• She started collecting uneaten food from wedding banquets

• She began feeding the rescued stray cats

A young Chinese woman has been collecting clean, untouched leftovers from wedding banquets for the past three years, turning them into meals for stray cats at her home, while battling social anxiety that previously made speaking to strangers impossible.

Previously working part-time as a video editor, she began rescuing shivering stray cats in the winter of 2022, and over time her home transformed into a shelter housing over 120 cats.

Feeding them is costly; she estimates each kitten requires about 3 yuan (US$0.40) per day, pushing her daily expenses beyond 300 yuan (US$40).

Noticing large amounts of untouched food being discarded at banquets, she launched her “Leftover Rescue Plan” — collecting clean dishes from weddings and repurposing them into meals for the cats.

Approaching strangers was challenging, as she explained: “I’ve always struggled with social anxiety. Every time I open my mouth, it takes a lot of courage. But thinking of all the cats waiting at home pushed me to face the public.”

Most newlyweds responded positively, sometimes inviting her to join the celebrations.

She now attends wedding banquets roughly every ten days, and during busy periods can return home with up to 30 kilograms of uneaten food — including chicken, sea bass, and shrimp — which she carefully re-steams to reduce oil and salt before feeding the cats.