Mother and daughter finally reunite after abandoned by family for nearly 30 years
Marco
["china"]
The tearful reunion of a family which has been drawn apart for almost 30 years after experiencing the hardships of life.
Sina Photo

Sina Photo

Jin Sirong, daughter of a family from a remote poverty-stricken village in China's northwestern Shaanxi Province, was sold by her family in the 1970s. Her mother, Xiong Fenglan, was also expelled by other family members while trying to find her missing daughter.
Sina Photo

Sina Photo

The outcast Xiong made her way into Nanyang, in central Henan Province. Through her search for her daughter, she became homeless. She later met Chen Laiguai, who was also homeless. They grew closer and began to support each other during the hard times.
Sina Photo

Sina Photo

Over the years, Xiong faced many challenges. Some that brought her close to death. In one incident, she fell on the rail track and was nearly run over by a train, leading her to lose one of her legs. Without any proper IDs, the homeless couple were strangers to most of the villagers, so it took almost 30 years for local police to realize their existence.
Sina Photo

Sina Photo

They were found by local census workers, who had trouble communicating with them, later reported their misfortunes online. The local police from Ziyang County helped to locate her missing daughter, Jin, and arranged a video call for them. However, Xiong was unable to recognize her daughter through the video call.
Sina Photo

Sina Photo

On Thursday, Xiong was transferred to a local relief center, where she was finally reunited with her daughter, Jin, for the first time in years. Once seeing her in person, Xiong quickly recognized her daughter.