A special Valentine's Day reading was held in Xi'an, Northwest China's Shaanxi, on Feb 14, to express love for Shaanxi and Russian culture.

Chinese, English, Russian and French were used as the four languages in the recitation, which lasted for 5 1/2 hours. Through the readers' beautiful voices, quiet pictures were conjured, vivid characters painted, and legendary stories relayed.

The love expressed here was the love for Shaanxi culture and Russian literature, as well as literature in translation.

Chen Ruoxing, the author of Summer Flowers Autumn Leaves, shared her writing process with the audience. "It took me 10 years to write the book, and the book is based on Shaanxi culture," said Chen.

In the recitation of the works of Chen Xiaoying, the text expressed his love for Russia, and his optimism toward life could also be felt.

Shaanxi Aile Orchestra Quartet, shortlisted for the 2011 Chinese Music Golden Bell Award, played for the recitation. Cui Bingyuan, head of Shaanxi Aile Orchestra Quartet, played an impromptu piece on the piano.

Wang Ke, executive vice-chairman of the Translators Association of Shaanxi Province, regarded the recitation as a pioneering work. "Valentine's Day is not only for valentines anymore," said Wang.

According to Wang, this was the first time in the whole nation that poems and passages were recited in different languages with music. "It proves again that Shaanxi is a province with great culture," said Wang.