Editor's Note:

Are you up on what the hundreds of millions of Chinese netizens are talking about? Take a moment and get the rundown of what's hot, what's trending, and what's drawing the most buzz on the Chinese blogosphere.

Young couple drowns over 200k-yuan dowry

A young couple found dead in a river was under pressure from family to pay up a hefty wedding dowry or break up, local media reported Tuesday.

Police in Meishan, Sichuan Province have ruled out homicide and confirmed both victims were under 25 years old and had died of drowning.

Witness Song Tonghe, who lives 200 meters from the river, was the first to spot the bodies on Tuesday. "Their bodies were floating on the water face down," Song said.

Local villagers told media the couple drowned themselves because the bride's parents requested a 200,000-yuan ($32,220) cash gift that the groom's family could not afford.

The father of the deceased man, surnamed Chen, said the bride-to-be's family required they buy a house for the couple.

The deceased woman's mother dismissed the claim without providing further explanation, read the report. 

The tragedy stirred discussions on social media.

"Life is too precious to waste. Leaving their parents like this shows their selfishness," Net user "qiangzi" wrote.

Some decried the dowry tradition still practiced in many parts of China.

"A house cost two young lives, and it was all over money. This is something for everyone in society to reflect on," Sina Weibo user "shirenjiang" wrote.