After nearly two decades apart, Zuo Jing was reunited with her son, Sun Haoqiang, now 25, in Guiyang, Guizhou province, on 14/5. Their emotional reunion was made possible through DNA matching technology.
Sun Haoqiang vanished on 28/1/2007, at the age of three, while playing near his home in Guiyang. His mother, Zuo, believes he was kidnapped, stating, "My son was intelligent and active from a young age; he wouldn't have gotten lost or run away." The disappearance fractured the family, leading Zuo to divorce her husband six months into the search. For 19 years, she maintained their fruit stall and old house, explaining, "This was his home as a child. I feared he would return and not find me, so I had to stay."
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Sun Haoqiang embraces his mother Zuo Jing upon his return to Guiyang on 14/5. Photo: Jiang Long/Red Star News
The search gained momentum in 8/2013 when the volunteer organization "Baby come home," which assists families with missing children, guided Zuo to provide a blood sample for the national DNA database. In 2018, her ex-husband also submitted his blood sample, expanding the search.
In 2024, the national DNA database indicated a match between Zuo's and her ex-husband's DNA and that of a young man named Xiao living in Fujian. The verification stalled when Xiao became unreachable. However, in 3/2026, during the reunion of another lost child in Guiyang's Baiyun district, police brought up Xiao's case. They contacted volunteers in Fujian for assistance. After much persuasion, Xiao agreed to a retest on 11/4, and on 22/4, results confirmed his identity as Sun Haoqiang.
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Zuo Jing (left) welcomes her son home in Guiyang on 14/5, after 19 years apart. Photo: Jiang Long/Red Star News
Sun grew up in Fujian, learning he was adopted at age 10. Economic hardship and vague childhood memories prevented him from independently tracing his origins. He initially doubted the police notification, recalling only faint memories of his birth family selling fruit. With the support of his adoptive parents, he decided to travel to Guiyang to meet his mother, with plans to see his father later.
By Minh Phuong (Source: iFeng/ Red Star News)
