corpse Dug Up, Sold By Family As 'Ghost Bride'

In a bizarre incident, a woman's body was dug up and her corpse was sold as a "ghost bride" in China.

The family of the woman, who died 12 years ago, performed the betrothal ritual in Hebei Province and moved her corpse to new husband's grave.

Kang Cuicui had killed herself in 2008 after she had an argument with her husband, Li Zhong, Sputnik News reported. The man's family had reportedly spent $15,000 for her funeral ceremony at the time.

Li and his family recently noticed Kang's corpse and the gold jewelry she had been wearing at the time of burial had been stolen.

Li's family reported the incident to the local police, and an investigation was launched to find the missing corpse and the jewelry. Initial probe showed Kang's parents dug up the grave and sold her dead body for nearly $12,000 (80,000 yuan) to another family that had lost their unmarried son in a car accident and wanted to perform the age-old ritual of Yin Hun, or a "ghost marriage."

The "ghost marriage" reportedly took place on Nov. 23 and Kang's body was buried in the same pit as the man whose family purchased the corpse.

According to ancient Chinese traditions, the "ghost marriage" ensures two dead people are not alone in the afterlife and their union brings good luck to the future generations. Many believe if a body is buried alone, the sole grave brings bad luck to the family.

"You moved your family graves and left my daughter's grave there," Kang's mother had reportedly told Li during her daughter's burial. "If I can't move her grave, I have to get her out of there. I can't let her be a lonely ghost in the wild," the World of Buzz reported.

According to a local match-maker, who specializes in "ghost marriages," if a young woman without children is buried alone, her corpse is considered "popular in the market," the news outlet reported.

The identity of the other family that was involved in the "ghost marriage" has not been revealed.